SR9c Unusual Finish

[Xanadu1209]

Hello all, I'm new to the forum and to the Ruger SR9c. I purchased one new about a week ago and have had a good experience with it so far. I've got about 300 rounds or so at the range with no issues. I'm wondering about the finish on my gun though. All the research I've done prior to purchasing, I have never seen one like mine. It's a stainless slide but it doesn't have the brushed metal look of all the other ones I've seen. The extractor is also black, which I haven't seen on a stainless model either. Just wondering if anyone else has seen this before and might have some info on it. I'm enjoying the gun quite a bit and I'm just curious about it. Thanks a lot!

 

[22/45 Fan]

I can't tell from your photos how the slide's finish differs from the brushed finish typical on these guns as it looks about like mine in the pictures. However, the black extractor is certainly a novelty. I wonder if someone on the assembly line ran out of the right ones or just grabbed the wrong part.

 

[Xanadu1209]

I guess it is kind of hard to tell from the pictures. I took a couple more to try to show it better.

You can see that the side of my slide is a matte finish, whereas in the picture below you can see the shiny brushed finish.

Also, something else I forgot to mention is that the barrel has a matte finish as well, which seems odd. It appears to have the same finish as the slide.

 

[Dantforth]

Was this purchased as NIB or as used? Just wondering if a prior owner "fixed" it to his liking?

 

[Xanadu1209]

New in box.

 

[KZMAN]

I was just at a Gander Mountain 30 minutes ago and saw the same thing. An SR9c with the non polished flats....finish looks just like my old stainless P95. I didn't inspect it enough to notice if the extractor was black or if the barrel was also matte, but it's the first I've seen without polished flats.

 

[timboy]

Odd,they must have eliminated some finish work on them,the picture on Rugers website looks (to me)to be the same way.http://www.ruger.com/products/sr9c/images/3313.jpg

 

[Taterman]

Maybe the brushed finish one's will become collectors items? :shock:

 

[KZMAN]

Just speculation, but maybe this is the new "normal" for the SR series in order to lower manufacturing costs and to differentiate the price point between the SR and American series.

 

[Xanadu1209]

I speculated myself that it could be a cost-cutting measure. I think it looks nice though. Thanks for the input.

 

[FergusonTO35]

The SR's are now $379.95 regular price at my local shop so maybe Ruger is going to keep them around as a lower priced offering. They are a darn good pistol at that price, for sure.

 

[22/45 Fan]

The SR's are now $379.95 regular price at my local shop so maybe Ruger is going to keep them around as a lower priced offering. They are a darn good pistol at that price, for sure.

Yes, the "new" finish is indeed different from my older SR9C. I always wondered if the SR-series was going to remain in the product line as a lower cost alternative to the more upscale American. They are indeed a good gun for the price, or for any price for that matter.

 

[Xanadu1209]

The SR's are now $379.95 regular price at my local shop so maybe Ruger is going to keep them around as a lower priced offering. They are a darn good pistol at that price, for sure.

Yes, the "new" finish is indeed different from my older SR9C. I always wondered if the SR-series was going to remain in the product line as a lower cost alternative to the more upscale American. They are indeed a good gun for the price, or for any price for that matter.

Wow, mine was about $450 or so.

 

[Rei40c]

Just speculating here nothing more- About the black extractors on the stainless model.
I know that the stainless version of the sr9c & sr40c's had always been more popular. This causes me to think they stuck what black extractors they had left on the inventory on the last of the line going out the door because they had many more of them they needed to eliminate.

I say eliminate because this appears to be an effort to liquidate remaining spare parts in anticipation of a end of the sr9c & sr40c production which I'm now thinking based on these changes may be coming very soon.

My guess is the sr9e is the only example from the series that will live on.

 

[FergusonTO35]

Wouldn't surprise me. That is unfortunate because the SR series has turned out to be a very good pistol once the first few years of bugs were worked out. The RAP looks nice enough but honestly I don't see what more it gives the average owner other than a somewhat better trigger pull. It is wider and heavier and, as of now, costs more. Also it is not available in .40 S&W if that is the cartridge you want. Finally, it seems that Ruger is not going to follow Sig's lead and offer caliber conversion kits or different lower grip units as the receivers are different sizes between the standard and compact versions.

 

[Rei40c]

Wouldn't surprise me. That is unfortunate because the SR series has turned out to be a very good pistol once the first few years of bugs were worked out. The RAP looks nice enough but honestly I don't see what more it gives the average owner other than a somewhat better trigger pull. It is wider and heavier and, as of now, costs more. Also it is not available in .40 S&W if that is the cartridge you want. Finally, it seems that Ruger is not going to follow Sig's lead and offer caliber conversion kits or different lower grip units as the receivers are different sizes between the standard and compact versions.

I've always liked heavier guns but I've never tried to haul around anything over about 20-23 ounces before like the American. I'm told I'd not enjoy it very much by others who have, I don't know. Since 2012 I've been praising my sr40c to anyone who would listen. I don't think I made any converts but my particular pistol has been outstanding since 2012. I guess I got lucky with the serial number, but I've really enjoyed it a lot at the range and it carry's about as well as any .40 would I suppose.

Using the P series fans as a lesson learned I'm seriously considering getting a parts kit so I may maintain it years into the future before parts become scarce, or expensive. That's if it's going to be discontinued. Still.... I think I may do that tonight actually. Springs, pins, mag springs, I don't think i'll worry with another barrel. Maybe a striker assembly if I can find one to put on the shelf.

 

[FergusonTO35]

That is a very good idea. Even if the gun is not discontinued, unfortunately Ruger is the only source for nearly all parts so if you need something they will probably be the only source. There's no guarantee that they will be so willing to send out free parts in the future either.

Brownell's can get a lot of factory parts and they actually keep a lot of things not shown in their catalog or website. You may want to put together some part numbers out of your manual of things you want to stock up on and shoot them an e-mail. They will likely get back to you quickly with prices and ordering info.

 

[Rei40c]

That is a very good idea. Even if the gun is not discontinued, unfortunately Ruger is the only source for nearly all parts so if you need something they will probably be the only source. There's no guarantee that they will be so willing to send out free parts in the future either.

Brownell's can get a lot of factory parts and they actually keep a lot of things not shown in their catalog or website. You may want to put together some part numbers out of your manual of things you want to stock up on and shoot them an e-mail. They will likely get back to you quickly with prices and ordering info.

Thanks I didn't know that about Brownell's. I recently registered there and on a day off with nothing better to do I started sorting through EVERYTHING going by cost from high to low. At the end of the day about 5 hours later of off and on browsing I still hadn't gotten through all their products. :lol:

Fair pricing overall, there was one thing I was interested in I found for a couple of bucks cheaper on amazon ( a glock front site removal tool ) other than that they seemed very competitive. About my SR I have the cutaway diagram saved with the ruger part numbers on my desktop. I may do just that.

 

[FergusonTO35]

They are good folks who take care of the customer-- just like Ruger!

 

[KZMAN]

FYI, I contacted Ruger CS and this was their response.

The finish change on the slide is permanent. As of right now the SR Series is still in production. And we haven't heard of any plans that it will be discontinued.
Ruger Customer Service