FMJMIKE
Member
I am thinking of picking up a Bersa Thunder 380 this weekend. It will be my plinking and CCW when my G-19 is too big to hide. Any opinions of the Bersa ???
TIA
TIA
Bersa Thunder 380 ?
- Thread starter FMJMIKE
- Start date
- Status
cyclopsshooter
Member
good econo gun- i use one as a sacrificial summer carry
not the best quality but not the worst... half way between a ppks and a davis/jennings/bryan/jimenez p.o.s.
not the best quality but not the worst... half way between a ppks and a davis/jennings/bryan/jimenez p.o.s.
PA Freedom
Member
IMHO, Quality control is spotty. Ive had no probs, but know several people that have.
austinco2
Member
Plinking? What do you do for a living? I hope one day I can afford to "Plink" .380. I've got one(a Bersa Thunder .380 With the nickle finish) .........I'd say it's Mediocre at best. It's probably got 300 or so rounds down range and the slide has begun to wear into the frame(not bad but one can see it) and the nickle is starting to wear off in some places. I bought it brand new and have taken good care of it.
It has TOO many safetys!(for carry) Is the magazine in it? Is the safety off? Did I actually remember to disengage the manual key safety? I sure would hate to yank my pistol out on a bad guy need to pull the trigger and have forgotten to take that safety off! That's why I like the Glock: Don't want to shoot something? Don't touch the trigger...............IMHO
It has TOO many safetys!(for carry) Is the magazine in it? Is the safety off? Did I actually remember to disengage the manual key safety? I sure would hate to yank my pistol out on a bad guy need to pull the trigger and have forgotten to take that safety off! That's why I like the Glock: Don't want to shoot something? Don't touch the trigger...............IMHO
trailblazer
Member
bersas, i have three of them, 2 x 380s & a 9mm.
they are extremely easy to shoot, i experienced 3 hiccups in the first 50 rounds of one of the 380s, more than likely my fault, (now 400 total rounds), none with the other 380 (200 rounds), & none with the 9mm (400 rounds).
380s have little recoil for a gun that weighs only 23 oz., it's a good CC pistol, or just for fun target pistol.
although my daily carry is a S&W 38spl, i would not hesitate to carry the 380 if that's all i had.
they're as reliable & dependable as any gun that might cost $200 to $300 more.
trailblazer
they are extremely easy to shoot, i experienced 3 hiccups in the first 50 rounds of one of the 380s, more than likely my fault, (now 400 total rounds), none with the other 380 (200 rounds), & none with the 9mm (400 rounds).
380s have little recoil for a gun that weighs only 23 oz., it's a good CC pistol, or just for fun target pistol.
although my daily carry is a S&W 38spl, i would not hesitate to carry the 380 if that's all i had.
they're as reliable & dependable as any gun that might cost $200 to $300 more.
trailblazer
MedWheeler
Member
Ammo is scarce for the .380 round, but is starting to re-appear in some places. The Thunder is a great weapon for the price, but not a "plinking" piece due to the ammo cost and scarcity. I like mine, but I admit that there are some 9mm Parabellum guns out there that are as easily concealed. The Bersa, to me, is a great pointer in the hand, and easy to shoot, more so than the pocket .380 pistols that abound. It is those qualities, however, that make it harder to carry every day for some people than, say, a Kel-Tec P3AT or Ruger LCP.
I have mine now, and have no plans to get rid of it. If I didn't already have it, though, and was loking for a carry piece of a similar size, and for a similar price, I'd probably be looking at the 9mm options from Kel-Tec, too, but that doesn't mean I'd rule out the Bersa.
I have mine now, and have no plans to get rid of it. If I didn't already have it, though, and was loking for a carry piece of a similar size, and for a similar price, I'd probably be looking at the 9mm options from Kel-Tec, too, but that doesn't mean I'd rule out the Bersa.
Just One Shot
Member
I have one and these are non issues with me.
Is the magazine in? - You better hope so because if it's not in far enough to disengage the mag safety it's not in far enough to chamber a round. These are easy to remove if you are so inclined. I personally don't worry about it for the reason stated above.
Is the safety off? - This gun can be carried with the safety off and it is safe as long as you half cock the hammer. In this mode it is ready to fire but the hammer can't touch the firing pin until it's been moved to the full cocked position by the trigger.
Did I actually remember to disengage the manual key safety? - I have never engaged mine since I've owned it and never intend to.
Just as you like your Glocks, I like my XD's for the same reason but, IMO the Bersa Thunder is a good value for what you pay for it.
I bought one back in April. My advice would be NOT to buy one until you can go to at least 3 places within driving distance and buy ammo for it. I have been unable to find a single round online or at retail in my area. I hear it's a great gun, wish I could find out.
harmon rabb
Member
- Joined
- Mar 14, 2009
- Messages
- 2,699
meh. why not buy a PA-63 or CZ-82 for $100 less, and get a pistol that's roughly the size and that you'll actually be able to find ammo for?
FEG63ISFINE
Member
- Joined
- Apr 11, 2009
- Messages
- 51
Harmon Rabb good point mostly if you want to go plinking.
I joined on THR when I was looking for info about the 63 and after doing the advice from this forum to the little guy I love it.
That's how I came up with the user name, Lam I know but the gun isn't. I'm just waiting on a chance to get ether the P64 or CZ82 next. Don't get me wrong the Bersa is a great gun mine was and has much less felt recoil.
I joined on THR when I was looking for info about the 63 and after doing the advice from this forum to the little guy I love it.
That's how I came up with the user name, Lam I know but the gun isn't. I'm just waiting on a chance to get ether the P64 or CZ82 next. Don't get me wrong the Bersa is a great gun mine was and has much less felt recoil.
