And frankly, it was nice. $390.00. 7 rounds of .45. Fixed sights. Enormous ambi-safety which operates same direction as 1911 (up is safe) but also functions a decocker. Pretty flat profile, not alot of edges. Large slide release as well. For a double stack .45, the grip wasn't overwhelming. I think I may see a new .45 in the very near future. The only problem with this one was that it was super bling. Black with gold safety, slide release, mag release, take down lever, extractor, and a pin. Trigger was also very nice. Anyone had a chance to shoot one?
handled a Bersa Thunder .45 today
- Thread starter MJRW
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I went one better today. I actually bought one.
Wasn't really looking for it. I was out scouting around for a CZ 452 Varmint bolt action in .22 lr for Silhouettas shooting. Went to Buckeye Outdoors near Columbus, OH after work (~1½ hours away). They didn't have the CZ I was looking for in stock but would contact me Mon after they get ahold of their distributor for availability. So, I looked around.
I actually saw one, my first one, at a gun show this past weekend but it was two tone. Not really into two tones and have weened myself away from stainless/chrome/nickle finishes. Basic black/blue/park for me nowadays. I was a bit surprised at how small it was. It really was not that much bigger than my Mini9s in terms of grip circumference and overall size. They had a .40 SW there too and it appeared to be identical to the 45 ACP. At the show it was $380, IIRC, but the guy said he'd knock it down to $340 for me. I had asked him if he had an all blue one and he said (paraphrasing) 'No, that's how they come from the factory (implying they are all two tone or all 'chrome').' He further stated that that was the direction all the manufacturers seemed to be headin, i.e. stainless/chrome, for ease of cleaning, better resistance to climate, yadda, yadda, yadda, etc.
. Clearly the finish is nickle.
At Buckeye, I spotted the FireStorm/Bersa Mini45 in all of the finishes including all blue. $350, not bad, but I was looking for the CZ and even that for just pricing. Wasn't really looking to buy anything. I was also on my way to Best Buy to get a Sony MZ-NF610 MiniDisc player/recorder so didn't want to spend anything there. Also looked at the 1911s from Spring and Kim. Then I perused through their latest ads for sales. 1911s for as low as $400 and.......the Mini45 for $309!
Figuring I'll never see that bargain again, I succumbed to my lack of willpower and bought one.
At home, I compared against the Mini9 and USP45c.
Against Mini9 :
~¼" longer
~0.006" wider at the grip below the thumbrests.
Identical width across the safety levers.
Identical from bottom of grip to top of slide.
Frontstrap to backstrap is, of course, bigger (difficult to measure due to roundness and fingergrooves.
Identical mag widths.
Nearly identical mag height (minor difference could probably be due more to feed lip dimensions)
0.120" longer (front/back)
Against the USP45c
~¼" shorter
~0.065" wider at grip. Girth seems the same, however. Slightly more comfortable due to curves.
~0.120" wider across safety levers.
~0.490" shorter
The trigger of the .45 is heavier in DA and SA as compared to the 9. SA is relatively clean breaking but some overtravel. Top of breechblock is blued and not left in the white like the 9. Slide serrations are wider much like SIGs. Actually says 'BERSA' instead of 'FIRESTORM INC.' on the reverse of the slide (same 'MiniFireStorm' on the obverse as the 9).
Can't wait to try it out tomorrow. (Also bought some Remington Eley Target for some .22 lr rifle shooting.)
Wasn't really looking for it. I was out scouting around for a CZ 452 Varmint bolt action in .22 lr for Silhouettas shooting. Went to Buckeye Outdoors near Columbus, OH after work (~1½ hours away). They didn't have the CZ I was looking for in stock but would contact me Mon after they get ahold of their distributor for availability. So, I looked around.
I actually saw one, my first one, at a gun show this past weekend but it was two tone. Not really into two tones and have weened myself away from stainless/chrome/nickle finishes. Basic black/blue/park for me nowadays. I was a bit surprised at how small it was. It really was not that much bigger than my Mini9s in terms of grip circumference and overall size. They had a .40 SW there too and it appeared to be identical to the 45 ACP. At the show it was $380, IIRC, but the guy said he'd knock it down to $340 for me. I had asked him if he had an all blue one and he said (paraphrasing) 'No, that's how they come from the factory (implying they are all two tone or all 'chrome').' He further stated that that was the direction all the manufacturers seemed to be headin, i.e. stainless/chrome, for ease of cleaning, better resistance to climate, yadda, yadda, yadda, etc.
