[P95Carry]

Until I looked at Ruger's site (man, is that ever slow to download!) .... I had not fully appreciated the choices available.

I called a local gun store out of interest to see if they had the KSP-321XL .. that's the .357, 2" and spurless hammer. Have considered that purely for reasons of avoiding ''hang up'' on a draw from pocket.

They 'almost' had that gun in stock ....... but what they had was the spur hammer version. They commented that the spurless does not sell well .... so they don't stock it!! Surprised me.

OK ... now this SP series crops up in threads everywhere .... but it would be useful to know specifically, owner's likes and dislikes/preferences ... in fact... let me poll re the spur just to get a flavor of likes and dislikes.

I imagine most choose the .357, for versatility .. and probably few go for the 38 spl +P .... ??

[TonyB]

2.25in,357mag,spurred hammer............my carry gun......if I was paying attention,I would've gotten the spurless.....but I've come to trust my life to this one,spur or not..:cool:

[10-Ring]

Spurless 357 mag :cool:

[Black Snowman]

I'd pick spur because I like the option of going SA if I want to. I know Kamicosmos got the spurless for his CCW gun.

[No Quarter]

I have a 2 1/4" spurless model. It is a great gun! Plenty of dryfiring and it is SMOOOOOTH. In my opinion, it is about the best tradeoff in size versus controllable firepower that you can own. I have shot some truly horrifying barn burner ammo out of it and, though recoil was stimulating, I still hit my target and could gete shots off pretty quickly.

I also do not worry about wearing it out with heavy stuff. I usually shoot regular .38s and mild .357 ammo out of it for range fun, but practice with the heavy stuff for real use as well. I'm sure this gun can take whatever I put through it anyway.

There is not an animal in my part of the country that I could not take with this gun using heavily loaded .357 ammo. That is saying a lot for a small, concealable, accurate little snubby!

NQ

[SkaerE]

im having the same trouble...cept i think im gonna go with a spurless 3 1/16'' :) (they dont make one, but its aparantly a small matter to cut/grind/sand it down)

personally, i just like the looks of the 3'' barrel more.

[who me]

3" .357 here for carry and nightstand use.:)

[V-fib]

Mines the 3” .357 with CT grips. Handles a wide rage of loads nicely. It’s my primary.
:cool:

[Rob96]

2.25" spurred hammer, 357msgnum is what I have and like.

[Tamara]

Can I get a K-frame snub instead? :uhoh:


;)


(If I had to get the Ruger, I'd go with the 3" tube and spurless hammer, since I don't have any pockets that'll hold the chubby snubby.)

[Razor 10]

I have the spurless 2 1/4 model and after a action job and new front sight this gun ROCKS. If you are going to carry it I would go with the spurless, just my opinion.




Good Luck
Nick:)

[P95Carry]

Razor ...... ''new front sight'' ........ what did you fit and why? What benefits?

Also .... to anyone ....... I believe there are those who have obtained the spurred hammer and then bobbed it themselves ...... does this work out OK ...... ?

[SouthpawShootr]

You should have added barrel length. My preference is 3 inch, spurred hammer in .357.

[Razor 10]

P95

The front sight I had put on was a c-more yellow in color. I have the same sight on my super blackhawk 44 mag and it just works great for me. I had Mag-Na-Port do the work because I live only 2o minutes from them.


I really did not like the plain black front sight and it also printed low from point of aim. Works good now though. Oh yea, I forgot to mention that this SP is a 357 if anyone is interested.




Nick:)

[P95Carry]

Thx for info Nick .. guess it does help if the fitting can be done sorta local! I think that foresight is retained by a stainless rollpin.

[Razor 10]

Yes it is a roll pin that holds it in place. Whats really nice is that I now know that I can use any of the other colors that I have as long as I am willing to shave a little off of the top of the sight. ( I have a kit with several diferent colored front sights that I bought when I had my 44 done.)




Nick:)

[xjer]

2.25" spurless with hogue grips.

Mike

[BlackJack]

My carry is now the 2.25 with spur and Hogue grips. The hammer has not proven to be a problem in either front pocket carry or smart carry and makes the gun capable of single action fire--a nice feature to have. I have tried a bunch of different smaller revolvers and settled on the SP-101 because it can handle almost any load, is plenty accurate and reliable and not too big for me.

[444]

I have the 2 1/4" with the spurred hammer. I wouldn't trade it for either the spurless hammer or the 3" barrel.
One point in favor of the 2 1/4" barrel as opposed to the 3" barrel is the shorter gun makes pocket carry a slightly better possibility. I see the small wheelgun as a pocket gun. If I was going to carry on my belt, I would go with a bigger gun. I really like having a small revolver in a pocket holster that I can grab and stick in my back pocket. On both my Smiths and my SP101, the grip sticks up above the pocket requiring a shirt long enough to cover it, but I see this as a good thing for access and draw speed. At the same time, I don't want any more of the gun sticking out of the pocket than that since it would be more secure. I personally don't think the added velocity is worth the extra trouble. I have never chronoed a 3" gun, but I have compared my SP-101 2 1/4" with my 4" GP-100. I tested three different loads, all barn burners: and got the following results:
Load #1: 158 grain JHP, 18.0 grains of Lil Gun
SP101: 1084 fps
GP100: 1234 fps
Difference: 150 fps
Load #2: 158 grain JHP, 16.7 grains H110
SP101: 1149 fps
GP100: 1321 fps
Difference: 172 fps
Load #3: 158 gr. JHP, 15.0 grains AA9
SP101: 1201 fps
GP100: 1354 fps
Difference: 153 fps

Now none of these loads were developed for a short barrel. All powders are very slow burning powders for this caliber. I am not sure if using a faster burning powder would give more velocity out of the short barrel or not. I do know that these same loads fired out of a 18.5" carbine gave huge jumps in velocity with the longer barrel because of the slow burning powders used. I also know that there isn't a linear progression in velocities, in other words you can't just give a round number of fps gained by each inch of extra barrel. But just for the sake of argument, maybe we can get an extra 50-75 fps out of the extra 3/4" of barrel. I really don't think that is going to make much difference on target, but I could be wrong.

