My DA/SA Traditional: Ruger P89

[medic15al]

As far as the user is concerned it might as well be, but it actually pivots at the front of the button rather than pushing straight in like a mag release would.

Ah OK.

[JonInWA]

Absolutely correct, it's a push-and-pivot/push-and-rock back kinda thing. It's a very natural activation motion.

Best, Jon

[JAH 3rd]

Question. On my Ruger P 90 there is a scalloped area on the slide just above the extractor. Don't know if any of the other P-series has this scalloped out area. Just curious as to why it is there. My guess is that it has something to do with the ejected shell. Perhaps more clearance to aid positive ejection. Just curious if you have heard this area addressed in your discussions over the years.

[JonInWA]

Question. On my Ruger P 90 there is a scalloped area on the slide just above the extractor. Don't know if any of the other P-series has this scalloped out area. Just curious as to why it is there. My guess is that it has something to do with the ejected shell. Perhaps more clearance to aid positive ejection. Just curious if you have heard this area addressed in your discussions over the years.

Frankly, it's never come up at all. It looks like it's present on the P85, P89, P90 and presumably on the P91. I don't think it has anything to do with empty cartridge ejection; it may just be an area where Ruger felt they could lighten the slide a small bit, as it's an area where metal/weight/structural reeinforcement isn't required. Aesthetically, it's a nice touch as well, providing a curved surface instead of unbroken blockiness-but that's my opinion. It looks to me that the P-Series guns with grasping grooves in that location (P94, P95, etc.) don't have the scallop, but may have a slightly reduced metal area.

Best, Jon

[JAH 3rd]

Thanks Jon!

[Baldanders]

Back when I first saw a P89 in a gun shop my reaction was "that's the ugliest pistol I've ever seen!"

Which stikes me as bizarre now. It really only makes sense when you realize I was comparing it to SIGs, Berettas, and S&W 3rd gen pistols. The wondernine market had a lot of pretty guns.

Now the P89 strikes me as ruggedly handsome. Probably not in my future, but it would be on my short list of "likely guns I would direct a newb to in a pawn shop." Although I think most P89 buyers probably still own them.

It seems the P-series is securing a place and reputation in the used market much like the Security-Six has. Discontinued, not too expensive, and with a solid reputation for good performance.

ETA: that was probably a P85 that I first saw, but cosmetics didn't change much to the P89.

[john c]

How were the other models of the P-series compared to the P89? The subsequent P93 and P95 address some of the size issues of the P89.

[JonInWA]

The P93 and P94 were intended to be slightly product-improved variants of the P85/89/P91 in 9mm, and the .40 P94 (with a code of P944 an absolutely necessary product replacement for the .40 P91, which simply did not have the durability for sustained .40 use. At the end of the day, I preferred my product-improved 2007 vintage P89 to the P94/P944, but I'll freely admit that a lot of it was for aesthetic reasons; operationally the later gun was just fine (althought my particular P89 was significantly more accurate in my sample size of 2 P89s and 1 P944).

The original P944 in .40 had a swinging link; after several years that was eliminated and replaced with the camblock system, which was much more viable for .40. A camblock P944 can be easily identified from the exterior by a polymer filler piece on the left side.

I never had one, but I thought the P93 was a great compact P-Series. I had a P94; (a swinging link P944); it was ok, but nothing special, even after a custom action job and a nifty set of Letts laminate checkered grips; I hope whoever has it enjoys and appreciates it. There was also a P89M/P89M DAO, which was simply a P93/P93DAO specifically rebranded and rollmarked P89M for the Chicago PD, ostensibly to cover the fact or fool some that what was branded as a full-size Ruger was actually a compact one. Go figure. (and yes, I'm not pulling anyone's leg on this).

I prefer the sturdiness of the P89 to the P95, and I simply don't have any significant issues with carrying a P89 concealed, so my interest in acquiring a P95 was negligable. Later production ones have a revised, more rounded triggerguard and better frame stippling, so those would be the ones I'd recommend if you want to go the P95 route.

Otherwise, the P90 was, and is, a superb .45 ACP Ruger; I preferred t to the subsequent P97. The P90 had the swinging link, the P97 the camblock. Terre were some harmonic vibrations with some P97s causing firing vibrations to cause the slide stop to drift out in use; the fix was simply to switch to another slide stop, which usually fixed the problem. Both were very good guns I had a LEO P90m with a special black QPQ finish, Meprolight tritium sights and Ruger-branded Hogue rubber grips; it initially had some going into battery issues, which Ruger Customer Support immediately and definitively fixed. The P97 performed flawlessly, but was simply one of those vinally guns that ever captivated my interest, so after a year or so it was traded, for my Gen 3 Glock G21 as I recall. I should have kept the P90, though...

Best, Jon

[TheNewbie]

How easy was the decocker/safety to use on the P series?

[JonInWA]

How easy was the decocker/safety to use on the P series?

With the earlier P85 MkII, early P89s with the "nub" safety shelf, a bit of a challenge. Once Ruger switched to the larger shelved and better positioned/angled shelf, not a problem.

Best, Jon