. Clearly the finish is nickle.At Buckeye, I spotted the FireStorm/Bersa Mini45 in all of the finishes including all blue. $350, not bad, but I was looking for the CZ and even that for just pricing. Wasn't really looking to buy anything. I was also on my way to Best Buy to get a Sony MZ-NF610 MiniDisc player/recorder so didn't want to spend anything there. Also looked at the 1911s from Spring and Kim. Then I perused through their latest ads for sales. 1911s for as low as $400 and.......the Mini45 for $309!
Figuring I'll never see that bargain again, I succumbed to my lack of willpower and bought one.At home, I compared against the Mini9 and USP45c.
Against Mini9 :
~¼" longer
~0.006" wider at the grip below the thumbrests.
Identical width across the safety levers.
Identical from bottom of grip to top of slide.
Frontstrap to backstrap is, of course, bigger (difficult to measure due to roundness and fingergrooves.
Identical mag widths.
Nearly identical mag height (minor difference could probably be due more to feed lip dimensions)
0.120" longer (front/back)
Against the USP45c
~¼" shorter
~0.065" wider at grip. Girth seems the same, however. Slightly more comfortable due to curves.
~0.120" wider across safety levers.
~0.490" shorter
The trigger of the .45 is heavier in DA and SA as compared to the 9. SA is relatively clean breaking but some overtravel. Top of breechblock is blued and not left in the white like the 9. Slide serrations are wider much like SIGs. Actually says 'BERSA' instead of 'FIRESTORM INC.' on the reverse of the slide (same 'MiniFireStorm' on the obverse as the 9).
Can't wait to try it out tomorrow. (Also bought some Remington Eley Target for some .22 lr rifle shooting.)
Note : The new Mini40s I saw had those new safety locks above the trigger like the Mini45s. It looked, due to this feature, to me like the new Mini40s are now built on the Mini45 frame/slide. Could be wrong though as this feature could be also on the newer Mini9s, but I haven't seen it on them yet.
The Saturday after I bought it, southern OH got very wet. It cycled between drizzle to Emergency Broadcast System thunderstorm all day with flood warnings to boot. Sunday wasn't much better until towards the end of the day but my local range is situated in a valley with very poor runoff. Following weekend, I went home for birthday parties. This weekend I am in Toronto. Hopefully by next weekend. I would try it after work but takes too long to get to my apartment then to the range. (No firearms allowed on company property.)
hksw,
So you drive a company car? (If not, and if it doesn't leave the car, then it isnt on company property.)
OK, we'll try to be patient, but you're running out of excuses!
Thanks for responding. I really liked the feel (not to mention the price) of this one over the Sig P245, so do keep us in mind once you get to shoot it.
So you drive a company car? (If not, and if it doesn't leave the car, then it isnt on company property.)
OK, we'll try to be patient, but you're running out of excuses!
Thanks for responding. I really liked the feel (not to mention the price) of this one over the Sig P245, so do keep us in mind once you get to shoot it.
Jamie B
Member
Hey, Ron, have you ever been to Ohio Valley in Lancaster?
I have not been to the NEW Buckeye Outdoors yet.
I thought that they were fairly close to the oul location??
Jamie
I have not been to the NEW Buckeye Outdoors yet.
I thought that they were fairly close to the oul location??
Jamie
No, no company car. Marietta/Belpre/Parkersburg is realatively small and some of the workers go to the same ranges. Most are okay with stowing away guns out of sight in their cars on company property as hunting is extremely big down here. But, it only takes one to connect quitting time and showing up at the range right after and figuring I don't live near work to add up that I probably had the gun in my car to get the wheels rolling. And I like my job.
Haven't been to the Ohio Valley Trading in Lancaster. I've been meaning to get tot the one in Athens but haven't as of yet.
Buckeye is now north of I-70 off of Route 79 (can see it from 79 on the right going north, when you see it, exit). Excellent place. Great ammo selection. (At least better than Dick's, MC Sport, WM, Gander, etc.) Maybe even a little better, gun selection-wise, than Fin Feather Fur in Ashland (Route 250). Buckeye is now associated with Vance's in Columbus (Cleveland Ave.). CLOSED MONDAYS.
Haven't been to the Ohio Valley Trading in Lancaster. I've been meaning to get tot the one in Athens but haven't as of yet.
Buckeye is now north of I-70 off of Route 79 (can see it from 79 on the right going north, when you see it, exit). Excellent place. Great ammo selection. (At least better than Dick's, MC Sport, WM, Gander, etc.) Maybe even a little better, gun selection-wise, than Fin Feather Fur in Ashland (Route 250). Buckeye is now associated with Vance's in Columbus (Cleveland Ave.). CLOSED MONDAYS.
Okay, Saturday was wet again but Sunday was sunny.
Didn't bother oiling the Mini45 as it was already well doused with oil out of the box. Shooting was a little slow due to the fact that he gun came with only one 7 round mag. Also had to re-acquaint myself with shooting .45 ACP as the last time I shot that caliber was a few months ago (been practicing with my .22s for awhile).