I have never had an issue with the hammer spur causing problems with my draw. I am sure it would if the gun was carried loose in the pocket, but if a proper holster is used, it shouldn't be an issue. I regularly carry a S&W Model 60 with a hammer spur and it isn't an issue. I like the ability to be able to fire single action if I want to, so I would keep the hammer spur.

I like the SP101. I think it is a well thought out design. The main feature is that it is heavy enough to make shooting full .357 loads practical. You can have a gun chambered in that caliber that is lighter and smaller, but you pay for it.

The only thing I dislike about my SP101 is that it shoots a couple inches to the left. I took it out the other day and was shooting it along side my GP100. I was actually shooting tighter groups with the SP101 at 25 yards. But, they were about 2" - 3" left. This wouldn't be an issue at defense ranges, but living in a rural area I like to be able to use all my guns for plinking, target, and varmint shooting. So, I have to use Kentucky windage with the SP101.

[P95Carry]

Nice commentary 444 ........ thank you.. appreciate your trouble. :)

What would you, or any other SP101 owner recommend for a pocket holster ... make, cost etc and if possible a source??

[chaim]

I'm with Tamara on this one.

An SP101 may be ok for fun, but it is just heavy enough that it isn't really ideal for the snub's mission. If you aren't using it for deep concealment then I'd rather go with the nicer K-frame and get a nicer trigger and one more round. If I had to get an SP101 (heck, I might check one out someday to see what all the fuss is about) I'd get one as close to my ideal K-frame as possible- 3" barrel, DAO and spurless hammer. Since it is too heavy for pocket carry, .38 or .357, why not get the .357mag and if it is still too light to shoot magnums then just use it as a really strong .38spl.

[Hkmp5sd]

Mine is the spurred hammer, stainless .357 with 3" barrel. I like the additional weight of the barrel to help with balance and recoil. It's worn in an IWB holster and occassionally just stuffed in a back pocket with no holster.

But I also really like the shrouded hammer S&W 649 in .38 special.

[Felonious Monk]

Mine is an extensively 'smithed .357 spurred hammer version, 2 1/4" with Hogue grips and a night sight up front. It's the go-to house gun, stoked with .38+P Hydro-Shoks.

I plan to go to a CTC lasergrip sometime soon.

Chaim is right as usual, in that it's probably too heavy to enjoy as a CCW, but it's SO sweet and solid in the hand, it's just right for the household GobStopper, and its trouble free point-and-click interface lends itself to cool handling under duress.

[James Bondrock]

I chose a spurred 2.25" .357 because I may want to carry it in a belt holster, shoulder holster or ankle holster with a thumbbreak safety strap, although most of the time it will be in a pocket. I have a Bell Charter Oak pocket holster, and in my experiments I did not snag the hammer drawing from the pocket.

[giese]

What is the load limit for the 357 SP101 that is still safe? Or for that matter manageable to shoot.

If you have ballistic data that would be great.

[Kamicosmos]

Spurless 2.25 .357 Magnum.

I love hammers, but went with the spurless for 'eventual' CCW use. (IF MO ever gets itself straightened out with this on again off again CCW Issue.)

I did put in the lighter wolf springs, and that helped a bunch on the trigger pull.

I shoot mostly .38 Special and mild magnums out of it, but at every range session I put a few heavy boomers through it. Mostly 125 grain bullets, but I have put a few 158 grainers through it, and the recoil is a bit...smoother I guess. Selected carry load is Federal Premium Defense 130gr Hydrashocks. Low flash, big recoil.

My gun is very accurate out to fifteen yards or so. I was hitting pop cans around that range on Thursday. I have a High Noon Holsters Hidden Alley for CCW, and plan on getting a nicer belt slide of some type for any potential 'game' use, like IDPA.

[Charles S]

I really think that the spurless hammer is very nice for concealed carry. I really think the SP101 is a little too big for a pocket pistol, but I really like mine. I use mine for concealed carry almost all summer long.

http://www.thehighroad.org/attachment.php?s=&postid=565559

Charles

[farscott]

I have three .357 Magnum SP-101's, a 2.25" with the hammer spur, a 2.25" without the hammer spur, and a 3.06" without the hammer spur. All of mine went to Jack Weigand for his Tame the Beast package.

I really think the SP-101 is too big and heavy for pocket carry, and I have found that the 3.06" barrel carries very well in a Kramer IWB#2 holster.

[rage]

Carry a 2.25 sp101 .357, spurred IWB with hogue rubber when the G30 takes a break. Shoots almost as well as my other GPs, 3"-4". I find it just heavy enough so I'm in control of magnum rounds but light enough for easy carry. Wolf springs and tons of dry firing have made the action smooth as butter. The stock grip conceals better, but the hogue takes the sting out of .357 loads.