SHOT Day 3 - Rohrbaugh

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"the workmanship"

When I bought mine in '07 my father was 85 and had just moved to assisted living and given me all of his guns. I found the used R9 a block from his new home and immediately took it up the street to show him.

He handled the R9, looked it over, dry fired it and got a look on his face that telegraphed the question that was coming. "And how much did you have to pay for this little work of art?"
I told him $900 used and he just nodded and said, "I figured it had to be up in the Python range."

Fwiw, over his entire lifetime his favorite three guns were a Model 12 20 ga., a blue 6" Python and a Model 17.
 
I would’ve bought one instead of a PM9 but having to replace the recoil spring every 100 rounds, gives me the impression it’s an overstressed gun.
 
And as far as the spring goes, you're removing it every time you clean the gun anyway, so how hard is it to replace. I would rather have a $5 spring take the abuse than have the frame take it, it's only a 13.5 oz 9mm! Until someone else comes up with a 9mm that matches or beats the R9, in size and weight, the R9 is King of the pocket 9 hill (IMHO).

The recoil myth never dies....why not ask some one who actually owns and fires one instead of pontificating that the recoil has to be changed every 100 rds...were goin to finally get it down to every other rd. I have about 500 rds on my spring...may change it out soon. Good Grief Charlie Brown....at least read the Rohrbaugh site that says...every 200 rds.
 
For the few Rohrbaugh owners there are out there, myself included, the spring is a complete non-issue. Replacing a $5 spring every 200 to 500 rounds is just part of owning the gun. The R9 is not a range toy, you are not blasting a thousand rounds through it on a normal trip to the range.

Maybe the reason no one else has release a 9mm as light as the R9 is that no one has found a better way of dealing with the stress of firing 9mm out of such a light frame. Has anyone ever heard of an R9 wearing out, I haven't.
 
The whole spring thing has been misunderstood and misrepresented for years. Some have even gone so far as to claim the pistol is only good for a total of 200 rounds!

The R9 was designed from the beginning as a "my life is on the line" pistol. Absolute simple mechanism. No buttons/latches to catch on draw. Heal mag release so you can't accidently eject the mag in a panic.

The spring is not only highly stressed, it's also critical to the timing of the slide. Following naturally with the above design principal, the spring replacement recomendation should be well below ANY chance where the pistol operation could be affected.

So, it's not that the spring is junk. It's not that the spring will break at 200 rounds. It's that beyond 200 rounds you have an statistically increased chance of misfeed during that "my life is on the line" moment. All for a $5 part.
 
I owned an R9. Yes ridiculously expensive for a pocket gun and I found the recoil springs were generally better replaced before suggested by the manufacturer. That being said, it was a beautifully made pistol. Quality was second to none. I sold it though. I dont regret it either. Its just not necessary when you consider how a pocket gun lives its life. Now I pocket carry a smith 640. Half the price and utterly reliable.
 
"Its just not necessary when you consider how a pocket gun lives its life."

It's necessary for me. Is there something you know that I don't? :)

I haven't sold my 649 and 442, but I haven't carried either one since early 2007.
 
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