Some size comparisons.
Left to right : USP45c, Mini45, Mini9
USP45c, Mini45
(If you take a ruler to the screen, you can get the relative height dimension differences.)
Recoil seemed a bit more than the USP. Possibly due to more flex of the poly lower of the USP and the plastic recoil buffer. Did have 4 incidents of the slide locking back on a partial mag. 1 when benched, 3 off hand. First one I could not be sure if my thumb hit the stop or not. Made a semi-conscious effort to not let this happen after that and am pretty sure the other 3 were not induced by my hands. Could be due to my hold. Will have to shoot it somemore to see if it works itself out or I adjust to shooting it. These stops occurred in the first 50 (of 100) rounds [UMC 230 gr ball]. No other types of malfs.
Didn't try double action. Single action was a bit heavy, heavier than the Mini9, USP45c, and a W. German P220 I also shot this day. Also a bit creepy. After shooting, ~6.5# - Lyman electronic trigger pull gage. Double action excedes the Lyman's 12# limit.
Biggest problem for me with the Mini45 is hammer bite. Have a 3/16"X3/16" piece of skin pinched off the web of my shooting hand. I've had this problem with my high power before and, IIRC, the Mini9 in the past but eventually somehow no longer have the problem with those guns after shooting them awhile. Hopefully, the same will happen with the Mini45.
Benched, the groups for me were like these :
25', 50'
(There is a flyer under the right edge of the 25' target for one of the seven rounds of the 50' target.)
I had used a plastic foam block held by my weak hand as a rest. not the best rest but all that I had. Won't show you my off hand targets. Pretty poor but kept them on a 8½"X11" sheet at the 50'. I shot better with the USPc and P220. Could be due to the heavier trigger and the hammer bite causing me to be not too steady. I'm positive if S. Camp shot the gun, it would get better groups.
An OK gun, but not yet comfortable with it with the stoppages and hammer bites. Need more range time to see if things iron out. If given a choice between the .45 ACP USPc and Mini for carry (if ever Ohio passes it), I'd go with the HK at this time.
Also shot my Hi-Point 9mm Comp somemore. 100 rounds, no failures, ho hum. Approaching 1500 rounds with one failure to feed.
Didn't bother oiling the Mini45 as it was already well doused with oil out of the box. Shooting was a little slow due to the fact that he gun came with only one 7 round mag. Also had to re-acquaint myself with shooting .45 ACP as the last time I shot that caliber was a few months ago (been practicing with my .22s for awhile).
Some size comparisons.
Left to right : USP45c, Mini45, Mini9
USP45c, Mini45
(If you take a ruler to the screen, you can get the relative height dimension differences.)
Recoil seemed a bit more than the USP. Possibly due to more flex of the poly lower of the USP and the plastic recoil buffer. Did have 4 incidents of the slide locking back on a partial mag. 1 when benched, 3 off hand. First one I could not be sure if my thumb hit the stop or not. Made a semi-conscious effort to not let this happen after that and am pretty sure the other 3 were not induced by my hands. Could be due to my hold. Will have to shoot it somemore to see if it works itself out or I adjust to shooting it. These stops occurred in the first 50 (of 100) rounds [UMC 230 gr ball]. No other types of malfs.
Didn't try double action. Single action was a bit heavy, heavier than the Mini9, USP45c, and a W. German P220 I also shot this day. Also a bit creepy. After shooting, ~6.5# - Lyman electronic trigger pull gage. Double action excedes the Lyman's 12# limit.
Biggest problem for me with the Mini45 is hammer bite. Have a 3/16"X3/16" piece of skin pinched off the web of my shooting hand. I've had this problem with my high power before and, IIRC, the Mini9 in the past but eventually somehow no longer have the problem with those guns after shooting them awhile. Hopefully, the same will happen with the Mini45.
Benched, the groups for me were like these :
25', 50'
(There is a flyer under the right edge of the 25' target for one of the seven rounds of the 50' target.)
I had used a plastic foam block held by my weak hand as a rest. not the best rest but all that I had. Won't show you my off hand targets. Pretty poor but kept them on a 8½"X11" sheet at the 50'. I shot better with the USPc and P220. Could be due to the heavier trigger and the hammer bite causing me to be not too steady. I'm positive if S. Camp shot the gun, it would get better groups.
An OK gun, but not yet comfortable with it with the stoppages and hammer bites. Need more range time to see if things iron out. If given a choice between the .45 ACP USPc and Mini for carry (if ever Ohio passes it), I'd go with the HK at this time.
Also shot my Hi-Point 9mm Comp somemore. 100 rounds, no failures, ho hum. Approaching 1500 rounds with one failure to feed.
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