Ruger SR9: Any Good?

[Fishbed77]

fired an sr9. bizarre trigger pull, barely average accuracy. i cleared a jam for a newbie at the range shooting one a few days ago too.

no thanks. you get what you pay for.

Glocks used to be really cheap too (for a quite a while, before the marketing machine kicked into high gear). And now they are overpriced for what you get.

 

[Mike J]

fired an sr9. bizarre trigger pull, barely average accuracy. i cleared a jam for a newbie at the range shooting one a few days ago too.

no thanks. you get what you pay for.

Did you notice if the magazine release was round or D shaped. They changed the trigger after the SR9c was released. The guns with the latest upgrades have a D shaped magazine release.

 

[Hanzo581]

If he's complaining about the trigger it had to be the older SR9.

I know this is the older one but it's a pretty good deal.

http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=54583

 

[Texas Gun Person]

I would take an SR9 over a Glock. I own both.

 

[Redneck with a 40]

After 250 rounds, the gritty feel is completely gone from the trigger, its smooth as butter with a clean break, I think its a great trigger now. What I really like, compared to my XD-40, is the lack of muzzle flip, the SR9-C gets back on target much quicker.

 

[wristtwister]

I've only been shooting for about 50 years, but the SR-9 is the best gun "out of the box" I've ever owned. I took mine to the range, popped in a 17 round magazine, and promptly put 15 of those in the X ring. I said to myself... "I am going to like this gun..." and it's performance hasn't dwindled a bit.

I bought mine about 2 months after they first hit the market, and went through the recall with it... no problems and excellent customers service from Ruger... so I bought another one... this one with the black stainless finish. It was so "well finished" that if I had any oil in the skin of my fingers, I couldn't rack the slide... so I swapped it for an SR-40 with the stainless slide. It performed just like the SR-9 had done, just with a little more recoil.

After the SR-9C came out, I railed against it because I couldn't see why anybody would take 7 rounds out of the capacity of a gun to make it a "carry piece"... until I actually got my hands on one. The barrel was only about an inch shorter, and the rest of the gun was essentially a full-size SR-9. The engineers had actually shortened the grip a bit, but designed it so that you had a full grip with either the 10 round or 17 round magazine in place, so the grip on the pistol never changes... regardless of which mag you use.

All the features of the full sized SR-9 are in the compact version, so you don't really lose anything except an inch of sight radius and an initial 7 rounds in the shortened magazine. Pop the full size mag in your back pocket, and you go to the fight with 28 rounds to keep their heads down...

I've got an SR-40C ordered, and when our distributors can get one, I'll have one of those puppies too... They are consistent, well built, and affordable, and price point somewhere around $100 under their competitors, who have many less features.

Features:
Loaded chamber indicator
3-dot sights
light rail
striker "position" indicator
ambidextrious safety and magazine release
"locked" trigger/sear system (2-piece trigger)
reversible back-strap for "straight" or "palm swell" configuration
10 and 17-round magazine capacity
finish can be black stainless & polymer, or stainless and polymer

As a recovering mechanical engineer, I think it's one of the smartest engineering offerings in the gun market. As a shooter, I think it's one of the best guns I've ever picked up... but I'm still waiting to see and play with the SR-1911... but I think the SR-9 will be hard to trump.

WT

 

[Apocalypse-Now]

ruger's intended target market for the SR9 was LE. has there been a single agency that's adopted it?

 

[wristtwister]

has there been a single agency that's adopted it?

LE agencies are as fickle as politicians when it comes to "duty weapons"... and Glock cornered most of the "plastic gun" market long ago by damn near giving the guns away to get them in circulation. What the company's intended sales target was really doesn't make any difference in the product's performance, only it's publicity.

We sell all kinds of guns at our shop, and have probably 100 used LE guns of different types that have been sold through the shop in the past 6 months. They were all nice guns, but nothing that caused the earth to stop rotating...

Departments change guns because of caliber changes, safety changes, "department rules", etc. and on and on... they go from single-stack weapons to double stack, single action to double action and the reverse, low capacity to high capacity... it just never ends. Just because the gun we're discussing hasn't become the darling of some LE department doesn't mean anything...

I've got an old .44 Herter's single action that wasn't used by any LE agency either, but I don't think you'd want to be on the wrong end of it... guns are what they are, and whoever's political choice it becomes (or not) doesn't mean anything regarding the gun's capacities and weaknesses... it just means that somebody didn't pick or did pick it as "their department's weapon".

WT

 

[ohwell]

I have the SR9C, SR40C and the SR1911 they are all very good guns. It amazes me how most of the people that complain about Rugers dont even own any lol. As far as being designed for law enforcement agencies where exactly did Ruger say that? Somebody likes them Ruger seams to be selling them as fast as they can make them.

 

[ugaarguy]

I know this is the older one but it's a pretty good deal.

http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/p...ducts_id=54583

I'm pretty sure they just need to update the picture. That's also a pre-recall trigger in that gun, long since gone on the SR series.

I have a 9c that, obviously, has the new trigger. The new trigger is great. I think it's better than the M&P trigger out of the box. My 9c is head shot accurate at 15 yards with minimal effort. If it holds up to a high round count it'll remain a bargain.

