There Is No Better 45, Than a Ruger P Series 45

[weblance]

I now have all 3 Ruger P Series 45acp pistols. I also have a SR1911, and a FNX-45. The FNX does house duty, because of its 15+1 capacity. I was excited with it when I bought it, but now its fallen a notch on my favorites list, and the P 45s have gone to the top. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the FNX-45, its blazingly accurate, has a good trigger, has been perfectly reliable, and feels good in my hands. It just doesnt have the nostalgia, or the allure, that my P45s have.

My SR1911 is a nice gun, but I have never really warmed to the 1911 platform. I like a Double Action pistol better than a Single Action. I know this will ruffle some feathers, but its just how I feel. The SR1911 has much more felt recoil than my P97(I haven't shot the 90 or 345 yet). It is a quality built pistol, like all Ruger products, and every collector should have a 1911, so it was a natural choice for me, Its accurate, and reliable, but... sigh...

My P97 came first. I have a P95, and the 97 is its twin. The first shots from the 97 were amazing. The sights are dead on at 25 yards, and the recoil feels like a 9mm. Its very accurate and good looking. I added a Pachmayr slip on grip sleeve, because the poly frame is slick. That really helped. Its a great pistol.

My P90 came next. I like the styling. It reminds me of a classic muscle car. Its Macho. The trigger is smooth, and reasonably light. I added Hogue Finger Groove Grip panels. The 90 is the pistol that I like to hold, and look at, at every angle. I think its a work of art.

I just picked up a P345. Its a great looking pistol also. Im surprised how much thinner it is, compared to the 95/97. It does have the heaviest trigger of the three, but I have #19 Wolff hammer springs on order. If I decide to carry a 45, it will be the one.

I cant believe the value these pistols represent. When you look at used 45 pistol prices, there is nothing that compares in accuracy, construction, and reliability. The P series draws criticism for being thick, and blocky. I suppose this is true, for a 9mm pistol, since there are double stack 9mm pistols that are thinner, but for a 45 pistol, the P series is perfect. I dont want a thin, light 45. I want something to grab on to, and some weight to absorb recoil.

I apologize for the quality of the pictures, but here they are, in the order they were produced, P90, P97 and P345

[SaxonPig]

Own stock, do we?

Glad you like your guns, but I find Ruger CF auto pistols just this side of a Glock when it comes to ugly. May work fine, I'll never know. I can't get past the ugly.

[chris in va]

Haven't tried a custom CZ 97b I take it.

[Water-Man]

OP,

You have alot to learn if you really believe that statement.

[Uncle Malice]

Spongebob Graphic Copyright of Nickelodeon

But seriously... I'm glad they work for you. Funny thing is, I prefer my Gen4 Glock 21 over Springfield TRP or USP 45(or Ruger P345 and SR45). I have not shot the Ruger P90, but I have shot my friends P89 9mm with the same basic design.

I don't think price has much to do with it. Some designs just click with certain people. You can't claim that it's the best 45, but you can claim that it's the best 45 for you.

[weblance]

Originally Posted by Water-man

OP,

You have alot to learn if you really believe that statement.

Thanks for the nice comment. I stand by my opinion. You have obviously never shot one of these... have you?

[Guv]

I had a P-90 years ago, shoulda kept it! "No better 45" not too sure bought that though.

[USMCGrunt]

I have. I still own a P90 that was bought in an attempt to find my "H&K killer" but like so many other .45s in my collection, the USP-45 still reigns supreme. That's not to say the P90 is a bad gun. It's accurate enough, reliable and built like a tank. Another great thing about it was the low price tag.
However where it falls short is the limited capacity for its size and that size is pretty chunky. My other complaint about the P90 is the grips are petty much an excuse to get it out of the factory as a complete gun. I hated the original grips so I put a set of Hoage grips on it and that improved it immensely.
So how many .45s have I gone through (and still keep....never, ever sell a gun without a dang good reason is my philosophy) over the years? Quite a few.



ETA: OK, so I did sell one .45 out of my collection. I had an S&W SW99 that was a total dog, inaccurate, slide wouldn't lock open on the last round fired, the trigger sucked and my finger would rub against the magazine release until I sanded it down a little. That was one I don't even miss in the least!

[Strafer Gott]

I knew someone had to like them, but I find them mediocre. They sure are an inexpensive option, and I'm glad that they round out the spectrum of .45's on that issue at least. I had a Haskell. For $89, it beat the Ruger on price point, and did everything the Ruger did. I guess that must be the best .45. Not.

[TunnelRat]

When you look at used 45 pistol prices, there is nothing that compares in accuracy, construction, and reliability.

For the money it is a very very good option.

[lamarw]

You have a very small pond compared to an ocean. The Sig P220 will cause the water to overflow your small pond. It is not the Sea King of the Ocean, but it is far better than anything mentions to this point.

[57K]

weblance, I understand your point of view. As far as recoil, polymer frames do help absorb it and I find them more comfortable to shoot than 1911's. In the case of your P-97, it has a 4.2" barrel, so your 5" SR1911 is producing higher velocity to generate greater recoil.

Up until a few years back, I was locked into the DA/SA mindset. An XDm 4.5 in .45 ACP helped to break it somewhat and has now been totally eliminated.

[weblance]

A gun that costs $300-$350 used, in 45 acp, that is extremely accurate, dead nuts reliable, and built like a tank, with everything inside, except the springs, made of stainless steel, is hard to argue with. Im sure you will argue, and thats what I expected, but just remember, when you are saying that YOUR XXX pistol is better, did you buy it for $350, and does it compare on all aspects?

