Ruger LCR Revolver tops S&W for shooting comfort and light trigger

Brought a new friend home today, a new-to-me gently used Ruger Light Compact Revolver, or LCR .38 Special+P revolver.

There's a reason the NRA gave the Ruger LCR its Golden Bullseye Award for 2010 as new revolver of the year to "honor excellence and innovation in firearms."

The 13.5 ounce, small frame, 5-shot Ruger LCR has three main components: a polymer fire control housing, an aircraft quality aluminum monolithic frame, and an extensively fluted stainless steel cylinder. The LCR’s lightweight, chemical-resistant polymer fire control housing contains the entire fire control mechanism and provides a reduction in perceived recoil. The fire control housing’s grip peg allows for a variety of grips to be installed, and the LCR’s standard Hogue® Tamer™ grip reduces perceived recoil even further. A joint effort with Hogue, the LCR’s standard grip was designed using US military anthropomorphic data on hand shape, so the LCR can be comfortably held by a broad spectrum of hand sizes. An available Crimson Trace® LaserGrip® model offers the advantages of a laser sighting system.

The LCR’s monolithic frame is an aerospace grade, 7000 series aluminum forging treated with a black synergistic hard coat that is applied after machining. Successfully tested with over 30 different aggressive chemicals, this synergistic hard coat exceeds mil-spec salt spray tests, and offers performance considerably greater than hard coat anodizing. The monolithic frame provides sturdy, rigid support for the cylinder and the barrel. The 1-7/8″ long barrel features a 1:16 twist.
The extensively fluted 400 series stainless steel cylinder is lightweight and compact. Treated to an advanced form of Ruger’s Target Grey® finish, this stainless steel cylinder is strong, durable and designed to handle .38 Special +P loads. The Ruger LCR’s patent pending cylinder front latching system uses titanium components, optimized spring tension, and enhanced lockup geometry to ensure that the LCR’s cylinder stays locked in place during firing.

The LCR’s double-action-only trigger pull is uniquely engineered to minimize friction between the fire control components. This friction-reducing cam fire control system results in a non-stacking, smooth trigger pull. This results in more controllable shooting, even among those with smaller hands or less grip strength who find traditional DAO triggers difficult to operate.

One of the perks of working at a gun shop is getting a shot at almost-new products after somebody buys one and then changes their mind. Thus I acquired my new-to-me LCR after waiting somewhat impatiently for the first used one to come in. I say impatiently, because I already got the chance to fire an LCR and knew exactly what I was getting and why I wanted one.

A customer bought the Ruger LCR Crimson Trace Lasergrip model and for some reason the lasersight was not properly set at the factory. So I volunteered for the job to take care of that, which took an entire box of Hornady Critical Defense .38 Special+P to get the job done right at the firing range.

It was a dirty job but somebody had to do it. And along the way I learned to love the LCR, even with .38 Special+P loads, which is something you really can't say about the former head of the class in lightweight snubby revolvers, the Smith & Wesson Airweights. After about five rounds of +P with an Airweight, you're either close to done for the day or wishing that you were.

And in addition to handling those hot .38+P loads with ease, the LCR also has a better double-action trigger than any S&W out of the box, unless it comes from the S&W Performance Center.

I'm a Smith & Wesson lover, but I gotta say, this LCR tops the Smith Airweights and I'm proud to own one. I could say the LCR is the most significant new development in revolvers since Mr. Smith met Mr. Wesson. But it's not really. It is a great new revolver and it's even about $50 cheaper than any of the new S&W Airweight revolvers. It really hasn't caught on big with our gun shop customers yet and the revolver buying public as a whole, but I predict it will soon. Better trigger and more comfortable shooting for practice and when it counts, what more could you ask from a lightweight compact revolver than the Ruger LCR?