Bersa thunder 380 opinions

I own the Thunder 380 and the Thunder .22,,,

I'll admit the recoil on the .380 is snappy,,,
But not so bad as to make me want to sell them.

My friend also owns one,,,
She put this Pachmayer sleeve on hers,,,
I've fired it and having that slight swell fill your palm does make a big difference.

Aarond

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My favorite is the 15 round doublestack. The single stacks are too large for the lower capacity and lower power compared to larger service calibers. They're carryable, but not ideal and if I'm gonna have a pistol that size I'd prefer it be a .32 for the reduced recoil, be it .32 ACP or .32 NAA.

Wish Bersa would make some .32's...

[QUOTE="TTv2, post: 11688706, member: 239307"

Wish Bersa would make some .32's...[/QUOTE]
They did make some .32’s a few years ago. Search hard and you may find one.

aarondhgraham said:

I own the Thunder 380 and the Thunder .22,,,
View attachment 952212

My friend also owns one,,,
She put this Pachmayer sleeve on hers,,,
I've fired it and having that slight swell fill your palm does make a big difference.

Click to expand...

Did she put them on over the stock grips, or instead of...

TTv2 said:

Wish Bersa would make some .32's...

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They do, but due to low sales they stopped importing them several years ago. A real shame.

Gratuitous BT380 picture. Factory or mecgar mags, never a failure.

I just acquired a Bersa Firestorm today.. it has more of a utility style rubber grip with finger grooves. The overall heft and heavier slide leaves me to believe it won't be as snappy as my wife's Kimber Micro. Hoping to get some range time with it tomorrow.

I have several firearms but in my opinion I believe the Bersa Thunder series to be the best bang for the buck in small frame autoloaders.

My wife and her sister and my nephew all have Thunder.380’s and my brother the CC model. All gifts from me over the years. When I gifted my just married nephew the two tone model this past June I figured I would just pick up another at my LGS. We all know how that worked out. Nary a one to be had at my LGS or on line.

My wife still has hers on her nightstand next to her bible and I have a .22 LR model in the safe. I don’t believe I paid more than $275 for a Thunder and that was for the two tone model. The way things are these days I doubt we will see those type of prices again or at all.

Mosin Bubba said:

The beavertail on it stings the hell out of my hand. I don't shoot it much because there's too many other fun handguns I own that don't hurt to shoot.

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That is one reason I sold mine. I had to put a rubber cushion underneath the beavertail to keep it away from my knuckle. I also found the slide's metal is soft, clearly a cast slide and my Thunder 380 had issue missed the trigger reset in DA, an issue reported by several owners at the time due to burrs on the stamped transfer bar, filed the edge a bit and fixed. It is an accurate little gun while fixed barrel, but the snappy recoil is annoying, plus the beavertail beating on my thumb's first knuckle, bled after firing 30 rnds or so. I sold it and keep my Makarov to play James Bond. Not sure about magazine price today, OE mag was very expensive!

IMO - the BT380 hit the sweet spot of the inexpensive semi-auto (buying new). The balance between pro/con is in the buyer's favor.

The cons are: Soft metal, thin finish, mim parts, blowback action (harsh recoil), expensive factory mags and modest round count for size and weight, and too many disablement features.

The pros are: Very reliable, very accurate (blowback fixed barrel), inexpensive, good shooting/trigger, parts, grips and holsters aplenty. Oh, the barrel length gives the 380 what it needs - more velocity compared to pocket 380s (900+ FPS Fiocchi XTP chronographed).

Factory(7) and Mecgar(8) mags, they are reliable. Do not be tempted by promag.

Promag Bersa 380 mag is actually patterned off an earlier Bersa 380 which has different details at the front metal, it can be modified by cutting the metal to the pattern of OE mag. I did on 2 Promags and both worked fine. It has been many years, I can't say if still apply.

H&R Glock said:

Black Friday $220 sale price was right for this cool looking 380. Never had a problem. Maybe my reloads are more gentle than factory loads, so no complaint of excessive recoil. Mine is all black. No need for chrome bumper bolts or high speed floor mats. Simple gets the job done.

