Profile : 

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 A Bersa Series 95 in matte finish --the aluminium alloy frame is anodized to match-- . 
Image and pistol property of Don Shane. Image used with owner's permission.

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Sights :

.	Rear	- fixed, notch-type, dovetailed into slide
.	Front	- staked onto slide

The Series 95 has, rollmarked onto the left side of its slide, "(BERSA) SERIES 95  
BERSA S.A. RAMOS MEJIA, ARGENTINA". The serial number is positioned over the 
trigger well, on the left side of the frame, and the legend "INDUSTRIA ARGENTINA"
 is positioned immediately below the serial number The legend "CAL. .380 ACP" is 
rollmarked onto the right side of the slide, just under the ejection port

Controls : 



Parts Diagram :

1. Slide 2.  3. 4.  5.  6. Extractor 7. Extractor spring 8. Extractor pin 9. Firing pin 10. Firing pin spring 11. Safety 12. Safety spring 13. Safety stop 14. Slide catch spring 15. Slide catch 16. Barrel Pin 17. Ejector 18. Frame 19. Slide-stop 20. Slide-stop spring 21. Disassembly lever 22. Trigger spring 23. Trigger 24. Trigger pin 25. Firing pin stop spring 26. Firing pin stop 27. Grip pin 28. Disconnector

29. Disconnector spring  30. Magazine catch button 31. Magazine catch spring 32. Magazine catch pin 33. Hammer 34. Hammer spring guide 35. Hammer spring 36. Cocking piece ("sear spring") 37. Cocking piece pin  38. Hammer release 39. Hammer pin 40. Hammer release bushing 41. Hammer release pin 42. Magazine safety strap 43. Magazine safety spring 44. Magazine body 45. Magazine feeder platform ("follower") 46. Magazine spring 47. Steel bottom holder ("magazine floorplate") 48. Polymer bottom ("finger extension") 49. Grip screw 50. Barrel 51. Recoil spring 52.  53. 54. Rear sight 55. Polymer grip panel

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The Series 95 is somewhat of a brilliant enigma. 
It was introduced at a time when there was an existing, identically-sized, single-stack .380 ACP pistol in Bersa's lineup: the Model 83. Not a year later, the Series 95 was supplanted by the phenomenally successful Thunder 380. 

The Series 95 is described by one author as a response to the sudden 1994 U.S. ban on high capacity magazines (halting U.S. sales of Bersa's premiere 13-round Model 85 pistol), as well as a shrewd answer to the concealed-carry handgun market's demand for a small, flat and lightweight firearm. 

Chambered in .380 ACP, the Series 95 employed an aluminium alloy frame, resulting in a whopping 32% weight savings against the concurrent, all-steel Model 83 :  
   

Pistol	Caliber	Capacity	Overall Length	Height	Weight
Series 95	.380 ACP	7+1	6 3/5" (168mm)	4 5/7" (120mm)	17.43 oz (494g)
Model 83	.380 ACP	7+1	6 3/5" (168mm)	4 5/7" (120mm)	25.75 oz (730g)

The aluminium weight-saving gospel was carried over to nearly the entire Thunder series of pistols.
The Series 95 remains the lightest .380 ACP pistol that Bersa has released, lighter even than the Thunder 380 which replaced it. The Series 95 reinstated an external slide catch, allowing single-handed release of a slide from lock-back, and sported a rounded trigger guard to easily distinguish it from the Model 83.

Disassembly begins with switching down the disassembly lever to allow a full rearward pull on the slide against recoil spring pressure, until the slide leaves frame-rail engagement. The rear of the slide is then lifted slightly up and off the frame and frame-rails, and allowed to return forward, until fully off the the frame and the barrel. 


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© 2005 Horge 
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