Ruger Lcrx 3 Inch 38 Special +p Review

Review: Ruger LCRx .38 Special

   03.xvi.15

There was a time when I was very much into revolvers, but those days accept long gone. Most of my handguns are semiautos at present. However, I withal have a soft spot for fiddling .38 Special revolvers for some reason. I used to carry piddling .38 Special snubbies when I did PI work and hugger-mugger work–carried 'em in an ankle holster. Ditto for time spent as a cop. It's nice to take a back-upwardly gun in that line of work.

I received the printing release from Ruger on their new LCRx iii″ barrel light-weight, .38 Special revolver, and I was determined to not like information technology just from the pic. Several years ago, I tested their LCR line-upward and liked it a lot. Even the .357 Mag LCR was fun to shoot–but not a total box of .357 Mag at a time; it really kicked. However, at that place was just "something" nigh this new LCRx with a 3″ barrel that didn't entreatment to me–until my local gun shop got one in. The street price on the LCRx is around $400, and when I picked it upward, it was dearest at first sight. I had to take one.

The LCR line-up is a rather unique revolver blueprint: role of it is fabricated out of polymer, function aluminum, function steel. I love the Hogue rubber grips on this gun; information technology gives a total grip, and the grips really tame recoil, not that there's all that much from a .38 Special to start with. There is a highly visible front sight with a white ramp, and the rear sight is fully adaptable for windage and peak. The cylinder holds 5 rounds of the hottest .38 Special +P ammo you can stoke in information technology. Ruger also claims you can replace the white forepart sight (it's a simple pinned in affair), only there is no mention on their website nigh obtaining dissimilar colored forepart sights for this gun. The entire gun is finished in a nice, matte blackness finish, very business-like. And, unlike the LCR guns, this LCRx has a hammer for cocking for single activeness shooting; the LCR guns are double-activity only.

The butt on this fiddling gun is stainless steel with the Aluminum shroud surrounding it. The gun's weight is listed at 15.70-oz empty. The postal scale at the gun store says it'due south expressionless-on at 16-oz–close enough! The cylinder is fabricated out of high forcefulness stainless steel and is fluted to reduce weight, and it has a Diamondblack finish to information technology, which is a an ion bail finish that is super-tough.

The trigger is smooth-faced, and I like that on almost revolvers; information technology makes for faster double-activity follow-up shots in my humble opinion. And this gun is rated for +P loads, too. Many small-scale revolvers will handle a limited amount of +P shooting, merely eventually they shoot loose and demand to be rebuilt. But in that location are no restrictions on this trivial Ruger on the corporeality of .38 Special +P can yous shoot through it. The gun came in a white box, and inside was the LCRx in a nice soft sided carrying case–prissy affect, Ruger!

The double action trigger pull was right almost 9 pounds, not likewise heavy, not besides light, but extremely smooth. Back in the day, a person would have paid at least a hundred bucks to accept a trigger pull this smooth and calorie-free on any revolver. The unmarried action trigger pull was a bit heavy in my humble opinion, but information technology had a very crisp let-off. This little gun really balances extremely well in the hand, and my married woman and both daughters really liked the way it felt in their hands, as well.

I received a Lease Arms Undercover .38 Special 2″ butt snubby as a gift not too long before this Ruger arrived, and I was anxious to compare the two. The Charter Arms also weighed in at 16-oz, but it felt a lot heavier than the Ruger did. Everyone else said the aforementioned thing–strange! While the trigger pull (double and single action) on the Charter Arms snubby was okay, information technology didn't compare to the trigger pull on the Ruger; Ruger had it beat all the mode around.

The Charter Arms has the Ruger beat for concealment; information technology will carry in an ankle holster, no problem. The 3″ barrel on the Ruger is just too long for ankle acquit. However, I run into this LCRx shinning every bit a trail gun for folks out hiking in the boonies. Loaded with the right ammo, it will handle many problems or chores that may ascend. The gun is then light-weight, y'all rapidly forget you are wearing information technology. I had to keep checking to make sure the gun was still in the Blackhawk belt slide holster I was carrying it in.

I only had a small selection of .38 Special ammo on-hand for testing in this Ruger. From Buffalo Bore Armament, I had their 110-gr +P Brnes TAC-XP all-copper hollow point ammo. I as well had their "Heavy" 125-gr +P Low Velocity JHP load, their Outdoorsman 158-gr +P difficult bandage load, and lastly, their Standard Pressure, lead-free 110-gr Barnes TAC-XP all-copper hollow point for testing. This last load was a real pussycat in the Ruger, very piffling recoil. The Outdoorsman load got my attention. So again, it is throwing that hard cast 158-gr bullet at over 1,200 FPS, which is right on the heels of many .357 Magazine loads. The Heavy +P load wasn't near as bad as I thought it would be, and the 110-gr Barnes +P load wasn't bad, either. This last load is the one I'd carry for self-defense on the mean streets if I were packing this gun for everyday cocky-defense apply.

Accuracy testing was done at 15-yards, and I used the trivial Charter Arms snubby side-by-side with the Ruger LCRx to see what they both would practice. The 158-gr Outdoorsman load from Buffalo Bore shot a bit higher than the other loads, which was to be expected, as the sights seems to exist zeroed from the factory for a 158-gr load. The other loads shot a footling bit lower, only non enough to brand me accommodate the rear sight. With the Lease Artillery, no sight adjustments are possible; the fixed rear sight is milled into the peak of the gun.

At 15-yards, I could easily keep all my shots under 2-inches with all loads, simply the Buffalo Diameter 110-gr +P Barnes gave me the best accuracy. At that place was non a lot of divergence between all the loads, just it shell out the residual e'er and then slightly. I fired single and double action with the Ruger, and the double activeness groups were a tad bigger than those fired single-activeness. The super-smooth double action trigger pull really helped go along those rounds going where they were meant to go.

Shooting the Charter Arms both double and single action surprised me in the accuracy department. In single activity, the Lease Artillery held its ain against the Ruger. It was extremely authentic. Withal, firing double action with the Lease Arms, information technology couldn't keep upwardly with the Ruger for accuracy. The double action trigger pull was gritty and heavy. Yet, for the intended purpose, this lilliputian Charter Arms would do the job. But for my money, the Ruger LCRx is a better gun all the way effectually. Even though Lease Arms says you lot can shoot +P ammo in their guns, they caution against information technology, whereas Ruger has no warnings about +P ammo in their gun.

One actually nice thing well-nigh .38 Special revolvers is the huge diverseness of ammo that is bachelor on the market–everything from FMJ to JHP to soft pb round nose rounds to hard bandage rounds, and from standard velocity to +P loads. You're certain to find something that will practice the job you want a .38 Special to exercise.

I detest to admit when I'one thousand incorrect, but I was certain wrong near this Ruger LCRx. From the press release I received in an electronic mail, I was determined to NOT like this gun, and then I didn't automatically request a sample. However, after handling one at my local gun shop, I immediately vicious in dearest with the petty gun. It just felt "right" in my hand, and everyone else who tried it said the same matter. What's not to like about a little .38 Special meaty revolver that would brand a dandy self-defense gun or a trail gun when you're out hiking or camping? And let'south non forget how light-weight this hummer is, too. This 1 is another home run for Ruger.

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Source: https://www.alloutdoor.com/2015/03/16/review-ruger-lcrx-38-special/