.380 Pistol Recommendations

[Branket]

Looking for a solid new gun for my bride to be. She currently carries a Walther P22 with CCI Velocitor HP's. She isn't really a fan of recoil or noise and its taken almost 6 months but I got her to shoot my XD9 the other day to see if she would like it.....she hated it.

Fortunately we were at the range with her parents and her mother had just bought a Fire Storm .380, she shot that as well and loved it. Said the 9x19 was too much but the 9x17 is apparently perfect.

So I turn to gun gurus here for some input on finding a .380 pistol on a solid platform. I've so far looked at: Fire Storm (of course), Bersa (very similar), Walther ppk (she already loves her current walther), Taurus Millenium (might be too wide), and of course the Sig 232.

Am I missing anything? Any opinions on the guns listed as far as reliability and quality are concerned would be very helpful as well. Also any recommendations for carry ammo would be great.

[Marswolf]

Sounds like you have my recommendations if recoil is a consideration.

I actually like FMJ rounds for the 380 Auto. Over penetration isn't a problem, so there is less reason to use HPs.

[Branket]

I should also mention that it should be more a full size pistol, no kel-tec's or pocket pistols.

[R1100R]

My wife uses a Colt Goverment .380. It is like a small .45. She likes the weight of the

all steell frame. She uses silver tips in hers.

[wareagle]

I've always like the browning BDA. They were discontinued in 1997, but still show up on the gun show circuit. They are very high quality and have a nice solild feel.

[Guest TN.Frank]

Something else you might look into is the 9x18mm Mak. ctg. It's right at of a bit more powerful then the 9x17mm and has a slightly larger dia. bullet(.363" compared to the .355" of the .380 and 9x19mm). Ammo is plentyfull and can even be had in some good HP ammo now. If you have or can get your C&R lic(Type 03) you can pick up some very nice Czech CZ-82's for around $200+ shipping and having had a CZ-83 once upon a time(same gun, just in .380ACP) I can attest the the great feel that the pistol has. With 12+1 rounds of 9x18mm she'd not feel "under gunned" at all and I'm pretty sure she'd be able to handle it no problem. Anyway, just a thought in another direction for you to think about.

http://www.aimsurplus.com/acatalog/Czech_CZ-82_9x18_Pistol.html

[nightrunner]

how about a glock G25?

[Marswolf]

... ...

[towerclimber37]

how about a glock G25?

perhaps because she doesn't want to shoot herself in the foot when she has to take it from concealment?

I agree with the idea of using the 9mm short.

a pa63, while being a powerful pistol is small and concealable.

there are lots of choices out there...try them out!

[Guest looneeetunes]

i just bought my wife yesterday a bersa 380. i have read alot of reviews about them. it seems to be a pretty decent pistol. i ran 16 thru it in the yard seems to shoot good. has a easy to pull back hammer, double action, decocker. not a bad deal for the buck. even has a key lock to lock down the gun like the taurus has. that is one that may or may not be used, but with kids you can never tell.

[Guest 2HOW]

I would skip the .380 and buy her a .38. even with no recoil SD loads its still more effective than a .380.

[Guest bulletproof]

I just bought a Bersa Thunder .380 also and love it. I've only put 100 flawless rounds thru it. It's a solid gun especially considering the price.

[Guest TN.Frank]

If she'd like a revolver then a good med. frame 38 would be THE way to go. Very little recoil(at least my 64/4" with factory 158gr lead had very little recoil) and revolvers are very easy to work with. No slide to pull back, no mags to worry about, just point and shoot. That'd be another good option next to the CZ-82 I mentioned.

[The Rabbi]

The 9mm is rapidly replacing the .380 in the small handgun category. So the Kel Tec PF9, the Kahrs and the Walther PPS are all occupying the place of the old PPK, Colts, and Mauser HSc.

FWIW, I got my wife a SIG 230 and then brought home a HK P7 and she much preferred the P7, said recoil was considerably less.

I would strongly take a look at the P7s since you can pick one up relatively cheaply. The SIG P6s also worth a look.

[r1mattrr]

9mm ammo is usually cheaper than .380 also....

[Guest sling]

Cant go wrong with a stainless Sig P232.

[The Rabbi]

9mm ammo is usually cheaper than .380 also....

And you get a much wider selection of SD ammo. I currently have 5 different ones in stock. Probably 1 .380.

[Branket]

I'm glad the women in you're lives are all easy to deal with. In my case though I know that if one particular 9mm was too much recoil then ALL 9mm handguns have too much recoil regardless if it really does or not. However since one .380 was good ALL .380's are good to go. Is it the right way to approach things? No. Am I gonna change her mind? No. This is why the thread is titled ".380 Pistol Recommendations", not "A cartridge close to .380 but not really a .380 Pistol Recommendations".

I appreciate the input but its pretty much set on .380, and I think we can all agree that it is better than .22lr regardless.

[Branket]

I'll check out the Colt and Browning for sure, thanks for those suggestions. I'll inquire about the mak as well, but I doubt it will pan out. I'm also glad to hear positives about the bersa's, I'm weary of guns in their price range.

[Guest price g]

Maybe its just me, but 9mm seems tamer than .380.go figure

[analog_kidd]

I got my wife the Bersa .380. It's a nice gun, very concealable, and I think it shoots well. However, my wife can't shoot it very accurately. She does OK with my XD-9, but thought it had too much kick. I don't see much difference in the recoil myself. Also, teh mag only hold 7, so she is always reloading. For the price of the gun, you can't go wrong, especially for a backup or a glove-box gun. But the ammo price kills me. I get a box of 100 9mm for about $15, 100 .380's runs me $23.

[Warbird]

And you get a much wider selection of SD ammo. I currently have 5 different ones in stock. Probably 1 .380.

I have looked on and off for one for some time. How much are they going for right now, ballpark. I was thinking they had gone up quite a bit.

[molonlabetn]

Maybe its just me, but 9mm seems tamer than .380.go figure

Most .380 pistols are blow-back operated... that type of action transmits alot more force to the shooter than a locked-breech design (which most 9mms use). So, in similar-weight pistols, the 9mm will be a bit more controllable generally. The other issue is that most .380 pistols are smaller than 9mms (the Kel-Tec and Kahr models being some exceptions)

I too would recommend a .38special revolver, preferably steel to give it some mass. But, a Sig P232 would also be similar in size, weight, and power.

[Guest HexHead]

I've always like the browning BDA. They were discontinued in 1997, but still show up on the gun show circuit. They are very high quality and have a nice solild feel.

+1. I had a BDA for several years and it's a very nice shooting pistol. A Browning built by Beretta, like the best of both worlds. A friend of mine had the Sig 232 and I always felt like it was beating up my hand compared to the feel of the BDA.

Beretta makes (made?) the Model 84 which is very similar aside from the open slide and frame mounted safety. IIRC, the Model 85 is the same pistol with a single stack mag.

Very hard to go wrong with the Browning BDA. When I bought mine, it was down to that, the Colt Mustang and the Walther PPK. My wife liked the feel of the BDA the best, so that's what we got.

I was kind of leaning towards the Mustang myself.

[Guest HexHead]

Maybe its just me, but 9mm seems tamer than .380.go figure

Depends on the pistol. I know 9mm in my BHP feels better than .380 in my BDA did.