Ruger PC Carbine bad- Ruger service worse

[stagpanther]

Wow! the odds that you would get two malfunctioning guns in a row seem astronomical--are you sure you followed the owner's manual to the letter?

[mr bolo]

THANKS for the update, I have NO plans to buy a RUGER PC carbine

Im going to buy a nice handgun instead.

[keithdog]

stagpanther- yes. 100 percent. It's a very simple gun to take apart. The only tricky thing is making sure the barrel nut (I think that's what its called) is twisted all the way to the right direction so as to secure a tight fit and now allow gas to be lost. I called Ruger to make sure I was twisting it the right way. I was.
It does seem astronomical. These guns are well reviewed everywhere else, save Hickock45 1st review.
I keep thinking it must be me, but neither me nor the guys who work at the local gun store/range can figure our what's going wrong with it. One dude thought it was the mag wobble, but that doesn't make sense- all the PC Carbine reviews mentioned that very thing in common, with stellar results. Idk man. I really don't know.
Ruger rocks and I like their products... what are the odds of this? lol

And seriously? The rear sight blew off on the second magazine?
Come on, Ruger. You're soooo much better than this.

[stagpanther]

That really sucks and I hope you get it resolved.

[fourbore]

I had a lot of Rugers, bolts, semi and single shot rifles and SA revolvers and pistols. All well made and good value guns. I had the rare rifle that was a bit below expectation for accuracy. No outright lemons. That goes back to 1970. I worked hard and less time to buy new guns, now retired and time again. Sometime along the way things changed. Remingtons are worthless, Marlin is gone and now Ruger clinging to the bottom rung.

In my last 8 Rugers, only two guns that were issue free. They are often sloppy in assembly. Like the OP, sights, srews and pins work loose, fit of grips to frame, internal fit and even basic function in one example. I sold 2 rifles that had BOTH serious accuracy and fitment issues- a 77 and an American. I did my own repairs on 3 hand guns- multiple repairs on each! I kept a No1 in spite of poor accuracy as a future project. I have two American bolt actions that shoot well and trouble free and without cosmetic slips. This problem goes right across the price and product line spectrum. Ruger is in trouble.

As for customer service all I can say is EXCELLENT. They have been right there for me. I would make a conservative estimate that I have called 10 times in 5 years and requested parts for new guns. They always offer to make the repair and agree to send me what ever I need to DIY the job. I have spoke with service techs and amazed at the lack of knowledge. I would not trust those clowns to fix my gun. Excellent CS support on the phone with parts does not equate to good repair work.

[stagpanther]

I've had many guns from many manufacturers that had "issues"--usually I worked my way through them but had to return a few. My luck is usually worse than average shooters with these things. All that said, of all the many ruger pistols, revolvers and rifles I've bought they have all been "trouble free" though not necessarily the best shooting weapons in their class. But sometimes it takes a while for flaws to work their way out "in the wild."

Fourbore--they usually "firebox" their service contacts from the actual production facilities--so it may take a bit of extra effort to get through to an actual engineer--but that's hardly unique to Ruger among the "biggies."

[Apple a Day]

Sorry you've had issues with your PC-9. I've put 500 rounds through mine and the only real problem I've had was my fault because I put an aftermarket hammer on it. With OEM parts and Glock mags it gobbles ammo.
Hope they get you up and running soon

[Model12Win]

My new .45 Blackhawk has some blued-over mares near the water table. Thought about sending it back but hell, this is a workman's piece and I plan to run it hard and carry it for defense and exploring. With luck, it'll look way worse this time next year.

Still, Ruger has developed a bit of a reputation for having not quite as good a fit and finish these days. Hope they change that.

[Ricklin]

I too feel like Ruger is not the company they once were, the separation of their CS and their engineering is a symptom of a larger disease.

I have worked with smaller companies most of my life, mostly on the sales and management side. My mentor initially assigned me to tech support due to my prior experience, and the fact that my people built the stuff.

Hey it worked. Production people are not connected to the customer. Most people want to do good work. When they get quick feedback as to their errors the situation improves quickly.

Today I just sell and manage my own world. I do note that our tech support team is part of and in the same space with our engineering department. Again it's all about feedback, and connecting to the customer.

It is the customer that makes the world go round.

[stagpanther]

It is the customer that makes the world go round.

Sadly, I see a return to "anything goes to make a buck" mentality returning to many businesses in the US these days.

[TINCANBANDIT]

A couple of words of wisdom, take them or leave them as they are free

1. Never buy a gun the first year (or even second) that it comes out, let the mfg work out the bugs first

2. Buy from Davidson's or a dealer that does, they have a no questions asked lifetime warranty for the buyer (http://www.galleryofguns.com/about/terms.aspx)

3. Don't trust gun reviews, you rarely find honest ones as the reviewers are afraid that if they give a bad review, they will no longer be sent guns to review.

With that being said, I also find it hard to believe that Ruger provided you with two lemons....not questioning your honesty, but are we sure ammo isn't to blame?

[Metal god]

What magazines are you using , factory ? This sure sounds like a mag issue .

[Ricklin]

Corporations are not people.

Symptoms of a larger disease is what we are seeing with Ruger. A good many years ago I had the opportunity to continue making really serious money by giving up my independence and joining a corporation as an employee.

One of the primary reasons I did not? The corporate ethos was: Maximum profit for minimum outlay.
The code words that are used to justify less than honest behavior? The first priority is your fiduciary responsibility to the shareholders. You are only as good as the upcoming quarterly report.

