LC9s Cant hit the broad side of a Barn

Hey everyone,

this is my first post. I recently bought a Ruger LC9s that I intend to use for concealed carry. I went to the range for the first time today and shot off 100 rounds, and I'm embarrassed to say that I cannot hit the broad side of a barn.

A little background.... I have been in the military and yearly we were required to certify on the M9. I earned the expert marksmanship ribbon a couple different times, so I am not a total noob with firearms.

However, it has been at least 8 years since I have really practiced with a gun. I think I have only fired a gun twice in the last 8 years.

I have heard that the LC9s has issues with shooting low, and I certainly experienced that today, but I also had problems with even being able to group my shots in the same general area. It felt like even though I was using the gun sights, I had no idea where I was shooting.

has anyone experienced this with this gun?

This is the first time I have shot with a gun this small, is there something about shooting with a small gun that is different than shooting with a full sized hand gun? I realize I'm out of practice, but I didn't have this much trouble the last two times I shot a gun over the last few years. Both times it was a full size gun, I think a 9mm and a .45.

I was only shooting from 7 yards, so I feel like I shouldn't be having this much difficulty.

any suggestions??

I will postulate that the fault is entirely with your unfamiliarity with a very-small frame semi-auto. My LC9s Pro shoots right at POA at 25 feet, and slightly low at 75 feet. Try concentrating on a firm grip of the pistol, to avoid "limp-wristing". Either that, or the effect of flinching is magnified by the smaller frame. I can keep all my shots within a 3 inch diameter circle at 25 feet.

thanks for the reply, I'm sure you are right.

what exactly is "limp-wristing"?

Watch your trigger finger position as well. If it isn't right, you may pull left or right and it may not be correct if your hand moves around a lot while firing multiple rounds.

jlutz11 said:

thanks for the reply, I'm sure you are right.

what exactly is "limp-wristing"?

Click to expand...

Limp wristing is when a person doesn't hold the pistol firmly enough. It can result in a malfunction as the slide wont cycle properly resulting in failure to feed.

Small, light pistols are harder to shoot well than larger heavier ones. If you just focus on the fundamentals & spend some time practicing it should all work out.

......and let someone else shoot it too......

Practice, practice, practice. My LC9 is one of my regular carry guns. Over 1000 rounds through it and I'm pretty accurate with it out to 10-15 yards.

And welcome to the forum.

Just a few observations: 1. At least in my experience, shooting firearms isn't "like riding a bike." It's not something you just always know how to do. It's a skill with a short shelf life that quickly erodes if you don't practice, practice, practice.

2. Shooting handguns is waaaaay more difficult than shooting long guns, and shooting small concealed carry guns is waaaay harder than shooting a full size service pistol like your M-9.

3. Even with practice, guns are a very personal thing. That is, everyone finds that they tend to shoot certain guns well, and that some guns they simple do not shoot well. The guy next to you might have a completely different experience than you, and might shoot really well with a gun that you can't shoot worth a darn. Your Ruger is a good gun, and you should practice a lot more with it before passing judgment on it. But if you don't improve much with practice, you may want to try a different gun. I suspect, though, that a few more trips to the range may have you doing a lot better.

Mike J said:

jlutz11 said:

thanks for the reply, I'm sure you are right.

what exactly is "limp-wristing"?

Click to expand...

Limp wristing is when a person doesn't hold the pistol firmly enough. It can result in a malfunction as the slide wont cycle properly resulting in failure to feed.

Small, light pistols are harder to shoot well than larger heavier ones. If you just focus on the fundamentals & spend some time practicing it should all work out.

Click to expand...

I think you have something there. I was getting malfunctions on nearly every clip. you guys have given me a lot to think about.

its actually encouraging, because it sounds like I just need to practice and get the basics mastered again and get to know the gun a little better.

Does anyone have any youtube channels or websites you would suggest I watch?

First, welcome.

I think you should have someone else who shoots semi-autos regularly shoot the pistol and see what they think. Ruger is into mass production and history tells us they keep their quality control system budget pretty low. They put out good firearms at a very competitive price (for being made in America) but every once in a while there is a bad one.

With all that said, I have an LC9s pro and it is so dern accurate for a small pistol I'm just amazed. Kicks like a mother and after a magazine or two at the range I've had enough... but it shoots well and never has a hickup. I'll also throw this in... I shoot semi-autos exclusively now and am very comfortable with them, (have spent mucho dollars on top of the line training) but my first semi-auto, a Ruger P95, I could also not hit the side of a barn with it at first.

2 words, "trigger control"

jlutz11 said:

thanks for the reply, I'm sure you are right.

what exactly is "limp-wristing"?

Click to expand...

jlutz11,
easy to see you have never fired a 1911. Limp wristing is a way of holding a semiautomatic,
especially a 1911 or other high powered semi auto that allows the pistol to kick up before the
wrist is completely set. In other words, if you are "Limp Wristing" you need to change your grip.
Blackie

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limp_wristing

jlutz11 said:

Mike J said:

jlutz11 said:

thanks for the reply, I'm sure you are right.

what exactly is "limp-wristing"?

Click to expand...

Limp wristing is when a person doesn't hold the pistol firmly enough. It can result in a malfunction as the slide wont cycle properly resulting in failure to feed.

Small, light pistols are harder to shoot well than larger heavier ones. If you just focus on the fundamentals & spend some time practicing it should all work out.

Click to expand...

I think you have something there. I was getting malfunctions on nearly every clip. you guys have given me a lot to think about.

its actually encouraging, because it sounds like I just need to practice and get the basics mastered again and get to know the gun a little better.

Does anyone have any youtube channels or websites you would suggest I watch?

Click to expand...

This may help! jlutz11,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ka556--WF2o

yep, that is exactly what was happening. I watched some other videos and discovered my grip was really bad. Looking forward to going back to the range to see what improvments ive made with this new information.

thanks guys!

Not limp wrist specific but this helped me. http://www.backwoodshome.com/how-to-shoot-a-handgun-accurately/

My lc9 is the hardest gun i own to shoot well. Its also the smallest i own. Personally the grip frame feels too small for me and i dont like the recoil impulse. No problems with the recoil of 50ae in the desert eagle or 454 casull in the super Redhawk. Because of that my p90 or sp101 are my go to guns

What I forgot to mention about my LC9 is that I put one of those Houge slip on rubber things over the grip.... much better!

Guess what?
Went out to Pop's barn the other day and hit it with my LC9s.
Didn't do the gun any good, but sure broke the window in that barn!
:<}
Blackie

If you have the alternate finger extension thingy for your mags, try replacing the flat mag bottom with the extension bottom.

I find if I can get my pinky finger on the grip, it helps control the gun.

Cal44 said:

If you have the alternate finger extension thingy for your mags, try replacing the flat mag bottom with the extension bottom.

I find if I can get my pinky finger on the grip, it helps control the gun.

Click to expand...

I couldn't shoot the thing with out the extra grip on the magazine! As it is, it shoots rather well.

I'm the same as you jlutz . Cant' hit the paper. Can almost hear the guys at the range giggling. Thank GOD for hearing protection. LC9s also. Got to get there more often until then I'll use my 12 ga tach shotgun for intruders.