Why Don't LEOs use ruger SR9/SR9C?

I love Rugers... Revolvers at least. Not much love for their semi-auto pistols. For those I own Sig.

revhigh said:

Lack of quality.

Lack of consistency.

Persistent recalls.

To name a few.

Ruger could EASILY beat everybody else's price.

Ruger counts on the majority of their guns only shooting a few boxes of shells, so the quality issues arent even realized. At Ruger ... the QC department is the customer.

Unfortunately ... its the way its been at Ruger for the last 10+ years.

Especially since these LCWhatevers came on the scene.

REV

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The SR and LC9 series have the features I want in a semi auto. The manual safety and mag disconnect are top among them. My LC9-S is great to carry and a paper plate at 15 yards doesn't stand a chance, which is way beyond the self defense distance the gun is used for.

Neither one has been unreliable and I reload so they've both been shot more than a few boxes. I am about to send in my SR9 to have it looked at. Choked on some Winchester White Box a few times. I'm 99% sure it's the ammo cause it's fired about 800 rounds trouble free. But Ruger has fast and free service so I figure a look under the hood couldn't hurt. I have had malfunctions with my glocks too, but they won't even bother to look at their own product.

For the record my SR40c has not exhibited any sign of QC issues, feeding, reliability, etc.

It is well above "combat accuracy".

It's ate everything I've fed it - 155 thru 180 gr bullets - TCFP, RNFP, HP, and just under 1K LSWC.

I know, I know, it's just one gun.................

Let's face it, Glocks are the rage even with civilians. I shoot next to LEO's almost every week. They learned to shoot with them, they train with them, and have become proficient with them. It is all they know mostly.

At the gun shows most the guys are looking for Glocks. No one asks me about SR9's. Just sayin'.....

In LE, the main use of a pistol is convincing suspects to follow orders for which it tends to be very effective. Very few cops will ever fire their gun at a person. At the agency I used to work for, many of the cops were not gun people. Some had no experience with guns until they entered the academy, and were not much better afterward. One guy took a revolver off a perp and had to ask his partner how to remove the clip from it. They had to qualify biannually, place ten shots in the head or chest area of a standard silhouette at 20 yards. Some of them would go through two boxes of shells to make their ten.

The agency itself was pretty big and had a good reputation. Glock actively courted them and pretty much even traded used guns for new every couple of years. It makes total sense for an agency to go with that sort of deal. Also, a good idea for cops who aren't gun people to carry weapons that have no manual safety or decocker and can never have a light trigger pull. They still had AD's since alot of folks are just not capable of keeping their finger off the bang switch and remembering to remove both the mag and chambered round, but perhaps not as many as would be with other types of guns.

t-reg said:

For the record my SR40c has not exhibited any sign of QC issues, feeding, reliability, etc.

It is well above "combat accuracy".

It's ate everything I've fed it - 155 thru 180 gr bullets - TCFP, RNFP, HP, and just under 1K LSWC.

I know, I know, it's just one gun.................

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Nope, not just one gun. My SR45 has been awesome! When I bought it, I decided to do a little test to see how long I could shoot it without a cleaning before it had a stoppage. I didn't even oil it.

I fed it mostly handloads, 90% cast lead. The majority were 230 grain Round nose lead, Win231 powder. I also shot a several hundred 200 grain SWC's, 180 grain SWC's, a bunch of hollow points (Cast lead, Rem GS, and Hornady XTP and HAP). Not one failure to feed, fire or extract in over 2500 rounds. I finally cleaned it because I couldn't stand looking at how dirty it was, but it was still working like a trooper! :lol:

The only issue I had was that the lever that the empty mag pushes up on to hold the slide open broke at about 1000 rounds, but the gun kept functioning fine, so I was temped to not even bother replacing it - although Ruger sent me a replacement, no questions asked. They even offered to pick it up and repair it.

When I finally did clean it, it took forever to cut through the caked on residue on the slide, trigger group, and frame. The loaded chamber indicator was pretty well fused in the up position, and that took the longest to get cleaned and working "right" again. My big surprise was there was almost no leading in the barrel, and it came out with just a couple of extra swipes of the brush and patches.

