Suggest a 380 as a shooter

Which

  • Beretta 85

    Votes: 34 33.3%

  • Browning 1911-380

    Votes: 19 18.6%

  • Neither

    Votes: 8 7.8%

  • Other

    Votes: 41 40.2%
  • Total voters
    102
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Either the Beretta Model 85 or the Browning 1911-380 would be a good range gun. I have both and they shoot about anything.

For carry once in a while in a motorcycle saddlebag, I'd go with the Beretta. Personally, I'm not comfortable with a "cocked and locked" loaded pistol that I'm not carrying on my person. The Beretta can be carried hammer down and shot DA for the first round and for my preferences woukd make a better choice for carrying in a saddlebag.

Of course, if you are carrying with an empty chamber, then choose the gun you like the best.

With some practice, the DA trigger pull becomes a non-issue.
 
WisBorn said:
First of all I'm not a Glock fan so my recommendation might not fit. I have shot (don't own) the Glock 42 and was surprised by how much fun it is to shoot.

I think a Walther (Bond Time) would be cool.
I have an LCP2 for my daily carry
Click to expand...
Didn't mention the Glock 42(I have one) because I thought the guy was looking for a more 'full sized' handgun. I love mine and 100% reliable. Big palms? Get a hogue grip on it.
 
Look for an older Bersa .380. I have one and it's always went bang and is an accurate little devil. My female co-worker carries one in her purse and car for protection and loves it.
 
I had a Beretta once, not a bad gun either in fact I gave it to my girlfriend.
I think a strong person could punch you in the face harder than the 380 could penetrate a heavy jacket.
Lol
I Carry a 45 acp cause if I hit ya in the thumb it’ll kill ya.
 
I suggest the Grand Power CP380, P380, LP380 and Roxor.
The CP380 is 12 rounds, the others 15 rounds.
On youtube I saw shocking accuracy due to a real fixed barrel and tight slide to frame fit. They are blowback. The slide is built like a tank.
 
If you could find a Makarov in .380 that might be a fun choice.
Decent size, not to expensive.
 
Colt Government model is possibly the best dimension-ed 380.
If small size is required, the SIG-238 is probably the better choice, it's functionally a Colt mustang, only currently available, unlike the Mustang.
I found the Mustang to be a bit too small for my tastes.
 
Colt Government Model: Size is roughly compact, halfway between a 1911 and the little Mustang types. Steel frame. Shoots from a locked breech. Good trigger, decent sights, very modest recoil. I can't remember if it is a Star or a Llama or both that Colt got the inspiration from.

CZ83: Compact sized, Steel frame. Nice trigger and sights. Double-stack mag.

Beretta 84/85: Compact size. Aluminum frame.Nice sights and trigger. Single or double-stack mag. There are Taurus clones as well, which are said to be pretty good.

They are all nice medium-sized service/belt pistols, The Colt has the least recoil due to the locking breech. I can shoot them all pretty well out to 15 yards or so. I think that the Beretta is the only one still in production. The Colt is rare and you would have to watch Gunbroker for a while to find a good deal. The surplus CZ83's are pretty common and not very expensive.

The Browning FN 1971 has a 6" barrel and adjustable sights. It is my go-to 380 for accuracy, but they are kind of rare and it took me a while to find one that was affordable.

I don't shoot a 380 PPK very well, nor an aluminum-framed 380 PP. I'm fine with a steel-framed PP variant in 380acp. My commercial Makarov is probably my favorite. The DA trigger is kind of heavy, but the SA trigger is good and the adjustable sights are, too.

Colt Government 380

Colt Government 380


(I don't have a CZ83 just now. I "had" to trade mine and don't have another one
yet.)

Beretta Model 84

Beretta Model 84


Browning FN 1971

Browning FN 1971


Makarov380

Makarov380

 
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Tanfoglio makes some polymer 380s as well, compact and full size.
I don't know if they are imported in the USA.
 
I have a Colt Gov't 380, a S&W 380 EZ, a Glock 42, and a Springfield 911 .380.

I like the Springfield, but it is probably smaller than your father would like.
The Glock is small too, but with an extended magazine, it fills the hand pretty well.
I love the Colt, but the small, non-replaceable sights are hard for my old eyes to pick up. You didn't say if your father has any vision problems.
The S&W ticks all the boxes, and can be had with or without a thumb safety, depending on what you want. Some people don't like the grip safety, however. It doesn't bother me either way. I've even considered putting a slip on grip on it because I really don't love the grips.

I also have a Taurus Spectrum, but I can't recommend it.
I owned a Tisas (Turkish) clone of the Beretta 84 but it hurt my arthritic old hands to shoot it.
The same with a Bersa thunder.

I have a CZ82 in 9x18 that's very nice to shoot. I'm told the CZ83 in .380 is even nicer.

That's all I know.
 
barnetmill said:
380 is a nice round to shoot, but the ammo is expensive and it would be a good idea to reload if you shoot a lot of it.
Click to expand...
Interestingly enough, wandering thru a few ammo search engines...380 and 9mm are 'about' the same $..I just bought 100 rounds of Blazer .380 for $44...
 
Reloading the 380 does help with the cost/availability of 380. The hardest part is finding the spent cases at the range.
 
A lot of people are saying the Colt 380 Government Model. I have both one of those and a Browning 1911-380. The Browning is significantly larger in every dimension.

I think the Browning will be a more pleasant shooter than the Beretta, however, the Beretta may be more accurate. Keep in mind that the Browning wants a lot of gun oil. I tend to run my guns pretty dry (not without oil, just not a lot of oil). However, the Browning needs more oil than most other pistols I have.
 
Last edited:
the most accurate and the largest (considered more of a full size then a compact) 380 I ever shot was the Warther PK380
 
FFGColorado said:
Interestingly enough, wandering thru a few ammo search engines...380 and 9mm are 'about' the same $..I just bought 100 rounds of Blazer .380 for $44...
Click to expand...
You are talking about hysteria prices. .380 pricing for brass fmj is normally more than it is for 9x19 base case ammo. There is steel case .380 and I am not sure how many .380 guns out there like that type of case.
 
Years ago I had a CZ-83, very fun pistol to shoot. Mine tended to choke on anything but hardball.
 
Comparing the Bersa Thunder 380 to the Beretta 84/85 is not unreasonable.

I own both the Bersa and the Beretta 85,,,
There's not that much difference in relative size.

BersaBeretta.jpg

You can see that the Beretta is a tad bit longer than the Bersa,,,
If anything I would say that the Bersa is just a tad skinnier than the Beretta.

The Bersa guns get dissed a lot because they are from South America,,,
But mine has been a very reliable shooter for over 9 years now.

Aarond

.
 
I love my Bersa, and even bought another in .22LR.

But, it is a blowback gun so, if the reason he's not considering 9mm Luger is felt recoil and muzzle flip, then a locked-breech might be more suitable.
 
Wildbillz said:
:The Smith & Wesson 380EZ is nice. Easy to work with and should fill the hand just fine. Its only a 7 shot though. I like the Beretta but because its a straight blow back the recoil is more then from a locked breach gun. I still have one but I don't shoot it much.

WB
Click to expand...
Actually a 9 shot(one in the chamber)
 
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