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Sometimes it take a new gun to appreciate your old one

2K views 14 replies 12 participants last post by  fldawgfan 
#1 · (Edited)
I recently got a Bersa Thunder .380 for my wife. She thought it was "Sexy", especially compared to my Shield, and I had read all these glowing reviews of what an accurate gun it was being a Blowback design and minimal recoil being it was only a .380 and about the same size. Don't have any pics (crappy phone) but I just put 100 rds through each. I was hitting 2-3" groups at 7 yds with my Shield. 3-4" groups with the Bersa. I don't care what the Bersa Forums say, it is slightly snappier than my Shield and I don't shoot it as well. Of course I'll never tell her that or she'll want to get rid of it! It is a nice looking gun though, I'll give it that, But it's making me think twice about that .380 Ruger LCP I was contemplating.
 

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#4 · (Edited)
I have never had an lcp, but I've had a few bg380's and always end up deciding I hate them and sell it but then talk myself into buying another one because they are so easy to carry while running or just wearing athletic shorts. Nothing I look forward to shooting, but it is lightweight and better than nothing
 
#5 ·
Carrying a .380 ACP is better than carrying a rock!
 
#6 · (Edited)
That Bersa shoots a lot better than an LCP will.

A frend of mine has one; it's better than nothing, I guess.

I have a P238 that shoots great, but I just leave it in the car.

I carry 1911's or M&P's mostly.

I do have a CM9 that's my "little gun."
 
#7 ·
Wife bought a pink bersa 380 cause she liked the feel, fit, and she shot it well at the rental range. Bought a holster, strapped it on......."its to big to carry concealed in girl clothes". Never fired it, so I traded it for a Taurus .32. Its small, and she will carry it......thats what matters. I carry my Taurus 380....bout the same thing as the LCP during the summer. Its just easier to carry in shorts. All that being said. .....it is snappy! But manageable. Shield definitely shoots softer and recovers to target much easier.
 
#15 ·
.32 can certainly get the job done. The Walther PPK in .32 was was the standard issue side arm for staff officers in the Wehrmacht during WWII. A Colonel on Rommel's staff was one of my professors when I did a year at the Üniversität Innsbrück in 1988. We talked about a lot of his experiences on our trip to visit the Normandy beaches. He had tons of great stories about those days. Battles, tanks, guns,etc.
 
#8 · (Edited)
I owned both a Walther PPK/s and a PPK (stainless steel), very similar to the Bersa Thunder... had them for a while. I found both to be snappier than you would have thought, both were accurate, easy to carry and conceal, somewhat picky with "some" hollow-points, but in the end I simply gravitated back to a S&W 638 or 642 in .38spl --

WHY, never had the confidence in the .380acp as I do with a .38spl Gold Dot 135gr +P HP or the old FBI load consisting of a 158gr. lead semi-wad-cutter HP +P.

I'm not knocking those who carry a .380acp auto, it simply wasn't for me, plus I really like the simplicity of an "old school" 5 shot J-frame air-weight revolver in shorts and flip-flop weather (with two Bianchi speed strips)...

One other thing---you can shoot a 638 or a 642 in a pocket...
 

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#10 ·
+2, but not by much.

Being less capable than the average .38 Spl. load, the .380 suffers from a perceived lack of power. To stop a BG, you have to place shots even more accurately, and you've got a limited number of opportunities to get it right. You also have to carry a round which has sufficient penetration to interrupt the CNS, without over penetrating and hurting someone else, which can be more difficult than with common modern duty calibers.

Several members here shot and carried an LCP for years, and some still do. I even carried 100 gr. of Buffalo Bore hardcast (listed as a +p load) in an effort to achieve acceptable terminal performance, but could no longer justify the additional accuracy required to put 2 or 3 of these absurdly snappy rounds into an ever smaller target. Eventually we passed it on to the next guy, with a Crimson Trace laser, at a significant loss.
 
#11 ·
I bought a Ruger P90 several years ago when I read where they were going to discontinue them. Its a single column 8 round magazine in a DA/SA platform. It has a slide mounted safety that decocks the hammer, but the safety stays in the safe position until you move it to the fire position. Stainless slide, aluminum receiver. Four and one half inch barrel.

While the pistol has been 100%, I find it a bit on the large side for a single column magazine. I still have the pistol and do like it, but it is a firearm I have little passion about.
 
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