Having felt the need, due to poor health, to carry a lighter EDC, I ordered an LCP in a Cerakote color scheme I liked.

Friday a friend took me to my LGS to pick it up, as I'm unable to drive now. I was feeling really terrible that day, breathing extremely poorly. I gave the little gun a quick visual inspection but failed to rack the slide.

Took it home, and couldn't rack the slide.

This wasn't a matter of hand strength--I've racked LCPs before with no problem. This slide will go back about half an inch, with a good deal of force applied, and stop cold.

The seller's policy is that since I accepted it, it's a used gun. The owner of the LGS is a master gunsmith but is clear across the city. I'm still dependent on others for transportation and taking it to him is complicated, but doable in time.

Has anyone else had this happen? Was the gun possibly assembled incorrectly? Guide rod adrift? Under the circumstances I'm reluctant to disassemble it myself if it needs to go back to Ruger.

I'd appreciate any guidance.

__________________
Oh well, what the hell.

I would say when you are able, take it back to the shop. Or, maybe somebody nearby could come over and take a look?
Hope you get on the mend real soon.

I had and carried the LCP (recently gave it to my son in law) and this is not normal. Given your limitations I'd call the owner of the LGS first and see if he can be of any assistance. If not, call Ruger and get it returned to them. I'm so sorry for your circumstance and hope you get things corrected and feel better soon.

__________________
Old Cop
LEO (Ret.)

Does it come back far enough to pop the takedown pin out?

__________________
“What you got, ain’t new.”

I have a Ruger Custom LCP with no problems. It has a good trigger and shoots well. I would return the pistol to Ruger.

My guess is that it is a recoil spring that is out pof tolerance. Or as OP said it might be a guide rod that is slightly misaligned. The LCP is not difficult to rack normally. When trying to find a 380 pocket pistol I had to carefully check racking resistance due to arthritis in my hands. I had no problem with the LCP but I ended up with the Remington 380 because it was better in that feature.

You ought to call Ruger and explain the problem. You might not be the only person with the problem. I have aRuger Lc9s and have found that Ruger customer service is really good.

I believe it was assembled incorrectly. It will need to go to a gunsmith or someone with strong hands (I use my Son-in-Law).

__________________
James L. "Jim" Rhiner

You didn't say if it is the LCP or an LCP II but I would pull the takedown pin. My LCP II is not available right now but I suspect the pin was not put in correctly. Go to YouTube for correct assembly procedures. They are really nice little guns.

It's an LCP. I wasn't looking for another striker-fired gun, and I liked the trigger pull of the original design--resembled the 640 I've carried for years.

__________________
Oh well, what the hell.

If you can pull the takedown pin out, you may be able to disassemble then reassemble it. It may just be the guide rod or the spring are in a little out of whack, and you could save yourself the hassle shipping it off.

__________________
“What you got, ain’t new.”

The LCPII is a hammer fired gun but it does have a shorter, crisper trigger system than the original LCP. If you really want a semi auto that is like a well tuned 640, test a Kahr PM9 or CM9. Slightly larger that a LCP but a whole lot smoother and 9mm to boot.

The LCP was also what I could just barely--not really--afford.

I'll have to think about whether to try to disassemble the gun, take it to my gunsmith, or just send it to Ruger.

__________________
Oh well, what the hell.

Please call Ruger before you evaluate and decide. They might have a simple answer you can do yourself. The problem has probably become known to them before this.

Ask a friend, who is in good health, to attempt to pull the slide to the rear. If your friend can do it then you need to find another carry piece.

I suggest a .22 magnum S&W ultra light revolver, if you are comfortable with the trigger.

Best of luck,

Rich

Thanks, but I don't think hand strength would explain why the slide, with very considerable application of force, will retract half an inch and then stop dead as if it had hit a wall.

I'm guessing it's a guide rod problem, or possibly a bad takedown pin; but Ruger thinks the gun should be returned to them for the problelm to be corrected or the pistol replaced. They are having UPS pick it up tomorrow.

__________________
Oh well, what the hell.

I think if the guide rod was not seated properly, when the slide would be pushed back the recoil spring could exert a upward pressure on the rear of the rod. That could put it on a slight angle but enough to stop the slide movement.

If racking the slide after removing the takedown pin has not been tried, it should be because once that pin is out there is a tiny bit of play between the slide and rails.

As I said above, it's going back to Ruger tomorrow. Boxed up and ready.

Their problem. I see no need to tinker with a brand new pistol.

__________________
Oh well, what the hell.

Ruger has the best warranty customer service of anyone. You will more than likely have it back in a weeks time and functioning correctly.

I've heard they are great. Thanks for confirming it.

__________________
Oh well, what the hell.

Ruger has always been great to me. Went in a few years ago (was in Prescott to visit family). Stopped by to see if they had a shop or something. They didn’t. Said I was interested in getting a new recoil spring for a used LCP I had purchased. Few moments later a tech came out with a new guide rod, springs, stickers and some catalogs. Free of charge.

Can't beat that kind of service.

The LCP is en route to Ruger.

__________________
Oh well, what the hell.