I bought an LCP II w/ red Viridian laser last week at a great price from my LGS through Davidson's to replace the LCR I sold and was looking forward to trying it out today. I should have known that slicing my finger with the zipper on my range bag was foreshadowing of the not so fun range time I was about to have. After cleaning the cut out and kindly asking for a bandaid for the middle finger on my right hand, I was finally ready to shoot the new LCP II and get the laser sighted in too.

The first two mags went off without a hitch and showed some very promising accuracy with PPU 94gr FMJ. It was all downhill from there though. The next several mags I started getting at least one failure to fully extract leaving the empty case with the case rim angled to the right and the case mouth still in the chamber. This happened with three different magazines and the loaded magazines were also VERY difficult to seat requiring a smack or two on the basepad to get them to seat as I could not push them in with my thumb. Of course the magazines would go in easily if I pressed the mag release a little but you're not going to be thinking of having to do that in a hurry if you need to and it shouldn't be that way regardless. The weirdest malfunction of all though was on round #44 from a partially loaded mag to see if it would happen even with only a couple of rounds in the mag, the last round fired and ejected straight back as the slide locked back and wedged itself firmly at a perfect 45 degree angle in the barrel cutout of the slide as shown in the other pictures. I've been shooting my own pistols for over 25 years and other's pistol for even longer, as well as having seen and experienced a plethora of different odd malfunctions with my guns and others that happened to be at the range or shoot I was at, but I've never even heard of something like this ever happening. I mean what are the odds? I'm wondering if this was a sign that I should buy a lotto ticket?

Needless to say I was not very happy even though the pistol showed very good accuracy potential at 7 yards with the shots fired without so much as even turning on the laser, after 44 rounds fired I had had enough nonsense and even though I did managed to crack a smile and slowly shake my head at the last malfunction, Ruger was promptly called about the issue and the gun is already heading back to them for service.

Photos of what the FTEs looked like and the "one in a million" wedge of the century. In case anyone is wondering, the same ammo from the same case worked just fine in three other .380s I've shot it in before.

I would suspect the extractor has an issue. It looks very dry also, maybe clean, lube and try again.

Damn...

Had the same problem. The magazines are at fault. The lady at Ruger sent me a new mag but said to send the old one back to her when I received the new one. Mine only malfunctioned with the short mag. The long one worked fine. Usually happened on the third or forth round. Did not have to send in the gun. Ruger is aware of the problem. Jerked the case into and left the remainder in the chamber.

It is a shame they are having issues. The original LCP Custom I have runs like a top. They are great little guns for their size.

I did not do a detailed strip and clean before taking it to the range but it did have lube and I swabbed the chamber with a cotton swab. The thing about the fired cases is it almost seems like they are allowing a significant amount of blow by down the body of the case right from the first rounds. Something I've not seen in other guns I've used it in. The rounds are bright and shiny coming out of the ammo box. I completely agree about the extractor likely being the cause but I'm also thinking it may be something like an out of spec chamber that may be contributing to it as well. As for the magazines, I only sent the original magazine the gun came with, but looking at the mag catch through the grip, it looked like the mag catch was the problem due to what seems like it extending too far into the mag well (oversized part?). You could see where the mags were impacting the mag catch and then dragging on it when forced to seat. We'll see what Ruger says and does as I'll be able to test the other two mags in it when it comes back if they replace the mag (I marked it with a tiny mark).

On a positive note, this incident did make me check out the M&P Shield and Walther PPS M2 again before leaving the range / shop due to the current rebates. They wanted almost $100 more for the Shield than you could get it online for though! No thanks. Not giving you the rebate money and then some. They aren't my LGS/FFL of choice anyway. I did get home and place an order for a no safety 9mm Shield through Palmetto State Armory when I saw they were still available and for only $289.00 BEFORE the $75 rebate!

The PPS M2 is an absolute steal with Walthers rebate. I love mine.

I'm a Walther fan but the Shield triggers felt better to me. The trigger on the PPS M1 I had was better too. Again at least, the M2s I've handled. Too much creep for my taste and I also preferred the sights and cheaper mags of the Shield. Will go well with my M&P 2.0 9mm.

I just hope my LCP II issues get sorted out as it is a nice alternative to have available to carry or even as a backup. Otherwise it will sadly be the second Ruger pistol I will sell in a month. Maybe they will just offer me a replacement pistol. Staying hopeful for a good outcome.