LightningJoe
Member
Plinking? Wouldn't you rather have a Thunder .22?
Nate1778
Member
I love my Bersa, for the money its a hard .380 to beat. I also have an FEG APK which is a PA-63 brother. Although I like the FEG I don't trust it, the Bersa goes bang every time. The parts on the FEG products are harder to find and fairly expensive when you do. Just my experience, if you buy the Bersa you will like it. .380 ammo is tough to come buy right now unless you reload....
DougW
Member
i have 2 Thunder .380's that are always close to me. I carry them when the G26 is too big for the moment. Totally reliable. On a road trip, my G26 assumed room temperature and my Thunder .380 became the primary CHL piece. Never felt under armed, but then, I was in West Texas at the time, and not Beirut!
S&W-Keeper
Member
I don't own a Bersa, but I have friends that have them,they all like them, no problems at all.
MICHAEL T
Member
Fumbler
Member
I had a Bersa Thunder 380, but recently sold it.
To simplify the safety issues, I kept it chambered, decocked, and safety off so it would operate like my Sig
It has to be the best $250 centerfire handgun you can buy new.
However, I sold it for a couple reasons.
-I didn't like the mag disconnect safety (no real reason, just didn't like it)
-I have a Sig 228 for hip carry but wanted a pocket gun. The Thunder 380 is too big for pocket carry. So...I got a S&W J frame. After that the Bersa didn't fill any of my needs. It wasn't a great range gun and I wouldn't carry it because I had better options. If I want to pocket carry, I use the J frame. if I want to hip carry then I'll use the Sig 228 for the extra power and capacity.
-The last, and biggest reason, was the multiple safeties, but that was due to my wife, not me.
She knows how to work a revolver.
She knows how to work a DA/SA with decocker (my Sig)
She knows how to work a no manual safety auto (Glock, Xd, etc)
She knows how to work a SAO (my 1911)
But, for some reason the Bersa was just too confusing.
If the gun was unloaded with the safety on she would put a mag in, rack the slide, and the gun wouldn;t go into full battery. The safety on will stop the slide short, making the gun useless if you didn't push the slide forward.
If she was unloading it, she'd drop the mag, rack the slide to eject the chambered cartridge, and put the gun down...with the hammer still cocked. Yes, the gun was safely unloaded, but seeing the hammer cocked scared the poop out of me.
She doesn't shoot enough to learn it and I wasn't going to make her learn if I already had better options. Now she's got her own Taurus 85 for a house gun. Nice and simple
In all, it's a good gun. But yes, it could take some effort for some people to figure out how it works. Of course us gun lovers won't have any problems with that, so I say get it...as long as it'll actually make it easier for you to carry a gun. I'd rather have something even smaller for concealment.
To simplify the safety issues, I kept it chambered, decocked, and safety off so it would operate like my Sig
It has to be the best $250 centerfire handgun you can buy new.
However, I sold it for a couple reasons.
-I didn't like the mag disconnect safety (no real reason, just didn't like it)
-I have a Sig 228 for hip carry but wanted a pocket gun. The Thunder 380 is too big for pocket carry. So...I got a S&W J frame. After that the Bersa didn't fill any of my needs. It wasn't a great range gun and I wouldn't carry it because I had better options. If I want to pocket carry, I use the J frame. if I want to hip carry then I'll use the Sig 228 for the extra power and capacity.
-The last, and biggest reason, was the multiple safeties, but that was due to my wife, not me.
She knows how to work a revolver.
She knows how to work a DA/SA with decocker (my Sig)
She knows how to work a no manual safety auto (Glock, Xd, etc)
She knows how to work a SAO (my 1911)
But, for some reason the Bersa was just too confusing.
If the gun was unloaded with the safety on she would put a mag in, rack the slide, and the gun wouldn;t go into full battery. The safety on will stop the slide short, making the gun useless if you didn't push the slide forward.
If she was unloading it, she'd drop the mag, rack the slide to eject the chambered cartridge, and put the gun down...with the hammer still cocked. Yes, the gun was safely unloaded, but seeing the hammer cocked scared the poop out of me.
She doesn't shoot enough to learn it and I wasn't going to make her learn if I already had better options. Now she's got her own Taurus 85 for a house gun. Nice and simple
In all, it's a good gun. But yes, it could take some effort for some people to figure out how it works. Of course us gun lovers won't have any problems with that, so I say get it...as long as it'll actually make it easier for you to carry a gun. I'd rather have something even smaller for concealment.
I've had mine for 3 years now. I shoot it often. It's never failed, and it's very accurate. I know 2 others with them and we've all had the same fine experience with them. We all got ours for 206.00 plus tax at S.E. guns in Trussville Al.
Don't pay more than 20 bucks more than that. We think they are fine firearms.
Don't pay more than 20 bucks more than that. We think they are fine firearms.
Fumbler: I agree with your wife about the safeties. A bewildering array of options. If you do as you did - just keep it loaded with the safety on - you've got it knocked. Unlock for shooting.
It's an odd, yet really well thought out piece. The loading mechanism thrusts the cartridge nearly parallel to the barrel at barrel height. This results in MANY good loads and fires. One of my guns forces the cartridge to make a 45 degree turn to force itself into the barrel. it works, but it's not a comfortable thing to have faith in.
It's an odd, yet really well thought out piece. The loading mechanism thrusts the cartridge nearly parallel to the barrel at barrel height. This results in MANY good loads and fires. One of my guns forces the cartridge to make a 45 degree turn to force itself into the barrel. it works, but it's not a comfortable thing to have faith in.
- Status
