Finally managed to get out to the range today. It’s been…mmm…at least a few months since I last got to go shooting. What can i say, my time is not own these days. Too many obligations. But…managed to get out there anyway.
I’ve a stack of guns that need to be shot but I didnt want to spend the entire day out there. Plus, I didnt want a mountain of guns to clean. I just took the Ruger 9mm carbine and left it at that (mostly). I’d been excited about this gun since it was first announced and after finally getting to put a few rounds through it, I am quite pleased.
Accuracy as quite good. I was able to hit the paper-plate-sized steel plates at 100 yards with enough regularity to convince me it wasn’t just luck. Functioning was flawless and, to my surprise, the Korean Glock mag worked just fine. Only drawback is that this is a kinda heavy gun for its caliber and size but thats what you get from a straight blowback gun. If it had some sort of locking mechanism they could shave a couple pounds of it, but then you’re into more complexity.
The barrel mounted peep sight took some getting used to, but was effective and quick. A little red dot would be nice on this but I don’t need that much detail….I just need to be able to get minute-of-bad-guy out of it.
I had been looking for a backpack-friendly 9mm carbine for a long time and this thing seems to be just the ticket. Thus far, I am pleased. I need to try some hollowpoints and other odd shapes through it to confirm feeding reliability,but so far so good.
How does it stack up to the older, original Ruger PC? Seemed a little more barrel heavy. I need to shoot them both side by side and see what differences they exhibit. The older gun has a rear mounted peep and uses the usual Ruger proprietary scope rings…newer version has Pic rail. But, mot importantly, the new version can use Glock mags and that is a huge checkmark in the new gun’s favor.
I’m curious to see if Ruger comes out with a ‘pistol brace’ version, which I’d be extremely interested in. I suppose a .40 version is right around the corner but, honestly, isn’t .40 kinda starting to fade? One in .45 with a 1911 magazine adapter would make dinosaurs across America rejoice. My plans revolve around 9mm, so, for me, this gun is pretty good as-is.
Anyway, it shot well, no malfs, and plenty accurate for my intended purpose.
“…..I didnt want to spend the entire day out there.”
Are you mad, sir?
Reminds me of the guy that said “It takes me all night to do what I used to do….all night!”
Looks fun! Was thinking about getting my mother a 9mm carbine as she has carpal tunnel in her hands and at 75 the old 12 gauge is too much for her anymore. Not to mention it’s nice to read an article not about Covid-19/Corona Virus!
I’ve got a Sub-2000 in 9mm that I really like.
Gonna go look for a side by side comparison…
Could a person hunt deer with that carbine?
I would imagine you can hunt deer with any carbine. Or were asking if the 9mm was suitable for deer?
Guess which one I was asking.
At 50 or 60 yards, where most deer are taken, sure!
Incidentally I would wager if true numbers were known .22lr has killed more deer than any other caliber. However 10 yards with a spotlight or under the apple tree isn’t exactly hunting so much as poaching.
I am curious about the Ruger. I wonder how it compares to a M1 carbine. Would the 9mm be near equal or better than the 30 cal out at 100 yards? The fact the Ruger uses the Glock mags makes this hard to beat. The M1 owns the weight factor. I would love to see a side by side eval. Anyone have a Auto ordinance or original to lend to Zero to test? I recall he sent Tam a pistol to test. Anyone?
This takes all of about three minutes of Google to answer:
110 gr @1990 fps vs. 115 gr at 1300 fps
967 ft/lbs vs 432 ft/lb
Advantage: 30 Carbine
But theres more to this game than just math. Logistics of magazines, ammo availability, etc. come into play and that might change one’s thinking.
The 357 Mag. out of a carbine is a closer approximation to .30 Carbine
Z, if I may ask, which rifle range do you recommend in Missoula? After I get the house organized I’d like to get some overdue range time.
Deer Creek range. Don’t confuse it with Deep Creek range.
Commander, a .40 cal version has been out for at least 5-6 months, as I looked at both in a sporting goods store before buying a 9 last fall. I originally wanted a .40, but I reconsidered when I saw it was noticeably heavier. I am now waiting for a .45 version, for which I’d accept the extra weight.
If/when Ruger Inc. breaks suction, pulls its head out, and makes this for .45ACP and M1911 mags, I will buy 12 of them, on general principles.
The 9mm version is the current behind-the-door-gun.
The .45 version becomes the poor man’s Thompson.
