Ruger’s P-Series: what’s wrong with Ruger’s P-Series semiauto pistols? Not a darn thing, says the author
I’ve always detested the word “change.” Usually when that little word pops up in conversation around my home, it means I’ve done something wrong once again and need to “change” my ways, or “change” this, or “change” that. Seldom is the word “change” associated with something good, happy, or fun. It has always been a despicable, worthless, and measly idiom that I refuse to acknowledge. Having said this, if someone will loan me a ladder, or give me a shove, I’ll get off my soapbox and tell you about the one and only time I can remember the word “change” correlating to something worthwhile.
New Service Pistol For The GI
The early 1980s was a time of drastic and inventive change in the hearts and minds of shooters and the gun industry as a whole. Uncle Sam was in the process of retiring the venerable and much hallowed 1911 service auto from regular active duty. Wailing, whimpering, and gut wrenching moans could be heard from coast to coast as the old warhorse was presented its gold watch and veteran shooters gave it one final salute. John Browning’s legacy could rest easy; it had paid its dues and deserved a little rest and relaxation.
Gun manufacturers from across the globe entered the race, grabbed their ponies, and jockeyed into position for first prize–the coveted contract to produce sidearms chambered in the popular 9mm Luger or Parabellum for the United Slates government. We all know who’s mustang finished first by a nose, but the real winner in this race, the ones who took home the blue ribbon, the gold medal, and found the Cracker Jacks prize diamond ring, was none other than you, me, and Sturm Ruger and Company.
The “wondernine” years, which stretched from the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s, was a lucrative period for handgun manufacturers. Anyone and everyone who marketed a high capacity semiauto pistol was almost assured of success. When Uncle Sam goes “new wave” and procures the latest blaster for his troops, you can bet the law enforcement community, as well as John Q. Public, is going to stand at attention, take notes, and get one for himself.
A Different Approach
Amidst all the hoopla that went along with the search for a new military handgun, Bill Ruger quietly went about his daily business, unnerved and unshaken by events unfolding around him. For several years he had been working on and designing his company’s first centerfire semi-automatic handgun. If he happened to complete his pet project in time to enter the shoving contest with the other big name gun manufacturers that would suit him just fine. On the other hand, he had no intention of unveiling his latest adventure in handgun design until he was satisfied his efforts had produced the perfect semiautomatic pistol.
Work on the project was completed in 1985, hence the sobriquet P-85, but as is often the case these days when new products are announced, shooters were not able to put their powder stained hands on one until two years later, in 1987. By this time Uncle Sam had already selected a replacement for the 1911-A1.
Sturm Ruger and Company built their reputation by supplying quality firearms to average shooters like you and me. Often its designs were offered at a fraction of the cost of similar quality arms, and they didn’t do it by relying on the whims and demands of a government spending barrels-full of tax dollars on every fancy that caught their eye.
Ruger’s organization was built on the simple principle that if be could produce the best product on the market for the least amount of money, we the consumer, would continue to buy his firearms. This business concept has made Sturm Ruger and friends king of the mountain and no one has yet to topple them from their peak.
Anxiously Waiting
For years Ruger had claimed the lion’s share of the law enforcement and civilian marketplace, a fact that made other manufactures turn green with envy. This was due in no small part to Ruger’s firm belief in customer satisfaction. In a span of time shorter than it takes to read this “article, law enforcement agencies from across the country began placing orders for the new P-85 9mm. Civilians practically stood in line for a chance to purchase one. At the time, I was still in the retail firearms business, and I vividly recall the frustration associated with customers waiting, sometimes weeks at a time, before being able to take one home.
Orders for the new auto poured in from a variety of governments and police agencies from around the globe, the Middle East, Central America (which has long relied on Ruger performance, Europe, Asia, and many others. One the first American police departments to adopt Ruger’s big 9mm was California’s very own San Diego Police Department.
Many of you are already aware of GUNS magazine’s sister publication, American Handgunner. What you may not be aware of is Roy Huntington, resident guru and editor of AH, spent more than two decades wearing the badge of a San Diego police officer. Roy informed me the other day that he was one of the first officers to carry the P-85 as his duty weapon. It came straight from the factory, Roy gobbled it up, and the rest is history. Roy described the Ruger P-85 as, “tank tough, solid performing, and utterly reliable.” Roy’s judgement of the P-85 mirrors that of many street soldiers who have had the pleasure of living with one day in and day out.