Really like the LCP!

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Jayhawkhuntclub

Buckeye
Joined
Aug 28, 2007
Messages
1,229
Location
Kansas
After carrying the new stainless LCP for a couple weeks, I have to say I'm really happy with it. It's not a tack driver at 20 yards. Or at least I haven't found an ammo that can shoot 2-3" groups like I can with my LCR (rested). But at 10 yards standing, it'll do 2" groups no problem. And it will ring the 6" gong every time out to 12 yards. The recoil is mild to me (not so with the LCR). I've had zero malfunctions, using 4 different ammos. The trigger is great for the type of gun it is. However, the fact that it has two clicks before it resets is a bit annoying. And I wish the slide locked back on the last shot. I think the front sight could use some orange paint. And while it is just a two finger gun (with the extension), it feels very natural to me: very shootable! All this in a sub 10 oz package the size of my wallet! :mrgreen:
It's a definite winner and my new EDC!
 
Joined
Nov 15, 2014
Messages
1
good produck
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5of7

Hunter
Joined
Sep 22, 2010
Messages
2,296
Location
SW. LOWER MICHIGAN
I bought one last week and while I consider the .380 to be a little marginal for PD, it certainly carries easier than anything else I have tried.

Actually I just stick it into the watch pocket of my Wranglers and it is very accessible and I hardly know it is there.

As has been said, recoil is not at all objectionable, due to the locked breech design. 8)
 

Tremors

Bearcat
Joined
Jun 16, 2012
Messages
28
Location
Texas
I liked mine so much I decide to duracoat the slide Blue. Well I painted it mostly so it won't rust(should have gotten the stainless steel slide). Your right about it being a good little pistol to shoot.
 
Joined
Oct 26, 2006
Messages
9,810
Location
Woodbury, Tn
There wasn't an SS option when I bought mine, phooey! I taped my front sight to paint yellow glo-paint,and now it rusts where the tape was. Grrr. Otherwise a great gun.
gramps
 

MountainWalker

Single-Sixer
Joined
Jan 28, 2006
Messages
330
Location
Arkansas
I am sure that everyone knows that the Ruger LCP("Little Copied Pistol") is a copy of the Kel Tech P3AT. Kel Tech does not patent their designs and the clever Ruger saw a good thing and copied AND improved it. http://www.keltecweapons.com/our-guns/p-3at/pistol/

I only paid $240 for the Kel Tech several years ago. I must say the Kel Tech has perfected this model and the factory is a 20 minute drive in case I have to activate the lifetime warranty. I too like this design.
 

Jayhawkhuntclub

Buckeye
Joined
Aug 28, 2007
Messages
1,229
Location
Kansas
I'm pretty sure most know it. Also sure no one cares. To each his own. But I wouldn't want to trust my life to a Taurus or a Keltec. That's just my opinion.
 

Robes

Single-Sixer
Joined
May 12, 2014
Messages
393
Location
West Michigan
Neighbor has one he wants to sell. I checked the serial number and it does not need the recall. Looks to be a safe queen as it is darn pristine. He has the box and a spare magazine, pouch and holster. He said he will sell it to me for $225. I told him "SOLD"!!!
 

MountainWalker

Single-Sixer
Joined
Jan 28, 2006
Messages
330
Location
Arkansas
Jayhawkhuntclub said:
I'm pretty sure most know it. Also sure no one cares. To each his own. But I wouldn't want to trust my life to a Taurus or a Keltec. That's just my opinion.
I think you misinterpreted my remarks. Just making the point that the Kel Tech is essentially the same thing and that I agree it is a good design. The LCP is a definite improvement over the P3AT, but they are similar with better finish on Ruger and slide hold open(essential for clearing jams). My KT example has fired over 400 round without a single hiccup. The history of Ruger firearms success has been their ability to recognize good designs and incorporate them into their products. As a collector of Ruger Firearms, I have found that to be of interest to other collectors and shooters of Ruger firearms.

One thing about your original post that intrigued me. You talked about shooting & hitting the 6" gong at 12 yards every time. That is pretty good for a micro pistol. Not sure I would have same result with the old P3AT with the very long trigger stroke. Could these results be the result of the new shorter trigger stroke(improved trigger) that Ruger introduced a little while back? Reading earlier posts, see that Ruger has been busy upgrading this pistol with each new model. With all these improvements, it seems that the new LCP has outclassed it's Kel Tech parent.
 

