Range Report: Used Bersa .380 Thunder

[DontShootMe]

This is exactly how my Bersa looks
The gun also comes in Nickel, 2-Tone, and Black w/Gold accents.

Purchased from private party on gunbroker.com for:
$205.00 including shipping - leather ankle holster also included

Initial Impression:
Looks like a Walther PPK! Mag very sturdy, easy-to-load design. Has a takedown similar to Glock pistols: Field strip in 2-3 seconds!

Knobs & Switches:
Slide stop, mag release, safety/decocker, & takedown latch.

When dry-cycling (racking the slide) the gun makes a zippy, almost corduroy pants sound - the barrel is textured or coated with something. Grease is recommended instead of oil for lube.

Ammo used:
PMC 90gr FMJ
Speer 90gr JHP
CorBon 90gr JHP

First I fired a few PMC FMJ's - DA first pull, SA on all others. Very smooth. The sight picture/impact point is similar to Glock models. The DA trigger is a bit long for my taste, but easy to adjust to. The SA trigger is perfecto.

Shooting slow fire, I was able to punch out a single ragged sub 1" hole at 5 Yards. 3.5" group at 5 Yards semi-rapid fire.

Then I moved on to the Speer 90gr JHP - Well, after shooting these, I am now a believer that the 380 is a very capable defensive handgun. The gun was noticeably 'snappier' than with the PMC JHP's (Think .40 compared to 9mm) These rounds are HOT!

Finally, the CorBon 90gr JHP's - Well, these are the ones folks. If you carry a .380, this is your ammo. SUPER HOT, very snappy, and if you like fire, the CorBon's produce a 10-12" fireball. WooHoo!

After shooting a little over 100 rounds my palm on my shooting hand began to fatigue. I was not happy about the fatigue, but I was happy that my new (to me) .380 packed such a wallop.

I guess I began to believe the talk about 'anything below 9mm will just make someone mad' - well I beg to differ now.

Conclusion:

Great little back up gun for the money. I actually tried to buy from my local dealer first, but every distributor he goes through was backordered on this gun. It was he who recommended I buy it online.

I guess sometimes an inexpensive, or let's say 'cheap' product comes around that is truly a good deal.



Edited to add: Oh yeah, no jams or feeding problems whatsoever!

 

[Stephen A. Camp]

Hello. Thanks for the report. My limited experience with the Bersa Thunder has been positive as well.

Best and good shooting.

 

[Matthew_Q]

Bersas are sure a lot of bang for the buck, but I would say:

DO NOT SHOOT +P IN A BERSA THUNDER!! The frame isn't really good for +P. Heard someone shot a few boxes of some hot CorBon, I think, and ended up cracking the frame. Got it replaced, and shot a buttload of standard loads, and it runs great. So, avoid +P if you can, or shoot very little of it.