Hickock on the RAP

Just watched about a 30 minute video with Hickock45 evaluating the new RAP.

Watch the video .....

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FEGqYYgSljE

To say that he was real pleased with it would seem to be an overstatement.

I was however ... impressed with its long range accuracy when he was shooting the farthest gong. It would seem that that level of accuracy could reasonably be translated into decent closer range accuracy.

I agree with him that about the largest 'carriable' gun for civilians is the G19. It seems that the RAP is very large, which in my opinion makes it at best a nightstand gun, and in practical use ... A range gun for civilians. Therefore ... If it's as big as a 1911 or bigger ... And it's primarily a range gun anyway ... Then I want a 1911 in 45ACP for sure, or a P226, CZ75, or 1911 in 9mm.

What struck me as strange, was that about 5 times during the evaluation ... He said things like ... 'I guess if you HAVE to have a full size duty pistol ... This would be OK ...' It was almost like he was TRYING not to say anything bad about the gun. He would pause, take a breath, and then almost begrudgingly say that it was just OK, but immediately would point out that it wouldn't be his first or second choice. He didn't like the outrageously long reset, grips, or sights either, but these are all things Ruger could fix in future versions.

I've never seen him do that before. Thought it was a little strange.

Anybody else pick up on that ?

I'd say it was anything but a ringing endorsement for the gun. Almost like a 'been there ... Done that' type review.

Overall ... My impression of the gun was slightly elevated, but I still have no use for any plastic duty gun ... unless it's accuracy and trigger eclipse the CZ75 or P226.

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The RAP was designed to be a full size duty pistol so the fact it's larger than a G19 is hardly surprising. I sure there will be compact and subcompact versions in the future. That said, I get the inescapable feeling that no matter what semi-auto pistol Ruger designed the absolute best you will ever admit is that it might be OK.

Yes it's "just another plastic duty gun", which is what it was intended to be and, no, it isn't a CZ75 or a Sig P226 and it's inherent design will keep it from ever being one of those.

22/45 Fan said:

The RAP was designed to be a full size duty pistol so the fact it's larger than a G19 is hardly surprising. I sure there will be compact and subcompact versions in the future. That said, I get the inescapable feeling that no matter what semi-auto pistol Ruger designed the absolute best you will ever admit is that it might be OK.

Yes it's "just another plastic duty gun", which is what it was intended to be and, no, it isn't a CZ75 or a Sig P226 and it's inherent design will keep it from ever being one of those.

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OK is about all ANY plastic duty gun can be IMO, no matter the manufacturer. I was commenting more on the video than the gun, but thanks for your comment.

I was just trying to see if anybody else got the impression from Hickock that I did, and that impression seemed to be that Hickock was less than enthusiastic about it. Did you even WATCH the video?

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Rev, I saw the video some weeks back, I'm a bit of an avid watcher of his stuff and we have exchanged a fair amount of e-mails in the past, mostly about CZ's .

He really doesn't care for what we would call duty sized weapons except 1911's or some odd thing or two. He seems to like compact guns like G19 sized guns quite a lot and likes to show the itsy bitsy carry guns because a lot of his viewers like the concealed carry aspect.

He has done videos on Sigs and a CZ75B that he owns and says nice things about them but he is infatuated with striker fired semi auto pistols mostly. "First pull is the same as the last" kind of stuff. I like him quite a bit but he's not going to adjust to SA/DA hammer fired pistols like you or I do.

I too saw it a while back, he loves Glocks and uses them as his baseline for talking about striker fired guns. I think he really liked the RAP but it would not replace his Glocks, but, if you're a Ruger guy and want that type of pistol, there's now a good choice for you as a consumer. I've seen almost all of Hickok's videos and he's a pretty straight shooter(pun intended) but he doesn't like to compare one gun to another. His videos are almost all, here's the gun, here's what it does, here's what him and John like, here's what we don't like. It is funny though, he does prefer compact guns with small grips and he's like 6'8" tall.

Hey Cheese !

Good to hear from you. I wouldn't exactly call the G19 compact, or the 1911 striker fired !

Didn't you think it was kind of weird the way he spoke about it though ? Watch it again and you'll see what I mean, now that I've mentioned it. I've always liked his stuff too, and have watched tons of his vids.

Did you see what I just ordered ? 9mm Range Officer in STAINLESS ! Couldn't resist now that it's in stainless as of Jan 2016. Another upgrade over the parked one it has is Fiber optic front sights. I love adjustable sights on a target 1911.

Rewatch the vid and check back.

I sure hope Hickock isn't becoming a typical 'gun writer' ....

PS ... Just watched the first of his CZ75 vids ... Man he loves that gun. Loves the sights, the trigger, the accuracy, the grip, the construction, the similarity to the 1911, etc. My kinda guy. LOL

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Captain America said:

I too saw it a while back, he loves Glocks and uses them as his baseline for talking about striker fired guns. I think he really liked the RAP but it would not replace his Glocks, but, if you're a Ruger guy and want that type of pistol, there's now a good choice for you as a consumer. I've seen almost all of Hickok's videos and he's a pretty straight shooter(pun intended) but he doesn't like to compare one gun to another. His videos are almost all, here's the gun, here's what it does, here's what him and John like, here's what we don't like. It is funny though, he does prefer compact guns with small grips and he's like 6'8" tall.

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Hey CA !