George

Blackhawk
Joined
Jan 28, 2013
Messages
786
Location
New Hampshire “Live free or die”
Yep it's a shooter for sure! My wife has not shot a gun in over 20 years. First time out with her LCP I had set up a few small soup cans at 5 yards for her to shoot at.. Well she gave me a a look and moved the cans out to 25 yards. She had no issues hitting the cans at 25 yards and more as they would bounce away from her .. He had them at the 50 yard mark before she was done.. This was done from a standing with no rest.. I ran a few mags with it and sure enough it's a easy gun to shoot... I have no issues with .380 for a SD round at close range.. .380 +P is a nice little hot round that I sure would not want to stand in front of.. She has the newer No " - " in the ser # one. My choice is the LC9 with +P 9mm for SD CC gun most of the time or a compact 1911 in .45.. I'll take that little LCP when no other gun will fit the bill in the hot summer sun. They both are easy guns to shoot well for DA guns for us both.. They run 100% with all kinds of ammo and H point rounds.. I just wanted to add I think the trick is not to try and find a set point with them just a nice smooth pull till it fires works well for us! George
 

ScottNH

Bearcat
Joined
Aug 31, 2014
Messages
2
Backstory
My wife has her P&RL but rarely carries. She's petite, and sort of likes my Kahr P9, but hates my Airweight J-Frame. She runs every day, 365, through semi-rural NH, and I worry about 2- and 4-legged predators. Recently she said: "My friend "C" has a little Ruger that fits right in the palm of her hand, and it has a laser. I want one like that." Hmm. A little checking confirms this is an LCP, so I decide to keep my eyes open. Haven't shot one, but about a week later, Palmetto State Armory, the bane of my existence, puts the Ruger LCP w/ Viridian Green Laser on sale at $259. Figuring I can't get hurt too bad at that price, so for a total of $259.99 + $17 shipping + $15 xfer, this is in my hands:

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This an "Enhanced" model (no dash in the serial number) with the modified trigger and improved the sights.

First impressions are positive. Very nice fit and finish; much better than I expected, and certainly better than the Keltec P3AT I saw, which this pistol supposedly largely copies. Gun comes with one 6-rd magazine, with two base plates: the flat one pictured above, and one with a small "finger extension." The extension didn't do much for me, so I left the flat-bottomed one on. This is definitely a small grip. My pinky-finger is just along for the ride, curled underneath. As you probably know, Ruger also makes a 7-round extended magazine, and we'll see that later.

Trigger is reasonable, about 8 pounds or so. The sights are small, but quite usable for what they're intended for, I guess. I'll get back to that in a moment.

You can get LCPs with a number of laser options, which I didn't know. Lasermax, Crimson Trace, Viridian, maybe more. I have the Viridian Reactor Instant-On Green Laser Sight. The "Reactor" part comes from the fact the laser comes on automatically when the gun is drawn from the included holster. They use a magnet (which you can get as an add-on for other holsters) to deactivate the laser when the gun is holstered. Sort of like you're refrigerator light. There's no fumbling for a switch with your support hand, etc. Draw, and the laser is on. Pretty neat, and it works well. Also, the laser itself fits the LCP so tightly it looks like an integral part of the gun. The gun comes with a "pocket holster," equipped with the magic magnet.

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I was never a big fan of lasers, but I wondered how useable the green laser would be in the real world. Turns out, much better than I thought.

Here's the laser in my basement, which is pretty well-lit, but really not much of a challenge:

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No surprise there, so I decided to go outside. It was a pretty bright day. Not zero clouds, but pretty light. Time is about 1300. Here the laser is against the granite wall at about 15 feet.

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The spot is easily visible, and I added the arrow to show the spot. OK, this is a "close range" gun, as in "Get off of me" distance, but what about a little longer range? Here's the laser at almost 50 feet, again against a rock wall:

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Again, easy for me to pick up immediately. Arrow added for clarity. I was quite surprised at how easy it was to spot the laser against the rock. I decided to move the laser against another backdrop, this time the propane tank "dome" to the right, and another 15 feet back.

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Huh. Very bright spot, immediately obvious to the eye. OK, so I can see the laser at much longer than normal "engagement" ranges, on a random day. Maybe this thing has some real-world utility.

But, I'm a "sights" guy, and although the sights were OK, I ran across Innovative Arms, and a sight mod they do for the LCP. They machine in a tritium "big dot" front sight, and a custom rear.

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The mod looked intriguing, and since it was relatively cheap ($150) with a two-week turnaround, I decided to go for it. I like clear, visible sights, and these seemed like the ticket.

Customer service was good, turn-around was quick, and here she is wearing the new sights:

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Very high quality work, and the sights transform the gun, IMO. Nice, big dot out there to draw the eye, with no distracting crap on the rear. Plus, the front of the rear sight is serrated for one-handed manipulation of the slide. Very nice. I'm quite happy.

