Bummed about Mini Firestorm

Status
Not open for further replies.
R

Ringer

Member
Joined
Mar 31, 2003
Messages
1,249
Location
North Georgia
Not as Bummed about Mini Firestorm

I picked up a new MiniFirestorm 9mm at a gun show this past weekend. I like the features it has and it’s one of few guns that fits both my wife and I. Got it with the Nickel finish. The finish on these guns that I have looked at, both the Nickel and the Blue, is less than perfect, but for a gun in the $300 range it seemed acceptable. Unfortunately this gun has not turned out to be all that I thought, or was at least hoping it would.

Put about 350 or so rounds through it this weekend. A mix of Winchester FMJ “100 round white box targetâ€, Remington UMC 115 grain metal case and a handful of Federal 135 grain Hydra Shock JHP.

First bummer - Using the Winchester netted about 4 misfires (click no bang) per 100. The dent on these misfired primers seemed a little less than on the other spent cases, but not really sure. The other two types of ammo I had no problems with. I know the Winchester ammo is cheap (as is this gun :) ), but I have heard lots of people talk about using it without issue.

Second and bigger bummer – The finish is wearing off the top of the barrel where it appears to be rubbing the slide. I can see wear marks on the inside of the slide where it is rubbing. This is my first semi-auto pistol so not sure if that is normal or not. See pic of barrel below. I will be contacting the manufacturer/importer about this, as this does not seem right after just a couple trips to the range.

Other than that, the gun is fun to shoot. I’m wondering if this is a common problem with this or any other guns. I have read quite a few posts and magazines articles about this gun and have seen no mention of similar problems. Should I expect them to do anything about it, the barrel I mean? Or just except it for what it is and enjoy shooting it ignoring the worn finish?

Thanks very much.

Sorry about the quality of the pic, best I could do in a hurry without natural lighting.
barrelmarks.jpg
 
Last edited:
My CZ P-01 has a matte-black finished barrel, and it's wearing off in the same place, though it looks like yours is actually chipping, whereas mine just gets thinner, then is gone. I wouldn't be too concerned.
 
Its not a Llama...its a Bersa, FYI. Just marketed under the same brandname (Firestorm).

Ringer, Sorry to hear that you are disappointed...I believe the barrel rub is normal...bought my Mini 9 blued and after about 700 rounds the finish on top of the bbl (square part where the slide touches) is almost completely gone. Doesn't bother me much..

Bersa did have problems with the Nickel finishes early in production. I contacted FireStorm SGS before buying mine because I had heard some complaints of the Nickel finish peeling/flaking off. They aknowleged the problem but said that the factory had since corrected it. I went with the blued version just to be safe. The nickel sure is good lookin though..

Have had no problems with misfires and use the same Wal-mart Winchester whitebox ammo. Perhaps there was still some packing grease hindering the firing pin...?? Keep us updated.
 
The Bersa is a completely different and very quality gun as compared to the Llama. Sheesh.......
The nickel flacking off of the barrel isnt a great thing...Id call them and see what they recommend doing about it.
As far as misfires/light strikes in the first shoot.....I really wouldnt sweat it....not until you get more rnds through it....
You dont know if the gun has a real and continual problem or if its just letting the various hard parts get to know each other.
The Mini is a very very nice gun....Your first impressions should hold true.......see what SGS says....
Shoot well
 
I had the same problem.

I'm going to post when I get my gun back from the repair center.

Not only did my gun seem to suffer from accelerated wear, beyond what 200 rounds should do to a gun, but also I got misfires galore. I finally theorized that the gun wasn't feeding right/going fully into battery.
 
Just got off the phone with SGS. They acknowledged a problem with the Nickel finish barrels. They are shipping me out a new barrel today :D ! This is great news as I was thinking I would have to ship the gun back and it would be gone for who knows how long.

Thanks for the replies. I'll post a follow up in a few days after I receive the barrel and get back to the range.
 
llama, Bersa, same garbage. save your money get a Beretta, Glock or SIG and you won't be crying this sad tune. If you want to safe money get a Ruger or S&W auto and you'll still be singing a happy tune.
 
surfinUSA, I don't own either bersa or llama? Have you? I was just wondering where that statement came from. I haven't heard many good things about llama but bersa is a totally different story. Heck they are made on different continents. People rave about the 380 bersa's. I know my buddy has one and it is a very good shooter. Reliable, accurate and it even has a good trigger. Mark
 
Yeah, "get a Ruger/Smith/Glock/Beretta", HAHAHAHAHA.

Since when do any of them make an equivelent gun to the Mini series? Instead, they focus on making a bunch of bigger, blockier guns having the ergonomics of a brick.

Been there, done that, got rid of them all and bought a Firestorm - not for the stellar quality, but because it ended up being the only one that fit me.

Perhaps we should just be quiet and pretend those other makers Surfin mentioned never put out the occasional lemon, either.
 
Not sure I understand the denial comment.

