Another New One from Ruger

[K-Texas]

The 5" Competition Model American Pistol. Pretty intriguing with its competition barrel rifled with a 1 in 16" twist vs the typical 1 in 10" that most use for 9mm including the standard and compact American pistols. Rated for full time use of +P and part of the reason for the slower twist barrel, to enhance accuracy with higher velocity loads.

My 124 gr. JHP handloads are definitely +P in terms of velocity, so that would be good for me. And some time in the future I may revisit very high velocity loads with the 115 gr. XTP. It would be interesting to see how ell one would do with my 1125 FPS JHP loads.

Gonna have to find one to try because I've never pulled the trigger on any Ruger American Pistol, although it gets good marks from many. The Americans were originally designed to compete in the Modular Service Pistol Trials. That never happened, but like the SIG P320, the internal chassis is the serialized part of the pistol. Remove the disassembly pin and all the internals come out with the chassis.

I was glad to see this introduction as well as the PC Charger Pistol from another thread here. Now if Ruger will introduce an American Pistol in 10mm, they might have a trifecta!

https://www.ruger.com/products/rugerAme ... /8672.html

[flechero]

I don't know what I expected, but I may have thrown up a little when I opened the link and saw it.

[K-Texas]

How so? Doesn't look any uglier than most poly-frame, striker pistols.

[Rafe]

Very nice MSRP price point considering the features. Might come in a little over $500 real retail. Like the pre-drilled and tapped slide for RDS mounting. Doesn't say anything about the trigger weight. I wonder if it's the same as the regular Ruger American. Like the sights. Ambi mag and slide release are a must, but both look pretty anemic to me for a pistol designed for competition. And I have to wonder if there's really much of a market for it right now as an entry level competition gun. With the angled porting I'd certainly never want to use it as a carry gun. The porting might also make it questionable as a nightstand gun, +P might give enough flash on both sides of the barrel to mess with your night vision.

[Tex1961]

I've owned a Ruger
LCP
LC9s
American 9mm
American 45

All have been sold... While they all work... there are much better options for the money...

[Jago668]

Reminds me of the Canik TP9SFX.

[K-Texas]

Very nice MSRP price point considering the features. Might come in a little over $500 real retail. Like the pre-drilled and tapped slide for RDS mounting. Doesn't say anything about the trigger weight. I wonder if it's the same as the regular Ruger American. Like the sights. Ambi mag and slide release are a must, but both look pretty anemic to me for a pistol designed for competition. And I have to wonder if there's really much of a market for it right now as an entry level competition gun. With the angled porting I'd certainly never want to use it as a carry gun. The porting might also make it questionable as a nightstand gun, +P might give enough flash on both sides of the barrel to mess with your night vision.

Thought it was very interesting that Ruger's MSRP is identical to the standard models. I am also curious about the triggers. I see 5.5# mentioned frequently for the standard models. Would be nice if the Competition Model was a # lower.

The 1 in 16" twist rate is unique for the category. IIRC, the G34 (9.84"), SA XDm 5.25, Canik TP9SFx etc., are all near 1 in 10". Most custom 1911s for 9mm Major are 1 in 16" while 124 gr. is the more common weight while some use 115 grs. Ruger is not advertising this pistol for 9mm Major competition, but you'd hardly need a 1 in 16" twist barrel for Minor PF loads.

It also looks like the dovetail for the adj. rear sight has the same cut as the standard models that come with the Novak's. Think it would convert fairly easy to a tacical pistol. There hasn't been much after-market support for the American Pistols, but if street price is the same as the standard models, that could change. Being that all of the internal parts are housed in the easily removable module, adding custom parts should be fairly simple.

I have had an opportunity to shoot the SIG P320 X5, and I can't say that I was impressed. My Canik TP9sa has a better trigger while the 5.2" TP9SFx usually comes in at around 3.5 - 4# on trigger weight. Just guessing at this point, but I expect the Ruger Competition model will run about the same price as the Canik TP9SFx.

[johncanfield]

I've owned a Ruger
LCP
LC9s
American 9mm
American 45

All have been sold... While they all work... there are much better options for the money...

My Ruger American bolt rifle in .270 Win is a really good long gun. My SR40 was rock solid. The magazine would fall out my brand new LC9s and they had to replace the frame, I never did trust it as my EDC so it lives in the safe. Not to beat up on Ruger I've also had problems with my Sig P239.

[K-Texas]

I've owned a Ruger
LCP
LC9s
American 9mm
American 45

All have been sold... While they all work... there are much better options for the money...

My Ruger American bolt rifle in .270 Win is a really good long gun. My SR40 was rock solid. The magazine would fall out my brand new LC9s and they had to replace the frame, I never did trust it as my EDC so it lives in the safe. Not to beat up on Ruger I've also had problems with my Sig P239.

