My DA/SA Traditional: Ruger P89

[jkurtz7]

I've been meaning to get a P89 for a number of years, but never seem to get around to it. I almost purchased a P90 in '03, but at the last minute a LE friend of mine convinced me that I needed a G23 instead (for a second time). I should have bought the P90, I ended up selling that G23 after only a few months and one box of ammo through it.

I did buy a stainless P97DC in '05, it was pretty accurate, and ate whatever I fed it, even steel cased Wolf. Mine didn't have the self removing slide stop issue, but did develop a trigger bar/sear issue. When the trigger was pulled DA, sometimes the hammer would not fall. I ended up selling it for that reason, and also due to the rising cost of .45acp ammo.

[DI1]

It has been a very long time since I have shot a P89 or P90. I remember that the trigger was horrible, the gun was inaccurate, and malfunctioned consistently. I would not own one today if someone gave it to me for free.

[DI1]

Not trying to be overly harsh, your gun may work fine.
Just my experience.

[JonInWA]

Absolutely no problem, Dl1-one of the great thing on the forum here is gathering a compendium of no-BS analysis and experiences. Ruger made significant improvements to the P85/P89 series' accuracy and triggerpull smoothness throughout the production cycle-and most of the improvements were instituted as running changes, with little to no announcement. I am surprised about the consistant malfunctions you experienced-that's a bit unusual, but I certainly had issues with my P90 (purchased BNIB) also as I related in the thread earlier, but Ruger very expeditiously addressed them (as they did with the subsequent issues with my P944)-did you give Ruger a chance to address the issues with yours?

Best, Jon

[DI1]

Jon,
They were not my guns. I was on a pistol team and the guys that had P89's and P90's had lots of problems with the guns. The triggers were gritty and the guns could not get through 100 rnds of factory ammo without a malfunction.

This was back in early 90's.

[Croesus]

Sorry for the necro-post, but I just stumbled onto this thread.

I got to know and speak with Mike Smisko, the designer of the P-85/89/93, PC-9/40, about six years ago. I was writing a white paper for work about service weapon issues we were having, and solicited his input as an SME.

Long story short. The 9mm P series pistols (and the PC carbines) were very well engineered pieces of machinery. The design inspiration is more russian than german; fewer parts the better. Apparently Bill Ruger Sr. was adamant about simple, clean engineering -- requiring several redesigns to reduce part count. From Mr. Smisko's comments, and from my own experience, the 9mm P 89/93 are well executed and very reliable service pistols. The main components are engineered for a service life well past that of many other reputable manufacturers. I would not hesitate to trust one.

[LittleLebowski]

Sorry for the necro-post, but I just stumbled onto this thread.

I got to know and speak with Mike Smisko, the designer of the P-85/89/93, PC-9/40, about six years ago. I was writing a white paper for work about service weapon issues we were having, and solicited his input as an SME.

Long story short. The 9mm P series pistols (and the PC carbines) were very well engineered pieces of machinery. The design inspiration is more russian than german; fewer parts the better. Apparently Bill Ruger Sr. was adamant about simple, clean engineering -- requiring several redesigns to reduce part count. From Mr. Smisko's comments, and from my own experience, the 9mm P 89/93 are well executed and very reliable service pistols. The main components are engineered for a service life well past that of many other reputable manufacturers. I would not hesitate to trust one.

Wow, thanks for sharing that. Very interesting.

[JonInWA]

Mike Smisko's an old friend, both when he was at Ruger and since his retirement. While he's had a few health issues lately, he's very much still in the game. Mike's given me some great advise and insights over the years. He also continues to push me forward in my use of my P89-last month, I used it very successfully in our Washington State IDPA championship, where it performed superbly, and with zero bobbles of any sort (I on the other hand, had a great time-it was a great match-but I set absolutely no IDPA land-speed records of any sort..but I did have some "personal bests" that I'm pretty pleased with).

Here's an apres match image:




Best, Jon

[WilsonCombatRep]

Mike Smisko's an old friend, both when he was at Ruger and since his retirement. While he's had a few health issues lately, he's very much still in the game. Mike's given me some great advise and insights over the years. He also continues to push me forward in my use of my P89-last month, I used it very successfully in our Washington State IDPA championship, where it performed superbly, and with zero bobbles of any sort (I on the other hand, had a great time-it was a great match-but I set absolutely no IDPA land-speed records of any sort..but I did have some "personal bests" that I'm pretty pleased with).

Here's an apres match image:




Best, Jon

Unbreakable firing pin.

[JonInWA]

Unbreakable firing pin.

Meaning? (Unsure if your post is literal, allegorical, or sardonic...)

Best, Jon