While I like Sigs and Beretta's, for this purchase they had nothing that fit what I was looking for. I'm 6'2" 200 lbs, my wife is 5'3" 120 lbs. I couldn't find anything else that fits us both comfortably, plus have both a saftety (not on the slide) and decock lever. Not to mention I'm not into spending $600 or more to put holes in paper as this is not a SD/HD gun. I think Rugers are just plain butt ugly, but that's just me I'm sure. Low end S&Ws do nothing for me either.

For 300 bucks I'd still take this gun as is. With a new barrel on the way, and a lifetime service policy in the event the misfires continue, I'm not worried.
 
Railroader, I'll admit I'm a gun snob.

No, I don't own a Bersa nor a Llama and won't. I've handled and shot examples of both and am not impressed.

Both Beretta and Sig make high quality, reliable and accurate 380s. With Glock you have to move up to the 26 or 27. Either are a good choice and both are in a better caliber than 380.

If you can find one, the CZ83 is a very nice 380.
 
Well, that said, your opinion differs greatly with that of 99% of Bersa owners and shooters. We all know how great Berettas, SIGs, and Makarovs are...in this thread we are discussing the Argentine Bersa/Firestorm. Thank you.

And Makdaddy, youre just trolling for an argument. Act like a 12 year old and be treated like one. :rolleyes:

Glad to see that SGS resolved the barrel issue, Ringer.
 
surfinusa, you know what? some people cant afford HK's. plain and simple. there are good hardworking people out there who for whatever reason dont have the kind of money to buy expensive guns. so do you think they should not exersise thier right as americans?
i ahve a good friend who actually buys his grandmother inlaws med's every month to the tune of about 400 bucks
i have a custome who married real young and has to support 3 kids in daycare.
i have a neighbor who was in a car wreck, to no fault of her own, who has spent over 6K bucks of her own money on medical bills panding a lawsuit.
so why do you feel it nessasary to come off w/ this rich boy "XYZ is crap" line.
i'll tell you what, i havent heard of bersas frame rails cracking.
i'v never seen a firestorms firing pin break in half from dry fire.
anyone ever seen a llama KABOOM?
 
Cohiba,

Lets not get all weepy over the social ills of your friends especially the one that made a bad decision, married early and didn't know enough to use birth control until they could afford those kids.

Now lets get back to the real issue, compact pistols. Maybe Bersa has improved their product, I'll never know because I don't buy second tier junk. There isn't enough difference in price.

This thread is started by an individual that laid out his hard earned money and got less than he paid for. Misfires from quality factory ammo and a peeling finish. There's a first class recomendation to buy a gun. :rolleyes: In fact it basically goes along with the impression I got from these guns years ago.

Although I didn't mention it, it will be a cold day in hell before Llama is the same quality as a $180 mack. From what I've seen of Llamas, most don't work well enough to get to a Kaboom, those that do, break.

The fact that I don't buy junk and recommend that others don't either has nothing to do with the rights of others. I never said that cheap junk shouldn't be sold, only that I wouldn't buy it. It also has nothing to do with being rich, which I'm not. It has to do with getting the most for your money over a long period of time. Usually, if you buy the best you only have to spend your money once.

Finally, what do you have against being rich, its the communists that think we should all share equally in poverty?
 
Last edited:
Since I started this thread I feel the need to respond again to some of these comments.

First, this purchase was not soley about money. I had enough funds to purchase a Sig. I was looking for a semi-auto with specific safety features that my wife and I could shoot together. Besides not having the features I wanted (for this particular purchase) :
Baretta 92F and Sig P226 - Too big for her
Baretta 9000S and Sig P239 - Too small for me
With what is left in my "gun fund" after this purchase i'm halfway to my next, which is likely a Sig P220.

Yes I was dissappointed because I had high expectations for this gun. But I also knew going in, it's $300 gun. At this point I wouldn't return if for money back even if I could. Like I said in previous post, new barrel is on the way. If the misfires continue to be a problem I'll send it back for service if I feel I need to.

SurfinUSA
You are welcome to your opinion. But the comments you made about "garbage" and "Junk" and the way you said them could certainly be offensive. I don't bruise easily, but it was like you were insuating anyone who bought one of these was basically stupid.

The purpose of this post was to both get some advice and share some information. Both are done to my satisfaction. I will report back after putting a couple hundred rounds through the new barrel.

Thanks
 
No Im not Im just telling the TRUTH they are crap.:neener: Its your money buy what you want to buy. And dont say that you werent warned. To bad we dont have the bird finger as a smilie.:evil:
 
Ringer,

I didn't mean to insult anyone. My previous experiences with both Llama and Bersa led me to the conclusion that these products were second rate at best (if you would prefer rather than junk). Your first post only confirmed my opinion.

Consequently, I offered suggestions from major manufacturers of quality firearms as an alternative.

Actually, the guns I was thinking of were the Sig 232 (380), Beretta 84/85 (380), and Walther/S&W PPK (380) as this thread was started about a 380. The glock 26 and 27 are only slightly larger than a 380 so I included them.

However the S&W 3913 is also and excellent compact 9mm as are the rugers compacts. Both can be had for reasonable amounts.
 
surfinUSA
I agree the Bersa MiniFirestorm is not in the same league as Sig or Beretta....Glock, well that's a different ballpark :) .