I left the company. I'm likely not as wealthy as I would have been had I stayed. I do enjoy the pleasure of sleeping well.

[M4BGRINGO]

I had to send back a Ruger single action revolver twice, but it was a quick turn around and now works perfect. Out of the box the cylinder was mis-timed. I guess they don't fire a test round anymore.

I just bought a PC9. Put 200 rounds through it this past weekend. I used the Glock adapter and have 10 mags for it. There was at least one mag that would fall out if I didn't really slap that thing in HARD! I should have tossed it to the side so I knew which one it was.

I tried some custom loads in it, less powder and 115 grain bullets, using this gun for Knockdown Steel. Well, some of them did not eject correctly, had some double feeds. Luckily for me I brought "normal" factory ammo which worked perfect.

I checked the rear sight screw, even though I am not using it, and yeah, it was coming loose already. The one that lets you adjust for windage. The other one for elevation was fine, so were the front sight screws.

It is heavy for it's size, but compared to my Saiga-12, it is a flyweight!

[Model12Win]

The PC Carbine is a fantastic firearm. All reports (except yours) that I've read have been stellar. You got a lemon. Contact Ruger. They WILL make it right for you.

[DoctorXring]

I have a Ruger PC Carbine. I've got about 500 rounds through it with various brands and bullet weights and also handloads. Not one hiccup. None. With tuned handloads this carbine will group 5 shots in 1/2 inch at 50 yards. Brilliant design. High build quality.
I'm more impressed with this gun every time I take it out.

Sorry you've had trouble, but I feel strongly that your gun is an anomaly. I had a small problem with a Blackhawk revolver a few years ago. Fixed. No charge. And quick.

[keithdog]

I should update this I think.

Yes I do not know what was wrong. I feel it had to be me since everyone else has a had a great time with the PC Carbine. I really don't know. I followed the instructions for using it correctly and, as previously stated, have never had this problem with any of my other semi auto rifles. Ruger did make it right, though. They reimbursed me completely.

I was quite angry when I first posted this and I did have a very bad customer service experience at first. Since then I have had nothing but helpful charming people to deal with from Ruger and I am grateful to them.


My other Ruger guns have all performed flawlessly so long as I did my part (keeping them clean, of course, and NOT shooting Remington thunderbolt through my 10/22).


I used that reimbursement money to acquire the MBS95 bullpup stock for my hi point carbine. It's a fun and reliable weapon, if not terribly crude.

[9mm]

I own over 8 Rugers and never once had a problem other than long trigger pulls on the lc9 and lcp. IMO I never buy a new gun until its been on the market for 12-18 months so the bugs can be worked out.

[Sterling]

Ruger will make right. I beleive Ive spoken to that lady years back I purchased a new SR45 First shot at the range mag falls out. 2nd , 3rd you get the picture. Sent it in / returned to me fixed this time time the triger pins kept creeping out. Sent it back with a email stating I no longer wanted the gun as I did not feel safe with it for protection. And that I did not want a refund just a diffrent model of eqaul value. She calls me to explain she was on board however the only other fs 45acp pistol they had was their Newly arrived SR1911 worth almost 300$ more at the time than the model I returned. "How would you like a new SR1911 Sir" Me: uuuh yea shure send it at once. Coverd shiping and ffl transfer. Customer for life.....

[drobs]

Sounds like magazine issues. Should've tried some Glock Factory magazines.

Promag brand mags are garbage.

[tahunua001]

I had similar issues when returning a Ruger once. their CS was not that great, but after a while I eventually got through to one tech who was great and once they accepted the return they essentially rebuilt the entire firearm. I was not even the original owner and was up front about the fact that I suspected the previous owner had tampered with it. they gave me a free mag for the gun in question.

I have learned not to believe the reputation that companies earn regarding CS. one of the best CS experiences I've experienced while working with firearms warranty was with century arms who has one of the worst reps out there. then again I have also had pretty bad experience with century as well.

[pblanc]

As with most things in life, I think that the quality of customer service for gun companies depends on who you happen to speak to.

[44 AMP]

My personal opinion about rimless straight-case pistol cartridges in a rapid fire rifle is ummm...problematic from the get-go.

What do you consider "straight-case"? All the rimless pistol rounds I can think of have some degree of taper. Some more than others, but even the "straight" ones do have a small taper. The "straight" .30 Carbine and .45ACP (as well as the less straight 9mm Luger) have worked well in MILLIONS of carbines and SMGs, for longer than most of us have been alive...

The major issue I see with almost all pistol cartridge carbine designs is that they are built around the concept of magazine cross-compatibility with pistol sidearms--and so the carbine's manufacture is governed by making that receiver and feed work with what was intended for a pistol slide.

I won't disagree that building a rifle/carbine to function well with a pistol magazine is a tricksy task. But it is the design engineers responsibility to do it, and do it right to begin with. And its the production guys and QC's job to ensure that the design is made correctly. MOST of the time, the design is adequate and problems are due to construction flaws, but not always...

I'm old school about many things, my favorite PCC was my Thompson M1927A1. Despite its flaws, it was just FUN!! (IF you could LIFT IT!!!) Not built to take any pistol magazine, that one. (the Tommygun "pistol" does use the same mags, but the carbine came first, so the pistol uses carbine mags...)

My other PCC is a Calico, and its top mount helical 50/100rnd mags are so far outside the usual design it really doesn't fit the "pistol mag" discussion, though the carbine and the pistol do use the same magazines.

[hdwhit]

It is an axiom in marketing that "You become who you went into business to compete with." Ruger has, in my opinion, reached that point.