Glock 22 vs. Bersa Thunder 40...Help me close the "sale" to my beginner friend....

I'm "coaching" a friend of mine into firearms and I took him to the range few times....it has decided to get a pistol for SD, full size.

He absolutely love to shoot my Bersa Thunder 40, fits right in its hand, he is accurate with it, just feels right and it is in its budget to get a new one....but it still feels the "gravitational pull" of brand name and advertising, movies and TV shows, "peer pressure" of other friend gunners about getting a Glock, because the Glock is the ultimate pistol for SD, "cops use Glocks" and bla bla bla, you know the drill....

I told him all the reasons why, in my opinion, my Bersa or several other full metal SA/DA pistol are superior/higher grade pistols, from the "metal feel" in your hand, which he agrees, (as we know plastic pistol are not necessarily technically inferior but in the "feel and aesthetic" department they are just plastic in my book) the flexibility and safety of the action, etc....

The frustrating thing is that he understands perfectly all of this and I told him about the great Customer Service from Bersa in the unlikely event of needing support.

He even agrees that the Thunder 40 look way nicer....still undecided if to get a Glock...I even told him that if he really feels strongly about brands he should wait a little, increase his budget and get a SIG (or a used SIG right now) which he likes also.

Any more things I could tell him to sway him?? Obviously I do not expect any suggestions from Glock fans!!!

Shoot both back-to-back. One will speak to him. If all he's shot is a Bersa, it's the best gun he's shot. And the worst.

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He shot several guns and he like the Bersa within its budget...even more than the Glock but still think the Glock may be the better choice even if he recognize the Bersa advantages and he likes the gin better....very conditioned by Glock popularity...I told him you are buying a pistol not a brand...

Comparing a Glock to a Bersa is kind of like comparing a Mercedes to a Yugo. Bersa is in no way close to the same class of pistol as a Glock Hopefully the friend will be smart enough to follow his gut and buy a Glock.

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You're trying to sway your friend into a Bersa and away from Glock?

Sounds like you're worried that your friend will have a better gun than you.

Glock or S&W or XD/XDM are light years ahead of Bersa.

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I thought my post was not intended for not informed Glock fans. ... do you even know what a Bersa Thunder (I mean the full size series not the much more popular 380) look like let alone shot one??

The Glock is a well tested COMBAT pistol. Used by hundreds of thousands of police, used by militaries all over the world, and is about as tested as can be.

The Bersa is, uh, what?

Yes let him shoot both, in the same cartridge, side by side. 9mm for 9mm. .40 for .40.

Then let him decide. Don't push him in one direction for if the gun does not work out it becomes YOUR FAULT.

And you will be blamed.

Deaf

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The Bersa Thunder is a proven combat pistol too, used by several police and military forces in Latin America...just to be clear...

The fact is the he basically likes the Bersa more (he prefer the look of it, the fact that is metal and he feels more comfortable with the action) but still undecided about the Glock....if it wasn't for the brand and popularity he would have bought the Bersa already...

Next step is trying a CZ-75 maybe this weekend.

I have lots of input on this, but probably nothing you want to hear. Bottom line, there's really no reason to limit the options to the two listed.

I'm not that familiar with Bersa - had to look it up.
http://www.bersa.com/bersa-firearms/...ro-series.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bersa (made in Argentina)
They actually look pretty good; the 9/40 models look a little like BHP knockoffs to me, which is not a bad start. I would honestly take one of these over a striker-fired gun like Glock or M&P, but if I was going the metal route, I'd go with a better brand like Browning, CZ, Walther, or a Baby Eagle for this type of gun to make sure I was getting reliable quality.

Also, for better plastic guns that are still in his price range, check out Sig-2022 and Beretta PX4.

Lastly, why 40? I'd stick w/ 9mm. With the right JHP ammo he'll get the same performance in defensive rounds, cheaper plinking rounds, and the recoil characteristics are MUCH friendlier for a new shooter. Stick with 9mm, there's very little reason not to. He will enjoy practicing more and will get more proficient with his new gun much faster.

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The Thunder full size line is actually partially based on the Walther P-88 not the BHP

My friend will try a CZ-75 this weekend, I already proposed to him to wait and get a new SIG or buy a used SIG if the right deal comes around if he really feelts uncomfortable with the Bersa brand.

He does not like Rugers.