LCR in 22LR—22WMR-9mm-38-357- which one for you-?

my own experience owning and/or shooting these members of the ruger lcr lineup.

lcr 22lr. still have it. swapped short ruger grips to longer ruger grips, which greatly improves geometry in my hand, but still ok as a holstered (not pocket) ccw. beware that a rapid ammo dump (how i would employ any 22lr handgun for protection) can lock the cylinder when you all too easily short stroke the lcr 22lr’s trigger. i wish that mine had an exposed hammer for single action capability. i like my lcr 22lr better than the s&w 317 22lr revolver, which i sold. i prefer to shoot & carry my ruger sr22 over my lcr 22lr.

lcr 22wmr. gone. way too much distracting flashbang, only six shots, from its snubbie barrel for little more result over 22lr. 22wmr is best out of my 5.5” ruger single six.

lcr 327mag. shot a cousin’s. excellent in 32long, fine in 32mag, obnoxious in 327mag. assuming that one solves the ammo supply question, this is the one lcr that i recommend without hesitation, over all the others, i.m.e.

lcr 38sp. gone. i simply prefer the s&w snubbie experience in my hand. the longer grip improves this lcr though. way less aftermarket choices for grips & holsters than is enjoyed by s&w (and taurus) snubbies.

lcr-x 38sp. bought it because it was cheap at $300, and i was intrigued with its 3” barrel and exposed hammer. its standard longer grips serve it very well. seems best suited as a trail, field & stream, sidearm, carried in a shoulder holster, because it is so thin and lightweight. its longer barrel and single action capability give it more accuracy. however, it wont be my daily ccw as its 3” barrel is uncomfortable when i am seated, driving.
Thank you for your response
QUESTION
What would be your choice for EDC - LCR 38 -or- J frame-?

Thank you
 
I have used both of the Hornady Critical Defense 110 FTX loads, +p and standard pressure, and the Hornady Lite 90 grain. The 90 grain is a little light on penetration per testing from Lucky Gunner. The 110 ftx is my normal carry load either pressure is fine with me.

All three loads are manageable in my opinion. I have 3 airweight j frames. I keep the 90 grain loads on hand for my wife. She is not very tolerant to recoil.

Thank you for your response
My cancer medications have induced recoil sensitivity—BUT— the medications are doing their job — so I will do my job
The Hornady 90 & 110 gr non plus p are tolerable with satisfactory accuracy at distances 3-5yards - I am working now for 7 to 10 yards accuracy- it is good to have a goal
The 22LR LCR sounds as if it may be second in viable options for my condition
Distant 4th option - from every one’s responses is 327 - because of ammo availability - once again , looking at what may work for this old dawg
The 9mm LCR - do not know the real world pros and cons
Thank you again for your response
 
Thank you for your response
QUESTION
What would be your choice for EDC - LCR 38 -or- J frame-?

Thank you
s&w j frame, which includes taurus 85 or 605. i generally buy used on gunbroker, so far ive been lucky. the j frame simply has more aftermarket grip and holster choices. the geometry is different in a worse way on the lcr, adding longer grips makes it feel better, for me, ymmv, but longer grips hinders its ccw-ability depending on how you like to carry. i need softer shooting wadcutter ammo in my airweight snubbies, again ymmv. ruger warranty service is excellent.

although i am a revolver guy, when i ccw a 22lr handgun it is a ruger sr22 semiauto pistol. my two sr22 pistols have 20,000ish rounds through them over a dozen years. they are reliable (lately only oomphier cci minimag & aguila supermax ammo is made to a consistently reliable standard at a decent $12/100 price); fun; handy; accurate enough, easy to fieldstrip.

yeah 22lr isn’t a “proper” defensive caliber but lots of practice is cheap and easy. with my high round count i can ammo dump a sr22’s ten-round mag where it’s needed on targets out to 30’ and reload quickly, which buys me an opportunity to break off contact. there may come a time in everyone’s future, when for physical and financial reasons, a 22lr handgun is what one can best handle…
 
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The 9mm LCR - do not know the real world pros and cons
fwiw, i bought a charter arms 9mm pitbull revolver because i like revolvers and 9mm ammo is 1/2 the cost of 38sp ammo. the c.a. was a p.o.c. and 9mm ammo was too stout for me from a double-action revolver. i happily offloaded the c.a. my revolver of choice for 9mm ammo remains a beloved ruger blackhawk single-action revolver.
 
