Ruger LCP vs. Bersa 380 Concealed Carry

[jocko]

like my plastic PM9???? and plastic glock????? damn, I love plastic!!

 

[wallask]

I currently own 2 .380's, a PA3T and a Markov. The Mark has adjustable sights and is one of the most accurate semi-autos of any make or caliber I have ever owned (out to 50 yds). It is a little larger than the Bersa for concealed carry but is goes bang all the time with any kind of ammo. This is often overlooked STEEL pistol that can be had for a low price, that is , if you can find one.

 

[revhigh]

Rev in the interests of accuracy you did not say "little plastic pistol".

The Bersa 380 is one of the best carry guns you could have. THey are reliable and cheap. Not at all in the class of a plastic little LCP. .....REV

You said "plastic little LCP". Is there a non-plastic "little LCP". For that matter "little LCP" is kind of redundant don't you think?

:wink:

Just messing with you. I'm feeling onery today. FWIW I didn't read denigration in your post. Plastic is not a term of disrespect. It is a description of the material of construction. For a CCW it is my material of choice. For a range toy, not so much.

Take care guys & try not to take this LCP stuff too seriously. It's just a plastic little pistol. :lol:

Watch it Rat, I'm in no mood ....

REV

 

[bluehandgun]

i recently bought a bersa 380 and i am having some reliability issues with it, way too many ftf's in my opinion to use it as a carry gun. i can't figure out if it user error or gun error. it has been rather frustrating. i am probably going replace it with a glock 26. glocks are reliable, tried and true and 9mm ammo is cheaper. the LCPs are too new. i almost bought a SR9.. the same week i was going to buy it, the recall happened. for me the jury is out for both the LCP and SR9... i will hang back and observe before i get either one.

 

[revhigh]

It's amazing how many people I know, or have heard from in the last couple of months, that have either bought a G26, or already owned one. I never knew that this little gun was so outrageously popular. Guys I've shot with for years said 'Oh yeah, I've had one of them for years', after they found out I got mine. It seems that people don't really talk about Glocks like they do about other guns they own. Kinda like not really telling anybody that you have a 10 inch channel lock pliers at home.

Glocks are tools ... Colts are coveted posessions.

REV

 

[revhigh]

i recently bought a bersa 380 and i am having some reliability issues with it, way too many ftf's in my opinion to use it as a carry gun.

Wow, I imagine you mean failure to 'feed' when you say FTF. If that's the case and it's new, try polishing the feedramp, or run several hundred hardball ammo through it, or try a different ammo. Make sure it's clean and oiled PROPERLY, and give it another try. I'd be willing to bet that there's nothing wrong with that little gun. Bersa's are very reliable weapons.

Let us know how it turns out. Not trying to talk you out of a 26, just saying that your Bersa deserves another shot. It WILL be reliable. I never knew one that wasn't, but hey, it could be the first.

ERV

 

[bluehandgun]

i recently bought a bersa 380 and i am having some reliability issues with it, way too many ftf's in my opinion to use it as a carry gun.

Wow, I imagine you mean failure to 'feed' when you say FTF. If that's the case and it's new, try polishing the feedramp, or run several hundred hardball ammo through it, or try a different ammo. Make sure it's clean and oiled PROPERLY, and give it another try. I'd be willing to bet that there's nothing wrong with that little gun. Bersa's are very reliable weapons.

Let us know how it turns out. Not trying to talk you out of a 26, just saying that your Bersa deserves another shot. It WILL be reliable. I never knew one that wasn't, but hey, it could be the first.

ERV

yes FTF means failure to feed.

first off i am no gun expert or gun smith. i bought my first gun a year ago.

polish a feed ramp? that is greek to me.

i have heard that advice before... also grease the rails, make sure the recoil spring is on correctly, feed it ammo "it likes", make sure it is not a mag issue... the list goes on. when does it end?

i want to own a gun that i can take reasonable non technical care of, put a loaded magazine in it, pull the trigger and it operates the way it was engineered too by going "bang".

i have this nagging feeling that the bersa 380 is finicky and perhaps somewhat more of tinkerers gun... which is not really my deal. i want a self defense gun that i can rely on.

i have 175 rounds through it with probably 25-30 FTFs.

i will say this, i am taking it to the range on sunday. i have two mags. they are marked so i can tell them apart (to see if it is a mag issue) the gun is as clean as a whistle and is sporting synthetic grease on the slide. we are ready to go. i am hoping to have no FTFs. wish it (and me) luck.

 

[bluehandgun]

wanted to add i am running a few boxes of remington umc fmj through it.

 

[revhigh]

i have heard that advice before... also grease the rails, make sure the recoil spring is on correctly, feed it ammo "it likes", make sure it is not a mag issue... the list goes on. when does it end?

Quite simply, the list ends when you find the 'formula' that works. If you've had 25+ FTF's in 175 rounds, something is clearly wrong if they were factory round nose loads. Have you fired automatics before ?? If not, it is possible you are 'limp wristing' the gun. automatics require a firm grip and resistance to recoil in order for the slide and gun to work properly during cycling.

If the gun is held loosely or there is no resistance to it's recoil, some of the energy needed for cycling the gun and stripping the next round from the clip 'may' be used up in movement of the gun if it's held loosely. Try holding the gun more firmly, and resist it's recoil. Have a friend that's auto savvy shoot it and see if HE gets the FTF's. I had a friend that shot my Colt Gold Cup. He constantly got FTF's, stovepipes, and failure to go completely into battery. My gun had NEVER done that in 10000+ rounds. I said 'Give me that damn gun', and fired 5 uneventful mags through it. Problem solved ... limp wristing. I told him what to do, and it never malfunctioned for him again.

