THR Please help

Shoot them. That's how you decide.

All three are likely to be both praised and reviled if enough people respond.

More information would be useful. Why these three? What handguns do you already have? Are you looking for a range gun or concealed carry? How much money do you have to spend? What will the primary use be? Rugers are bombproof, mostly. I've never owned or shot a Bersa, some on this forum give them good marks. I had a Walther years ago and let it get away, so my personal choice would be the Walther PK380.

But that has nothing to do with what you want or need. I have full sized, mid sized and pocket guns. Your mileage may vary.

Will it be used often for carry?

Here's my opinion:

P95 is smooth, nice weapon. My wife carries one because she finds the slide easy to handle and little recoil.

PK380 is nice; but I hate way you don't have a slide release with the magazine inserted. You have to release the magazine and pull back to release it. That's the only thing I didn't like.

Thunder 380 is a good solid gun from an "economy" brand of weapon. I have one, like it very much.

Given a choice, I would go with the P95 unless I wanted the concealment ability of the Thunder 380 due to it's size.

Ruger P95 for home defense, range and CCW if you are willing to dress around it.

Bersa Thunder for CCW if you can't conceal the P95.

P95 is a nice gun, but compared to the others it's huge. That's good for everything except carry.

Ruger. But I'm a big guy so cc wouldn't be a problem for me. I carry revolvers though, so take it with a grain of salt.

I'm not a fan of the .380 so I recommend the Ruger.



The P95 is a good pistol and performs well enough.
There are only a few things that I didn't like about mine:

It's a bit slippery in the hand (hence the rubber wrap seen in the pic).

The magazine release is odd in that you have to push it forward instead of inward, and they have a sharp edge too.

And the pistol itself is a little chunky feeling.


Not to mess up your choices, but have you looked at the Ruger SR9c?










In my opinion it is a huge improvement over the P95.





Easyg

Maybe this comment is being sent at a late date, I still wan't to le you Know I have a Bersa .380 Thunder CC, which I carry in an ankle holster. It is an incredible pistol! and the price! despite its small sights, it shoot right on par with my Walther PP! it is a darling of a gun, and reliable as a brick. If you haven´t bought anything yet, buy the Bersa, you will NEVER regret it.

Go shoot them

What works for me, I can only claim works for me
My hands are not your hands
My strengths and failings in technique are not yours

YOU
need to get the experience with the gun you would like to buy

Consider this, 2 cases of AMMUNITION, 2000 rounds, cost roughly what your gun does, so, it is worth the money and time to find the right platform to send that money down range. It's not worth the time and hassle to pick a gun you come not to like.

That said, in that price range there are LOTS of pistols, why limit yourself, and consider used too, some real bargains to be found out there.

And another thing--the Mark 23 is not THAT "huge". It's exactly 1/2" longer than a Beretta 92, thinner, and lighter. The grip is identical to a USP45 (Identical). The gun is not the massive crew served .45 that internet commandos make it out to be. It corners nicely, deploys quickly, and shoots softly. Granted, it's a bit of a pill to carry concealed...<g>

-Walther PK380

Click to expand...

I would avoid the PK380.

It's not made by Walther (who makes superb high-quality pistols like the P99, PPQ, and PPS). It's actually made by Umarex (who is better known for potmetal rimfires and airsoft toys). The Walther name is just slapped on for marketing purposes (since Umarex owns a large stake of Walther).

The Bersa Tunder 380 and Ruger P95 are two wildly different choices. The Bersa is a smallish .380 ACP designed for concealed carry, and the P95 is a pretty chunky 9mm that isn't well-suited for that role. Both have a good reputation for reliability, though.

Personally, if you are considering the P95 and like Rugers, I would SERIOUSLY consider the SR9 (or smaller SR9C) instead. For about $60-$75 more, it's a MUCH nicer pistol that is more nicely finished, slimmer, and has much better ergonomics.

wmcc75, forgive me, but I'll second what some others have said. Consider holding out just a bit longer and getting the SR9c. I have owned the P95 & it is a great pistol - just a little large for carry. The price difference could be made up by a couple family dinners. Or by raking a couple lawns or shoveling a driveway or two. It's easy to get motivated to do such labor when you're carrying a picture of your pistol in your pocket.

Of the choices, I'd say get the P95.

Get the Ruger. Best bang/buck of the bunch.

Another possibility

Would be the Stoeger Cougar, if you like the Ruger P95, a lot of people seem to like them, also, you might want to take a long look at the Sig SP2022, which in the opinion of most (including myself) is a very nice pistol and can be had for $399.00 if you look around. This pistol has a smooth DA pull and a reasonably crisp SA pull as well and is capable of better accuracy than most shooters can muster. YMMV.

I got my bride a bersa thunder 380 with crimson trace. It has performed flawlessly and some how every time I go to the range that gun always makes the trip.

Bersa or Ruger you can't go wrong...ammo is cheaper, more potent with the Ruger. The P95 isn't so dimensionally different than the Glock 19, certainly could be concealed. P95 will kick a lot less. Both have their uses. If I had to pick, the P95 is the superior sidearm and will outlast the Bersa.

buy the p95, flawless function