Thank you for your response
My cancer medications have induced recoil sensitivity—BUT— the medications are doing their job — so I will do my job
The Hornady 90 & 110 gr non plus p are tolerable with satisfactory accuracy at distances 3-5yards - I am working now for 7 to 10 yards accuracy- it is good to have a goal
The 22LR LCR sounds as if it may be second in viable options for my condition
Distant 4th option - from every one’s responses is 327 - because of ammo availability - once again , looking at what may work for this old dawg
The 9mm LCR - do not know the real world pros and cons
Thank you again for your response
Good luck with your journey against cancer.
 
s&w j frame, which includes taurus 85 or 605. i generally buy used on gunbroker, so far ive been lucky. the j frame simply has more aftermarket grip and holster choices. the geometry is different in a worse way on the lcr, adding longer grips makes it feel better, for me, ymmv, but longer grips hinders its ccw-ability depending on how you like to carry. i need softer shooting wadcutter ammo in my airweight snubbies, again ymmv. ruger warranty service is excellent.

although i am a revolver guy, when i ccw a 22lr handgun it is a ruger sr22 semiauto pistol. my two sr22 pistols have 20,000ish rounds through them over a dozen years. they are reliable (lately only oomphier cci minimag & aguila supermax ammo is made to a consistently reliable standard at a decent $12/100 price); fun; handy; accurate enough, easy to fieldstrip.

yeah 22lr isn’t a “proper” defensive caliber but lots of practice is cheap and easy. with my high round count i can ammo dump a sr22’s ten-round mag where it’s needed on targets out to 30’ and reload quickly, which buys me an opportunity to break off contact. there may come a time in everyone’s future, when for physical and financial reasons, a 22lr handgun is what one can best handle…
Thank you
 
beware that a rapid ammo dump (how i would employ any 22lr handgun for protection) can lock the cylinder when you all too easily short stroke the lcr 22lr’s trigger.
I will add to this that my 327 has two tactile resets, one for the hand turning the cylinder and one for the hammer. When I fall back into old habits and ride the reset I'll pull the trigger after the first reset to no avail. Simply release the trigger all of the way and I'm back up and running although it does skip a cylinder then. Because of this reason I try to carry other guns on days I'll be wearing heavy gloves as there isn't enough room for my gloves finger to reset everything. Formulating this response I'm now wanting to try one of the S&W UC in 32 H&R with a glove to see if they have a similar problem.
 
Carried an LCR, 10-12 years now, in 38 Spl [that might have been the only chambering available at the time]. Choose it over other makers units, because I liked the trigger. Currently use the Buffalo Bore 150 gr full wad cutter ammo [or the similar Underwood loading]. The gun and load has grown to be sort of an extension of my body- can always bust an on edge clay bird at 8-10 steps. Only "change" I've made is adding a dollup of white fingernail polish on the top of the front sight ramp. The LCR is my only Snubbie - glad I have it - would get one again if I needed a replacement.
I like that BB wadcutter.

Why paint the top of the ramp?
 
I will add to this that my 327 has two tactile resets, one for the hand turning the cylinder and one for the hammer. When I fall back into old habits and ride the reset I'll pull the trigger after the first reset to no avail. Simply release the trigger all of the way and I'm back up and running although it does skip a cylinder then. Because of this reason I try to carry other guns on days I'll be wearing heavy gloves as there isn't enough room for my gloves finger to reset everything. Formulating this response I'm now wanting to try one of the S&W UC in 32 H&R with a glove to see if they have a similar problem.

This is one of those things that I'll notice sometimes in dry fire, but when blasting with strong ammo the recoil helps my trigger finger get past any false reset.
 
First- this is not a caliber debate
My following question is to see what other LCR/LCRX EDC are using and why-?

I carried an LCRx .38 for quite a while. (Mostly carry a Taurus 856 now, for extra round.) I keep the LCRx around in case I might need something smaller and lighter than the Taurus.
I have narrowed my next Snubby purchase to a LCR/LCRX - I like the trigger

QUESTIONS:

1) For those that EDC a LCR/LCRX - what caliber do you EDC-?
.38 Special.
2) your pros and cons
pros
  • Modern design, optimized
  • good trigger
  • swappable front sight, something that until recently the alternatives in its niche mostly didn't have
  • good grip, out of the box
cons
  1. the modern design is complicated enough that I don't want to tear into it. See the teardown videos on Ruger's YooToob channel
  2. the Safariland Comp (whatever it is) that works for the S&W J .38, doesn't work with the LCR.
  3. not as good aftermarket support.
  4. they've gotten pricey, lately


Once again - this is not a caliber debate
It is an inquiry to learn

Thank you
 
22wmr in lcr, and 38 lcrx.
The 22 is for around the house, raccoons, groundhogs, etc if I run across one while gardening or feeding the chickens.
The 38 is for OWB or pocket carry when I carry a revolver

