Ruger P97?

[RWMC]

I am still looking for a decent ccw piece. Recently I saw that Ruger P97's are on clearance for $280 through Davidsons. It has a stainless slide and a polymer frame, and 1 eight shot magazine. The barrel is 4.2" long. Have any of you had experience with the P97, good or bad? I pretty well have my mind set on a .45 for the caliber of choice that I would stake my life or the lives of my family on. Is the P97 a good delivery service for the .45?? I would feel too guilty spending over $400 when I have so many other responsibilities and obligations to fulfill (buying groceries, house payments and buying the liquid gold gasoline for the vehicles.) Any and all input again will be greatly appreciated.

 

[retiredchief]

The P97 is one of the best values for the money.. I purchased one
not too long ago.. it is totally reliable and easy to shoot.. range
experience was very positive... very tolerable recoil from such a small
sized .45 .... I would strongly recommend it if you would like a
dependable double action/single action forty five. Most accurate
within reasonable distances... a good home protection, range,
and/or multi-use firearm.

 

[RWMC]

Thank - you retiredchief for your input. What ammo did you use? I realize ball dosent have to expand to be effective. Thanks againl

 

[P95Carry]

Indeed - a (IMO) very good value potential carry piece. ''Fugly'' - yes!! Reliable and tough - yes indeed.

I do find the disparity between D/A and S/A rather excessive - but same on P95 - and this is well dealt with by simple expedient of - practice!! I have not used mine for carry in some time but ammo was IIRC Hydrashocks and then went to Speer Gold Dots - just forget the weights ... 185's perhaps.

A gun well worthy of carry use - if the bulk is manageable.

 

[denfoote]

P95,
That gun looks suspiciously like mine!!

 

[9mmepiphany]

the 97 is very accurate amd the polymer gripframe is a definate improvement, in feel, over the alloy. my only reluctance to using the 97 as a CCW is the size. but if it works for you, the gun is definately an awesome buy.

at that price, i may have to look at one again...i wonder if the sig 220 and SW 1911Sc would shun it

 

[Dienekes]

I have had one for about 18 months now and about 1200 plus rounds through it. It has feeding "issues"--about once every 34 rounds with any and all of the five magazines. Most of those rounds are gauged RNL handloads. Have contacted the service people three times, swapped out various parts, etc. and tried just about everything. The pistol is great except for the one critical thing--reliability.

Ruger wants me to send the gun in which means even more fooling around plus shipping it overnight express. Even though they will pick up the shipping both ways I am tired of trying to make it work--which it damn well should have done out of the box. I took their armorer's course some years ago and although the course covered the P85 this is not that different. Things have progressed to the point that no matter what they did to the gun I would not trust it in future. So I am getting ready to dump it, its accessories, and quite a few spare parts for what I can get for it.

The aggravating part of this is that I have owned Ruger stock since 1981. So in addition to everything else "my" company has lost money on it trying to placate me and sending me a bunch of free spare parts (including three new magazines).

My primary CCW piece since 1981 has been a Security Six. To date the only semiautos I have confidence in are 1911s and a BHP, and I shoot the wheelgun better.

If cost is a consideration look into a good police trade-in revolver. You might be better off.

 

[RWMC]

Dieneke, Thank You For The Feed Back. Did You Have The Same Feeding Troubles With Standard 230 Gr. Fmj Ball Ammo As You Did With The Round Nose Lead Ammo??? Thanks Again.

 

[skynyrd1911]

P97 Ruger

I had one once. It was my first .45. It NEVER gave me ANY problems whatsoever. Had it for a year or so then traded it. I just wanted something different.

 

[Spot77]

Two thumbs up.

I practice with UMC ammo or Lake City - Both feed fine and have remarkable accuracy.

The gun doesn't seem to care for the WWB ammo though.

Heavy gun for an all day ccw piece. I carried openly in the woods of West Virginia for about an hour and thought it was heavy

 

[Shipwreck]

I think U will occassionally find problems in any guns. I love Berettas, but every once in a while, I'll hear someone who says their sucks. I had a Glock 17 in the mid 90s that was a jammo-matic. I've had other Glocks since then because I know that mine was an out of the ordinary experience, and I didn't hold it against all Glocks.

Ruger is a good gun for the money. There are other guns I prefer. I am a big Beretta fanatic. But if I only had enough money to get a semi auto that was in the neighborhood of $300 (give or take a few dollars), it would be a Ruger.

 

[JohnKSa]

I had a P97 for awhile and it taught me about limp-wristing.

I've got a pretty wide variety of pistols and a good number of them are polymer frame autos (even have a couple of 10mms), but the P97 is the only gun I've ever had that showed this issue. It could have been that particular pistol, I guess, but if I shot it with a light one hand grip or even a loose two hand hold it would misfeed every now and again.

 

[GaryP]

No issues with mine, but it is a tad bulky for CCW, at least for me! BTW - Mine came with 2 factory mags, plastic case, & Ruger lock all for $300. I find the P97 to be an excellent shooter and highly recommend it. Ruger is replacing the P97 with the P345 but these are in the $400 + range.

 

[denfoote]

I have successfully concealed mine in a Bianchi Shadow II, covered with loose t-shirt.
The P97 is arguably the best value in a non 1911 on the market today!!
It's to bad Ruger redesigned the gun to conform to Sara Brady's wet dream!!! :banghead: