BOOM Edition 3 September 2016 Issue | Page 49

GUNS A slip grip. Changing the grip requires only a quarter turn of a retention screw with the aid of a supplied wrench. And the gun is equipped with a lanyard attachment point at the heel, something that is seeing a comeback on pistols. At the front of the grip frame where there is often nothing more than a dust cover to keep dirt out of the recoil spring assembly, Ruger put a Picatinny accessory rail for the attachment of a light or laser. For a gun that will be used for personal protection, those are good items to consider, since most deadly force confrontations occur in diminished light. And lasers are not gimmicks or toys they serve a very useful purpose when employed properly after competent training. Each American Pistol is supplied with two stainless steel nickel-Teflon plated magazines. The ones for the 9mm version hold 18 rounds, while the .45 ACP magazines hold 10. Diminished capacity 10-round 9mm magazines are available for those who live in jurisdictions where the right to use full capacity magazines has been restricted. Controls are simple and will be familiar to anyone with experience shooting striker-fired, semi-automatic polymer frame pistols. However, Ruger has made an improvement not found on all other pistols in the class. The magazine release and slide stop are both ambidextrous so that both right- and left-handed shooters are on equal footing with the pistol’s controls.While prominent and easy to activate, the slide stop is not obtrusive and does not interfere when the shooter racks the slide. The magazine release is located at the junction of the front strap and the trigger guard, the preferred location by most. It is a triangular button that is prominent enough to easily activate, but not enough so that it is prone to accidental activation during carry or shooting. Just to its rear is an irregular quadrilateral shaped bump to partially protect it from being accidentally pressed. Since the striker is partially cocked after the slide is racked, Ruger was able to develop a short take-up trigger. The one on the test gun did have a relatively short take-up and broke cleanly at just less than 7 pounds with almost no creep and no discernible overtravel. A right-angle ledge built into the rear of the trigger guard stops overtravel. For those readers interested, reset was distinct. Top End The slide is manufactured of stainless steel that has been finished in black Nitride because it creates a very hard surface and is extremely corrosion resistant. Instead of the square, blocky appearance of most semi-automatic pistol slides these days; this one has the square corners cut off so while not rounded it does have a more eye pleasing appearance. At the rear of the slide are serrations that do a good job of affording a solid purchase when racking the slide by hand. At the front of the slide is a slight bevel on each side near the muzzle that should help to guide the gun into the holster. Atop the slide, Ruger installs Genuine Novak LoMount Carry sights with the familiar three-dot configuration. The sights are extremely rugged, used by many manufacturers as original equipment, installed by many a