[SnakesInMyHead]

try the Bersa .380 concealed carry. great gun. my wife loves hers.

[gunney_m]

Bersa 380, price, reliability.

[teledex]

Hello:
Don't know if you have made your choice yet but I have recently puchased a Bersa 380 Thunder that is nickel plated and dehorned for concealed carry. I purchased it through Gun Brokers.com. Don't remember the exact winning bid price but it was around $220.00. This gun has alot to offer for the money ( or at any price). I have a Sig 232 Stainless Steel and the Walther PPK. I carried the Sig conceiled for about 5 years and its an excellent gun but the cost is around $550.00 now and mine has trigicon nite sites from the factory which adds another $100.00. The problem with that is, if you ever get into a fracas where you do have to use it for self defence the cops / corurts will take the gun and like as not you ain't never going to see that gun again, as if by magic it will be lost in the police property room. Additionally the Sig 232 and the Walther PPK's are a real bear to break down for cleaning. There is a tinny spring in the slide mechanism and if it goes "sprong" during the cleaning cycle you can figure on spending about 3 hours on your knees with a magnet trying to find that little sweety.
Back to the Bersa. The "dehorned" version has had all the snag points machined off at the factory so in that sense it is made strictly for conceiled carry. Bersa chose to plain the sights down to the point they are not real useable and I doubt that it would be much good or accurate beyond about 10 ft. But thats what a conceiled gun is all about. Most confrontations that place at arm length or within 3 feet.
However the normal Bersa Thunder (Blue Steel) has normal sights so look at both of them if you are still looking.
One final comment: The only thing I did not like about the Bersa was the feel of it in my hand. The hand grip is machined with finger notches and the clip has a tang on it that helps compleate the 3 fingered grip. The problem is the grip side plates are made from some sort of slippery plastic and even though the plastic has dimples or bumps on it I really didn't like the feel of it in my hand. I'm a good size guy 6ft and 230lbs so my hands aren't small. I got used to the smaller grips while carrying the Sig 232 but it came from the factory with Packmyers grips with finger notches.
No one builds replacement grips for the Bersa.
The solution: Go to Target or Wall Mart or any place that sells innertubes for bicycles. Buy a standard (Not self sealing) innertube for a normal wide tire bike. It costs about $2.50 and the one I bought was a Schwinn 20 inch bicycle tube (51cm). The tube is reinforced with ribs or ridges right by the valve stem. I cut the tube straight accross, following the ridges, just to the side of the valve stem. Then I made a mark with red magic marker on the inside of the tube about 1 3/4 inches from the straight cut and another mark at 2 1/4 inches on the outside of the tube. Connecting the two marks with a straight line allowed me to make an angled second cut.
With the clip removed and the chamber empty I streatched the rubber tube over the handgrip. The short side of the tube blends nicely under the trigger guard. The long side of the tube forms a point on the hand grips back strap. Cut this point off with scissors so that it forms a radius not just a straight flat cut. It worked wonders for the feel of the gun in my hand and the black rubber blends into the grips. I no longer had the feeling that the gun would easily slip out of my hand.
Happy selecting and if this doesn't help you it may be of interest to someone else.

[pkirk]

I have a bersa 380 and a ruger 38 sp. The choice rounds for the 38 sp. in my opinion would be the critical defences rounds. Their a hollow point bullet with a balistic gell insert to improve accurracy. My bersa has a laser aiming system on it, so I guess it dosen't matter what I shoot though it, it should be on target.

[KW Gary M]

Of the 3 mentioned the Kahr by far. My favorite small auto for CCW is my XD Subcompact though.

[nmgonzo]

I am on my 3rd Bersa

First one two countries ago, 20 years ago.

Second one, one country ago, over 10 years ago.

Third one this country, 1 year ago.

Nice little buggers.

[stinkybriches]

well. i owned a thunder 9 and its only flaw in my eyes was the calibur. it was accurate and functioned well with any ammo i feed it.
my range buddy owns a thunder .380 and i can say ive fire maybe 200 rounds through it and it handles well. my girlfriends 11 year old little sister can fire it very well. i dont have any experiance with the other pistols you mentioned but feel you couldnt go wrong with the bersa.

[mitchr]

I don't have the Walther or the Kahr, but I understand they are fine pistols. I broke in my wife's Bersa 380 & if you like the feel of the Bersa, I'd recommend it. Less expensive & a lifetime warranty. I own the Bersa Ultra Compact 9mm & High Capacity 9mm. The difference in recoil is negligible & the UC 9mm is a good fit for small hands. It is small enough for my wife's small hands, plus the slide is easier to rack (she has arthritus) than the 380, so it may end up as her pistol. You should look around & see if you can find one to check out. Also, 9mm ammo is easier to find & cheaper.