Is the Bersa Thunder .380 ACP Handgun a good defense weapon for my wife?

Bersas are quality guns for the price you pay for them. They'll digest FMJ practice ammo, as well as hot-loaded Cor-Bon JHPs. They're also apparently quite accurate. And they shoot the .380 ACP which knowledgeable gun writers either consider to be just adequate for self-defense, or just inadequate. Good .380 ACP loads exist; I'd personally recommend Speer's Gold Dot or Federal HydraShok loads for this caliber. However, the .380 ACP is relatively expensive for pistol ammunition, even in the el-cheapo Winchester white-box FMJ you'd pick up at Wal-Mart, but if you and your wife can afford the couple hundred rounds it will take to get familiarized with the weapon, plus the occasional box to remain familiar with it, then this shouldn't be an issue.

Next, I'll present you with some possible alternatives:

Another choice to consider, if semi-autos are your preference, are the compact 9mm pistols from Taurus, Kahr Arms, or Glock (in order of expense, from least to most.) The Taurus is the same size and roughly the same weight as the Bersa Thunder, has a manual safety, like the Thunder, and is fed the more adequate for self-defense (and much less expensive) 9mm Luger, which has a dazzling variety of good JHP loads available for it.

Finally: Go up in budget by $100 - $200 and you find .38 Special and .357 Magnum snubbies by Taurus and Ruger (used Rugers. New ones have an MSRP of $550.) Both are five-shot revolvers, but they weigh five more ounces. Taurus also offers a seven-shot revolver in this size. Revolvers tend to rely on just two safeties, a long, heavy double-action pull, and the safety between the shooter's ears. They're also cheaper to practice with (.38 Special ammunition is cheaper than .380 ACP,) and the .38 Special throws a heavier bullet at similar velocities for just 25 - 30% more recoil (by the numbers.)

A good revolver may be better.

An auto has a higher probability of malfunction. For personal defense, I would try to go away from autos, especially smaller ones, except for well experienced individuals with plenty of time on the range with that gun.

If the auto jams, a frightened individual would have a hard time gripping the slide and racking it to clear it. Also, there is a possibility of the slide release being pushed in advertantly while in her purse or however she may carry it. If this happens, would she recognize the problem and be able to correct it? You also have the slide slamming back during every shot needed. If her hand was in the way, it could injure her causing her to loose her weapon. The slide coming back could also be caught on something else knocking it out of her hand. I have only heard of this with small "pocket pistols". A larger auto having a larger grip, tends to be easier to hold to.

A revolver on the other hand, would make a good defensive weapon for a woman, especially if not alot of range time is possible. A good clean revolver has very minimal chance of binding, no possibilty of the shell not extracting, if the round misfires, the next pull will send another down range, no need to rack the slide, no slide release to hit accidentally causing malfunction.

If an auto was all you can get, go for it. Way better than nothing. If you can, I suggest a small hammerless revolver. A 38 Special with a rubber grip would be ideal. A 357 is too strong for even most men to effectively use in high stress situations. 38 would allow for quick follow up shots being placed where they are needed.

Being in law enforcement for several years and a firearms instructor, I have seen the ins and outs and pros and cons of both autos and revolvers. All these guns have a place and are suited well in the right application.

Honestly...NO!, I don't like the idea of my Wife or Son wanting to defend themselves with a G19 9mm so the first line of defense when I'm not home is our German Shepard.

Is it the recoil, or is it that she don't want to kill some one, if the answer is the 1st one, recoil will not be much of a factor when her adrenalin is pumping, if it is the second answer...well don't buy her a firearm at all, be it a 22LR or a 357 mag. I won't go into a hole lot of detail here because I don't now all of the circumstances but if you want to defend oneself do it right or don't do it at all.

The little stopping power of a 380 is not enough when some intruder is wearing a heavy leather jacket, and or pumped-up on drugs,etc. 9 out of 10 law enforcement switched from the 9mm years ago to the 40S&W and that is what I'd recomend.

I hope you understand and I hope this information becomes useful.

(77)

Man....some really great tips in here!!!! My wife is really picky about handguns. She has fired mostly everything made and her first response to .380 was to set it down and walk away (she said it had WAAY too much recoil for a lady gun).

Her absolute favorite weapon is the Taurus Model 605 .357 with a 3 in. barrel length. She also has a .32 cal Kel-Tec as a backup weapon that she actually (get this) keeps in the diaper bag....sheez.

I have seen here drill the target many times with both and I know what you are going to say about .32 stopping power but you know what I would rather hit with the .32 than miss with a .45 anyday.

Just my 2 cents

The Bersa or a Taurus in .380 is fine, I legally carry a Taurus PT111 in 9x19 everyday.

Put it this way, most sane people will not want you putting holes in there body no matter what caliber they are.

There is no magic bullet and unless you put one right in between their eyes and shut down their brain, you can expect to use more than 1 round to stop someone.

Short answer, Yes as long as it is reliable with the ammo you intend to load in it for defense. Just remember to take her shooting often so she feels comfortable with it and is confident that she can put the bullets where she wants them. Have her shoot at real defensive distances too, 3 to 10 yards max.

My wife uses a Kahr K9 or a Glock 19, both in 9mm and I let her burn through 150-200 rounds at a time.

I've actually heard from some gun vendors that Bersa makes a better .380 acp than both Walthers and Beretta. From what I've seen of them, they are good little guns but can't say from experience that they are any better.

What I have heard about single-stack .380s (like the Walters & the Sig) is that they tend to bruise a woman's hand because of the snap/recoil. They are so light that when shot they really buck in a small, petite hand (like a lady's hand). I got my wife the Beretta 84 double stack 13+1 .380 which is wider and heavier.

At the listed price for the Bersa I'd just buy it and if the wife can't handle it, keep it or traded up to a Lady's Smith, 84 Beretta, or Glock Model 19.

Good luck.

H

Yes it is, but if it were my wife I would get her a Ruger LCR in .22 mag.

With the Ruger you don't have to worry about limp-wristing and the .22 mag will take someone down at close range. The Ruger also has less recoil so you can get 2 quick shots off easy.

Yes, this is a good CCW and is basically a copy of the Walther PPK. The .380 caliber is adequate and your wife should be able to handle the recoil w/o a problem.

The Bersa is O.K., but is kinda second rate, especially if you are buying a defense weapon for your most valued object in your life.

If I were you, especially if wifey is a novice, I'd invest my coin in a small-frame revolver like the .38Spl or .357Mag. S&W snub-nose. If she has the experience and still wants an auto-loader, go with one of the Glock compacts or sub-compacts. Either of these is a much higher qualtiy and more reliable weapon, for not much more of your hard-earned coin!