# ok.. what am I missing here about this Ruger?



## babs (Nov 30, 2007)

Hi.. The newbie here still doing my research. A good friend who has a 9mm Ruger pointed me to them so I got to surfing bud's online and saw a P90D .45 in stainless w/ decocker for well less than $400 shipped...

Ok, what is it I don't know that explains *why this gun is NOT $500+ ???*










Sure I don't find it Sig or HK gorgeous or glamourous but it looks solid enough for it's job.

I get the impression the p90's are very reliable.
... How about accuracy?
... How about fit? The XD .45's felt fine to me.. Will these rugars compare?
... Any parts issues or something else I'm not getting?
... yeah I see the sights are fixed, but how much of an issue would that be?
Grasping at straws to explain why the Rugers are so much less retail.


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## Wandering Man (Jul 9, 2006)

So we can aford them.

WM


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## babs (Nov 30, 2007)

Well yeah.. I agree.. it's far more affordable than a $500-700 gun, but what makes it a $380 gun rather than a more expensive gun? Or maybe put this way.. What makes the others worth more over the counter? Or are they actually "worth" more at all than these P series metal frames?


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## neophyte (Aug 13, 2007)

*interesting*

babs: isn't it interesting. One price for this and that.
Better Yet: Beretta?8000 a couple years age $6-700
Now it's available for $379.00 list changed name to Cougar 8000 same gun being built now in Turkey. Beretta will do all service work.
Ruger SR9 first striker model for Ruger $395.00 @gun show yesterday.
P95 DC $289.00 to $355.00 new at same show.
P95 DC used at same show $299.00 to $355.00
And you thought you were confused.


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## Wandering Man (Jul 9, 2006)

I don't really know the whole answer. 

The P89 was my first semi-auto (9mm) and she still shoots beautifully. I am as accurate with the P89 as with any of my subsequent guns. She is big, bulky and "built like a tank." With all the weight that phrase implies. 

So she is an older design and not real great for concealed carry. But for a house gun or a plinker, she is very fun. She has been totally reliable. 

With over 2000 rounds of all kinds of target, hand made and self-defense ammo she has never had a misfire, stovepipe, failure to feed, failure to eject, or any other problem. 

I have been told by older and wiser Ruger owners that she will last two or three lifetimes and that Mr. Ruger "overbuilt" his guns to withstand a lot of abuse.

Why less money? I think that was Mr. Ruger's plan, to build affordable, reliable American guns. 

WM


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## Wandering Man (Jul 9, 2006)

BTW:

The folks at this site would love for you to post your question:

http://www.rugerforum.net/

WM


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## babs (Nov 30, 2007)

Wandering Man said:


> I don't really know the whole answer.
> 
> The P89 was my first semi-auto (9mm) and she still shoots beautifully. I am as accurate with the P89 as with any of my subsequent guns. She is big, bulky and "built like a tank." With all the weight that phrase implies.
> 
> ...


Yeah I'm starting to mentally push that .45 metal-frame to the top of my short list if for anything, it's a couple ebay sales away.. It's a well reviewed weapon that's actually affordable and proven. My purchase will be a home-defense and range-practice gun, BUT, on rare occassion a carry so I think size wise, either P89 or the P90 will be one I'll have to try.. My friend is bringing his 9mm to town this Christmas, so we're planning on going to the range.


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## Liko81 (Nov 21, 2007)

Wandering Man said:


> Why less money? I think that was Mr. Ruger's plan, to build affordable, reliable American guns.


Exactly. It's not the whole story, though. The guns are designed very simply; the entire P-series is built on a tried-and-tested modified 1911A action, the major modifications between models being slight changes to the barrel/camblock link and to the safety (most P-series have decock-safeties with firing pin blocks). That keeps R&D costs down; you're not trying to reinvent the wheel here.

Also, consider that the number traditionally referred to the year of its release (the P345 being the notable exception). The P89 is, therefore, nearing its twentieth birthday, and thus Ruger has long since recouped its design costs on this pistol. The P95 is ten years old, and aside from a minor frame redesign to add an accessory rail and retexture the grip in 2004, it has also recouped its costs.

There are cost-cutting measures as well. The aluminum frame is computer-milled to specs that require very little hand-tooling. The P95's polymer frame is 100% plastic, requiring no metal slide wear inserts which must be fitted. The frame is designed to wear the least possible amount; comparable to a steel frame if well-kept. Other measures are less harmless; tolerances are slightly reduced so that a gun's internal parts do not have to be hand-fitted and adjusted. The difference is not noticeable unless you clamp the gun down and test fire it from a stable base against a more expensive weapon.

