Bersa Thunder .22 + Bulk Ammo?

[RedBowTies88]

Hey guys,.. looking to get into another .22lr semi. I really like da/sa guns and the size/feel of walther PP type handguns.

My only real requirement is that it be fairly reliable with federal or blazer bulk packs.

Anyone have any experiance with this?

 

[aarondhgraham]

Yes, I do,,,

My Bersa Thunder 22 runs just fine with Federal 550 Bulk Pack from Wal Mart.

She also loves CCI Mini Mags.

She does not like Remington Golden Bullet at all,,,
It's not so much that she won't run them,,,
But there are way too many duds.

Hope this helps.

Aarond

.

 

[RedBowTies88]

Sadly I cant buy ammo at walmart but i do try and stock up on federal ammo while in PA... I generally use blazer .22lr which has been great to me.

After all..they are just unplated mini-mags.

Good to know the little gun can handle the cheaper stuff

 

[PSP]

The BT22 will not reliably handle all cheap, bulk ammo. After much discussion and testing, many people feel the gun needs high velocity ammo to function well. I use MiniMags and have had no problem. Other bulk ammo has not worked as well. Here's a link to a long thread at Bersa Chat.

http://www.bersachat.com/forums/showthread.php?7173-BT22-Ammo-Test

 

[RedBowTies88]

Thnaks.. that thread was very informative

 

[danez71]

Mine hasnt like Federal Wally World bulk pack but have never jammed usinh Blazers or Minimags.

It didnt like 2 other bulk type rounds either.

But I really like the gun.

 

[9mm]

The BT22 will not reliably handle all cheap

Can't you cut a coil off and it will run?

 

[L_Killkenny]

Can't you cut a coil off and it will run?

Brilliant, just brilliant.

Even after a couple thousand rounds of MiniMags my T22 still balks at federal and winchester bulk crap. Disappointed but I deal with it by feeding it more MiniMags to aleve my frustration.

 

[RedBowTies88]

Does anyone make a slightly less powerful recoil spring?

 

[aarondhgraham]

I must have an exceptional Bersa,,,

I must have an exceptional Bersa,,,
Because mine runs just fine with Federal.

Just two weeks ago I ran 200 rounds of Federal through it,,,
I experienced no problem at all with the ammo.

One thing though,,,
I keep it clean and very well oiled.

Now one thing I have noticed,,,
The Thunder 22 I gave my lady friend is different.

She can only get it to run with Mini-Mags,,,
I can run her pistol all day long with Federal Bulk.

Is she limp wristing her gun?

I should hand her mine (exact same gun and finish) loaded with Federal,,,
See if mine displays the same problem as her pistol does.

Aarond

.

 

[momano]

Mine was 100% with CCI; not with Blazers

 

[Hansam]

I just picked up a used BT-22 that was intended for plinking and to teach my children better gun control in regards to an auto-loader.

The problem here though is that when I shoot the gun I can rattle off all 10 rounds in the gun quickly and without a problem (FTF, FTE etc.)

When I hand the gun to my kids (who are not experienced auto-loader pistol shooters - they've been taught to shoot handguns with a .22lr revolver) the gun stove pipes, fails to eject, fails to feed etc. I thought that well they're young and weaker so I had a good friend shoot it. He's 5'7" and 280lbs, all muscle. He's also been shooting for longer than I've been alive (except that he's primarily a long gun and revolver guy) and he had troubles with the BT-22 as well. Back in my hands the pistol cycled just fine.

The kicker is that when I hand a 1911 (in .45acp with cheap Tula FMJ) to my eldest to shoot (14 yr old girl) she has NO failures of any kind in the gun. Same goes for my friend. Hand them the BT-22 again and they start experiencing failures again.

This was all with Federal Bulk Ammo.

So we attributed the failures to poor shooting technique (ie. limp wristing) but wouldn't that translate into the 1911 as well then? Or is this simply an issue with the BT-22 being too finicky about ammo? Of course if its that then the next obvious question would be wouldn't the gun be just as finicky in my hands too?

 

[PSP]

When I hand the gun to my kids ...

I wonder how your kids would do with the minimags, which are almost universally accalaimed as reliable. That may answer the question; ammo or shooter. May be an interesting experiment.

 

[Sparks1957]

I must have an exceptional Bersa, because mine runs just fine with Federal

Mine is a bit more finicky about its diet, so I just make sure I have a steady supply of mini-mags for it.

Great little pistol. It is important to keep it clean and well-lubed for proper function as Aarond said.

 

[Hansam]

Update:

I ran a couple hundred rounds of CCI Mini Mag ammo through my BT-22 today. My daughter shot a hundred out of it too. Out of 300 rounds there was only one failure - an FTE that resulted in a stovepipe. I cleared it and all was good.

My guess is that its mostly the ammo and partly the shooter. I ran another 200 rounds of Federal Bulk ammo through it after we shot the Mini Mags and the gun didn't have any failures for me although it started exhibiting failures after only two shots in my daughter's hands.

I'd say maybe 60% ammo and 40% shooter.

 

[warningshot]

As to the OP...

If you are looking for reliability, my sub 1,000 round count Sr-22 just went thru a couple hundred, circa 1973-74, .22 long rifle Federal & Remington & Winchester, and Montgomery Wards ammo with no problems. It even functions current Remington Subsonics just fine. Best of luck.