Just returned from the range and put Elsie Pea through her paces for the first time. First impression: it didn't live up to my expectations. For a gun as in-demand as the LCP, from a manufacturer with the reputation of Ruger, I was expecting something more. I shot a total of 85 rounds...35 95-Grain Magtech Jacketed Hollow Points; and 50 95-Grain Reloaded Full Metal Jacket. Before shooting the weapon the first time, I had field stripped the gun, cleaned it properly even thought it was brand new, and applied plenty of lube.
I didn't notice a marked difference between either of the loads. First 20 rounds out of the gun, while not accurate, fined great. However, round 24 failed to feed. A solid jam which couldn't be chambered even with some finesse, but also couldn't be ejected without first ejecting the magazine. I fired quite a few more rounds, and number 35 failed to feed in an identical manner. I then switched to the Full Metal Jacket ammo, and rounds 45, 53, 73 and 80 also failed to feed in the same manner as before. After 80 rounds, I field stripped and thoroughly cleaned the weapon, applied fresh lube, and put her to bed. However, the gentleman shooting in the next lane noticed that I had one of the coveted LCPs, and ooh'd and ahh'd over her. I told him I'd be happy to let him run a mag or two through her...so he loaded up 5 of the Magtech JHPs. I was thoroughly embarrassed when TWO rounds in a 5-round magazine failed to feed. This was immediately following a good cleaning and application of lube. It should be noted, however, that in all instances, the rounds which failed to fire were the third or fourth round in the magazine.
All rounds were fired at 7 yards. The first 20 were shot into a silhouette target, and only two missed the orange. The middle 40 rounds were shot into various smaller targets, and the final 25 were shot into an additional silhouette target. The weapon takes just a little bit of getting used to...it had a bit more recoil than I was expecting. After getting used to the weapon, though, I was able to fire the final 20 into the "orange", with all of them being shots which would have been effective in self-defense. The only complaint I had was an inability to group the rounds. Despite my best efforts, I simply couldn't put the rounds exactly where I wanted them. However, they were "close enough" for the weapon's intended use, that being self-defense. This obviously isn't a target shooter, but in my view, accurate enough to defend yourself. I will mention, too, though, that in my opinion, this would NOT be a comfortable weapon to put a couple hundred rounds through in one trip to the range.
Despite what I view as an unacceptable number of failures to feed, I never once experienced a failure to fire. As simply a self-defense weapon, and considering I carry it with one in the chamber, I'm reasonably confident in Elsie Pea's ability to get me out of a sticky self-defense situation. Am I annoyed by the failures to feed? Absolutely. But were they prevalent enough to cause me to not rely on Elsie to protect me and my family? No. She'll officially go on my ankle after today.
So, a bit of good, a bit of bad...my honest overall opinion: for a little bitty $300 gun, she ain't bad. I intend to make a detailed list of my "squawks" when I send her in for the recall, and I hope she'll get tweaked a little bit and come back better than ever. If not for the failures to feed, I'd dub her the perfect deep concealment pistol. As is, though, she's darn close to being the best in her class out of all the others I've fired.
I didn't notice a marked difference between either of the loads. First 20 rounds out of the gun, while not accurate, fined great. However, round 24 failed to feed. A solid jam which couldn't be chambered even with some finesse, but also couldn't be ejected without first ejecting the magazine. I fired quite a few more rounds, and number 35 failed to feed in an identical manner. I then switched to the Full Metal Jacket ammo, and rounds 45, 53, 73 and 80 also failed to feed in the same manner as before. After 80 rounds, I field stripped and thoroughly cleaned the weapon, applied fresh lube, and put her to bed. However, the gentleman shooting in the next lane noticed that I had one of the coveted LCPs, and ooh'd and ahh'd over her. I told him I'd be happy to let him run a mag or two through her...so he loaded up 5 of the Magtech JHPs. I was thoroughly embarrassed when TWO rounds in a 5-round magazine failed to feed. This was immediately following a good cleaning and application of lube. It should be noted, however, that in all instances, the rounds which failed to fire were the third or fourth round in the magazine.
All rounds were fired at 7 yards. The first 20 were shot into a silhouette target, and only two missed the orange. The middle 40 rounds were shot into various smaller targets, and the final 25 were shot into an additional silhouette target. The weapon takes just a little bit of getting used to...it had a bit more recoil than I was expecting. After getting used to the weapon, though, I was able to fire the final 20 into the "orange", with all of them being shots which would have been effective in self-defense. The only complaint I had was an inability to group the rounds. Despite my best efforts, I simply couldn't put the rounds exactly where I wanted them. However, they were "close enough" for the weapon's intended use, that being self-defense. This obviously isn't a target shooter, but in my view, accurate enough to defend yourself. I will mention, too, though, that in my opinion, this would NOT be a comfortable weapon to put a couple hundred rounds through in one trip to the range.
Despite what I view as an unacceptable number of failures to feed, I never once experienced a failure to fire. As simply a self-defense weapon, and considering I carry it with one in the chamber, I'm reasonably confident in Elsie Pea's ability to get me out of a sticky self-defense situation. Am I annoyed by the failures to feed? Absolutely. But were they prevalent enough to cause me to not rely on Elsie to protect me and my family? No. She'll officially go on my ankle after today.
So, a bit of good, a bit of bad...my honest overall opinion: for a little bitty $300 gun, she ain't bad. I intend to make a detailed list of my "squawks" when I send her in for the recall, and I hope she'll get tweaked a little bit and come back better than ever. If not for the failures to feed, I'd dub her the perfect deep concealment pistol. As is, though, she's darn close to being the best in her class out of all the others I've fired.
