New LCP range report - the good and the bad

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So it looks like they’ve replaced the mag as well. The problem is, I can barely load the 6th round now, I really have to jam the mag into the gun to make it latch, and racking the slide loading the first round is hard.

Hopefully letting it sit for a while fully loaded will loosen up the spring.. if the problem is the mag spring.

C’mon Ruger...
Load the pistol with the slide locked back
 
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Well, another "Come on, RUGER !" moment... I took the mag apart and the spring was twisted inside so it wouldn't compress all the way.

Straightened it up and it loads fine now.. but seriously ?! That's the way it's coming from their super-duper-tech-guru department ?

Boy, I was spoiled by Glock...

Anyway, I stopped by Wally on my way to work and got a 50 rd box of WWB flatnose, another 50 Remington UMC, and a 20 rd box of Federal Hydra-Shock Low Recoil. Will see how it works... Pretty soon I'll have more money spent in "testing" rounds than the gun itself...
 
You were smart to check the mag. S**t happens.
I have two LCP's a gen one with Galloway trigger and 13# recoil spring and a LCPII. Both are reliable but the LCPII did go back to Ruger for extraction issues which they promptly repaired and it now is a flawless gun even with my handloads.

I am surprised at how often I grab that little gun and pop it into a wallet holster in my jeans. The other has a Viridian green laser and resides in my car.

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Yes, it's the ultimate pocketable gun. I looked at it side by side with G42 and it was plain obvious which one I was going to order. Just hope it shoots reliably now and I can start carrying it full time.
 
OK, so I made it to the range !

31 Remington UMC round nose FMJ - no malfunction
30 WWB flat nose FMJ - no malfunction
13 Federal HydraShok “Low Recoil” JHP - no malfunction

So, 61 FMJ and 13 JHP rounds, or 12 magazines, went through like happy little campers. (I left the last 7 JHPs for carry, for now).

Whatever Ruger people did, worked. Me happy.
 
I'm glad it seems to be figured out. It's not every company that resolves issues so quickly and the first time.

But it seems typical for Ruger.
 
Ruger makes some great pistols for the money. I've never had a bit of trouble with any of mine but it's good to know they'll take quick care of it if I ever do.
 
To close this chapter, I just ran about 50 FMJs and a magfull of JHPs (all I had left) testing the new 7rd mag, not a single hickup.

I also rented an LCR - have always been curious about revolvers, but never owned one, and never shot a snubbie.

I very quickly realized that this is probably not a great carry gun for me. Even thought the felt recoil with .38sp in LCR seemed actually milder than with .380 in LCP, somehow my shots were completely unpredictable. With LCP, I can quickly dump the entire mag at 15 ft into a typical silhouette target, even though the shots will be all over the map they would generally stay within target; and if I take just a little time to aim and use a two-hand stance, I can hit the bullseye repeatedly (although not with every round).

With LCR, I had no idea where my rounds were going at high rate of fire, and I could only hit the bullseye when taking deliberate aim and staging the trigger. And even then, it took a while. Probably the combination of goofy sights, a bit more deliberate trigger pull, and me not being familiar with it. But after shooting half a box of .380 out of LCR, and picking up the LCP, I felt relieved even despite more snappy recoil.

Also, 5 rds certainly felt very limiting. So I guess this answers that question. I am definitely looking forward to getting a revolver, but it won't be for carry. Right now, I feel like I've made the right choice.
 
To close this chapter, I just ran about 50 FMJs and a magfull of JHPs (all I had left) testing the new 7rd mag, not a single hickup.

I also rented an LCR - have always been curious about revolvers, but never owned one, and never shot a snubbie.

I very quickly realized that this is probably not a great carry gun for me. Even thought the felt recoil with .38sp in LCR seemed actually milder than with .380 in LCP, somehow my shots were completely unpredictable. With LCP, I can quickly dump the entire mag at 15 ft into a typical silhouette target, even though the shots will be all over the map they would generally stay within target; and if I take just a little time to aim and use a two-hand stance, I can hit the bullseye repeatedly (although not with every round).

With LCR, I had no idea where my rounds were going at high rate of fire, and I could only hit the bullseye when taking deliberate aim and staging the trigger. And even then, it took a while. Probably the combination of goofy sights, a bit more deliberate trigger pull, and me not being familiar with it. But after shooting half a box of .380 out of LCR, and picking up the LCP, I felt relieved even despite more snappy recoil.

Also, 5 rds certainly felt very limiting. So I guess this answers that question. I am definitely looking forward to getting a revolver, but it won't be for carry. Right now, I feel like I've made the right choice.