And nothing in the past year has changed my initial impressions of the Ruger carbine:
https://raconteurreport.blogspot.com/2019/04/range-report-i-ruger-pc9-carbine.html
https://raconteurreport.blogspot.com/2019/04/range-report-ii-ruger-pc9-carbine.html
It’s an excellent little pistol-caliber carbine.
Mongo wants it in .45ACP.
Don’t fail me, Ruger.
And yes, the other mag well insert I want for that one is for G21 mags.
Based upon my success with the 9mm PC Carbine, a friend of mine recently picked up the .40S&W version. It had feeding and ejection problems with various Glock OEM and Magpul Glock mags and various bullet weights (all US commercially loaded), so it is currently back at Ruger.
Be forewarned that Ruger specifically states NO ALUMINUM cased ammo in the .40 version. There is no such statement for the 9mm version. My friend is extremely disappointed about that warning as he bought the carbine to use up a decent sized stash of .40S&W ammo that includes a lot of aluminum Blazer. If it was stated anywhere in the product description he would not have bought it. He already plans to dump it when he gets it back from Ruger.
I like Ruger too – got several flavors of their 10-22 among others – properly set up and with the BX25 mags they can almost qualify as a light fighter. I’m not a 9mm fan, never have been. I really hated having my trusty 1911 taken away back in the day and replaced with that d*mn Berreta. I’m still to this day a .45 and .40 guy. Look askance at my HiPoint .45 carbine with a laser and extended mag but I’d damn sure hate to be on the receiving end of it. It would be nice if Ruger did a .45 or .40 version. I’d take a serious look at that.
Regards
Ruger now has a take down stock for it, like the one for the 10/22 as does Magpul.
Ruger PC Carbine in .45 that takes Glock mags thank you very much. Got to be cheaper than a CMMG Banshee…
Although there was an article recently on a “telescoping brace” that fit through the pin holes on your 4th and 5th Gen Glocks… with optional front mag holder (not that you would grab an extended mag out front and use it as a hand hold… no no no) that looked promising. Thought it might look good on a G41 with an optic… and a threaded barrel… and…
What would be a better defensive gun, the Ruger PC-9 or an M-1 Carbine if they were both shooting Critical Defense ammo?
How does the type of ammo make any difference whatsoever? It would still be one bullet traveling several hundred feet per second faster than the other, right?
The M1 was designed for ball ammo, but I’ve had no problems shooting the Hornady Critical Defense ammo through mine. So I guess the question is: would .30 carbine a more effective round than 9mm shot from a PC?
Why wouldnt it be? Youre comparing apples to apples here…if regular ball shoots 600 fps faster in the .30 Carbine than the 9mm, doesnt it stand to reason that a magic bullet like the Critical Defense would also shoot 600 fps faster? And if so, what circumstance could possibly exists where the bullet travelling 600 fps slower is the better choice?
The circumstance where all your pistol mags and all your carbine mags were now completely interchangeable.
With the actual bullet performance penalty previously noted.
IMHO, this weapon, in .45ACP, in 1941, and the M1 carbine would likely be but a footnote to weapons trivia, rather than an example with millions of specimens, the performance upgrade of .30 Carbine notwithstanding.
The Army was looking for an upgrade to a pistol after all.
Although I own a PC-9 I’ve never seen any ballistic data for it. So the zombie hoard is coming up the driveway would you grab the PC or the 70 year old carbine (if you could only grab one)?
Guess.
Lately, I’ve become quite interested in 45 Super. With a fully supported chamber, a PC45 carbine could run 45 Super without worry.
The chart below shows some pretty impressive velocities being achieved with big, fat bullets.
http://www.ballisticsbytheinch.com/45super.html
Magazines with greater capacity are widely available (for now).
I’ve been disappointed in mine. It is fun like a grown up 10/22 but I have not found it reliable. Admittedly I assumed because it had a threaded barrel that it could be run with a suppressor. When trying this I would say I get a malfunction about 1 out of every 40-50 rounds which is obviously completely unacceptable if you were to consider this for self defense.
Yes I’ve tried to “break it in” (which isn’t a thing) but it still does it after about 800 rounds.
Yes I’ve inspected it, cleaned it, kept it lubed. Its just not a well built rifle and the huge weight penalty you pay for the “reliable” blowback operation isn’t delivering.
I’ll keep it as a range toy which I try to avoid but it might be something for my toddler to learn on one day…he’ll learn to clear malfunctions for sure!