As far as much better options for the money, I wonder what they are? About the only one's I'm aware of that are in the same price range are the Caniks, who people thumb their noses at because they're made in Turkey. Last time I checked, Turkey is still a member of NATO and provide the 2nd largest number of troops. All Canik Pistols along with the factory are NATO spec. The M&Ps are good but not special. The Shield might be better than an LC9, but they are not priced the same while Ruger also has the EC9 option at a lower price.

I've owned the SR9 & SR45 and both were great pistols. There trigger mechanisms were more Glock-like and easy to improve on with connectors made by Ghost. The American Pistol triggers are unique to themselves, and as easy as parts changeability would be, I expect someone will offer an option.

Don't know if the 1 in 16" twist means much to the non-handloader. And my +P type handloads are nowhere near as high in pressure as 9mm MAJOR, but if there is an accuracy benefit for those who load their own defense loads at higher velocity, it's certainly a worthwhile feature to me. And, with everyone hyping dot sights, the American Competition is made for the task.

[Tex1961]

I've owned a Ruger
LCP
LC9s
American 9mm
American 45

All have been sold... While they all work... there are much better options for the money...

My Ruger American bolt rifle in .270 Win is a really good long gun. My SR40 was rock solid. The magazine would fall out my brand new LC9s and they had to replace the frame, I never did trust it as my EDC so it lives in the safe. Not to beat up on Ruger I've also had problems with my Sig P239.

As far as much better options for the money, I wonder what they are? About the only one's I'm aware of that are in the same price range are the Caniks, who people thumb their noses at because they're made in Turkey. Last time I checked, Turkey is still a member of NATO and provide the 2nd largest number of troops. All Canik Pistols along with the factory are NATO spec. The M&Ps are good but not special. The Shield might be better than an LC9, but they are not priced the same while Ruger also has the EC9 option at a lower price.

I've owned the SR9 & SR45 and both were great pistols. There trigger mechanisms were more Glock-like and easy to improve on with connectors made by Ghost. The American Pistol triggers are unique to themselves, and as easy as parts changeability would be, I expect someone will offer an option.

Don't know if the 1 in 16" twist means much to the non-handloader. And my +P type handloads are nowhere near as high in pressure as 9mm MAJOR, but if there is an accuracy benefit for those who load their own defense loads at higher velocity, it's certainly a worthwhile feature to me. And, with everyone hyping dot sights, the American Competition is made for the task.

I own the Canik SF, SFX and Elite.

[K-Texas]

I've owned a Ruger
LCP
LC9s
American 9mm
American 45

All have been sold... While they all work... there are much better options for the money...

My Ruger American bolt rifle in .270 Win is a really good long gun. My SR40 was rock solid. The magazine would fall out my brand new LC9s and they had to replace the frame, I never did trust it as my EDC so it lives in the safe. Not to beat up on Ruger I've also had problems with my Sig P239.

As far as much better options for the money, I wonder what they are? About the only one's I'm aware of that are in the same price range are the Caniks, who people thumb their noses at because they're made in Turkey. Last time I checked, Turkey is still a member of NATO and provide the 2nd largest number of troops. All Canik Pistols along with the factory are NATO spec. The M&Ps are good but not special. The Shield might be better than an LC9, but they are not priced the same while Ruger also has the EC9 option at a lower price.

I've owned the SR9 & SR45 and both were great pistols. There trigger mechanisms were more Glock-like and easy to improve on with connectors made by Ghost. The American Pistol triggers are unique to themselves, and as easy as parts changeability would be, I expect someone will offer an option.

Don't know if the 1 in 16" twist means much to the non-handloader. And my +P type handloads are nowhere near as high in pressure as 9mm MAJOR, but if there is an accuracy benefit for those who load their own defense loads at higher velocity, it's certainly a worthwhile feature to me. And, with everyone hyping dot sights, the American Competition is made for the task.

I own the Canik SF, SFX and Elite.

For an optic ready competition pistol, I don't know how you could do better than the Canik TP9SFx. Doubtful anything else comes close to its trigger. But the barrel in the Ruger Comp with the 1 in 16" is gonna have me wondering. My high velocity 147 gr. JHP loads do just fine in 1 in 10" twist barrels, but my 124s run about 100 FPS faster. In fact, just last week I chrono the 124 gr. HST load I'd decided on at 1254 FPS from the 4.47" TP9sa.

Unfortunately, I don't know of any range within 100 miles that rents pistols. My Canik I bought sight unseen based on reviews. I'd likely have to do the same for the new Ruger.

[flechero]

How so? Doesn't look any uglier than most poly-frame, striker pistols.

It looks great ... on paper!

[C-dub]

Maybe I've just gotten too used to my .45 Glocks. A friend once told me it must be what looking down the flight deck of an aircraft carrier looks like. I thought that was pretty funny and since I worked on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier I thought about it a second or two and laughed in agreement. Must be why I like them.