[unkempt1]

Any thoughts on the browning BDA in 380?
I am having trouble finding any good or bad on them.

thanks for the help

 

[abninftr]

It's a Beretta Mod. 83 re-badged as a Browning. Go for it if you want, but the Beretta might be a little cheaper.

 

[unkempt1]

It's a Beretta Mod. 83 re-badged as a Browning. Go for it if you want, but the Beretta might be a little cheaper.

I had no idea of that.

thanks

 

[Guest]

a long time ago I saw a Sig 220 .45 that was marked Browning..if memory serves it had a heel clip magazine release

 

[weshowe]

Unkempt1 and all,

The Browning .380 BDA is a Beretta. The only difference being that the BDA has a solid slide, while the Beretta's remove the top of the slide, a la the 92F series.

The wife's Beretta will even cycle resized empty cases!

The downside is that there are many pistols the same size that can be had in 9mm.

If you want a .380 ACP I'd say go for it. The only other .380 I recommend is the SIG.

Wes

 

[unkempt1]

Well I sure took a left or right turn on this one LOL

I went in to the gunshow today looking for the Browning or Beretta. couldn't find either so I picked up a Para Ordnance P12/45 with 3 Xtra mags and 500 rds of south african ball ammo.(anyone familliar with Pretoria metal pressings ammo?) the SA .223 was great ammo, hoping this is as good.

sure does fit the hand, hope the recoil doesn't put me off

this will be my first .45 ACP

Appreciate the input, and one day I will buy the Browning BDA or the Beretta Cheetah LOL

 

[Guest]

Unkempt1 and all,

The Browning .380 BDA is a Beretta. The only difference being that the BDA has a solid slide, while the Beretta's remove the top of the slide, a la the 92F series.

Not quite. The Browning safety is on the slide, not the frame like on the Beretta.
Other than that, they are kissing cousins.

 

[jimhigginbotham]

I know folks think I am in a rut but a friend had one of these. It was almost exactly the same size and weight as a Colt LW Commander in .45. Well, not quite true, the Commander was a good bit thinner.

I would rather have 8 rounds of .45 than 14 rounds of .380.... I would rather have 8 rounds of .45 than 50 rounds of .380

Jim

 

[Guest]

Surprisingly the Browning flagged version is a better match to the Berretta M-9. Due to the safety arrangement. Both guns run pretty well but I'm not a big fan of the .380 platform when 9mm's can be found the same size and weight.

 

[unkempt1]

OK, I caved in

I picked up a 99% Beretta 84FS blued with 3 mags. fits the hand very well and as soon as I can go shoot it I will update.

anyone recommend a good carry round in 380?
It came with a box of winchester silver tips in 85 Gr..
There was one round missinf from the box and he said that was all he shot it.

 

[anguspodgorney]

a long time ago I saw a Sig 220 .45 that was marked Browning..if memory serves it had a heel clip magazine release

For a short time Browning marketed the SIG as the Browing DA.

The BDA is a smooth and reliable shooter and eazy to shoot because of it's size to caliber ratio. But, as was said, it is definately big for caliber.

Ed

 

[Guest]

The Browning BDA .380 was discontinued 9 years ago. I recently found one in mint condition in the original box. I snatched it up for $375.00. It is drop dead gorgeous! Extra mags are easy to get and very reasonable. I picked up two stainless ones by Mec-Gar from CDNN Sports for about $20.00 each. They also have them in blue. It's a little big for a .380, and that is probably why it was discontinued because they make 9mm's as small or smaller these days. The plus side is that it holds 13 rounds plus one up the spout, is a real classy pistol, and comes from a company known for quality firearms. Beretta made the gun, but that was because FN Browning was a major stockholder in Beretta at the time. Most folks don't know that. Hope this is helpful to you.
Steve

 

[Guest]

When Browning restored centerfire autopistols to their catalog after having dropped all of them due to the virulent attack of the detestable Clintonistas on gun importers and manufacturers toward the end of their reign of terror (around 1998) the neat little Browing BDA .380 didn't make it back into Browning's line-up. However, it has been continually produced and imported since that time by importers other than Browning. Recently the nickel-finished model has been replaced by a stainless-steel model. If you peruse the Shotgun News you will usually find a couple of distributors marketing them. The current ones aren't as finely-finished as the ones of 10 or 15 years ago or more, but they are still nice little autos.

 

[spikey614]

My wife calls the BDA 380 a gentelmans dress up gun.

 

[Guest]

I was gonna point out the safety difference, I knew one was slide mounted "Up is fire" the other is frame mounted "down" for fire. Definetly a consideration for 1911 and Hipower shooters.

 

[sarabellum]

Here is a thoughtful discussion of the Browning BDA with some nice photos, http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=13110

The Browning BDA is an elegant, superbly finished pistol made in Italy. Its equivalent is the Beretta 84.

I believe that Unkempt1 asked about the Browning BDA .380, but did not ask for .45 vs. 9mm debate.

With that in mind, the folk on the THR in the above thread extolled the high controllability of the BDA. Other folks on that thread made a thoughtful comparison of it to its competitors: the Makarov and CZ 84. Folks appeared to be just as pleased with the BDA as they were with those top .380 models.

I have long admired the BDA and regret not having purchased one when they were available. Good luck.

 

[spikey614]

The only compaint I had about mine was the smooth grips. When I shot it they slipped in my hand. I swiched to a Pac. set for the Beretta 84 I found at a shop and everthing is just fine now. I've also noticed that the trigger and frame size fit all of the smaller holsters I have for my HP's. ie: belt slide accumold type with the snaps. I forget the correct name right now.