Just wanted to throw something out there about CCW on the Ruger SP101 3 inch. I had a hard time finding good info about this before I bought the gun. I CCW this gun everyday and I think its a great CCW for someone who wants to carry a revolver IWB.
I will start out by saying that I am 6 ft tall, 220 lbs. It does not feel heavy to me at all, however all of my prior CCW experience has been either a Glock 20 or a SD40VE so I guess I am used to heafty guns.
I carry it in an Uncle Mike's size 2, which I do not recommend because it is too big. It holds the gun nice and secure but it covers part of the grip. I have read a few posts where you can order holsters for 2.25 inch and they will custom build one for the 3 inch at no extra charger.
I chose the 3 inch barrel over the 2.25 inch because the 3 inch model is literally only .75 inches longer. No difference in the guns other than that and a couple ounces of weight. Since I do not consider the 2.25 model a "pocket gun," I see no significant difference. I do not see that this gun is any harder to conceal than the snubby version as I have previously read numerous times.
I have shot a few hundred rounds through this gun. I am not recoil sensitive whatsoever but I would definitely recommend shooting limited .357 rounds for range time. I have fairly large hands and the trigger guard really puts a beating on my middle finger knuckle with .357 rounds. That being said, I have stock grips on my gun and would assume that some larger, aftermarket grips would remedy this.
I have shot WWB .38 special 130 gr, Hornaday Critical Defense JHP 158 gr, Perfecta .357 158 gr, and WWB .357 110 gr JHP. The .38 special feel like a .22, you could shoot them all day. They have very little muzzle flash but I did have one FTF out of 100 rounds. The WWB .357 110 gr JHP had the most felt recoil as well as the most muzzle flash. The Perfecta were the most pleasant .357 round of the three to shoot but were very smokey.
At 7 yards I was shooting about 2.5-3 inch groups in double action, low light, and with the stock all black front sight so I consider that pretty good. I would definitely get a high viz sight or possibly a night sight, but bare minimum get some florescent paint and slap a dot on the front sight.
These are just my first impressions of the gun. Overall an awesome gun and I look forward to testing its long term reliability.
I will start out by saying that I am 6 ft tall, 220 lbs. It does not feel heavy to me at all, however all of my prior CCW experience has been either a Glock 20 or a SD40VE so I guess I am used to heafty guns.
I carry it in an Uncle Mike's size 2, which I do not recommend because it is too big. It holds the gun nice and secure but it covers part of the grip. I have read a few posts where you can order holsters for 2.25 inch and they will custom build one for the 3 inch at no extra charger.
I chose the 3 inch barrel over the 2.25 inch because the 3 inch model is literally only .75 inches longer. No difference in the guns other than that and a couple ounces of weight. Since I do not consider the 2.25 model a "pocket gun," I see no significant difference. I do not see that this gun is any harder to conceal than the snubby version as I have previously read numerous times.
I have shot a few hundred rounds through this gun. I am not recoil sensitive whatsoever but I would definitely recommend shooting limited .357 rounds for range time. I have fairly large hands and the trigger guard really puts a beating on my middle finger knuckle with .357 rounds. That being said, I have stock grips on my gun and would assume that some larger, aftermarket grips would remedy this.
I have shot WWB .38 special 130 gr, Hornaday Critical Defense JHP 158 gr, Perfecta .357 158 gr, and WWB .357 110 gr JHP. The .38 special feel like a .22, you could shoot them all day. They have very little muzzle flash but I did have one FTF out of 100 rounds. The WWB .357 110 gr JHP had the most felt recoil as well as the most muzzle flash. The Perfecta were the most pleasant .357 round of the three to shoot but were very smokey.
At 7 yards I was shooting about 2.5-3 inch groups in double action, low light, and with the stock all black front sight so I consider that pretty good. I would definitely get a high viz sight or possibly a night sight, but bare minimum get some florescent paint and slap a dot on the front sight.
These are just my first impressions of the gun. Overall an awesome gun and I look forward to testing its long term reliability.