 

[HOOfan_1]

As far as being designed for law enforcement agencies where exactly did Ruger say that? Somebody likes them Ruger seams to be selling them as fast as they can make them.

I guess some people actually look at the guns and their features when deciding which to buy, instead of trying to figure out if the Military or LE agencies carry them...

 

[easyg]

ruger's intended target market for the SR9 was LE.

I doubt this to be true...at least not in the U.S.A.

The vast majority of police agencies in the U.S. have abandoned the 9mm altogether in favor of the .40S&W, the .357Sig, the .45GAP, and the .45ACP.

But maybe Ruger was thinking of a military contract?

 

[rbernie]

Most modern polymer guns are actually designed as 40S&W guns and modded back to 9mm. That's why a P226 is a 15rd 9x19 but a 12rd 40S&W (designed for the 9mm first) and the SR40/M&P40 is a 15rd pistol with a 17rd 9mm variant.

 

[exavid]

I've fired at least 1000rds through my SR9. It's been a flawless pistol for me, isn't picky about ammo commercial or handloads. I installed a Ghost rocket trigger mod in the gun a couple months after I got it and that really made this a fine firearm. Crisp break and very little overtravel. The gun fits my hand perfectly and the recoil is very light even with max loads. I use this gun for range shooting and home defense since I carry a Taurus compact .40 or LCP .380 but the SR9 is the gun I prefer for punching holes in targets and it's a dependable nightstand pistol as well with it's 17 round magazine. Great looking too in my opinion.

 

[ugaarguy]

Most modern polymer guns are actually designed as 40S&W guns and modded back to 9mm. That's why a P226 is a 15rd 9x19 but a 12rd 40S&W (designed for the 9mm first) and the SR40/M&P40 is a 15rd pistol with a 17rd 9mm variant.

I kinda see that, but I kinda don't. The M&P 40 was released before the M&P 9. But, the SR9 was out for at least a year before the SR40 was released. The 17 round 9mm Glock 17 had about a 10 year head start on its 15 round 40 S&W brother the Glock 22. I dunno.

 

[easyg]

Most modern polymer guns are actually designed as 40S&W guns and modded back to 9mm.

I kinda see that, but I kinda don't. The M&P 40 was released before the M&P 9. But, the SR9 was out for at least a year before the SR40 was released. The 17 round 9mm Glock 17 had about a 10 year head start on its 15 round 40 S&W brother the Glock 22. I dunno.

Yeah, I think that most polymer-framed pistols are designed for the 9mm first and the .40/.357Sig later.

It also seems to me that those who want to go for the military market tend to release 9mm models first.
Those that want to go for the law enforcement market tend to release .40 or .45 models first.

Regardless, most law enforcement agencies in the U.S.A. are no longer using the 9mm Para.

 

[ET]

I looked at the Ruger SR9 before I bought my guns, but I ended up with a Glock 27 & an M&P 40. I would like to think that the SR9 is a fine pistol, but my Glock 27 is a perfect CC gun for me. My M&P 40 Pro is my best target/competition gun. I just didn't like the way the Ruger SR9 felt in my hand. But that's just me...

 

[Walt Sherrill]

I picked up a used ANIB SR9 some time back. I didn't like the trigger, but the price was so good I couldn't resist. I had my gunsmith install the Ghost Products trigger, and the somewhat clunky, ugly trigger went away. The trigger is still a bit heavier than I'd like, but now it's crisp and clean.

As guns go, it's certainly one of the best bargains I've stumbled across -- and it's surprisingly accurate. I've said it before -- it has most of the features of the Glock (a few more parts), but it points better, and just does most things better. (And I like Glocks, still have a 35, and had a 17 and 34.) I think there are more parts in the firing assembly alone than in the entire Glock <grin>, which is why I had my gunsmith install the new Ghost Products trigger. (Even with GP's great, illustrated instructions, it looked like too many pieces and intricacies for my humble gunsmithing abilities. As Harry said, "a man's got to know his limitations.")

I'd love to try one of the SR9c's which, I understand, have improved triggers from the factory.

 

[Shmackey]

Really well-executed gun, except for the thumb safety. And I like thumb safeties. I would own the compact version right now if it had either (1) no thumb safety or (2) a 1911-style safety.

 

[Carter]

I can't stand the way the sr9c feels in my hand with the mag extension to make it the fullsize grip. It just erks me. However, the small mag with the finger extension feels good to me.

 

[Bernie Lomax]

I've heard mostly good things about them. For some reason the triggers on the compact models are supposed to be much better.

My next handgun will definitely be either an SR9c or an SR40c. I usually carry an LCP, but I really need to get something more substantial to carry for those three days out of the year here when it's cold enough to have to wear an overshirt.

 

[richardKatts]

I've got both and mods added to the full size. The Ghost trigger on the SR9 will provide results better than the stock SR9c, IMO. Both are sweet shooters.

Very reliable pistols.

 

[dcarch]

Fine pistols, just rather "ordinary." I'm a 1911 guy myself. But, for what you pay, they're excellent guns, it's just the polymer DAO thing really ain't my style.

 

[Dave Baird]

Is there any size difference between the compact 9 vs. the compact 40?

Dave

 

[HOOfan_1]

Hickok45 said that the slide on the SR40c is a little thicker than on the SR9c..but the grip is basically the same