I think I've finally narrowed down my next pistol to the M&P9C or the Ruger SR9C. I would love to hear from anyone that owns either or both of these guns. Thanks, Jim

Try them both; see which one you like better. The M&P 9C fits my hand, very well. The trigger is as smooth as butter.

Jim C, I have a 9c it is a great pistol. With back straps in three different sizes you can find the one that is best for you hand. Mine shots very good and it did not have a stiff trigger. I have no trouble concealing it and it is not heavy. If you have a range where you could rent both and try them out that will also help. Good luck.

I had the same dilemma before I bought my M&P 9c. Shoot them both if have the chance, but the ergonomics on the S&W are amazing. I'm a bit biased, but I love that pistol.


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Have shot both: the MP9C has a great ergonomic grip and overall feel to it; the SR9C's trigger is great. Both are reliable weapons. As others have said, rent and shoot both to determine what's best for you.

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PC Shield 45
NRA Life Member

Let's assume they are equal in reliability and user interface (and they are not in my opinion), I'd take the M&P on market support and options alone. Way more stuff available for it out there, which correlates to better choices to fit your needs and better pricepoints in those choices.

Hold them both, shoot them both but in the end the M&P was designed for Military and Police and the rigors that come with it. The SR is Ruger's attempt to stay relevant outside of bug guns

You're not going wrong with either, really. But as recommended, check them both out, and if all else is equal, go with the M&P due to track record, accessories and reputation.

Oh come on! They gave it the M&P name for marketing purposes. What military uses the M&P? I've owned a few M&P's. Nice guns for sure. I have a ruger SR9 and I love it. Dead accurate for me. Has a safety and a mag safety that I like. Prominent loaded chamber indicator too.

Pick them both up and you will know which to get. The M&P is certainly not superior to the ruger.

As for aftermarket accessories, apart from magazines (ruger comes with 2 high quality Mec-gars) and holsters, what do you need? Night sights are available for them too

Hey, I owned a shield once. I now have a ruger lc9-s. BIG improvement over the old hammer fired lc9. I'm dead accurate with that too.

I know the name is marketing but they were made for the military trials. So there was some standards that had to be met. It had to go through a torture test. The Ruger?

I'm talking number of choices, not whether things exist. Similarly, there are many things people change to make a gun fit their personal tastes...trigger kits, barrel and caliber swaps, supressor hosting etc. Comparing the availability on those things is night and day.

I have a SR9 and a SR45. Outstanding pistols. I carry a Shield and love it. I've shot hundreds of rounds through various M&P's and again, outstanding pistols. As most have said, try both and decide for yourself. Don't let brand loyalty of some of responses here sway you. I'm a S&W fan but the Ruger SR's don't give up anything to the M&P's. Customer service of both companies is stellar.

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NRA Certified Instructor-RSO

Those are things that members of a gun forum might care about. And I know I don't. In 25 years of owning and shooting guns, I have never replaced a barrel or a trigger kit. I don't buy a new gun to spend another couple hundred. The M&P is a great gun. If s&w offered a model with the mag safety and manual safety on the same gun I would have considered it. For me, the ruger had the features I wanted. And shredding the center of a target at 20 yards wasn't bad either!

As others have said, go shoot them both.

I also have a FS M&P9. Knowing I could use my FS mags in the 9C made the choice easier.

The M&P feels great in the hand.
Then again, so does the SR9.
Plus, the SR9 has a better trigger.
I looked at M&P, SR9, XD, and even (gulp) Glock.
All felt better than Glock and had better triggers.
XD had the best and shortest trigger pull.
SR9 felt as good in my hand as M&P.

I also like the fact that it has a reversible backstrap, instead of 3 separate backstraps to try not to lose.

The fact that it has been very accurate and perfectly reliable is just icing on the cake.

As far as aftermarket mall ninja goodies go, I don't need them. It works perfectly as-is.
If I want a light or laser, it has a rail.
If I want night sights, I can buy them.
Threaded barrel for a suppressor? Won't fit in a concealment holster with a can attached.
Plus, I'm not interested in getting a can, unless NFA rules go the way of the dodo.

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What would Jim Cirillo do?

I have a shield and Ruger sr9c. The Ruger is a great pistol. The trigger is extremely nice and mine has been 100% reliable for over 1000 rounds of all sorts of ammo. Its built like a tank which is typical of Ruger. The S&W is a wee bit lighter. Around here an SR9c can be had for $100-150 less than the M&P.