I usually carry a pistol when out and about as it reloads faster, it is usually an LCP in .380 or LC9s.
LCP is my "church" gun (carry it anywhere and nobody can tell it is there), the LC9S goes in an owb on my right hip
I also carry a spare mag

The rimfire has a heavy trigger, I inherited it from the better half as she decided it was too hard to keep on target as she got older. I have read that it has to be that heavy to ensure reliable impact on rimfire ammo - not sure if that is true or not, but it has been 100% reliable with CCI maxi mags. I like the LCRX because it has an exposed hammer, DA trigger is good, but SA trigger is excellent for me.

my .02

d
 
22wmr in lcr, and 38 lcrx.
The 22 is for around the house, raccoons, groundhogs, etc if I run across one while gardening or feeding the chickens.
The 38 is for OWB or pocket carry when I carry a revolver

I usually carry a pistol when out and about as it reloads faster, it is usually an LCP in .380 or LC9s.
LCP is my "church" gun (carry it anywhere and nobody can tell it is there), the LC9S goes in an owb on my right hip
I also carry a spare mag

The rimfire has a heavy trigger, I inherited it from the better half as she decided it was too hard to keep on target as she got older. I have read that it has to be that heavy to ensure reliable impact on rimfire ammo - not sure if that is true or not, but it has been 100% reliable with CCI maxi mags. I like the LCRX because it has an exposed hammer, DA trigger is good, but SA trigger is excellent for me.

my .02

d
Thank you for your response
I had a Ruger EC9s and it was great for the price point - no issues- it was accurate as I was - i pocketed carried or belly band when I wore my scrubs - when not in scrubs, it was OWB.
It is a shame that 2025 revolver prices are so high. It must be that I am old Every thing is expensive but that is life
 
It is a shame that 2025 revolver prices are so high. It must be that I am old Every thing is expensive but that is life.
The LCR seems to sell for a premium price. Ruger revolvers in general are listing for a higher prices than a comparable S&W.

At my LGS they had a 442 for $519. A LCR 38 for $599.
 
The LCR seems to sell for a premium price. Ruger revolvers in general are listing for a higher prices than a comparable S&W.

At my LGS they had a 442 for $519. A LCR 38 for $599.
I think that indicates the LCR .38s are not moving because that looks like a Covid era shortage price. LGS probably can't break even if he matched the LCR price with the Smith.

Online the LCR .38 is $500.
 
I think that indicates the LCR .38s are not moving because that looks like a Covid era shortage price. LGS probably can't break even if he matched the LCR price with the Smith.

Online the LCR .38 is $500.
Thank you for your response
Excellent point on the LCR
Recently, at my LGS - I asked them how are revolvers selling-?……the LGS stated they move in waves but the SA is what moves - also they stated for an average price quality revolver from SW,Ruger of Kimber - you can purchase an above average SA
INTERESTING-?
 
probably the LCR is more expensive to make and finish out.
Smith over the past few decades has kept making cost-saving changes to cut production costs and keep the prices lower.
Still believe the LCR is a superior product in materials and especially finish...and one must pay for it.
 
probably the LCR is more expensive to make and finish out.
Smith over the past few decades has kept making cost-saving changes to cut production costs and keep the prices lower.
Still believe the LCR is a superior product in materials and especially finish...and one must pay for it.
Thank you for your response
Excellent point
When I did speak with the LGS employee - a person of early 20s who was knowledgeable- I asked him “ if your revolver line is not moving - and your revolver customers are usually old dawgs like me - would a fair price lowering be beneficial for all”

His response was:
1) yes it would be helpful but look at the ratio of SA to revolvers - the price factor is not as great as the demand to influence a meaningful change.
2) Also - the major manufacturers have entered the revolver market place - such as Kimber - Kimbers prices is higher that the entry point of SW & Ruger - but they offer more”

It was a pleasure to speak to a young person who understands marketing - it was a pleasant conversation with no anti wheel-gun opinions - I will have to keep saving up my money and hope for a sale - it is good to dream
 
I have the LCR 38 with the XS front sight. To me I feel the old 158+p LSWCHP is about as good of balance between terminal ballistics and recoil control from a LW snub.
The 357 version wouldn't be a bad choice either but for my use the extra weight puts it up near the weight of my small semi autos, so for me I prefer the 38.
I've considered the 3" LCRx 22 as a "kit" gun, IMHO it would be great for it, but again have gone to the darkside of bottom feeders for that roll as well.
 
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