Ruger LC9 Accuracy

[southoftheboarder]

I recently purchased a LC9 and went target practicing. At about 14 feet I shot 21 rounds and only hit the target 6 times. Thinking it could be me I had a buddy of mine try his skill. He had the same problem. I shot his S&W MP 9mm and put all rounds in the target. With that said I'm thinking there is a problem with my LC9. Has anyone else had a problem with their LC9 and if so what did you do to correct it?

 

[flphotog]

I fixed mine once and for all, I got rid of it.

 

[primalmu]

I can't shoot mine very well, either, but I think its more due to not being used to the trigger and it being such a lightweight gun. I'd put a few hundred rounds through it at the range before getting rid of it. To be fair, I had a similar problem with my Glock 26, though the trigger was certainly far better.

 

[Huskerguy]

My brother in law purchased one and came through town to stay overnight before we hit a gun show together. I belong to a range so I wanted to take him out and put a few rounds through the new LC9. We ran a target out about 25 feet and he puts a full mag down the range and never hit the target. He adjusts his sights and finally gets one or two on the paper. He asks me to try thinking he just wasn't lining the sights up right. I got one or two on the paper. The trigger is the longest and hardest pull I can remember aside from a Taurus 22 he also had. We played around several hours and never got to a point where we could do anything with it. A few weeks later he traded it at a gun show. Smart move.

 

[typhun]

i had trouble hitting the target with my LC9 too but it was me gripping the gun to tightly pulling the shots low and left. I was actually having the same issue with all my handguns for the most part. Once i relaxed my grip a little and wasn't squeezing the pistol to death with my primary hand the shots started going to point of aim. I have done quite a bit of dry fire (snap caps) though to get used to the trigger which i now find to be no bother at all, while concentrating on having a firm grip but not crushing, BTW, the LC9 has functioned flawlessly with every type of ammo that i have fed it.

 

[Teachu2]

I could shoot mine accurately enough, but slooooooow. My G26 was much more accurate and much, much faster. My Shield is in between, closer to the Glock than the LC-9. Bought the LC-9 for the wife, who hated shooting it - she went to a M&P 9c and never looked back. I was happy to sell the LC-9, and the buyer was happy to get it.

 

[Capt. Ct.]

I have been shooting for years and can put most shots in a 3" bull at 25' Not to say that is great but I know how to shoot. I ordered my LC9 and then had a heart operation before it arrived. So it was months before I got to shoot it. Well I get to the range and set the target at 25'. I fired nine rounds. I hit the paper twice. I shot three more mags with the same results. Yes maybe it was me. Maybe the trigger. Maybe a defective gun. I don't know. I just took it to the LGS and traded it in. Never so disappointed in a gun in my life. I have a Glock 26, 9mm Shield, and a 9mm XDS to fill the slot and they all do just fine.

 

[Orion8472]

I tried a friend's LC9 a while back. At 7 yards, I hit the paper each time, but the grouping was fairly wide. Still "minute of man". The owner did a better job with it. Nice feeling gun, though.

My current carry gun is the Shield. A little under an inch and a half grouping at 7 yards. I figure that's good enough for a carry pistol.

 

[Old Dog]

The LC9 trigger takes quite a bit of practice to get used to -- if one is accustomed to SA/DA semiautos or the more common striker-fired pistols. I suspect a dedicated revolver-shooter, used to shooting double-action, could master the long trigger pull. It's got a ton of slack.

I picked up a couple LC9s when they were on sale, intended for the women in my family, and my daughter was shooting these pistols very accurately from the start -- better than I was, as I struggled to get used to the trigger. One of the LC9s has the Lasermax, which I was able to determine was zeroed quite well.

I still am not fond of the LC9 and have no use for it; it sits in a safe all forelorn, but my daughter carries and shoots hers regularly ... she can easily get a whole mag's worth of shots in a 6" Shoot'n'See circle from 7 yards, shooting pretty fast without trying double-taps.

 

[southoftheboarder]

Thank you all for the inputs/recommendations. I'll try to loosen my grip some and give myself some time to get used to the trigger. If that doesn't work I will trade it in.

 

[Mike1234567]

I'm more accurate with a larger pistol but had no problems with the LC9 I had... could certainly always hit the target at 10 yards anyway. Has something changed with them in the last couple years?

 

[M2 Carbine]

I've had four of them. Still have three.
Recently sold one to a lady friend, which we shot last week. She shot it very well. At 7 yards the gun will make a one hole group, but mostly I can't.

The first LC9 I put over a thousand trouble free rounds through it in 8 days. It now has about 2,000 trouble free rounds.
At least 9 people, 4 of them women, have shot my LC9's. Some don't like the gun but no one had trouble hitting with it.

The second one I'm shooting now. It's also accurate.

I pocket carry the LC9 when I can.

