Anyone like Bersa pistols?

[FergusonTO35]

Today I ordered a new Bersa Thunder 32 pistol in .32 Auto from my local shop. I already enjoy shooting .32's out of my Kel-Tec and figure it will be even more fun out of the larger Bersa. Anyone here like these pistols? Anything to watch out for on them? Also, could the .380 mags be tweaked to work in the .32?

[bedwards]

I've had one in the 380 that has been flawless for years. I don't know about the mag issue though.


be

[Lonegun1894]

My mom had one and now my girlfriend has one. Both of the guns have always shot very well and were always reliable. The only complaint I have heard is by people getting upset when they seat a fresh magazine while the slide is locked back and the slide closes and chambers a new round automatically. Personally, I think this is an advantage and have modified a couple of my personal house guns to do exactly that as it saves time and is one fewer thing I have to do should something go very wrong and make me need to reload one. But some people get nervous and see this as a malfunction. I had a .380 Makarov for a while, and while it was VERY accurate, it had a partially unsupported chamber and ruined brass, so it went to a new home. My girlfriends Bersa on the other hand seems to be very easy on brass, and I'm nit dumb enough to even think of getting rid of it, even though she has never carried it and carries a Glock 23 instead.

[2ndAmendmentNut]

I have limited experience shooting a Bersa in 380, also got to shoot and compare it to a Walther in 380. Honestly I thought the Bersa was every bit the gun the Walther was, and at half the cost.

[rintinglen]

I have limited experience shooting a Bersa in 380, also got to shoot and compare it to a Walther in 380. Honestly I thought the Bersa was every bit the gun the Walther was, and at half the cost.

My thoughts precisely, The only drawback that I see is that the DA trigger pull can be a bit rough and heavy, but the same is true of the Walther. I think they are one of the best buys in a CCW gun that there is out there.

[rond]

I think they are great, have 2 .380s and a .22lr.

[almostgem]

Have to agree also. I have a thunder 380, and love its ease of disassembly, and accuracy. Haven't shot any cast out of it yet, but I'm sure it's going to handle them like everything else, flawlessly.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

[fivegunner]

:lol:I have a 23 , that is a great shooting .22 lr. you never see any 23`s used.

[Walt]

I work part time in a friends GS. The Bersa 380s are as good as a low end carry gun gets. Rarely is one returned for service. I have one of the old blue steel ones and like it a lot.

[FergusonTO35]

Thanks. I've been wanting a PPK size .32 for a long time now, and Eagle Imports has recently brought another batch of Thunder .32's into the US. They are produced in occasional runs, as Eagle gets commitments from distributors. Right now, I don't know of any new mags available for it other than the extended 10 rounders, which I'm really not interested in. Many other .32 and .380 handguns share the same basic mag with minor differences, usually the spacing of the feed lips. I'm going to get some .380 mags and see if I can modify them to work with the .32, using the factory .32 mag as a guide.

[Four-Sixty]

The only drawback I've seen is the magazines are expensive. I picked up a used .380 for $250 and jumped on it mostly because it had an extra magazine.

[Newtire]

I got one about two months ago and have been shooting alot of cast thru it as well as J-words. So far, not one malfunction. I had a rough time disassembling it due to a burr on the slide but once that was gone, no more trouble. It feeds the RanchDog early style cast just fine. 3.0gr. RedDot or Win 231 does just fine with 100 grain Ranch Dog.

I discovered on my last trip to the range that my accuracy went down the tube and the Crimson Trace grip it came with started acting up-as in, not coming on half the time! I put it away and shot up alot of the .357 rounds I had made for my Ruger SP 101. Had fun anyway.

When I got home, I looked up how to change the batteries for the CT grips on Youtube and sure enough, there were a few movies there on that (Thanks you guys!). Got out the new screwdriver set and went to unscrew the grip on one side and ....it was loose! Other side, same thing. Now, the laser comes on just great and I'll bet that I find it shoots just great tomorrow when I go to the range. Good thing I didn't need to use it for anything serious! I will give those grips a check each time I go out. It's always the dumbest thing!

[FergusonTO35]

Sounds good. Ranch sure makes some fine molds. I put some through my Kel Tec yesterday.

[Freightman]

Had a Bersa 45 and traded it for a have to have gun which wasn't so hot, wish I had the Bersa back great CCW 45.

[FergusonTO35]

The Bersa .32 showed up today. Man, it is sweet!! Before it went into layaway I compared it to a .380 they had in stock. The mags will fit into either one, it appears the only difference is the spacing of the feed lips. On the Bersa website the mag follower, spring, and baseplate are the same as the .380. I'm going to find an aftermarket .380 mag and see if I can modify it to work in the .32.

[Multigunner]

The Bersa .32 showed up today. Man, it is sweet!! Before it went into layaway I compared it to a .380 they had in stock. The mags will fit into either one, it appears the only difference is the spacing of the feed lips. On the Bersa website the mag follower, spring, and baseplate are the same as the .380. I'm going to find an aftermarket .380 mag and see if I can modify it to work in the .32.

I've heard of people converting a .380 FN 1922 to .32 ACP (barrels are apparently interchangeable) and using the same magazine for .32 as they had used for the .380.
No mention was made on alteration of feed lips, but stands to reason an alteration should improve functioning.

I've only fired one of the Bersa .380 pistols that belongs to a friend. Accurate and reliable, workmanship looked to be first class.

[TommyT]

My CCW pistol for the warmer months is a Bersa M83 .380. I trust my life to it. Never had a problem with it EVER!

[FergusonTO35]

Sounds great. I really like this gun!!

[gunfan]

The nice part about the .32 ACP is the fact that it can shoot well, with hotter ammunition (Fiocchi 73-grain FMJ ammunition.) These rounds are more effective than you may be led to believe.

In it's more powerful permutations (read: from a short-barreled handgun), the .32 ACP can generally outperform the .22 WMRF cartridge. Penetration, along with incredible accuracy, is the hallmark of the round. At "full-gallop" (about 15 feet pat the pistol's muzzle), the little .312" can, and will, group tightly thoroughly perforating a miscreant's internal organs. The trick is getting past either the sternum or the skull structure. Most of the truly heavy loads will accomplish this with consummate skill and ease.

Shoot accurately, and "double tap" until the threat has been terminated. (An extra magazine is generally advisable.)

BTW, there isn't a thing wrong with Bersa's .32's. They're as reliable as the sunrise /sunset. I'd take one as a "back up" gun anytime!

Scott

[FergusonTO35]

Yep, I'm going to load Ranch Dog 75's in it.