There is no question for me that I would choose the LCR over the LCP. For one the LCR is built like a tank and any gun you buy, you will want to put a lot of ammo down range in training. As mentioned, I am a Pico fan. But have to say I love shooting my LCR9mm.Yes, I was a lousy shot at first when I first started shooting it three years ago. But fast forward those three years and I can out shoot any of the 4 LCP's I owned over the past 10 years. In fact laying down 5 fast rapid fire rounds of ammo at center mass can easily be accomplished with diligent training. Actually easier to shoot than the LCP. And one thing for certain, the LCR will out last any LCP. I found the recoil on this side of mild before crossing over to discomfort when I first started shooting. Now I have just become immune to the recoil. I can easily shoot 200 rds. a session of which I do on a regular basis.I load up 40 moon clips the night before going to the range. I also put this in the category of one of my "Fun Guns". I just love shooting it. At it is surprisingly easy to CCW. I just put it in my pants at apex position with a Clip draw.
Easy to load, and unload, no expensive magazines, if fact I keep it on my night stand next to my 20 gauge 18' mossberg.
The 38 has less recoil, and if I wanted 38 I would buy the model that shoots 357. The heavier gun with all steel frame and cylinder would last indefinitely and the added few ounces would even make it more pleasant to shoot. I would carry 38 plus P. 357 for me is a different story. I do not like shooting it at all.
BONUS, I ALSO HAVE A LCR22 which makes for even more fun training at a tremendous cost saving.

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I have no doubt that I would learn to shoot the LCR well. I just can’t get past the 5 round limit. If you are being attacked by 2-3 thugs - not an unusual scenario at all, young criminals tend to travel in small packs - that’s a really small round count. You are basically left with one round for the last assailant, and that’s considering that you can stop the other two with just two rounds each. 7+1 is almost double that.

Now I assume a .357 mag could be a sure one-shot stopper - I don’t know much about that round. But it still leaves no room for error.

One on one, a 5-shot is plenty.
 
That's of course assuming you hit your target with each shot. We all know that the rate of hits to shots fired under stress is not very good, even at fairly close distances.

The more available rounds the better.
 
I have no doubt that I would learn to shoot the LCR well. I just can’t get past the 5 round limit. If you are being attacked by 2-3 thugs - not an unusual scenario at all, young criminals tend to travel in small packs - that’s a really small round count. You are basically left with one round for the last assailant, and that’s considering that you can stop the other two with just two rounds each. 7+1 is almost double that.

Now I assume a .357 mag could be a sure one-shot stopper - I don’t know much about that round. But it still leaves no room for error.

One on one, a 5-shot is plenty.

I carry the Pico every day. And I feel I am a very good shot with it, especially having trained with it at least once a week for a long time. That said, If I knew I was going to be in a typical Urban assault and I have to choose between a 380 with 7 shots vs a 9mm with 5 shots. I will without a doubt go 9mm all day long.Personally I believe if you cannot get the job done in a matter of seconds and with three shots than you are most likely dead any way. A 9mm round is going to get the job done much better than a 380. I personally believe in diligent training over round count. I know many believe they have to have a lot of ammo. Many probably will just close there eyes and sling out as much lead as possible and hope something hits. Each to his own.
 
That's of course assuming you hit your target with each shot. We all know that the rate of hits to shots fired under stress is not very good, even at fairly close distances.

The more available rounds the better.

Especially if you are a lousy shot. Might want to train more often. A lot of rounds left in a dead man's magazine is just a waste of ammo. Just hope the bad guy trains less than you do. Of course if you feel that your next assault might be a gang of Ninja hit men.Forget the LCP or LCR, I would go with as many rounds as possible. I would say. calculate 5 rounds per Ninja. Maybe more. 5 Ninja, 25 rounds. For what I understand they move quickly.

I pretty much train to the chart below. Don't have a copy of the Ninja Chart or Spray and shoot.

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From the chart you train by, 95% of gunfights take place at 21' or less, yet on average only 25% of all shots fired are hits. No ninja's required for poor rounds fired to hit count. Hope you're able to do better.
 
From the chart you train by, 95% of gunfights take place at 21' or less, yet on average only 25% of all shots fired are hits. No ninja's required for poor rounds fired to hit count. Hope you're able to do better.

I never train to be average. I train as if my Life depended on it. That is why I go to the range a minimum of once a week and spend a whole lot of money on ammo
 
Wanderling, sorry to hear about the issues with the LCP. Glad things are working well now. I have an original LCP, and I did have a mag drop issue with it, but Ruger fixed it and the gun has been reliable enough since then for me to feel comfortable carrying it. In fact, I carry it more than I've carried any other gun, and will continue to do so. I think I've put 250 to 300 rounds through the gun without issue since it was repaired.

I had to really press the loaded mags in firmly also. Part of the design quirks, I think, but it seems to me that trait has lessened since I sent the gun in to repair the mag drop issue. I DID notice that the loaded mags are easier to put in the gun when it's cocked. Thanks for the heads up on the twisted mag spring deal. I have 4 mags for my gun and I'll check them all. BTW, are you aware that 7 round mags for the gun are available from Ruger? I haven't read all the posts on this thread so you may have already mentioned it. The extended grip they provide is a big help to me during shooting.
 
Wanderling, sorry to hear about the issues with the LCP. Glad things are working well now. I have an original LCP, and I did have a mag drop issue with it, but Ruger fixed it and the gun has been reliable enough since then for me to feel comfortable carrying it. In fact, I carry it more than I've carried any other gun, and will continue to do so. I think I've put 250 to 300 rounds through the gun without issue since it was repaired.