Overall, it's been a stellar performer and very accurate, so I can't recommend the SR series enough!

For what it's worth, I bought a SR45 a few months ago, magazine (both) kept falling out. I did everything Ruger suggested before finally having to send it in. They paid for everything and when I got it back they replaced darn near the whole gun! Ruger sent a list of all items replaced, etc. They even "fixed" the barrel which I didn't know needed fixing. First time I ever had to send a Ruger back. I still love Rugers of one sort or other. Heck my brother in law had to sell his Mercedes because it had one problem after another...every company has a few fall through the cracks.

I sometimes carry a SR40c and do not have any problems with it. But my P85 had a habit of dropping magazines during practice matches. It never made it to a regular match. My Sigs are flawless. The Smiths M&P work great in all calibers. And you can move the mag release from one side to the other, no sweat At the gun shows Glock outsells Ruger 10 to one easily. I do not own a Glock YET. LEO have never asked for a bid on Rugers. I did have one ask for a 357 Sig in any semi auto. No Ruger there.

Simple answer to the OP's question, and it may have been mentioned already... Lack of parts availability, and that Rugers need to be sent back TO Ruger to have them serviced.

DA_TriggR4Ruger said:

Simple answer to the OP's question, and it may have been mentioned already... Lack of parts availability, and that Rugers need to be sent back TO Ruger to have them serviced.

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Hi,

Or, to look at things from another angle: let's put you in charge of purchasing duty weapons for a LE agency...

You know that your LEOs are likely to find themselves in a life threatening situation at some time in their careers. You are also aware the firearms issued by your agency are generally seldom fired, so those officers, who often know little about guns themselves, must be able to depend on equipment they haven't personally tested that much. And, unlike so many agencies, your budget is quite generous, so you don't have to look at price above all else.

Would you rather consider the brand with the reputation for being extremely reliable right out of the box, or the brand that has a reputation for great customer service when it doesn't work right out of the box, as well as a reputation for NEEDING that "great customer service?"

As someone suggested earlier in the thread, manufacturers, including Ruger, know pretty well what they build and sell... so do many purchasing agents.

Rick C

In which case, we're issueing Sig! P226s across the board.

My SR9c had to go back for repair just a few weeks after I bought it. It has been rock solid since, but reading through other forums, the issue I had was pretty common. It was the 3rd and last Ruger I have purchased, to this point.

Hi,

Or, to look at things from another angle: let's put you in charge of purchasing duty weapons for a LE agency...

You know that your LEOs are likely to find themselves in a life threatening situation at some time in their careers. You are also aware the firearms issued by your agency are generally seldom fired, so those officers, who often know little about guns themselves, must be able to depend on equipment they haven't personally tested that much. And, unlike so many agencies, your budget is quite generous, so you don't have to look at price above all else.

Would you rather consider the brand with the reputation for being extremely reliable right out of the box, or the brand that has a reputation for great customer service when it doesn't work right out of the box, as well as a reputation for NEEDING that "great customer service?"

As someone suggested earlier in the thread, manufacturers, including Ruger, know pretty well what they build and sell... so do many purchasing agents.

Rick C

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Agree with everything said here, except that Glock sells to agencies for even less than they charge distributors. So, for an agency to go with something else they are going to have to pay more. I love Glock pistols but if that is not monopolistic behavior I don't know what is.

revhigh said:

Big Old Boy said:

Wow indeed no love for Ruger on the Ruger forum!

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Theres a lot of love for the good Rugers.

Some are great ... revolvers, MK's, 1911's, rifles, .... some not so much.

REV

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Please enlighten us. TELL US YOUR EXPERIENCE. Not some BS you heard or read on the internet. Your negativity gets really old.

Tequila Jake said:

It seems that most LEO agencies use S&W M&Ps, Glocks, Springfield XDs, or SIGs, but very few if any use Ruger SR9s or SR9Cs. Why not? Is there something that makes the Rugers unsuitable for LEO use? The only plausible reasons I've ever heard is that the other manufacturerers give LEO agencies a break on the price and/or they don't like the Ruger magazine disconnect.

Anybody know for sure?

Tequila Jake

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Ask your self a simple question.
If you kicked doors down for a living would you choose a SR9/SR9c ?