About that same time, I received the Ruger 7-rd extended magazine. It adds some bulk at the bottom, but doesn't really impact the concealability at all. It adds some additional "grab surface," as well.

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You're probably sick of reading this by now, but no firearm review is complete without some shots fired, so I snuck off to the range on Black Friday for a little hands-on.

I grabbed 100 rounds to try out.

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The pistol side of our small range has two racks of 8" falling steel plates flanking a steel silhouette with a 8" "hostage taker" target.

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The racks are 15 yards from the line, which is outside the "normal" range for this gun, but...look at the snow. I wasn't going to stand in the snow almost to my knees just to shoot plates.

First, I want to point out I had NO failures of any kind over 100 rounds. At all. Although I didn't try any hollow-points yet, I was impressed with the gun's ability to handle the ammo, especially the steel-cased stuff.

Second, I could go 6-for-6 on the plates all day long if I did my part. The trigger was quite manageable, as was the recoil. No problems shooting or controlling the gun with the "shortie" magazine in place, and the extended one was even better.

So, I decided to try something you would never try with this gun: head shots on the hostage-taker target. No way would I take this shot at 15 yards with this gun, but I wanted to see if I could. Here's what I found:

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I shanked the first shot (you can see is at left 7:00, right on the edge of the plate). The rest of the 6-rd mag is all there. I was quite surprised at how easy that was. It got me thinking about the laser. Up to this point, all the rounds were with the sights. I stuck the 7-rd extended magazine in, and decided to shoot the entire mag from the hip, using only the laser, to see how that might work. Again, no f-ing way would I take a shot like this for real, but here's what I found:

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What I found is I could go 7-for-7, from the hip, using the stupid laser, at 15 yards. Wow.

Another thing that surprised me was that I had no problems shooting the gun for 100 rounds. I kind of expected this to be one of those "not fun to shoot too much" guns, like an Airweight Smith can sometimes be. Nope. I had no problems at 100 rounds, and was looking for more. You could actually practice with this gun without it being punishment.

So, the bottom line of a long review: I really like this gun, far more than I thought I would. Yes, I added an set of enhanced sights, but they're just icing on the cake. I think the gun works well for its size and weight. The trigger is quite manageable, as is the recoil. It's a light, easily concealable package, and the laser adds far more functionality than I thought it would, at little or no compromise to weight or controllability.

The only problem is, I might want it for myself...
 

Quadsport

Bearcat
Joined
Nov 9, 2012
Messages
10
I bought my 2nd gen kel-tec p3at before ruger made the lcp. It has never failed. I am a Ruger fan! I have 4 pistols and 3 rifles.
 
Joined
Oct 26, 2006
Messages
9,810
Location
Woodbury, Tn
ScottNH, welcome to the forum, and thank you for an excellent review. I have one of the older models, but since it is always with me, ya use what ya got! I euthanized a 200 lb pig I hit with the car in Tx last year. Yes siree, I like mine too. The Tula ammo is what she likes best.
gramps
 

Cholo

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Dec 30, 2008
Messages
8,209
Location
Georgia
Excellent post, ScottNH! Although I'll leave my early LCP as is, I like what you did with yours. You can get 7 in the standard flat base plate magazine with the following swap of springs and follower. It's worked flawlessly with mine and others have had the same experience. You might want to check it out. I'll take one more round anytime:

http://magguts.com/shop/ruger
 

ScottNH

Bearcat
Joined
Aug 31, 2014
Messages
2
Thanks. Never thought I'd be posting here! My Ruger "love" has been limited to the Mark II and 22/45, but the LCP surprised me.

I'll give the mag guts a try.
 

Robes

Single-Sixer
Joined
May 12, 2014
Messages
393
Location
West Michigan
I just went through a couple of magazines for the first time with mine tonight. What a flame thrower! (it was dusk). I am fine with the trigger pull. The recoil is no big deal. I have already outfitted it with the Hogue grip and the 7 shot magazine. Next up will be a crimson trace. The only "druther" I would have is that the action stay open when empty, but that is not really a big issue....
 

RedLabel

Single-Sixer
Joined
Sep 11, 2003
Messages
175
Location
Northern Indiana
I also like mine, Its the earlier version so I need to do something with the sights. Thanks for the advice on the mag guts improvement.
 

Nano65

Bearcat
Joined
Dec 10, 2014
Messages
22
Location
Arlington Texas
Well, I did it today. I bought a new LCP. I'm very excited about it. My DW is also. I thought my Nano was small but this is minuscule. I'll clean it and lightly lube it before I go to the range. Any other suggestions would be helpful.
 
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