My guess is your problem is outrageously simple, and can be eliminated by some of these means.

PS the feed ramp is the shiny 'ramp' under the opening to the barrel. Over time, this 'ramp' is polished from bullets cycling over it, if they're FMJ round nose loads. Some people call this 'break in'. To hasten this 'break in' you can take some polishing compound and a cloth, and polish the area of the feed ramp, and the opening of the barrel, including the top opening of the barrel, where rounds can also jam when the gun is new. IF you disassemble your gun and look at the back part of the barrel, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.

REV

 

[ButchPrice]

I own an LCP, and a Bersa Thunder 380.
I love the Bersa, as it is a dream to fire at the range. Great feel, and dead on accurate. The LCP is very accurate for such a small gun, but not the same league. Having said this, I carry my LCP every day, almost everywhere.
Concealment IS an issue for me. So I carry my LCP. When I ride my cycle, I usually wear my leather jacket, and can carry my Bersa.
Different guns, for different applications.
It's all good
Just remember the hollow points. THE ammo for self defense.

 

[Jay1958]

I have approximately 1000 rounds thru my Bersa T380CC with no problems, no jams, no failures. The worst 'problem' I have had is that after I had put about 300 rounds thru it, the grip screws started loosening up after every 50 rounds or so... a little blue LocTite solved that!

My T380CC is very accurate out to about 15 yards, even with the tiny sights. I am very, very pleased with it and trust it enough to carry it when weather or clothing choices don't make it convenient to carry a 9mm. I like it so well that I sold my CZ82 9x18Mak. Of course the main disadvantage to that decision was: the CZ82 is going to last FOREVER. But I only need my Bersa to last for the remainder of my lifetime.

Seriously, the CZ82's are built like tanks. But my Bersa is smaller, thinner and lighter, and has more ammo choices due to its being 380ACP instead of 9x18Mak.

Of course, I love my Rugers, and own three Ruger semis and three Ruger revolvers. But as I sit here typing, I am wearing my Bersa UC9 on my hip.

 

[Anthony Williams]

:lol: The Bersa .380 out Walthers the the Walther PPK! The LCP is more of a deep concealment back-up piece. Both are great guns!

A.W

 

[win85shooter]

I've handled the Bersa and a few of the other .380's and do like their "feel". However the only .380 I own is a Colt 1908 Pocket Hammerless that I love both the looks and the feel of. It's extremely concealable and shoots to POA using any FMJ that I put through it and never a hiccup. Reliability is my number one priority and this one meets it every time. I made one change to it and had Kent Singletary add a larger Detonics rear sight and a Novak front sight blank machined to size. It made a world of difference for my eyes and it still looks good on the gun. One of these days I'll get around to hard chroming to get rid of the 72 years of honest wear its accumulated but for now she's just fine the way she is. The picture isn't very flattering.

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[Tallinthesaddle]

Obviously, I feel Ruger is No. 1, but I sure like the grip on a Bersa 380 Concealed Carry. The Bersa seems a little big for a hideout concealed carry, that is another reason why I rather have the LCP. Has anyone ever compared the two or owned a 380 Bersa?
Thanks

Two weeks ago I purchased a Bersa 380 CC. I have put about 150 rounds ( three different types of ammo) through it and it has jammed on nearly very magazine. I purchased a second magazine from Bursa and it jams as well.
Hummn, better get it fixed and wait for an LCP!

 

[johnnybgood]

My wife has a Bersa thunder 380 and loves it, when she finaly let me shoot it I knew why she liked it so much. Very Accurate, and not one problem. Money well spent, I may pick one up just to go plinking at the range with, however the ammo cost as much as my 45acp ammo.

 

[bluehandgun]

i went a head and decided to get the glock 26. i feel the bersa 380 is just too finicky of a pistol, at least mine was. i want something reliable.. a workhorse (kind of like my p95). i feel the glock 26 was a great choice. i will also appreciate the lower ammo price and tons of accessory and holster options...

my friend has a new lcp with over 200 rounds thru it with no issues whatsoever. no jams. accurate at close range. so far so good. at the range i spent most of the time clearing jams out of my bersa while the little lcp was blasting away.... the lcp is also easy to takedown and clean, no fixed barrel to work around and a spring you have to reinstall "just right", no grips to come loose and have to "loctite" and worry about springs coming loose or out of their channels....

to new lcp owners, take advantage of that 20% ruger online shop discount to pick up extra mags. they have them and shipping was quick.

so in keeping with this thread, my vote goes to the LCP.

 

[revhigh]

You'll come to love that Glock ... mine is outstanding

 

[bluehandgun]

thanks revhigh! i am pretty excited

 

[cstricklen]

Just happened by and found this interesting thread. But there does seem to be some confusion. The OP is talking about the Thunder 380 Concealed Carry. About half of the replies are referring to the regular Thunder 380. The CC is significantly smaller than the regular Thunder 380. Still in a different category than the LCP, but not so out-of-the-ballpark as you might infer from the references to the regular Thunder 380.

I happen to own all three of these pistols (all four if you count the Walther PPK that was mentioned). They're all quite different, really. But I can say with confidence that if you buy whichever one is the right size and weight to suit your need, you won't be disappointed. (Well, your PPK will have to be pre-S&W to be a any good, or even to be a real Walther.) The LCP is a great little mouse gun if you can't afford or don't want to spend the money on a Seecamp. Both Bersas are cool little guns. BTW, my everyday carry is a Bersa Thunder 9 Ultra Compact Stainless.

 

[cstricklen]

BTW, win85shooter (if you're still around after all this time ), I like your little Colt.