I prefer the M&P 9C, based on looks and ergos. That being said, the SR9C has one of the best out of the box triggers in the game. One of my friends has the SR9C and he hates the M&P. In MA we get a 10 pound trigger, so a trigger job in the M&P is a must. Whenever someone asks me this same question, I tell them to check out the Ruger.

If you can check them both out and are still undecided, then the S&W warranty will be the deciding factor. Read the Ruger manual, Ruger has no warranty! They express that in their gun manuals which states:

" Strum, Ruger & Company, Inc. has elected not to provide any written warranty, either "limited" or "full".

However Ruger will normally warranty their guns for around 2 years. After that your on your own.

S&W offers a lifetime warranty to the original purchaser. Search this Forum for "warranty", and you will see that S&W stands behind their guns, unlike Ruger. I own a Ruger LC9 that is 3 1/2 years old and I no longer have any warranty through Ruger. I bought my gun through a dealer that uses Davidson's Lifetime Replacement Warranty, so if I need warranty hopefully Davidson's will replace or repair the gun.

Bob

Guess you didn't read the thread about S&W no longer honoring warranty on 3rd gen's?

Ruger has no written warranty, but they have a long tradition of standing behind their product. A thread on another forum was about a guy who bought a security six that needed work. Ruger no longer supports them so they sold him a new GP shipped for like 325 bucks.

I own an SR9c. Fantastic gun overall. The trigger is about as good as you can get. I didnt care for the mag disconnect, so I removed it. Very simple task. Not crazy about the loaded chamber indicator either, but again, a simple fix. I removed and shortened the height which it sticks up.
Lets face it, just about everyone on the forum tweaks their guns. Whether its a trigger job, changing of springs, etc. We taylor our guns to where we want them.
I have a 9mm Shield also. The trigger definitely could use some work. While I really like the gun, I'll probably install the apex kit.

Weird. Thought this was a gun forum. It's great that you've never done any of that in 25 years, but I guess I don't assume that no one else does when they ask a question like this.

It is very easy to give a completely subjective answer, like it feels great in the hand, sweet shooter, etc. Does that really mean anything to anyone else? Totally dependent on the person.

Just like holster choice. Where do you carry? OWB, IWB, AIWB, cross draw, small of the back, shoulder rig, etc. So more options is bad?

Holster choices, barrels to have multiple calibers in one gun, threaded barrels for suppressors (didn't say it had to be carried, but my neighbors appreciate quiet practice in the back forty) plethora of sighting options...that's Mall Ninja?

Umm. Ok.

Just giving information that others left out of their replies incase he wanted more info. Sheesh. Both guns are good. Buy whatever you want.

I would determine what your next semi auto purchase would be and then stick with that brand especially if mags are interchangeable.

For me it would come down to customer support.

S&W has always treated me perfectly.

Ruger on the other hand...well....Let's just say I'll never buy another ruger gun as long as I live.

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The Lifetime Service Policy applies to all guns manufactured after 1989. Sure some older models produced prior to that may not have had the lifetime warranty. But lifetime means lifetime on all guns produced since 1989, and S&W has put that in writing. All M&Ps would fall under the lifetime warranty. Find that kind of warranty for a Ruger gun. You won't find it because they don't have a written warranty. I know several people that had 3 & 4 year old Rugers, and they were told that the gun could not be repaired under warranty, but the owner would have to pay for shipping the gun back to Ruger and pay for the parts and labor. They had their guns repaired by a local gun shop. So please don't tell me how good Ruger's warranty is. Since Ruger does not offer a written warranty, you are always at risk of their decision to not warranty a defective gun. Not so with S&W and S&W doesn't force you to prove you are the original purchaser, under their lifetime warranty policy, although they could. If it was my business I would require proof of original purchase, but with scanners and photo editing, someone could easily doctor up a phony purchase receipt. Maybe it makes sense for S&W to just fix the problems and not mess with giving bad customer service.

Bob

They're no longer producing 3rd gen parts. So if the extractor on your 4506 goes, and they don't have anymore of them, then you are out of luck.

Yes, this is a gun forum. A small percentage of gun owners even bother to join one. And of that small percentage, several people on this thread alone have commented that aftermarket barrels and APEX triggers aren't even on our radar. So no, options are never a bad thing, it's just that the option they offer are only sought after by a minority of those who buy the guns.

