# Ruger 90's urban legend?



## coolguy (Oct 28, 2006)

Ruger P90 on wiki

Someone mention that the P90 was originally design to chamber 10mm, but 10mm didn't turn out as expected, so the Ruger then use the same design to chamber .45 which is over-engineer. This was decades ago, are the new Ruger P90 still over-engineer?


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## Revolver (Aug 26, 2006)

The manual recommends any .45ACP ammunition. It even recommends +P and +P+ marked ammunition. There is truth to the P90 being able to stand up to that much pressure. No one's exaclty sure why Ruger did not go through with it. The P90 is an excellent pistol and is one of the best .45ACP's on the market. Rugged, reliable, accurate, priced fairly, and 100% American. Can't ask for much more than that.


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## Vom Kriege (May 5, 2006)

I can provide no documentation, but I have seen that in other places.


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## DJ Niner (Oct 3, 2006)

I've read the same claim, like the one in this article:

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQY/is_11_47/ai_78900522

The first Ruger .45 auto, the P90, was a success. Designed to take a lifetime of full power 10mm Auto at nearly 40,000 psi pressure (it had looked at the time as if the Ten was the coming thing), it was over-engineered for the .45 ACP cartridge and laughed at +P pressures. It fed everything from those 10mm equivalent rounds (185 grain JHP at 1150 fps) to feeble "softball" target loads, the same weight bullet in the 700 foot second range. The latter would dribble its spent casings onto your shoes, but it would cycle every time. It fed every hollow point known to man, including the dreaded "flying ashtray."

I had approved it as soon as I tested it as an optional gun for the officers on my department, which issued .357 Ruger revolvers but allowed double-action .45 autos. It was later decided to issue everyone a DA .45. I had a part in the testing. The Ruger beat every other double action .45 auto of the period, and in 1993 the P90 became standard issue for my PD. We've been carrying it ever since.

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Outside of talking to someone from Ruger's R&D department, I don't know if you could independently confirm this info. I know my P90 seems bull-strong and shoots very "softly" for a .45, even with +P loads, and I also know the 10mm was "THE new caliber" for awhile in the late 80s/early 90s, so I have no reason to doubt that it may have originally been designed as a 10mm.


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## coolguy (Oct 28, 2006)

*This gun seems like a steal*

The reviews for the P90 look good too. I'm consider a .45 and this gun seems to give more bang for the buck.

The 10th anniver review of this pistol say


> the P90s I fired and reviewed back in 1991 did not have ambidextrous levers; current P90s do


The ambidextrous levers seems like a good new feature, so one can start to practice shooting both hands incase of you need to use the weak hand during a gun fight. One can't be over prepared.


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## Revolver (Aug 26, 2006)

I've had a decent amount of trigger time with one on several occasions(this one was stainless steel, new). I was surprised at the accuracy and how well this pistol shoots. As I said, the manual says standard, +P, and +P+ are all fine for the pistol. If I was going to buy a .45 Auto, this would likely be the pistol. The only way to make it better is with a set of Hogue rubber finger groove grips.


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## Spenser (Nov 6, 2006)

I've had great luck with these guns. They shoot dead-on, will eat anything you feed them, and apparently don't require much as far as maintenance. 

I think Ruger has never gotten its due as far as autoloaders go.


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## DJ Niner (Oct 3, 2006)

Revolver said:


> I've had a decent amount of trigger time with one on several occasions(this one was stainless steel, new). I was surprised at the accuracy and how well this pistol shoots. As I said, the manual says standard, +P, and +P+ are all fine for the pistol. If I was going to buy a .45 Auto, this would likely be the pistol. The only way to make it better is with a set of Hogue rubber finger groove grips.


Funny you should mention those grips...










...but I think a few extra magazines is a good idea, too.


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## Slowalkintexan (Feb 6, 2007)

*P90....*

... best darn gun I've ever shot. Functions perfectly, never had a jam, and used everything from weak handloads to + stuff. Mine has some trigger work so it is smooth as silk. Even though I've tried many other's for carry the old P90 is still my favorite, thought my pre-ban FEG is second. Nice thing about the Ruger.....it's stout as a brick, if you run out of ammo you can beat him to death with it.:smt1099


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