As far as accuracy, here's some targets. Since these targets were shot, I or the gun, or both are doing a little better.
(Understand I have 75 year old eyes and nerves to match, so the gun shoots a lot better then these targets show)

52 yards. Standing. Two hands. (The steel plate is 24 inches square. With small guns, like the LC9 I consider a hit anywhere on the plate, a HIT. The gun did good but I missed the plate twice.)

 

[Orion8472]

"Eyes Closed"???

 

[M2 Carbine]

"Eyes Closed"???

Sure.

Would you believe I got a passing score on the Texas CHL shooting qualification with my eyes closed?
I used to say the shooting was so easy you could pass it with your eyes closed.
So I tried it, and passed.




It's not as bad as it sounds. I have my own range where I can (safely) do most anything that comes to mind.

 

[kokapelli]

People need to stop blaming the pistol for their inability to adjust to it's trigger.

If you were brought up on revolvers like I was the trigger is just fine and accuracy at seven yards is just fine as well.

Check out Jeff Quinn and Hickok 45 on YouTube and see how well both shot the LC9 without a lot of practice, which shows that if your having trouble hitting with it, it's probably your trigger technique that is the problem.

 

[M2 Carbine]

Now the one that has a stinker for a trigger is the Beretta NANO.
A small DA "pocket gun" needs a long somewhat hard trigger but Beretta overdid it with the NANO.

I like the NANO, all except the trigger.

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

I haven't shot one of these yet, but you're dealing with a very long and fairly heavy stroke DAO trigger in combination with a grip that, in the interests of being thin, leaves you little to hold onto. The gun may be shifting in your hand as you pull the trigger and throwing your shots off target. Mechanically I'm sure it is accurate unless it has some really egregious defect like forgetting to rifle the barrel or something. Put another way, it isn't defective, it just doesn't work well for you.

 

[southoftheboarder]

Thanks for suggesting I go to YouTube. Great material concerning LC9 trigger problems. I was amazed how well Jeff Quinn and Hickok shot the LC9. Also there is a fix to reduce the trigger travel.

 

[kokapelli]

Thanks for suggesting I go to YouTube. Great material concerning LC9 trigger problems. I was amazed how well Jeff Quinn and Hickok shot the LC9. Also there is a fix to reduce the trigger travel.

If I understand it right, the trigger mod while reducing trigger travel also reduces hammer travel which may not be a good thing.

 

[Teachu2]

People need to stop blaming the pistol for their inability to adjust to it's trigger.

If you were brought up on revolvers like I was the trigger is just fine and accuracy at seven yards is just fine as well.

Check out Jeff Quinn and Hickok 45 on YouTube and see how well both shot the LC9 without a lot of practice, which shows that if your having trouble hitting with it, it's probably your trigger technique that is the problem.

"Adjust to it's trigger" my eye. I've got two dozen handguns that I can shoot more accurately and much faster - I'd be silly to stake my life on the worst one I own. Could I "adjust to the trigger"? If that were all I had to use, I'd use it. Am I going to intentionally handicap myself needlessly, when I have so many guns that give me superior performance at my disposal? Nope.

The LC-9 could be the highest quality handgun in the world, and wholeheartedly endorsed by everyone else, and shot in competitions by the world's top shooters in every discipline from bullseye to trap, and it still would be an inferior choice for ME.

At least with the one I had, the trigger was not just fine - and I was brought up on S&W revolvers. If yours shoots well for you, great! Enjoy it. I enjoyed selling mine.

 

[Hunter2011]

I had to choose between a LC9 or a Taurus PT709. I did not had the oportunity to hold a LC9 in my hands, but after reading this thread I am so glad I went with the PT709.

 

[M2 Carbine]

Here's a size comparison of the LC9 with a few other small pistols.

Glock 33 (357 SIG)--Beretta PX4 Sub Compact-- CZ RAMI
XDS--Shield--Bersa
Ruger LCP--Kel Tec .32--LC9--NANO

 

[M2 Carbine]

If you are into gun mounted lasers (which I am), LaserLyte makes a decent laser for the LC9 for about $90.

 

[kokapelli]

Is it your collection?

 

[M2 Carbine]

Is it your collection?

Yes.

I don't really "collect". I just buy what I like. I never heard of the LC9 before I was at the local gun store when one was delivered (the black one). I liked it and thought I'd try it. Turned out to be an exceptional gun.

Ruger has been doing good lately. I also like the SR9C (bought two) and SR40C. I didn't like the SR45. Nothing wrong. I just didn't like it, so I gave it to a lady shooting friend a couple weeks ago.

I also like Ruger's SR22. Got three of them and shoot one gun more than all my other guns put together. I go through a lot of 22LR.
I had four SR22s but I gave the latest two tone purchase to the same lady some weeks back.


Off subject but I bought this Rock Island 22 TCM Tuesday. This should be fun.