[deputy125]

OK
I know that from reading the early reports of the 345 that there was a few problems. The problems seem to have disappeared and the vast majority of 345 owners are very pleased with their guns.
reliability, accuracy, function---all praise.
The concept--excellent. A new ruger 345 that is light, thin, and on accounts great ergonomics. A pistol that can do dbl duty on patrol or ccw. And yes i could probably conceal it better than my p90.

The question that i have is this. So many threads about the 345 seem to constantly warn about dry-firing without a mag in place. Also read that ruger has now placed this same warning about dry-firing on their mags.

Just how fragile is the blasted mag disconnect to the weapon?
Are we talking about one, three, or ten snaps and you get damage? or is it 20 or a 100 snaps? I can see the trigger pulled a couple of times if one is not accustomed to the mag disconnect. Yes, i know, read and follow the instructions, but sometimes it happens. I can also see an improperly seated mag possibly causing the same problem during a rapid fire string possibly resulting in a "dry-fire". Over the years, inadvertant dry-fires could add up.(not a tremondous amount--just a few) Anybody got any thoughts or 1st hand experience about this?

 

[RNettles]

The magazine disconnect is a bad design... I have written many posts on the issue, here and on the "other" board. I bought a P345 a couple of months ago, with the magazine disconnect in tact... I have purposely dry fired once, to check that it, in fact, functions correctly. As of today I have not had a "click-no-bang"... I shoot this pistol a lot every week, just check my wallet. You can bet that if it does develop a problem, I will "clean" the rear sight, rendering my pistol functional with or without a magazine inserted.

I think the problem developes after many repeated dry firings, with no magazine inserted, battering/pinging the plunger so badly, it can no longer lift clear of the firing pin when the magazine is inserted, creating a "false magazine out" condition, and the dreaded "click-no-bang" syndrome. I don't feel that one or two will render it inoperable.

DISCLAIMER: This is my personal opinion and in no way reflects the opinion or opinions of the owner or owners of this board or company or companies I work for.

 

[deputy125]

Agree that it is a bad design. Wonder why they did not design it similar to the hi-power or the s&w designs for mag disconnects. Patent infringment?

 

[RNettles]

As a sidenote: If I get the night sights from Ruger for it, and have to remove the rear sight anyway... Well, suffice it to say, my new sight will be squeaky clean!

 

[deputy125]

Just read up on this issue elsewhere. Less than 12 snaps and you could get click-no-bang problems. Guess when i retire, should i get a p345, i will "clean" the sight then. Can't do that currently for liability reasons.

 

[sheepdog]

You're better armed with a P90---tried and proven and ultra-reliable...your life's worth more than a test gun that's prone to trouble from gun to gun...some have great performance, but many don't-if you need to conceal, the P97 is a bit smaller-not much...if I had to have one, I'd clean it thoroughly out of the box as RNettles has discussed...good info....

 

[rugerfan]

I just bought a P345 and want to know about the implied references to the disconnect referred to as "cleaning" the rear sight.

 

[RNettles]

http://www.rugerforum.net/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=227

 

[pafrank]

I could be wrong on this, but, I thought I would give my opinion on this. Though I am new to Rugers I noticed from reading posts here and elsewhere that the problem seems very limited. It seems the same problem was posted in a few different areas by the same people making it appear to be bigger than it is. I'm not implying that this was done intentionally, people belong to different forums. I also have a friend who knows one of the Ruger engineers, and I was told that any problems where in pre production samples and some early models. I also found out that they tested this model more than any other model they made. Including what I consider torture tests. (By the way I didn't find out about someone knowing an engineer until after I purchased my first Ruger, small world) After my experience, (please see my range report), and what I found out after I purchased this firearm, I can say that I trust this gun 100%. And I'm picky when it comes to firearms. In fact, I would have to say that this is probably one of the most under rated firearms out there. Thank-you, Frank.

 

[RNettles]

quote:Originally posted by pafrank

I could be wrong on this, but, I thought I would give my opinion on this. Though I am new to Rugers I noticed from reading posts here and elsewhere that the problem seems very limited. It seems the same problem was posted in a few different areas by the same people making it appear to be bigger than it is. I'm not implying that this was done intentionally, people belong to different forums. I also have a friend who knows one of the Ruger engineers, and I was told that any problems where in pre production samples and some early models. I also found out that they tested this model more than any other model they made. Including what I consider torture tests. (By the way I didn't find out about someone knowing an engineer until after I purchased my first Ruger, small world) After my experience, (please see my range report), and what I found out after I purchased this firearm, I can say that I trust this gun 100%. And I'm picky when it comes to firearms. In fact, I would have to say that this is probably one of the most under rated firearms out there. Thank-you, Frank.