I'm not new to this game, and I chose the Ruger. I'm not going to argue about it, though - you should get whichever you'd prefer after you do your own due diligence.



Ruger customer service sent me a replacement backstrap pin within days when I lost the first one (because I'm an idiot) - and they wouldn't take payment.



I've had other experiences with both Ruger and S&W customer service, and I found them both to be perfectly fine.

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Now go make God proud...

Yep. The lc9-s has a new recoil rod. Not mandatory to replace them, but I called and asked if they send me a new one last Tuesday. Rod was in my hands in thursday.

Sounds like several people have an issue with their Rutgers not getting enough love. And the mall ninja comment was hilarious. Sounds like someone resorting to that kind of name calling to make them feel better about their purchase. So having choices for aftermarket night sights, barrels, optics, grips, holsters, magazines, etc and wanting some of those items makes someone a mall ninja? Please tell me more.

Not at all. I love my SR9.
My purchase of it needs no justification.
It has a factory trigger pull that is superior to the M&P and Glock.
It is accurate.
It has been 100% reliable.
It fits my hand as well as any bottom feeder.

I'm sorry you took offense to my apathy about the lack of mall ninja doodads for the Ruger.
Night sights are available for the SR9.
Holsters are available for the SR9.
The SR9 has a rail if I wish to add laser and/or light.
I had a laser on it for a while and took it off.
17 round mags are available for it.
I'm perfectly happy with 17 round mags for it. I have 5 mags for it.
I have a holster for it and am looking at getting a Mitch Rosen holster for it.

Well, yeah, if you want to throw a bunch of tacticool junk on a gun, you are most likely a mall ninja.

As far as threaded barrels go, if I need to do some quiet pest-critter killing, I have much better options than a 9mm pistol.

If I need more than 17 rounds in a single mag, I have better options available than a 9mm pistol.
If I need more than 17 rounds in a 9mm pistol mag, I have two 3rd gen Smiths that I can use with 20 round mags.
However, I don't like mags that overhang the frame (on a pistol)

And, ya know what else? It doesn't bother me that rice-burner fart-can mufflers aren't available for my old truck. Just like the SR9, it does everything I need it to do without add-on doodads.

BTW, I did not resort to name calling, as you accused me of having done.
I never said anyone here was a mall ninja.
The mall ninjas know who they are. I don't have to point it out to them.
They may be in denial about it, but they know who they are.

Honestly, I don't care if anyone else likes my SR9, or not.
I didn't buy it to impress my friends. I bought it because I like it.
It works well for me.
Buy what you want. I'll do the same.

Have a nice evening. I've got some "TWD" to catch up on.

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What would Jim Cirillo do?

I've had them both... at the moment, I only have one: SR40c. OK so it's the .40, but obviously similar.

I'm not going to get too in depth because honestly, I was happy with both but settled on the Ruger.

I've only had one issue requiring costumer service, and Ruger did great. They got my part to me in less than a week, no charge. It was the striker cover, and was broken by my carelessness.

It should come down to how they feel to you and how you handle each. Best of luck!

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- The Federalist #46 -

I'm just going to give my generic response.
Buy both and keep the one you like best.

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What would Jim Cirillo do?

If they would make a version of the SR9c without that darn loaded chamber indicator, I would own one. Then new LC9s doesn't have the obnoxious one the first gen LC9's did, so maybe there is hope.

I have both the SR9c and the 9c. I shoot both well, and like both well. Both are great guns, I just enjoy shooting the 9c a little more.

I am partial to the Ruger (Own SR40C). I have never shot an M&P. And when asked about the M&P Shield by friends, I always tell them that's a good choice because it's a single stack 9/40. I do find the Ruger SR trigger perfect right out of box. I do get perplexed by all the Fan Forums saying you need to upgrade the M&P Trigger (Apex).

I thought I would update this thread. I did my due diligence and decided on the Ruger SR9C. I ordered it today. It will be here next week. Thanks for all the feedback on the two pistols.

Congrats Jim. You'll be quite happy with your choice. Of course you would have been happy with the M&P as well. I love having a decision where there is no wrong one.

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NRA Certified Instructor-RSO

Ruger makes nice guns. I have the SR9 and it was my primary carry weapon until I got the M&P 45. The Ruger SR9 is a well made, excellent gun. Extremely accurate and built like a tank. The SR9c is the same but with a shorter barrel.