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Review: Ruger SR9 9mm semiautomatic pistol I purchased a new Ruger SR9 the second week of November 2007, at a local gun shop, for $428 out the door, including tax. This is the one without the knife. It feels wonderful in my hand. Slim and light, and just a great fit for my hand. On the first range trip, I put 100 rounds of WWB thru it with zero problems. My first 20 or so rounds, I was very inconsistent. I would get about 2/3 of my rounds within the 3-inch circle at 10yds, but about 1/3 were up to 5 inches off the bullseye. It got better as I became more used to the SR9. Personally I like the trigger, it is not great, but it is not too light, not too heavy, and has a nice break. I can understand why some call it 'gritty' - it did seem a little gritty at first, but not enough to bother me. I haven't have any problems loading the mags after I started pushing down on the tip of the bullets, using the magazine loader. The SR9 breaks down similarly to Ruger P-series handguns, which is to say easily and quickly. The SR9 is not quite as easy to clean as some of the P-series pistols, however. More small knicks and crannies to deal with.. I really like the adjustable rear sight. One minor concern about the rear sight - there is a slight opening just below it that would seem to be a very efficient dirt/crud catcher. Some people have mentioned that the safety is easy to take off when ready to fire, not so easy to put on 'safe'. Not so with mine. I can easily take on or put off the safety with my thumb without moving my hand around to do it. The safety will not go on 'safe' however when there is no mag in place or when the trigger has not be reset. Another issue some people mentioned is an overly stiff mag release. Mine is a little stiff, but not too bad, not as stiff as the mag release on my CZ82, for example. I think it will work out some with use, and I have dealt with mag releases that were too easy to operate and caused me to drop mags when I didn't intend to, so I don't mind it being a -little- stiff! Update: Second range trip: This SR9 is very, very accurate. Getting about 95% of my shots in a 3-inch circle now at 7yds and around 90% in the 3-inch circle at 10yds - and I am still getting used to this new pistol. I am not a great shot, the only other handgun that has been as accurate for me as the SR9 is my CZ75BD 9mm. Even moved back to 50 feet (+/- 17 yds) and was getting 80%+ of my shots in a five- or six-inch circle from that distance. Did have a few flyers at 50 feet, but I'm sure that was me, not the pistol. I also fired HP rounds this trip. I took a mix of Federal HydraShok 124, Speer Gold Dot 124 and S&B 115 HP. Absolutely flawless - no jams, FTFs, FTEs - perfect! Only fired one 17-round clip of each as a test, due to cost of HP ammo, but since I will be using the Federal HydraShok 124 as my carry load when I add the SR9 to my carry rotation, I will put thru at least 50 more rounds of the HydraShoks as an additional test before I carry it. I know some people don't like the SR9 trigger, but the more I get used to it, the better I like it. As I said before, not too light nor too heavy. Not perfectly smooth, but certainly smooth enough for me and my purposes: self-defense and IDPA. Here are two holsters I can recommend for Ruger's new SR9: -- HighNoon SkinGuard for Ruger P345: $44.95 plus shipping http://www.highnoonholsters.com/ -- Uncle Mike's Mirage Nylon Super Belt Slide Holster Size 15: $25-$35 depending on vendor http://www.uncle-mikes.com/ Neither is custom obviously, but they aren't custom priced, either. -- Jay Enterkin (submitted November 2007) Update (January 2008): SR9 recall! SR9 fails to pass California 'drop test' - some guns fire when dropped forcefully at a certain angle! Ruger will be sending prepaid mailers to all SR9 owners who purchased the original design SR9s. SR9s will be retrofitted to be 'drop safe' and returned to owner at Ruger's expense. Details are on the Sturm-Ruger website. If you own an SR9, you must register with Ruger (online or via snail mail) to take advantage of the recall retrofit at Rugers expense. Conclusion: BUMMER! I love shooting my SR9, but Ruger has dropped the ball on the SR9 with some isolated quality control issues, and now this. I am disappointed. Update (September 2008): I finally got my SR9 back from the recall, and so far I have put 296 rounds thru it since then, bringing the total round count (before and after recall combined) to 1066 with ZERO jams, FTEs or FTFs. I have to say I like the new trigger that many are complaining about. Mine isn't too stiff and it has a good feel. Accuracy is good. The SR9 particularly shines in rapid fire. My groups don't open up nearly as much when I shoot fast with the SR9 as they do with my other handguns... After 3 range trips and almost 300 rounds (including 46 HP SD rounds), I am returning the SR9 to my carry rotation. Update (October 2008): The SR9 is no longer mine! After firing several of my pistols, my beautiful wife has selected the Ruger SR9 as her home defense pistol. So now it's hers. I'm glad, and I have confidence in the Ruger SR9 to perform well if called upon.
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