Lastly, Ruger has an established name, but its products are not as highly sought as Colt, Smith & Wesson, SIG and Glock offerings. Those companies have a long history of defensive weapons and their models are very popular; in buying them you are paying for the name. Ruger is a relative newcomer, producing its first Browning-action defensive handgun in 1985. Before that, they were largely known mostly for their .22s (Mark I/II/III pistols and 10/22 and 77/22 rifles) and were thus regarded as toys. Very good toys - the 77/22 bolt-action is a mainstay of competition target rifle shooting, and you'll probably find more Rugers in a 22 pistol target competition than all other makes combined - but not defensive weapons. The fact that the (almost literally) dime-a-dozen .22LR cartridge is notoriously unreliable can't have helped.


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## babs (Nov 30, 2007)

That's exactly the edumacation I was looking for.. Thanks.:smt023


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## Wandering Man (Jul 9, 2006)

Liko81 said:


> Lastly, Ruger has an established name, but its products are not as highly sought as Colt, Smith & Wesson, SIG and Glock offerings. Those companies have a long history of defensive weapons and their models are very popular; in buying them you are paying for the name. Ruger is a relative newcomer, producing its first Browning-action defensive handgun in 1985. Before that, they were largely known mostly for their .22s (Mark I/II/III pistols and 10/22 and 77/22 rifles) and were thus regarded as toys. Very good toys - the 77/22 bolt-action is a mainstay of competition target rifle shooting, and you'll probably find more Rugers in a 22 pistol target competition than all other makes combined - but not defensive weapons. The fact that the (almost literally) dime-a-dozen .22LR cartridge is notoriously unreliable can't have helped.


What about the revolvers? Do you have history on those?

My first handgun ever was the Blackhawk in .357.

WM


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## P97 (May 8, 2006)

I've heard a lot of comments about Rugers not looking good, but with a little imagination you can customize and personalize them to your liking and still not have as much as a customized expensive gun would cost. This gun has had an action job by Teddy Jacobson(Action by-T) and I am having a set of Genuine Stag Grips made for it.


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## neophyte (Aug 13, 2007)

*grips*

P97: Sir; you have removed all doubt. :smt023
I thought Rugers looked fine before; now with Grips a coming. :smt023
Show it when the 'grips' get attached:mrgreen:

Thanks


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## babs (Nov 30, 2007)

No doubt... some gorgeous scroll-work.. Last time I saw the likes of that was on one of Jim Chambers' black-powder rifles (which are more works of fine art than a gun)...

Just for giggles here's a pic from his site.. I've seen this gun in person (or one that was this same design) a loooong time ago as a kid in his workshop.. I've never seen wood carving with inlayed metal as intricate and precisely fit, nor as beautiful.. These are guns that are too nice to shoot for sure, and much of his work will never be fired.. far too valuable.


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## Chevyguy85 (Feb 2, 2008)

babs said:


> Hi.. The newbie here still doing my research. A good friend who has a 9mm Ruger pointed me to them so I got to surfing bud's online and saw a P90D .45 in stainless w/ decocker for well less than $400 shipped...
> 
> Ok, what is it I don't know that explains *why this gun is NOT $500+ ???*
> 
> ...


Dad has this one as far as the fit compared to the xd .45 (i own a xd .45) its going to be slighty smaller and less rough on the hand since it has the rubber on the grip, and the ruger is single stack 8 round mag where as the xd is double stack 13 round. function, reliabilty, toughness is what has made ruger stay around so long in the semi-auto because god knows they produce some of the ugliest stock guns lol. i grew up in a ruger house we now own 3 ruger semi autos and 3 ruger wheel guns. My best friend's dad is a k-9 unit and loves rugers as well. in fact for years my best friend thought that the Ruger firebird w/ the S&R on it was his family crest since his and his dad's initials are S&R lol. can't go wrong with a ruger you can beat the hell out of them dust em off and be good to go. best way to describe them would be the ak-47s of pistols. as someone else stated the guns have been in production for a while so the R&D that went into to them and factory retooling to make the guns has long been recouped thus offering you an excellent, yet ugly, gun @ a damn affordable price. accuracy is well within the ranges of self defense and if you want more accuracy you can always modify it and probably still end up being cheaper than some of the competitors guns. if you're on a budget can't go wrong with that gun. happy buying!


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## babs (Nov 30, 2007)

Thanks for the feedback.. I was able to slip out to the range today and I now know what it is about the classic 1911 that's so darn nice... They had a Para (non-LDA regular single action) Hi Cap rental... 

"Ok.. I gotta... I need a box of rounds and 4 targets" was my immediate response.

