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When the Bersa BP380CC first arrived, I had a lot of questions (Guns Magazine: My Questions). I wondered about this concealed carry gun’s longer stock, smaller caliber, slightly larger size, and other features. But, out of the box, I pretty much liked it even without ever shooting it or carrying it.
Well, now I’ve shot it. A lot. And now I like it even more.
If you want today’s range report in just one bite, the Bersa rocked.
Right out of the box, without doing much more than racking the slide a few times, I fed the Bersa magazine after magazine of .380 — both target and self defense ammo. It devoured every round with nary a hiccup and spit out brass with ease. I still haven’t cleaned it.
Not only was it reliable, but also accurate. I don’t shoot and measure groups with too many concealed carry guns. Rather I shoot at six 12” round steel plates and three larger steel silhouettes at seven yards, 10 yards, and 15 yards. These targets are spread out enough to allow me to switch safely from a longer distance shot to a shorter distance shot and thereby also providing the opportunity to practice acquiring and engaging multiple targets. For the record, hitting the 12” round steel plates sounds like this: “Ping!” Hitting the silhouette is more like this: “Clang!” If this sounds like loads of fun, it is. Bottom line: The BP380CC hit where I aimed without having to “get used to it” or anything like that. Credit also goes to the easy to see standard sights.
But the Bersa’s best feature was the smooth, easy shooting. Easily one of the better shooting experiences I’ve had in a while, the BP380CC’s longer stock, smaller caliber, and slightly larger size — in conjunction with its broad-faced trigger — allowed for very fast trigger squeezes with negligible recoil. It was, of course, more recoil than a .22, but not much.
Probably the most difficult part of my time at the range was loading .380’s into the Bersa’s magazines. I know — real hardship, right? But once I loaded up and chambered a round in this larger-frame-smaller-caliber gun, I could get back to the pings and clangs.
