Browning BDA .380, Oddball in a Tactical World

[Baron Holbach]

I first caught the .380 fever after renting a Beretta 85 at the local range. I was astounded by the gun's accuracy. Initially, I credited the accuracy to a fixed barrel arrangement but later learned that the Beretta .380s have removable barrels, as opposed to the Bersa or CZ 83.

 

[PCRCCW]

Actually fixed vs floating barrel has very little to do with accuracy....its barrel/slide fit, slide/frame fit and Sights/entire enchilada fit.....the most accurate guns in the world are locked breech/floating barrel.
Shoot well

 

[Tamara]

Benchrest rifles and .22 free pistols have floating barrels?

I've heard about "return-to-battery" rifles, or some such, but am not at all familiar with the concept. I know every high-end target pistol I can think of has a fixed tube, though. (Hammerli, Benelli, Walther, etc.)

 

[Baron Holbach]

PCRCCW, would a smooth trigger contribute to a gun's accuracy -- assuming the shooter does his part?

 

[eldomatic]

Alan Fud wrote: "... I wasn't aware that the BDA380 was still being made. I thought that it was discontinued in the mid-1990's as I didn't see it on the Browning site the last time that I looked."

I thought they were discontinued as well in 1997... the BDA 380 does not appear in the Browning catalog. To add to the confusion, the date code portion of my BDA 380's serial number corresponds to nothing on Browning's "Date Your Firearm" web page.

But when I checked the Italian proof marks of my NEB Beretta-made Browning BDA 380 a manufacturing year of 2002 was indicated.

See Italian-made pistol proofmarks at
http://www.berettaweb.com/DL1.htm

Regardless, my nickle Browning BDA 380 is a real pleasure to hold and shoot.
And sexy to look at besides.

 

[eldomatic]

Browning BDA 380

Gotta love a Browning BDA 380. Great little auto: accurate, wonderful in the hand, 13+1 capacity and sexy too, especially the nickle model with the walnut grips.

Same controls as the bigger Beretta 92 or Cougar 8000 so it makes a good back-up gun or alternative to the larger Berettas. Not only that, the BDA 380 is, of course, made under license by Beretta and has the Pietro Beretta logo on the slide. For all practical purposes, the BDA 380 IS a Beretta.

Browning + Beretta, two of the greatest names in firearms.

 

[PCRCCW]

"PCRCCW, would a smooth trigger contribute to a gun's accuracy -- assuming the shooter does his part?"

Well, I would think so..also how well the finger pulls the trigger.

Alot goes into the accuracy equation...but blowback/vs/locked breech really isnt one of them.........

Shoot well........

 

[George Hill]

class, something that's lacking in many modern tactical wunderguns.

Too True.

I've only handled these Brownings at gun shows. Here in Utah, they go for a lot more coin than back east. Something about the name Browning out here automatically jacks the price 50 to 150 bucks.

I have to admit I am a huge fan of the Beretta 84 Cheetah. It's a good, solid shooter. You can get some very potent (for caliber) ammo for it from Pro-Load that puts it up near standard 9MM levels.

For those that like the BDA, and the 84, but think it's a little too chunky for CCW work for a .380 - take a look at the Beretta 85 - it's the same thing - but with a single-stack grip frame so it's slimmer.

Class - Elegance... both can be found in Beretta while at the same time being just as tactical as you could want them to be.
I'm not a big fan of nickle - but it looks nice. I think Beretta is making the 84's and 85's in stainless as well.

 

[SirVette]

Sounds good. The BDA380 is a very nice 380. Still holding out.
Went with double column Bersas.

 

[Sean Smith]

Tactical is a state of mind, not a finish or a logo. Hit the target, and let other people argue about gun-cover chic.

 

[Tamara]

...and let other people argue about gun-cover chic.

...he said, as he posted a picture of a bucks-up custom nineteen-buhleven.

 

[Sean Smith]

You'd be hard pressed to argue that a feature-poor 10mm will ever be a darling of the gun-rag set, even if Ted Yost made it and it shoots the lights out. No beavertail, no Novaks, no gas-pedal thumb safety, no checkering, no magwell... it is about as likely to be a cover gun as I am to get on the cover of GQ.

But yeah, still ironic.

 

[Fer]

Bda.380 oh yeah!! classic

Oh man I feell good!! I am 31 years old and I have a Bda.380 since 1998.
When I saw it I thought to my self what a beauty it has to be the most beautifull gun I had ever seen. I had no money so I went to the bank and asked for cash with my credit card, returned to the gun store 30 minutes later and it was Mine!!!. I was single then, went to my room and took it out of the case held it in my hand and said " I will never sell this gun, I will pass it on to my son someday" well 8 years later married with two kids and another on the way I have been very close to selling it but there is something between me and that gun that I cant explain but you know what I mean, I just cant sell it, I rather find another way to solve any money problem.
I said I was happy, the reason is I found this post from long ago!, but now days everyone talking about hi calibers, hi tech guns, glock this, glock that, I thought I was the only one left with appreciation for a well made, good looking classic pistol, the way they should always have been.
The bda.380 is extreamly well made, like someone on this thread mentioned it hit where you aim, reliable! I have never ever had a jam or missfeed or fire, it feells superb in the hand. Its kind of sad that they are out of production but it feell proud to be the owner of one of these fine guns, a piece of art.