Rabon said:

Tequila Jake said:

It seems that most LEO agencies use S&W M&Ps, Glocks, Springfield XDs, or SIGs, but very few if any use Ruger SR9s or SR9Cs. Why not? Is there something that makes the Rugers unsuitable for LEO use? The only plausible reasons I've ever heard is that the other manufacturerers give LEO agencies a break on the price and/or they don't like the Ruger magazine disconnect.

Anybody know for sure?

Tequila Jake

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Ask your self a simple question.
If you kicked doors down for a living would you choose a SR9/SR9c ?

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Problem is that 99% of cops don't kick down doors on a regular basis, if ever. They write traffic tickets and answer shoplifting calls. The odds of a cop even firing his weapon are so small that they're almost not even mentioning. And those who do rarely fire their weapons, so the perceived superiority of Glock is nothing more than internet marketing. And if Ruger had beaten Glock to the punch back in the late 80's and basically given away weapons to police departments, they might have had the monopoly that Glock has now.

But until then, the Glock and the SR9 are essentially the same thing. Mass produced striker fired weapons that launch a bullet when they need to. Neither one is that superior to the other.

LOL ... Riiiiiight ....

You better try telling that to the gun buying public ... Because they sure don't agree, and they vote with their pocketbooks ... The most important vote of all.

And if you did ... By chance ... Kick down a door or two in your otherwise mundane life of writing speeding tickets and collaring shoplifters ... Which gun would YOU choose to risk your life with ?

Me ? I'd want a Sig P226 or CZ75 ... or if I was REALLY pressed ... A G17 or G19.

I guess if I had a Yugo ... But barely drove it ... That would make it the equal of a BMW 5 series ..... Or one wouldn't be superior to the other. What a nonsensical argument.


REV

revhigh said:

LOL ... Riiiiiight ....

You better try telling that to the gun buying public ... Because they sure don't agree, and they vote with their pocketbooks ... The most important vote of all.

And if you did ... By chance ... Kick down a door or two in your otherwise mundane life of writing speeding tickets and collaring shoplifters ... Which gun would YOU choose to risk your life with ?

Me ? I'd want a Sig P226 or CZ75 ... or if I was REALLY pressed ... A G17 or G19.

I guess if I had a Yugo ... But barely drove it ... That would make it the equal of a BMW 5 series ..... Or one wouldn't be superior to the other. What a nonsensical argument.


REV

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I am a retired NYPD cop. When we went to the semi auto, the Ruger 9MM was the pilot program gun. Never a problem with it. When we finally went to the 9MM, the Glock 19, SIG 226 DAO, and S&W 5946 DAO were the choices.

Go to the gun zone website and type in NYPD Glock 19. Serious issues with it. Glock waited 2 years to do anything, and only did anything when the job contacted Ruger to replace all Glock 19's.

I've worked the ghettos of NYC. Did undercover with the Vice Unit. Glocks didn't make a difference. The cops carrying them did.

How mundane is your life?

And the gun buying public are the same lemmings who think that Keeping Up With a the Kardashians is a good show. Most of them couldn't tell you the difference between a Glock and an SR9. Most new gun buyers walk into a gun shop and say "give me a Glock. That's what the cops carry, right?" And the barely literate clerk pushes one across the counter at him. Last week in Gander Mountain, I saw a Beretta 92 (9MM) with a tag that said Beretta 96 (.40 cal). I pointed it out to the clerk. He couldn't follow a word I said.

I own five SR series pistols. all five have several thousand downrange, all five have been stellar. zero issues, good accuracy, reliability and user friendly. my Glocks feel like I am holding a cement block, great pistols but blocky and not really as reliable as my Rugers have been. the M&P, the XD's, the Kimbers all come out of the safe now and then, fine weapons, but I like my Rugers. what a great country we live in that we can even have this discussion!

And here's something else the average person who buys a gun doesn't know. The SR9 doesn't come with plastic magazines. It has better sights than the cheesy plastic Glock ones. It can shoot lead reloads if you want.

Oh and it's cheaper. And has a much better lifetime no questions asked warranty with a fast turn around.

Yeah, it's a real piece of junk!