Ruger LCR 357 shooting low, why?

[Huntolive]

Hello,

I have ruger LCR 2.5 inch brl in 357/38sp.

I want to like it: Great trigger, small, compact power, light.

But when i fire it I am always crazy low, like a foot to 18"

I am just shooting the basic front sight and groove "irons" coming standard.

I shoot other 357 pistols with adjustable iron sites and longer barrels pretty well, as well as 40 and 45 cal XDm's but this thing, and the SP101 I had I struggle w. Even worse w/ the LCR.

What do i need 2 do differently? I realize I could get laser sight, but as is, what am i probably doing wrong? What is the correction?

 

[VoodooMountain]

Ruger had some complaints with this with some models of the lcr. You may want to contact Ruger to see of a shorter front sight is available.

Different ammo will also require different holds as poi shifts.

You can also adjust your sight picture to have more blade riding on top of the grove. A little finger nail polish usually helped me with this.

 

[DASHMAN77]

The lighter the bullet, the lower the point of impact will be. It's going to sting but shoot some 180 357 mag rounds from a rest and see where it hits. You can also try some 38 spl Remington 158 grn +p non jacketed HP rounds. Filing the front sight is an option... Lowering the front sight will raise the muzzel. I would contact Ruger and shoot from a rest with some heavy loads before grinding on the gun. Did you shoot it from a rest? At what distance? What kind of loads were you shooting? I would make sure the gun is the problem and not the shooter, no offense. Every gun holds different in the hand and can take some time getting comfortable with it. But impacting that low is rather huge.

 

[AlfonsDeWolf]

Shoot 158 gr first before you do anything drastic. Do that first then go from there. Report back

 

[AZAndy]

(Deleted)

 

[gonoles_1980]

I don't know how you are sighting it, I had a similar problem and was using the top part of the front sight. I then move down to the fatter part of the sight and haven't had that issue since.

 

[murf]

you may be fighting the recoil and pushing the gun down as the round goes off. suggest you keep a firm grip on the weapon and let the recoil happen on your follow-through. at least try it before you go looking for different ammo.

luck,

murf

 

[gwpercle]

With a fix sighted hand gun , you have to figure out what ammo the maker had in mind when the sights were installed. Maybe Ruger could shed some light on this.
The other way is to select a load , then have a higher or lower front sight installed to match POA and POI.
38 special/357 magnum ammo can be just about any bullet weight from 110 grain to 200 grain and velocities could be hot magnum to target 38.
I would give Ruger a call, at least then you would have an idea of what it is supposed to be sighted in for. Be sure and include your serial number, things like sights get changed during production.
Gary

 

[Flfiremedic]

You might also consider POA/POI vs target aim. I would guess a combination withe the earlier ideas about ammunition and compensating for recoil. But that's just my guess. I love the LCR, but wasn't such a fan of the 357. They are great guns...it will be worth working it out.

 

[Shane in MT]

2.5" LCR 357/38Spl??

Is this a new offering?

 

[TanklessPro]

Shooting off bags?

 

[Flfiremedic]

The 357 LCR has been out a few years.

 

[weblance]

I had the same problem with mine, and its because of how I was pulling the trigger. I've been shooting conventional DA revolvers for 40 years, and the LCR trigger is very different. A regular revolver trigger "stacks". It gets harder to pull the farther the trigger moves to the rear. You get used to a "stacking" trigger. The LCR trigger stacks for a short distance, then the resistance stays the same for around 70% of the final pull distance. This caused me to drop the muzzle, and shoot low. It takes some practice to stop dropping the muzzle. I believe this is your problem, and that there is nothing mechanically wrong with your revolver.

 

[AlfonsDeWolf]

Flfiremedic, I'm sure Shane in MT is questioning the LCR .357 specifically in 2.5" vs the only one I know of, the 1.87", but then again my wife fails to uncuff me often

 

[Flfiremedic]

Flfiremedic, I'm sure Shane in MT is questioning the LCR .357 specifically in 2.5" vs the only one I know of, the 1.87", but then again my wife fails to uncuff me often

Yeah I read that wrong my bad. Didn't realize he was mentioning barrel length.

 

[I6turbo]

My LCR (and all of my S&W and Colt revolvers) shoot 125 grain, 130 grain, and 158 grain to essentially the same POI. IMO, it's a myth that different grain weight bullets impact significantly different points. Several others have reported the same result here. 12" - 18" low is NOT going to be corrected by an ammo change.

Here are a couple of targets shot back-to-back with the same gun, same distance (actually about 12 yards from the shooter's feet to the target), and exactly the same sight picture. Target on the Left is 130 grain PPU, target on the right is 158 grain.



A month or so ago I was shooting my LCR with this same ammo and there was essentially no difference in elevation from the two rounds. The LCR is not very accurate compared to larger handguns, but it impacts at pretty much the same elevation with both 130 and 158 grain ammo.

 

[old fart]

my 9mm lcr shoots the same with 115, 124 and 135 grain. i can't tell any difference in each one as they all hit close or on what i'm aiming at.

 

[FireInCairo]

Are you sure the trigger is good? A stupid-heavy trigger, I'm talking 5+ pounds above a typical revolver trigger, can be found on mass-manufactured pistols these days. It may be possible it's happening on revolvers, too.

Get the weight checked.

 

[ATLDave]

The most likely explanation - though not the only one - is that the little gun is just really uncomfortable to shoot and you're flinching/blinking/pushing the gun down before it goes off. Since flinches start with the eyes, you may be blinking for just a tiny fraction of a second, right before and during the flinch.

Are you seeing the muzzle/barrel-cylinder flash on every shot? If not, you're likely just pushing low.

 

[I6turbo]

The most likely explanation - though not the only one - is that the little gun is just really uncomfortable to shoot and you're flinching/blinking/pushing the gun down before it goes off. Since flinches start with the eyes, you may be blinking for just a tiny fraction of a second, right before and during the flinch.

Are you seeing the muzzle/barrel-cylinder flash on every shot? If not, you're likely just pushing low.

^^ OP, I would definitely check this first. I've seen people do this. When you say "12-18" low, it supports this theory. If you are shooting decent groups but they are x" low, then you may have an issue with the gun. If you're shooting shotgun patterns AND they are 12-18" low, the above should be the first thing you check.

Something you could try: Randomly load the cylinder with two rounds with your eyes closed (so you don't know where they are located). Close the cylinder, open your eyes, take aim, and squeeze off "shots" until you've fired those two rounds. Whenever you have a dry-fire you'll be able to see if you're flinching, and you'll probably shoot more accurately when a round goes off.

 

[Shane in MT]

Yes, I was just curious about the 2.5" bbl.