.380 use on real gunfight

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shotokan99

New member
are there any members that had used .380 specifically bersa thunder 380 on an actual or real shootout? can you share your experience? i like this little gun and plan to have it soon.

tnx
 
actual .380 incident

Here is one true story. An off-duty Tampa,Fl firefighter shot his attacker once in the chest with his .380. The attacker died on the spot. My Bersa .380 likes the Remington JHP .380 round.
 
My opinion is its smaller than i would like. I am a hard core .40 fan but this "Smuch is for sure a .380 is better than no gun at all. Not my first choice but there are worse to be had. Better to have a .380 that is comfy to carry than a 1911 (I LOVE 1911's) you never carry due to size.
 
With this class of gun/caliber and the 38 snubbies, you need to be REALLY picky about ammo. And in the case of a semi like the Bersa, you then need to worry about whether or not that quality ammo will feed - so you need to shoot at least 200 rounds of it, AFTER the gun is broken in with 100-200 rounds of whatever.

For ammo choices, start here:

http://www.brassfetcher.com/Various .380ACP handloads.html

This is the first time I've seen his data on the 380 as this isn't a caliber I'm personally into (I'm a wheelgun guy). What I get from it is that the 90gr XTP and Gold Dot projectiles work well enough when driven at 900fps or better. I would consider speed-testing factory with those slugs across a chrony from my gun and if they're getting enough heat, yeah, they oughta work. Other than that the 85gr Federal slug looks at least respectable.

Cor-bon's 80gr ain't punching deep enough.
 
I worked with a guy who shot a home invader with a Walther 380. Two shots and gun jammed. One hit an arm and other well off center of torso. Bad guy stood there whining about being shot and had to be knocked down with one punch. The guy had not practiced and tested for reliability. The police told him to shoot more than 2 shots with a 380 but that doesn't help if it jams. He now keeps a 38 for protection but is probably still a bad shot. The lesson is to practice and make shure your gun works always. I always wanted a Walther and traded for one this summer. The pistol was unreliable til after about 200 rounds of hardball. Magazine catch had a burr that needed filing. I don't consider it reliable with hollow points. I like the 380 but don't want another Walther. I have heard positive reports about the Bersa but haven't shot one.
 
I don't consider it reliable with hollow points.
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Probably just as well, some experts advise carrying only FMJ in a .380 due to the fact that JHP rounds tend to penetrate less than is generally considered adequate.
 
actually from other threads...folks always suggest 38 snub is alot better choice than .380. the only thing that attracts me with .380 is the size....plus reloading is easy compared to wheelgun.
 
I have carried the Thunder 380 and used Federal Hydra-Shoks. No problems with feeding. A friend of mine has used the same pistol in a defense situation, also with same ammo. He had an attacker try to car-jack him with a knife. He shot him 3 times and he died straight away. What's the old saying? Don't bring a knife to a gun fight!
 
.380

A .380 in your pocket beats a .45 in your gun safe. My Bersa is reliable with ball ammo and Remington JHPs. I haven't shot it with any other top brand hollowpoints yet. With 9 rounds in the piece and at least one spare magazine, you should be "good to go."
 
Got to agree with Tshadow6 here...you won't carry a heavy, uncomfortable sidearm very long.

I had a Bersa and really liked it, it functioned well and was reliable.

Got to also agree with JohnKSa (always good to agree with the staff, don't you think?) also...I carry FMJ in my Colt .380. Much more dependable and better penetration.
 
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Not the Bersa particularly but several incidents with .380.
On 10/02/96 while doing an arrest on a fed fugitive he opened up on us with a TEC-9 in one hand and a Colt Mustang .380 in the other, firing 11 rds at us. Both were loaded with FMJ. On the receiving end you couldn't tell the difference between the 2 calibers, they sounded the same indoors. He ended up shooting himself in the head with the .380. The rd entered in front of and just above the right ear, exited to the rear and just above the left ear, went thru the upholstering of a chair, went thru 1/2" drywall, and stopped in about 1" of 2X4 stud.
We use to issue PPK to senior command who wanted them. Issued ammo was W-W Silvertip. One of our guys shot a subject at about arms length distance. Rd hit the guy center just below the rib cage and came to rest up against the spine.
Investigated a few shootings where .380 was used but none of them hit vitals.
 
some experts advise carrying only FMJ in a .380
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I use only FMJ in everything I shoot or carry. In actual testing on real flesh HP bounce off ribs, do not penetrate much etc. FMJ works every time for me. We use animal carcases for our testing.
 
Just shot my new (to me) Interarms Walther PPK 380 with Winchester WinFree ammo.

Completely reliable for the 100 rounds I shot, no failures to feed, fire, or extract.

Accuracy was incredible, and one handed shooting was equally impressive.

Would have no hesitation carrying or defending.
 
Most data from actual real world use shows that the JHPs give better results than the FMJs. Since these results are old, and while FMJs stay the same, JHPs keep improving, I will choose JHPs.

I would be happy with any of the current production premium JHPs, but I like the DoubleTap Gold Dots best!
 
i read in some threads, that small pistols like bersa 380 has less fear factor compared to full-size 1911s. how true is this?
 
Most data from actual real world use shows that the JHPs give better results than the FMJs.
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I think this is true in general, the problem is that at the .380ACP energy levels you can't get any decent amount of expansion without paying an unacceptable penalty in penetration. Even the newest expanding loads in .380 show penetration levels that are too shallow if you believe what the FBI states as a minimum.
 
Need to look at what Cor Bonn is bring out in defense ammo for smaller calibers.Suddenly my .380 Mak isn't so bad after all.
 
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