When shooters look for a personal-defense firearm, they are sometimes swayed by reports of what are basically range pistols, those with a light trigger, no safety, and a heavy frame. But a practical personal-defense pistol is easy to carry, might have a heavier trigger than a Bullseye gun, and it might be quickly shoved into the waistband or pocket without tearing fabric or skin. Also, a practical pistol might be carried in the hand as you travel to a vehicle or placed safely at home ready. The handier practical pistol may be more desirable than a big, heavy pistol that homes every round into the X-ring at 25 yards.

We recently tested a trio of practical medium-sized 380 ACP handguns that offer light recoil, good accuracy, and generous magazine capacity, the last characteristic being an advantage over old-style double-action-first-shot 380 pistols, such as the Walther PPK or SIG P232.

We tested the Tisas Fatih, a straight-up clone of the Beretta 84 Cheetah. The second modern test gun is the Bersa Thunder Plus, a high-capacity version of the long serving Bersa Thunder 380. Because there are not a lot of affordable high-capacity 380 ACP pistols around, we also obtained a used CZ 83 in 380 ACP. The Model 83 has gotten very good grades in the past.

All three are simple blowback-action handguns. Each has a double-action first-shot trigger. After the first shot, the slide recoils and cocks the hammer for subsequent single-action shots. Two of the pistols are selective double-action pistols with manual safeties, allowing cocked-and-locked carry, and the other is a decocker-type with a manual safety.

For test ammo, we used Remington and Aguila loads of the 95-grain FMJ type, Fiocchi’s 90-grain XTP, Hornady’s 90-grain XTP, and the SIG 90-grain V-Crown. We fired 45 rounds in each pistol in combat firing off hand. We used the three hollow-point loads in accuracy testing.

Let’s look at the differences in performance.

Gun Tests Grade: B

$434

We have seen these pistols on sale for $385, others at $479. Like the Beretta 84 it’s based on, the pistol uses an open-top slide, a double-action trigger operated by an external drawbar, and a high-capacity 13-round magazine. The pistol is very well finished. The blue finish on steel parts and anodizing on the aluminum frame are well done. There were no internal tool marks. The pistol exhibited a high level of fit and polish. The front sight is part of the slide, and the rear sight rides in a dovetail slot in the slide. The hammer is well designed, and the grip tang eliminates any chance of hammer bite. The sights are small but snag free and precise enough when properly lined up.

The Fatih magazines were easy to load to full capacity. The pistol may be fired double action first shot, and the ambidextrous safety may be applied after firing for use during movement. The pistol may be carried hammer back and safety on. We believe few shooters will adopt this type of carry because of the lack of a redundant grip safety.

Fired offhand, the Fatih provided the best double-action first-shot hit probability. The Fatih’s grips were very well designed compared to the slick grips we have found on Beretta handguns. The balance of adhesion and abrasion helped handling and combat firing. A drawback is that the pistol fired 3 inches high at 10 yards. Just the same, by adjusting the sight picture, we were able to secure X-ring hits with the pistol in single-action combat firing. The Fatih’s white dots on the sights are not a three-dot horizontal pattern, rather, they were a big dot front sight over a small dot rear sight to form an “8.” With practice, you will be able to fire to the point of aim.

Firing for accuracy, we found the pistol was reasonably accurate. The Fatih exhibited a 2.0-inch 15-yard group with the Hornady FTX. Some groups were as large as 2.8 inches. There was a single malfunction. During the test, the pistol short-cycled with the SIG V-Crown load. This was the last cartridge in the magazine and the round with the least energy tested. Just the same, this points out the need to test your pistol with your preferred carry load.

In common with the Beretta 84 and full-size Beretta pistols, takedown was simple. The pistol magazine is removed, the chamber checked to be certain the pistol isn’t loaded, and the slide locked to the rear. A lever on the side of the frame is turned to allow the slide to be removed. Unlike the fixed-barrel CZ and Bersa pistols, the Fatih pistol features a removable barrel.

Our Team Said: We liked the Fatih the best of the test. Workmanship is solid. Fit and finish are European quality. The pistol is easy to use, and recoil is modest. We rated the Fatih down a half grade on the single malfunction, and we handed out another half-grade demerit because the pistol fired 3 inches high in relation of the point of aim with the conventional aiming point and sight picture. Otherwise, we were enthusiastic concerning this handgun. Although it doesn’t hold as many rounds as the Bersa, the Bersa was supplied with a single magazine while the Fatih was delivered with two.

380 ACP Range Data

Value Guide: 380 ACP Semi-Auto Pistols