Ruger 380 LCP

[mtntopper]

We took a short trip yesterday to Cody Wyoming to check out a custom builder of 1911's. His business is named Bork's Guns and he does great custom 1911 pistol work from the ground up. He told me it takes him about 14 days to complete a custom 1911 after he receives the parts to make it which takes up to 8 months at times for very special items. I have never seen a smoother nicer 1911 gun than his customs. They are very pricey but unbelievable quality when compared to your production manufacturer of 1911 hand guns. Even the highly touted Kimber is not even close to these custom 1911's.

We also checked out some other gun shops and found one that actually had the Ruger LCP in stock. It was sold but not picked up by the customer yet, so we were actually able to lay our hands on it and check it out closely. Pigtails liked it so much she placed us on the waiting list for two of them. The going price because of demand and lack of supply is boosting the retail price on this pistol to over $400.00 in some stores. Ours should only run about $339.00 when they arrive. He is not out to jab his customers and I really liked the owners attitude and knowledge. It is very nice to handle and I am curious as to how it will shoot and hold up under normal usage? Here is a pic and some specs off the Ruger site for those unfamiliar with this little jewel of a hand gun. It will make a great back up CCW and will be easily concealed without much cover.
Ruger LCP.jpg
The Ruger LCP is a 6+1 capacity .380 Auto pistol with superior ergonomic design and handsome styling. It incorporates state-of-the-art polymers, aircraft quality aluminum alloys, and high-grade precision steel components engineered for strength and maximum weight savings.

The 9.4 ounce LCP pistol features a 2.75 inch barrel and an overall length of 5.16 inches. With a height of only 3.6 inches and a width of just .82 inches, the small, lightweight LCP pistol is a dependable back-up or carry pistol. The high-performance, glass-filled nylon frame is topped by a through-hardened steel slide with a blued finish. The Ruger LCP pistol is a natural choice for personal defense carry, in a purse, briefcase, or inside hiking gear.

[OhioTC18]

My local dealer also has a list waiting on it to come in.

[Big Dog]

The shop I frequent gets them in pretty regularly @ $279. Don't be surprised, like most pocket pistols, that the feed ramp may need a polishing. It's the only negative thing I've heard about them since they have came out. ECG has sent 3 back for feed problems but once polished, all is good!

[Dargo]

I've run an even 300 rounds through my LCP with zero feed issues. Whether my reservations are well founded or not, I just didn't quite trust a Kel Tec. When Ruger came out with a very similar pistol I bought one. You can see by the picture they are not very big. My thought is that I'd be more likely to carry this pistol since it doesn't weigh much more than a pocket knife. Having a small, relatively low power, pistol is better than having none at all.

[mtntopper]

I have looked at the Kel Tec and some of the other pocked guns in this price range and they just do not seem to have the quality, fit and finish along with smooth action of the Ruger. I even prefer the Bersa Thunder 380 to the Kel Tec. It seems better built, has less owner related problems and is well rated by its owners. I purchased one last week, for the price and quality it is hard to beat. I will be trying to find more of the Bersa auto guns at reasonable prices to add to the collection before the prices go higher.

[OhioTC18]

Brent, Glad to see you back on here.

Mtntopper, the only issue I have with my Bersa 380 is the jamming on the last round in the mag. I need to figure out what that is and fix it.

[rugerman]

i bought a keltek a couple of months ago, I'm happy with it and after a couple of hundred rounds with no problems I think I did good. At least it'll get the job done til I get to my truck gun (.357)

[TravisM.1]

Originally Posted by Big Dog

Don't be surprised, like most pocket pistols, that the feed ramp may need a polishing. It's the only negative thing I've heard about them since they have came out.

feed problem

another feed problem

A favorable review

I saw a thread on ar15.com about an LCP that had "rings" in the barrel rather than rifling, but I think it's older than a non-paying membership will let you view.

[urednecku]

"Feed" problem all right. None of the 3 "feeds" work for me.

[Big Dog]

Originally Posted by urednecku

"Feed" problem all right. None of the 3 "feeds" work for me.

They all worked for me .............that's just AW's way of saying "No More Guns" .....

[OhioTC18]

BD, all three worked for me too.

[mtntopper]

We should know a more about the little Ruger LCP this week. The dealer called us on Friday and said ours were in stock now. He also had four more available. They have been out of stock in many locations as they are popular. We will pick them up this week and let everyone know our first impressions of the Ruger LCP. Most of the reports on the later manufactured ones have only good things to say about them. The earlier ones appeared to have a few bugs but Ruger has corrected any problems according to most reports and info I have read.

[Big Dog]

Originally Posted by mtntopper

We should know a more about the little Ruger LCP this week. The dealer called us on Friday and said ours were in stock now. He also had four more available. They have been out of stock in many locations as they are popular. We will pick them up this week and let everyone know our first impressions of the Ruger LCP. Most of the reports on the later manufactured ones have only good things to say about them. The earlier ones appeared to have a few bugs but Ruger has corrected any problems according to most reports and info I have read.

Can't wait for the review ...........

I want one but I'm just a little reluctant, maybe you can help .....

[mbsieg]

YouTube - Ruger LCP

[mtntopper]

We picked up our 380 LCP Rugers on Tuesday. The price for these guns is all over the place if you find any in the stores. We paid $259.00 in the end but seen them in some other stores as high as $339.00 but most are priced at about $299.00 in our area. Magazines are hard to get but we managed to find 3 extras. We also purchased an extra LCP for our daughter as her Glock that she sometimes carries is large and hard to conceal for her. We hope she does carry the LCP Ruger as a habit as it is very easy to conceal carry. Pigtails and I did get some basic shooting in this am. We shot about 100 rounds between us of both Magtech FMC and Winchester FMJ 95 grain in the two guns. Neither gun had any type of malfunction and both worked flawlessly today. So far, so good, for the little tupperware guns.............

Of course she shamed me on the targets again today.

[Melensdad]

Good to hear a positive review on your initial impressions of the LCP.

Last night I listened to the "ProArms Podcast" and they reviewed the little Ruger LCP and gave it very favorable marks. They did say that SOME of them, they tested several different LCP pistols, can be finicky with SOME brands of ammo. They suggested trying 200 rounds of your ammo of choice to make sure it feeds that particular ammo reliably. One of their guns fed/shot/ejected everything. Another had a preference to a few of the premium brands. Another seemed to have a preference to a few other premium brands. Again, they were very positive with their overall reviews and only included the caveat that some guns may not feed all brands of ammo.

All of them commented on the quality, smoothness and tolerances of the little Ruger saying it is much smoother & nicer than many of the other pocket 380 pistols. Sounds like you picked up some very nice little guns. I've not tried one yet, but I'm seriously considering getting rid of my AMT 380 DAO Back Up and trade it for a Ruger LCP.

[mtntopper]

Another great thing that impressed me about the small lightweight Ruger LPC is it is very controllable with modest recoil while shooting as advertised. A downside is the magazines only hold 6 shots but what do you expect in a 10 ounce handgun? The action does not remain open after the last shot so you must manually slide the action open again when you insert a new loaded magazine to reload the chamber while shooting. Concealing is a snap no matter how and where you plan to carry it as you soon forget it is even there. Next time we will run some hollow points through them to check on how well they will handle other ammo.