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I went through 3, count 'em, 3 Ruger LCPs. Ruger finally gave up and offered me an upgrade to an LC9. I was reloading to the middle of Hornady specs. Same rounds that I NEVER had a problem with in my Bersa.

PWC said:

Did she put them on over the stock grips, or instead of...

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It's a rubber-ish sleeve that goes over stock grips.

Aarond

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If a Bersa 380 is hurting your hand...You won't be shooting my DW 357 with 38 specials for a few years... my itsy bity little wife blows the center out of the target at 25 yards so much I'm thinking about reloading the 380...man up

Right outside edge of the back of the trigger guard on my Firestorm Duotone hurt my middle finger so I stoned it to break the edge. I still feel it, but it isn't incomfortable.

Nice pair of pistols.

I compared the Bersa 83a 380 acp with a with the Makarov pm in 9x18, they fared much the same. the difference for me is the safety throw up with bersa and down with the Mak. this could be a big deal for someone used to a 1911 platform but a plus for someone used to a Walther.

JERRY said:

I've owned two Bersa .380s over the years, each was a Gem worth more than what they sold for. The recoil of a blowback .380 is ridiculously more than it should be.

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I guess recoil is subjective, but personally could never find the recoil of the Bersa to be anything but super gentle. I mean a gun that weighs about 20 oz. in 380. cal and a recoil rating of only 2.6 compared to say a Sig 365 with about 6.9lbs to be very very low and mild.
I shoot the Beretta Pico which is about 11oz and blowback and it feels like a 22.magnum. MILD.

I do not own the Bersa, but have shot many. All the owners loved them and totally reliable. I do have a Bersa in 22.cal and love the feel in my hand. I would love to see the same design in 9mm.

defjon said:

Maybe it's hand shape but a bersa will bruise that zone. Tried a lower hold, a little better.

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I hear you on the gun just being a bad fit. Something about the way Glocks are shaped that they fatigue my hands to the point of becoming inaccurate. I've shot a G19 back to back with a S&W 500 and got more rounds out of the 500 before it was too painful to even pretend I was using good form. Just why it is great we have so many choices for quality guns.

defjon said:

Well, I don't know what to tell you. A bersa thunder leaves the web of my hand between thumb and pointer finger hurting pretty quick.

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I've never shot the original Thunder 380, but I have the CC model and have no such problem. Maybe I don't have the world's most feeble hands, but I'm no toughie. I work in a lab handling only plastic tools that weigh about a quarter of a pound. The first day I had it, I shot 91 rounds and noticed no discomfort.

The CC has several differences from the original: slightly shorter barrel and slide, VERY small sights, holds one more round in the magazine, and has a differently shaped frame, with finger grooves and more curvature in the backstrap. I suspect that last feature is the key. It nestles right into my palm, which I believe spreads the recoil out over the whole hand.

Despite the ludicrously small sights, in a well-lighted range, I was able to shoot it somewhat accurately. Attached are the first two targets I ever shot with it. The flyers are the fault of my trigger technique. More to the point (pun intended), I can point-shoot it and easily make COM hits on a silhouette target without paying much attention to the tiny sights.

I heartily recommend the little stinker. The MIM safety/decocker levers are known to break occasionally, but I don't consider that a deal-breaker since it should be carried hammer-down and safety OFF, relying on the DA pull as the real safety, so the lever is only needed after action, and they're supposed to be easy to replace.

I have had the Bersa Firestorm duotone. Only problem was the trigger guard where it meets tje grip; it cut into my middle finger. I used a fine file and stone to break the sharp edge. While not a true half cock, the hammer would "cock" back off the firing pin. 7+1 and never had a problem.

I have owned and sold both a Thunder 380 and a Thunder 22 each for different reasons. The Thunder 380 was sold to fund a different project. Nothing wrong with it. Shot and functioned well. Just lost interest. The Thunder 22 is a bit of a different story. It was extremely picky with ammunition and would only shoot CCI or Remington golden bullets. I sold the Thunder 22 for a loss but am happy with the new gun I bought instead. Works with everything.