Bersa TPR9: Bersa’s finest handgun

The Bersa TPR9 is a full-size gun chambered in 9mm caliber. The TPR handguns were published in February 2018, and the changes they made from the long-standing Bersa Pro Thunder series of pistols are substantial and accountable.

Bersa TPR (Thunder Pro Redesign)

Bersa produced their TPR (Thunder Pro Redesign) pistols to be sleeker in the slide and the grip while shortening the single-action trigger pull to the shortest reset I believe ever experienced on a semi-auto handgun. They also added additional slide work that most shooters will find advantageous.

I was able to review the Bersa TPR 45c (the “c” stands for compact) and the full-size Bersa TPR 9, and after a couple of sessions of range time with the TPR 9, I believe this model is Bersa’s finest handgun yet. To top it off, the Bersa TPR 9 is a budget-priced handgun with an MSRP of $465, but the standard gun store is selling it between $360 and $370. It’s a bargain price for a good and reliable gun.

The Bersa TPR 9 features a slimmer polymer grip, an ambidextrous thumb safety/de-cocker, and slide discontinue serrated memory pads for the weak-side thumb, three-dot sights with the rear being drift adjustable, a fore-conclude Picatinny rail for accessories, front slide serrations, a raised loaded chamber bar on the top of the slide and a wide trigger guard that allows for additional finger space to reach the trigger.

It also sports a 4.25-inch barrel, a steel guide rod, ships with two 17-round magazines, and with the alloy aluminum frame, it weighs just 31 ounces unloaded. The Bersa TPR models continue to exercise the disassemble lever from the Thunder Pro series, which is the quickest and easiest field strip of any gun in today’s market. A simple downward push of the rob-down lever and the slide releases from the frame for cleaning and maintenance.

Bersa TPR9 models

The Bersa TPR 9 models’ (both the full-size and compact size with a 3.25-inch barrel) most significant improvement is the single-action trigger. Upon the initial trigger pull, the trigger reset for the next shot is incredibly short. I consider the single-action trigger reset equivalent to, if not shorter than, the Sig Sauer STR (short trigger reset). The advantage to a short trigger reset is for quicker and more accurate follow-up shots, which will allow the shooter to remain on target easier.

According to the user reviews, the Bersa TPR9 made significant improvements to the Thunder Pro version and the versions of Bersa pistols before.

Bersa TPR9 Review

At the range, the Bersa TPR 9 performed just as I had expected. I shot approximately 250 rounds of Magtech 115 gr. 9mm target loads and a couple of magazines of Remington Golden Sabre Black Belt 124 gr. Hollow points. The Bersa TPR 9 fed, fired, and ejected every round without any failures. It was also incredibly accurate. While shooting from various distances, both two-handed and one, I hit my steel targets with ease and with confidence. I did not need a “learning curve” with this handgun. Straight out of the box, the Bersa TPR 9 performed excellently for me.

This review features the full-size Bersa TPR 9, but Bersa also produces a compact-size TPR 9c that is smaller, lighter, and more conducive to carrying on an everyday basis. Check out the tabletop and range reviews, and let us know your experiences with Bersa handguns, along with your interest in their recent TPR models.

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