I had to really press the loaded mags in firmly also. Part of the design quirks, I think, but it seems to me that trait has lessened since I sent the gun in to repair the mag drop issue. I DID notice that the loaded mags are easier to put in the gun when it's cocked. Thanks for the heads up on the twisted mag spring deal. I have 4 mags for my gun and I'll check them all. BTW, are you aware that 7 round mags for the gun are available from Ruger? I haven't read all the posts on this thread so you may have already mentioned it. The extended grip they provide is a big help to me during shooting.

Yes I just received a 7rd Ruger mag last week, and it is now my main carry mag. Not only does it add a round and makes the gun much more comfortable to hold, but it also makes it significantly easier to quickly get a good grip on it when drawing, all for very little added printing. It’s a must have, and along with a 6rd mag with a flush floor plate makes for a very versatile combination.

I am also finding LCP incredibly easy to carry, and it has already changed my habits and became a true EDC.
 
Glad Ruger fixed your gun for you, and quickly. I had to send back one LCP because mags wouldn't lock in the gun. They replaced the mags and the mag release in the gun. Said it was a known issue. That's the only problem I've ever had with one. They fixed mine quickly also. These things are selling new for less than $200 so I imagine they are cranking out tons of them, surely some slip through with issues just based on volume. I bet their overall QC is probably pretty high though. Good company IMO.
 
Glad Ruger fixed your gun for you, and quickly. I had to send back one LCP because mags wouldn't lock in the gun. They replaced the mags and the mag release in the gun. Said it was a known issue. That's the only problem I've ever had with one. They fixed mine quickly also. These things are selling new for less than $200 so I imagine they are cranking out tons of them, surely some slip through with issues just based on volume. I bet their overall QC is probably pretty high though. Good company IMO.

They are at least a responsible company ...

I have a couple Glocks that I never, ever had a malfunction with. Just took them out of the box without cleaning, loaded whatever ammo I had without giving it a second thought, and they went “bang” every time ever since.

Now I understand that a tiny .380 is harder to keep loading reliably than a fat 9mm. But given that before the trip to Ruger it was a jam-o-matic, and afterwards- so far - utterly reliable, I’d say the problem was with poor initial quality.

So, to me, if I ever buy another Ruger, I’d expect having to send it back to the mothership before I can rely on it.
 
I will admit that I bought my first handgun in 2009 - a brand new post-recall gen 1 LCP. It had bad extraction issues, but because I was new, I thought it might be me, and maybe part of it was. But it went back to Ruger after a few months of ownership. They replaced the slide (the extractor would not hold a round against the breech face when disassembled). After that it has run fine - my records show 2000+ rounds since I've had it, with over 700 factory defense rounds through it with no problems at all.

I suspect now that yours has been repaired and shown to be reliable, just like mine it should give you years of good service. I paid $430 for mine at the time, today they run 200, I'd say they are still a very good deal.
 
I will admit that I bought my first handgun in 2009 - a brand new post-recall gen 1 LCP. It had bad extraction issues, but because I was new, I thought it might be me, and maybe part of it was. But it went back to Ruger after a few months of ownership. They replaced the slide (the extractor would not hold a round against the breech face when disassembled). After that it has run fine - my records show 2000+ rounds since I've had it, with over 700 factory defense rounds through it with no problems at all.

I suspect now that yours has been repaired and shown to be reliable, just like mine it should give you years of good service. I paid $430 for mine at the time, today they run 200, I'd say they are still a very good deal.

They are a very good deal, period. And you can now find them below $200.

There's still enough market for the original LCP design - especially since Gen 2 improved on it a little. Having carried mine for a few weeks now, I would still pick it over LCP II, if only for the size difference and just a little heavier trigger pull. As long as it stays reliable, it's an ultimate carry gun for me - I can take it anywhere, and I can shoot it well enough without discomfort (not having supersized mittens helps a lot with this).
 
I own around ten Rugers, and have owned a couple of others in the past, and have had zero problems with any of them. You rolls that dice and you takes your chances.

I happen to have a P3AT instead of an LCP, and carry it fairly often. It isn't easy for me to shoot with my giant man-paws, but I am decently accurate with it. It's what I carry when I can't carry anything else, often in the breast pocket of a flannel or denim shirt.

I'm glad that the OP has his LCP working now. It's nice to have a handgun in a reasonably effective round that's so easy to carry.

In the summer I normally carry my LCR, which I prefer. Accuracy is with it is NP for me, but I have been shooting revolvers for almost 40 years now. I think a lot of it depends on what the shooter is accustomed to.
 
I am glad you got your LCP fixed! I hope you end up liking your as much as I like mine! It was interesting to hear that Ruger test fired the gun with Hornaday Critical defense ammo... this is what I carry in my LCP. I have never had a single failure with my LCP and I have about 200 rounds of various ammo through it.

For those people that don't like 380's... don't carry a 380! If your job and life style allow you to carry a .45... goddie for you! My XDs 3.3 .45 would print in my work clothes and it would not be very well received in the office environment I work in. Even my Karh CM9 is too big for work clothes. My LCP is just right though. I much prefer carrying a .380 than carrying nothing.
 
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