My advice-buy a nice West German Sig-problem solved.

quote:

Originally posted by black1970:
My advice-buy a nice West German Sig-problem solved.

You're assuming I don't already own one....

Different guns for different purposes. I'll be keeping an eye out for SIG's version of an LCP II though.

quote:

Originally posted by Dtech:
...SIG's version of an LCP II though.

Consider the P238 HD.

You should be very satisfied with Ruger CS.
Had a problem with a SR1911, pistol was returned and problem was corrected.

Sorry to hear about the problems that you're having with the Ruger. I'd heard about these issues from customers; definitely not a good thing for a new gun design, especially one that is supplanting a well proven model (though the original LCP did have its own problem early on with its drop-fire recall).

As for the Shield and PPS M2: both guns can have triggers that are all over the place in terms of quality. The trigger on my M2 sucked right out of the box; subsequent ones that have come into inventory have been ranging from even worse to sublime, PPQ-like pulls. Another one of those strikers that comes with that horrible 'luck of the draw' syndrome. My advice: anyone considering a PPS M2 needs to try the trigger of the actual example that they're buying. Don't be like me and fall in love with the gun based on another sample that was sample or as in my case, shot previously.

The same can be said about the Shield, though the variability of trigger quality between guns seems to be narrower in range than with the M2. Most to me are genuinely 'MEH', usable but annoying that S&W still hasn't figured out how to make it consistently good, much like the earliest Shields were when the gun was first released. Once S&W ramped up and went into overload/overtime production when demand hit full bore, the trigger quality really suffered. However things do improve with shooting, at least that's what owners have been telling me. Lately the couple that I've shot (both with many rounds through them) have been quite serviceable; the resets were still vague in feedback but the grittiness that 1.0 M&Ps seem doomed to be burdened with was dampened significantly. Still 'meh' to me but now in lowercase, not full-on caps anymore. Apex parts would still be a nice improvement, but to me not a mandatory kind of upgrade. YMMV as always.

quote:

Originally posted by .38supersig:

quote:

Originally posted by Dtech:
...SIG's version of an LCP II though.

Consider the P238 HD.

I said SIG's version of an LCP II, not a Colt Mustang.


Had a P238 Sport for a while. A nice accurate pistol that I can recommend, but had to carry cocked and locked so different than my other carry guns...close but no cigar.

I purchased a LCP II when it first came out.

Admittedly, it's not been fired much (100 rounds), but has been 100%.

I also purchased 2 extra LCPII specific magazines.

Why,why, why Ruger did not make the II in stainless.

quote:

Originally posted by Sunset_Va:

Why,why, why Ruger did not make the II in stainless.

Glad to hear yours has worked well. I did make this exact comment to Ruger.

Well, the turn around time was absolutely amazing! Shipped it out last Friday, they received it on Tuesday, shipped it back to me Wednesday and I received it back today! Very happy with Ruger's service so far (as I have always been to date)! Granted I won't get a chance to try it out till tomorrow, but i can physically see the difference in what was done to the pistol and the parts replaced.

Per Ruger's notes:

Replaced extractor, extractor plunger, extractor spring, magazine spring, and the magazine latch.

Repaired barrel.

The extractor claw appears a little sharper than the one they replaced and you can definitely tell the difference in the magazine catch, how far it extends into the mag well, and that there is no exposed ledge were the magazine strikes before reaching the angled surface of the catch. It is one smooth angle right to the mag well inner surface. The barrel repair was them polishing the feed ramp.

Magazine now seat much more easily while still clicking firmly into the catch. You can tell their test firing was legitimate (58 rounds of three different ammo types) because the barrel hood has some wear that wasn't there before too. Looking forward to getting it to the range tomorrow to give it a thorough testing.

I have to once again mention that while some other companies have some really good customer service, in my experience none have been as consistently excellent as Ruger's over the years. Thanks Ruger!

I'm just glad they got to it before all the MK IV pistols start getting returned for the recall!

quote:

Originally posted by Dtech:
[QUOTE]Originally posted by Sunset_Va:

Why,why, why Ruger did not make the II in stainless.

I am just the opposite I detest stainless guns and wish some of the cool stuff smith and wesson introduces ( 9mm revolvers 10 shot model 17 8 shot moon clip 357's) why can't they produce them in blue!

How's it working now?