 

[usp9]

It's extremely well made, and possibly one of the best-looking and elegant handguns ever made. It has a reputation as a mild and accurate shooter. Its grip is a wee bit bulky, which works well for shooters with big hands, yet its slide is very slim, so it carries well IWB. Its exterior dimensions are right in the "small enough to be convenient, just large enough to inspire confidence" category. The gun offers 13+1 rounds when used with preban magazines. Most of all, it just oozes craftmanship and class, something that's lacking in many modern tactical wunderguns. Call it the autopistol equivalent of a nice Detective Special or 3" K-frame.

Couldn't have said it better. While I do not have a Browning, I do have two of the Berettas, a 84 and a 85. I've had the 84 much longer than the 85 and it is one of my guns that has never, ever failed, period. Only my Heckler Kochs can also make that claim. I also have a CZ83 and not to step on toes, but the Berettas are a class act "Mercedes", while the CZ is a middle class "Chevy" IMHO. Have great fun with your new class act.

 

[Marshall]

Good thread and so true.

I have a BDA I bought in the 80's, a pre ban model in nickel. It's a safe queen for me but does make a trip out now and then. It has one of the stiffest slides I have ever experienced with an autoloader. It doesn't like Hornady HP's much at all but seems to do well with others I have used. I usually shoot FMJ out of it. It's definitely worthy of carrying the Browning name. (Though made by Beretta)

Congrats on your purchase!

 

[distra]

This was my first center fire pistol. Picked it in a local shop for ~$500. I can shoot it well, but my wife hates it. The grip is too wide for her hands. I like the pistol, but I've moved on to the more "tactical" 45ACP and "snappy" 40S&W.

 

[cookekdjr]

Holy thread revival, Batman!

RE: the BDA:
Most of all, it just oozes craftmanship and class, something that's lacking in many modern tactical wunderguns. Call it the autopistol equivalent of a nice Detective Special or 3" K-frame.
Yep that's it. An investigator I worked with as an Assistant DA carried the BDA as her primary weapon. Nobody ever gave her a hard time about it because she shot better scores than any of the guys with Glock .40's.
-David

 

[ARTiger]

Thanks for reminding me of the BDA . . . Now I've got a major jones for one . . .

Since it's miserable hot where I live, I keep coming back to my .380 Bersa Thunder (single stack) with a simple clip-on Uncle Mikes IWB rig. Just disappears in my typical shorts/Tommy Bahama type shirt summer attire. An old Colt Det. Special and a Charter bulldog are my other 2 options.

The Bersa is a very good gun, especially for the money but now that I'm into 380's again I see a BDA in the cards as soon as I find a deal on one. 13+1 in a gun that carryable AND shootable makes a lot of sense IMHO.

Likewise, I think the .380 is a very credible self defense round with the right load IMO. I like CorBon's 90 grain JHP or Remington's 102 grain golden sabre, both of which have better numbers than many .38 special rounds.

Do y'all think I'd be under-armed using a BDA with a hot load as a primary CCW in hot weather?

 

[ugaarguy]

Do y'all think I'd be under-armed using a BDA with a hot load as a primary CCW in hot weather?

I have a Kel-Tec P-3AT, 6 rounds of 380, as a shorts and t-shirt gun and I don't feel under armed when carrying any quality JHP in it.

 

[Navy joe]

Holy thread revival, Batman!

Exactly.

That said, my current off-beat project centers around learning how to do nickel. I want to nickel a pair of Browning HPs, get the accents gold plated and finish with some nice wood stocks. Say carry that pair in a dual shoulder rig with two BDAs as Bugs IWB at 5 & 7. That would be one heck of a wearing a suit dress-up rig.

 

[Alan Fud]

Do y'all think I'd be under-armed using a BDA with a hot load as a primary CCW in hot weather?

I think that fourteen .380's beats five or six of just about anything else.

 

[usp9]

Holy thread revival, Batman!

 

[bulbboy]

I bought my FIRST BDA .380 in the early '90s and then sold it later to pay for tuition. I promptly bought another one when I could! One of the best shooting guns I have ever owned, and it beautiful! I highly recommend this gun to anyone. People complain about .380's all the time - I would not feel "undergunned" carrying the .380 - but can't we just buy stuff thats fun to shoot and look at?

Here's mine -


and a couple of others (including its cousin the Beretta)

 

[danbh]

I'll add my comments to this also the BDA is "class" and there are not many pistols that really have that "class". When I show it to anyone I get the same reaction "wow that is really beautiful" as apposed to the reaction to my G21 " ya thats nice, kinda of heavy isn't it"

The BDA is a keeper, the kind of pistol that you would really like to wear uncealed so people to see it!!!!

 

[senior]

380's/tex

i have the interarms ppk/s and its never misfired or jamed, has a stout recoil but the price u pay for a small handgun over the 32 size. always had compliments with it at the range, Other day got a BDA 380 ss and that is art in steel!!! take it apart and use flitz on the slide and frame, wiped the handling crude off it and irs got t ob the most elegant pistol i ever had! The ss or bluied bda is a reminder of what true workmanship is all about! Picked it up with pachmayar grips, LNIB with two spotless ss ,mags in box for 395.00 and feel i got a great deal, not a spot or scratch on it,even the mags have no scratches, nothing but a beautiful pistol. These two .380 will stay with me to be handed down .