[chris in va]

You have a very small pond compared to an ocean. The Sig P220 will cause the water to overflow your small pond. It is not the Sea King of the Ocean, but it is far better than anything mentions to this point.

I had one. Really don't understand that statement.

[TunnelRat]

This is what happens when you start a thread with "There is No Better..." because quite frankly that is going to depend on the person and his/her interpretation.

Honestly I've never seen the point in arguing that something is the best. I could care less if people think my firearm of choice is the best. It works great for me, that's all I need. To the folks arguing with the OP, I think he was just trying to point out the great value that can be had in Ruger pistols.

[weblance]

I didnt start this thread for you guys to argue about a pistol that is completely different than what we are discussing. Steering this off topic will surely get this thread closed. It probably will get closed anyway, because people feel so strongly one way, or the other, about the Ruger P series pistols.

[Spats McGee]

Originally Posted by weblance

. . .Steering this off topic will surely get this thread closed. . . . .

Yes, it will. Can we get back on-topic, please?

[TunnelRat]

I didnt start this thread for you guys to argue about a pistol that is completely different than what we are discussing.

Lol, come on mate. "There is No Better". That's flame bait if I ever saw it. There is no doubt it's going to ruffle feathers.

[weblance]

Originally Posted by TunnelRat

Lol, come on mate. "There is No Better". That's flame bait if I ever saw it. There is no doubt it's going to ruffle feathers.

You are correct, and I DID consider adding the works "In My Opinion" to the title, but its been boring around here lately with the same threads going around, and around. I try to behave myself, but several threads I have started have been closed, I guess because I think controversially.

[IdahoG36]

My Ruger .45 experience was less than stellar. My first handgun in .45 was a Ruger P97, and I had a lot of stovepipes with it. I ended up selling it at a loss.

Next up was a P345 a couple of years later. Nothing but good things to say about it. It was fairly accurate and 100% reliable.

My last experience was with a SR45 back in August. First pull of the trigger and the mag popped out slightly, but my hand kept it from falling out. Thinking that I had inadvertently hit the mag release by mistake, I readjusted my grip and shot again. This time the mag fell out onto the floor. Since I was shooting at the range where I had just purchased the gun, an employee came in and verified the mag dropping out whenever the gun was fired, and swapped out the faulty mag. That fixed the mag dropping problem.

I had at least 1 FTF every magazine for the first 200 rounds. The spent casing would be halfway extracted and the next round was trying to come up in the magazine, and would jam the gun up solid. It seemed like the extractor was loosing it's grip on the rim of the cartridge as it tried to eject it.

It was a shame, because as others have stated, the SR45 was an extremely accurate gun. I was actually amazed at the groupings that I could shoot with it. In the end, I couldn't trust the SR45 and sold it as well.

I have since replaced it with a Springfield XDm .45 4.5, and it has been 100% reliable right out of the box, and just as accurate as the SR45 was.

So for me, there are better guns than the Ruger P series .45. YMMV

[lee n. field]

had a P-89 that was used primarily for testing handloads... Because Ruger no longer services the alloy P-series pistol, they offered me an SR9 at cost.

--57k

Do you know this for a fact, that they do not service alloy frame P-series guns in general? (Other than, "some guy on a web board said so.".)

This here at Ruger's site has a popup which says:

The following firearms are no longer in production:

• Mark I, Mark II and Standard .22 caliber pistols
• P-85 9MM pistol and P-85 MKII 9MM pistols
• PC Carbines

Please contact the Prescott, AZ Customer Service Department to determine the extent of parts and service that are available for the models above.

(.blahblahblah, list of rifles and shotguns)

Please contact the Newport, NH Customer Service Department to determine the extent of parts and service that are available for the models above.

The P-89 has not been out of production very long at all. I read this to say that the one's you'll have problems getting factory service for are the really old and quickly superseded P-85 pistols.

[weblance]

Idaho... Im surprised your 97 gave you problems. Mine has been excellent. I guess there will always be a few that give problems.

The SR45 doesnt really apply to this thread. Yes I know it does relate to the manufacturer. There are lots of comments about problems with the SR45. I had considered buying one, and still may, but I think I will wait, and enjoy my hammer fired Ruger 45s. WHEN they wear out, then maybe an SR45 would be what I want. Hopefully by then, Ruger will have the issues sorted out.

[JohnKSa]

I'm splitting out the SR-45 specific discussion to this thread.

http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=538978

This thread is about the Ruger P Series .45ACP pistols and their relative merits.

[SaxonPig]

Well, since the OP declared the Ruger superior to all other pistols in 45 ACP, isn't the discussion technically on all pistols in 45 ACP?

Just askin'.

PS: I'm old fashioned and still like my Colts.

[lee n. field]

There Is No Better 45, Than a Ruger P Series 45

I now have all 3 Ruger P Series 45acp pistols.

The SR1911 has much more felt recoil than my P97(I haven't shot the 90 or 345 yet).

Eye and hand of the beholder.

Interesting that you can make this judgment without having actually shot 2 of the 3 examples.

I have a P90. I shoot it OK. I would call it "utilitarian".

I don't care for the factory grip panels, not for the most common alternative, the Hogue soft rubber finger groove grips. I now use a checkered rubber Uncle Mike's grip (no longer made, check ebay).

The ergonomics are, for me, less than optimal. It's a stretch to reach the safety. The trigger is mushy. (There's a trigger mod that I may do at some point.)