Thanks for the response. Maybe I haven seen as many of his vids as I thought I had I didn't realize he was a big Glock fan OR a compact gun aficionado.

Not surprised at his using Glocks for his baseline. They ARE the baseline. I know he LOVES the G26, and thinks it's probably the most accurate of compact strikers. I know mine shoots a lot better than it should for its size.

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I handled a RAP at Gander Mountain shortly after they came out. It is a large gun & I really didn't like how the grip felt. I know from reading the spec.'s it is lighter than my SR 1911 but due to the way the grip is shaped it seemed heavier & bulkier to me. I'm not knocking it. It may be a wonderful gun but I have no desire to own one.

As for Hickock 45 I always enjoy watching his stuff. He posted here a few times after he reviewed the SR9c. I got the impression he liked the pistol overall but felt the safety lever was too small.

Edited to add: Found him or his posts at least http://www.rugerforum.com/phpBB3/search.php?author_id=19754&sr=posts

I saw the Hicock45 video and thought the same thing. He really did not care for the full size of the gun. He was not overly impressed with the gun. I think that is exactly the way I feel about the gun also. It does not give you that awe feeling, it functions, it is funtionaly accurate. and seems to feed everything that is feed so far. I have not heard very many complaints on function issues.
I usually think he does a good review, but as you said Rev, he was kind of unimpressed.

It is obvious that Ruger is attempting another pass at the military contract. This is and was intended to be a duty sidearm, nothing more. While I do know a few folks that choose to carry a full sized gun while off duty, they are way into the minority. As he stated, the G19 sized gun is pretty much the largest that most folks want to carry around so I found his observations that this is as big ole gun to be spot on. I do like the chassis system that Ruger used so if the large version catches on maybe we will see some compact and/or subcompact versions. :idea:

revhigh said:

OK is about all ANY plastic duty gun can be IMO, no matter the manufacturer. I was commenting more on the video than the gun, but thanks for your comment.

I was just trying to see if anybody else got the impression from Hickock that I did, and that impression seemed to be that Hickock was less than enthusiastic about it. Did you even WATCH the video?

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No I didn't but I've followed your comments on this forum for long enough to know what your thoughts are.

BTW. I've owned two CZ's, a CZ85 and a CZ85 Combat (I'm left handed so their ambidextrous safeties were a requirement for me) and their factory single action trigger pulls were nothing to brag about. Both had the sear angles cut so the hammers actually were cammed back a small amount before being released and the trigger travel was noticeable and not particularly smooth. I sent the CZ85C back to CZ USA to have an action job and that made it decent but added to the cost. They are good guns but they aren't magic.

22/45 Fan said:

revhigh said:

Did you even WATCH the video?

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No I didn't.

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Enough said ...


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22/45 Fan said:

revhigh said:

OK is about all ANY plastic duty gun can be IMO, no matter the manufacturer. I was commenting more on the video than the gun, but thanks for your comment.

I was just trying to see if anybody else got the impression from Hickock that I did, and that impression seemed to be that Hickock was less than enthusiastic about it. Did you even WATCH the video?

REV

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They (CZ75's) are good guns but they aren't magic.

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Hickock pretty much thinks they are ..... But this isn't about CZ75's. It's about Hickock's reaction to RAPs ... Not mine.

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I can't watch now but will later. If the RAP is that accurate that's great I guess that's the purpose I couldn't figure out it had. Range/Home Gun on a budget.

Hickok is a nice guy, you won't hear him drag something through the mud unless it really is a POS. I like the fact that he reviews guns from the perspective of a sport shooter and CCWer, not a tactical nerd like many others. Hitting the gong doesn't prove much, Hickok can and does do that with most guns he reviews.

Yeah .... As I said ... My impression of it was elevated ... Especially it's accuracy ... I just have no interest in it as it's just another plastic full sized gun. Ho hum.

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It is funny though, he does prefer compact guns with small grips and he's like 6'8" tall.

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I completely understand him. I'm 6'4/280 and wear XL gloves. A small to midsize pistol just feels better to me. I don't use any of the supplied grip shells on my Glock 19 and 26, in fact I reduced the front of the grip on both of them. All my wheelguns wear standard wood panel grips with an open backstrap and no finger grooves or odd contouring. I think Glock absolutely nailed it with the slim grip of the 42 and 43, all their pistols need this design. Ruger did an A+ job on the grip of the SR series, if I ever decided to get an RAP I would have to make certain that none of the grip shells were too big for my taste.

revhigh said:

22/45 Fan said:

revhigh said:

Did you even WATCH the video?

REV

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No I didn't.

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Enough said ...


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Well, now I have watched it and, yes, he was less than wildly enthusiastic about it but the "complaints" were almost all about it's size and weight and a couple of subjective things like the feel of the grip. Then again, he likes Glocks and I think their grip is awful. He had absolutely no mechanical or function problems and the accuracy in his hands was just as good as the Glock and HK he had as comparison guns and he wasn't crazy about their size either. He doesn't like full size service pistols, that was clear.

I took it as an overall endorsement.

Ok

Yes Rev I watched the video, if I remember,right after he put it up. My impression is much like yours. I read many of the comments on that video and the general tone was the same, some even mentioning the "big ole gun" thing. Seems he almost felt obligated to do the review, one of the comments even asked him if he was feeling well?

Just don't think he was impressed.

Btw, I met him along with John last year at Whittakers, nice guys and both at least 6"8', John was an inch or so taller it seemed.