Grouped like a chance when I quit slinging it and got used to what a .45 recoil is like... In the right gun, I think I'm very much a .45 guy.. That 1911 with it's excellent action and low uhm.... low bore axis (I think is the term.. I'm a newb).. It kicked LESS.. not just less but MUCH less than even my friends P89... SO.. that's a concern.. I'm afraid now I might turn into a 1911 guy now unless there's a 1911 similar bore-axis in the .45 in comparison from one of these other guns.. 

Currently I like this P90, but also the Sig P220 or maybe CZ 97 (their .45acp) and pretty much the Springfield XD's in .45 for a poly gun choice.. Or possibly a good deal on a .40 full-size beretta style such as the 96 or Taurus P100/101.. But after seeing what the venerable 1911 is all about today.. I'd like to put bore-axis up there as one of my spec's of importance.

Your thoughts? :mrgreen:


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## Thunderhawk (Jun 28, 2006)

Sturm, Ruger & Co. had a philosophy of making quality sporting firearms the "working man" could afford. That is why Rugers are reliable, strong, good looking (but not "works of art" ala S&W) firearms without the sticker-shock of other manufacturers.


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## gmaske (Jan 7, 2008)

I beg to differ! This pistol is not ugly! Me thinks it is beautiful!!! Timeless!!! My second wife???


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## babs (Nov 30, 2007)

I must agree that P345 in black is actually quite a sharp looking weapon.


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## babs (Nov 30, 2007)

Resurrecting this one... I guess on the common ruger semi-auto theme.. I finally got to see and paw over a Ruger SR9 in person.. Infact, saw both stainless and black slide versions.. 1st impressions... That's a LOT, and I mean a LOT of rounds in a grip that thin and manageable.

Think maybe they'll develop an SR-45 !!!! If so.. I want one. 

But, as is, this SR9 didn't look in person as dainty or frail as I envisioned.. It's a rather sizeable gun but trim where it needs to be and nothing glamorous for glamorous sake... Decent size weapon, that's thin, big time.. Reminded me of a poly-striker fire 1911, rather than the chunky glock / XD slides. I'm seeing them online for $400ish. Dunno what I'd think about as far as a range gun in DA only (I guess it's DA only), but for a defense gun, I could see it.


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## OMSBH44 (Jul 7, 2006)

*Adjustable sights?*

The first thing I did after purchasing my P-90 was get a set of Hogue
rubber grips. The second thing was install a set of Millett adjustable sights.

Now, several thousand rounds later, I don't think I need the adjustable
sights. For serious social work, I don't think the adjustables as necessary
as I originally thought. However since they are on the gun, I'm not going
to go the the expense of putting the fixed sights back on.

Bottom line, to coin a phrase, the sights are not difficult or overly
expensive to change.


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## AZ Outlaws (Dec 3, 2007)

babs said:


> Resurrecting this one... I guess on the common ruger semi-auto theme.. I finally got to see and paw over a Ruger SR9 in person.. Infact, saw both stainless and black slide versions.. 1st impressions... That's a LOT, and I mean a LOT of rounds in a grip that thin and manageable.
> 
> Think maybe they'll develop an SR-45 !!!! If so.. I want one.
> 
> But, as is, this SR9 didn't look in person as dainty or frail as I envisioned.. It's a rather sizeable gun but trim where it needs to be and nothing glamorous for glamorous sake... Decent size weapon, that's thin, big time.. Reminded me of a poly-striker fire 1911, rather than the chunky glock / XD slides. I'm seeing them online for $400ish. Dunno what I'd think about as far as a range gun in DA only (I guess it's DA only), but for a defense gun, I could see it.


OT

x2 I'm very happy with mine. It fits and shoots good, it not too big and not too small. The workmanship 
is good. The poly frame is the best that I've seen, almost looks like metal at first glance. For a pistol that 
I paid only $435.00 for, it can't be beat. Ruger has a winner with their new SR9.

I too am looking forward to a SR45....


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## P97 (May 8, 2006)

This is a picture of my All American. If you want something difficult, try to get a set of Wapiti Grips made for a P90DC.


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## leeburl (Jun 10, 2008)

*It's a Ruger*

Well, It's a Ruger. Bill Ruger made an empire in very challenging times by producing innovative (not revolutionary) firearms that are affordable, reliable, tough and with neat little design twists. I own or have owned Ruger revolvers (hard to beat), autos, shotguns and rifles. The only complaint I've had is with the rifle triggers and I understand that the new models have upgraded triggers. If one wnats something for investment, one should buy something unique. If one want something that works and works and works, buy a Ruger. And generally it won't break the bank.


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## RugerFan2522 (Apr 16, 2008)

A Ruger is well worth the buy, anytime! Not that much recoil, decently accurate, and usually in popular calibers for a nice price.


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## wetidlerjr (Oct 14, 2006)

I like mine !










:smt023


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