I know a lot of people cringe when they hear the name Bersa. I have read a lot of good things about these MiniFirestorms, hence my initial disappointment. Time (and more trips to the range) will determine my overal impression of this gun. I'll post some follow ups, good or bad, but I'm not sure you are really open to listening if they are good. Sounds like you have a pretty strong opinion on them and I know those can be hard to overcome. I have no motivation to defend this gun if it turns out to be totally unreliable or problematic. I'll post my experience with it over time.

Oh, and just to clarify, this thread was started about 9mm not a .380.

Still saving my pennies fot a Stainless P220 with Rail !
 
Sorry, That is definately my error. I always associate Bersa with 380s. I guess I'm even more biased against them than I thought. However, all the guns I suggested make even better 9mms, 40s and 45s than they do 380s.

Don't hesitate to get the SIG 220. I love mine although the DA trigger pull is heavier than I'd like.
 
Last edited:
:::Sigh:::...What arrogance.

I'd stake my life on a Bersa(and do)..

Some people are just too thick headed to realize that the markings on the side of their guns don't automatically insure safety or even good performance. The Mini 9 has great features..its compact, ambi safety the right place, good ergonomics, reliable, inexpensive, fun to shoot and accurate to boot(hey that rhymes).

For the last time, its not a Llama. We all aknowledge that Llamas are P.O.S.' Nice try though. ;)
 
Akurat,

It has nothing to do with arrogance or the mis reading of caliber. Ringers first post said it all. Bersa used to build crap and it now appears that they still do.

If we are going to discuss quality guns lets start with the premise that they don't misfire on quality factory ammo and don't peel their nickel finish on the first outing.

My first posts still stands, you want a compact 9mm that always works, is always accurate buy a Beretta, HK, Glock or Sig. If you want to save money and still get those same qualities get a S&W or a Ruger.

The rest is just that, the rest. Curiosities that will make you wonder why you didn't spend a couple of more dollars for a real gun. The cops and the military don't always have the best but usually they do. Bersa has been around for years, yet I can't think of a single third world military of police organization that uses them, let alone a real military or police organization (I guess that makes me biased against third world police and military organizations too).
 
Excuse me....Your a walking opinion....and a wrong one at that!. I could just let you ramble and keep putting your foot in your mouth...but feel compelled to assist you alittle.

Bersa made the Thunder years ago...a good copy of the Walther. The gun was anything but soft, inaccurate or undependable.

They were gaining popularity when the ban came about....instead of neutering the gun and importing it still..Bersa had the balls to say..."We dont want to sell a gun that is fullsized that only shoots 10 rounds"....so they stopped importing them!

Ive shot one for about 15+ years and its as nice as my CZ, Kimber, Sig or any Beretta Ive shot. Nicer than most of the Beretta's Ive shot or owned.

You know before I started ranting about CZ's on TFL years ago...very few people knew what they were also I used to here stuff about them too...JUST LIKE THE CRAP YOUR SPREADING AROUND! Now LOTS of people who own Sigs, HK's and the likes are singing their praises....HIGHLY! My little PCR's will shoot/outshoot any of the higher priced compacts. Funny years ago they were just imported junk!
RIGHT?

Do a little actual talking to people who know about the guns, their actual quality and the company and history before proclaiming "truths according to me"!

Bersa is a good little gun company and makes a very nice little gun.

You are just another typical keyboard shooter as well another ignorant gun snob.....Shoot well
 
Last edited:
SURFINUSA,

So you recommend a "police or military gun", and everything else is crap because:

1. Cops are somehow all-knowing pistol experts and gurus of small-arms combat.

2. We all know they shoot every other day, and all have an intense personal interest in firearms.

3. This explains why Police and military organizations only buy the very best of the best autos, the creme of the crop, like HK P7M8's, Sig P210's, and Walther P88's, and Manhurin revolvers, since they know so darned much about pistols. And price is never an object. They know that anything less must be inherently dangerous and unreliable.


Hmmm, interesting thing is, a lot of cops around here are carrying BERSA'S as back-up guns and as off-duty guns. A state trooper I know wants to exchange his 4006 for a Firestorm Mini .40. I even saw an armored car security guard at Wal-Mart carrying a moneybag to his vehicle with - gasp - a BERSA MINI FIRESTORM on his hip!

Why oh why won't all of these people listen to you SurfinUSA? Maybe they know something you don't?

So, since you recommended a "police gun", I guess I'll run out and buy another Bersa.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

T
  • Locked
Opinions On Bersa/firestorm Mini-9/mini 40?
Replies
9
Views
2K
Akurat
A
R
  • Locked
Firestorm Mini 9mm magazines?
Replies
5
Views
800
Ringer
R
P
  • Locked
His and Her Firestorms!
Replies
11
Views
1K
priv8ter
P
O
  • Locked
Range Report: Bersa Firestorm .22lr
Replies
1
Views
8K
Stephen A. Camp
S
T
  • Locked
My New Firetorm (bersa) Mini .40, A Mini-review
Replies
12
Views
3K
rblack
R
Back
Top