I agree.

The problem was that the first year and a half of production, the pistols were sold to the public with a users manual that did NOT include the "dry-fire" warning on page 17, indicating they didn't "know" about the potential trouble with the design, and if completely tested before production, I am positive that the design flaw would have been an issue. Many pistols were damaged because of the fact that the users manual said it was "safe to dry-fire" and made no mention of the requirement that an empty magazine must be inserted to avoid damage... And to my limited knowledge, this is the only pistol on the market, that has that requirement.

Shame on Ruger for not finding this out before releasing this product to the public, and then just inserting a "blurb" in the book, instead of fixing the design.

My 2 cents... And by the way, I own a P345PR, with the magazine disconnect in tact, and functioning. It is now my CCW.

 

[deputy125]

By my way of thinking, if ruger is putting the warnings not to dry-fire without a mag in the book and then on the mags, then they are acknowledging that it is a problem.
Don't know how many posts i've seen on different forums, but it was enough to get my attention.

 

[sheepdog]

Idonwanna trust my life to a gun that's had lots of bad press when I can carry one that has had mostly great press...P90 or P97...I'm happy for the guys that have no trouble with a P345, but I won't be having one...and blue's my favorite color...and Braums' Cherries, Pecans, and Cream is the best ice cream...all opinions...and to each his own...nothing personal...

 

[Iowegan]

pafrank, Sorry to say, you got some bum information. Though Ruger has made a token change in the mag disconnect plunger/firing pin clearance, the real design problem still exists. Ruger didn't do a thing about the click - no bang syndrome for at lease 1 1/2 years after the gun went on the market. There are many thousands of P-345s floating around that are more vulnerable than the current models.

The current models will still fail, it may just take a few more dry fires. "Ruger tested this model more ..." I don't think so. I think Ruger was in such a hurry to get a California compliant gun on the market, they did very little testing.

I guess I have a narrow mind when it comes to gun designs. I believe if a gun was made to prevent firing without a magazine ... it should do just that without any strings attached. BTW, Ruger isn't the first gun to have a mag disconnect. My 1905 made German Luger has a mag disconnect and so do a host of other guns. Most pistols are made where the magazine disables the sear not block the firing pin. This is one of the poorest and most problematic designs I've seen ... ever. Though I don't have a problem with a pistol having a mag disconnect, with the P-345, there's only one real solution. Remove it before you get removed.

 

[pafrank]

This is why I love this forum. Though I have only been here a short time, I really love all of the information and knowledge here. My next question was probably covered, but since we are on the subject I'll ask: Do you think there would be any liability or legal issues if you ever had to defend yourself and you "cleaned" the rear sight? Thank you in advance, Frank.

 

[sheepdog]

Yes, there could...but you'd be there to fight them...not your family fighting them after you heard snap not bang then the BG's bang...there's a fine line between good common sense and the kind of fear that makes us sheep for the gov't and the evil element to push around-bottom line for me is my gun must work reliably every time...or why carry it? The lightning has flashed, the thunder rolled-and the one guy who knows his gun innards best has spoken-if I'd been real bad, and was punished by being stuck on a desert island with nothing but a P345-I'd clean that sucker as RNettles has described before I ate the first coconut...even if that island was on a lake in CA.....now that's pretty clear...methinks they moved our COFFEE POT out of engineering about two models too soon...they needed to keep that grey haired experience there...the younguns din't do so good!!!

 

[pafrank]

One more Question. How do I clean the sight? Thanks.

 

[sheepdog]

Either read RNettles' post above or you could take some Comet cleanser and a wire brush...

 

[pafrank]

Boy do I feel dumb!!! I should have noticed that, sorry about that sheepdog.[:I]

 

[sheepdog]

We don't do dumb 'round here...we have brain farts, we have senior moments...we have a touch of oldsheimer's...and we stand here a'waitin' for the short bus...but we're a family here...dumb don't live here...

 

[rman]

I keep hearing about P90's and P97's and how they are so much better than P345's. I sometimes wonder how many rounds everyone has shot through each and every model to make these comparisons. I owned a used P90, a NIB KP90D and a NIB KP97D. The P90 was 100% reliable, but not very accurate. The KP90D was very accurate, but didn't even feed hard ball well. Because of that, I never tried hollow points. (That was with all 3 factory magazines by the way.) My KP97D had the worst trigger of any Ruger P-Series I've ever owned. I sent it back to the factory and it came back improved, but still lousy. My KP345 is 100% reliable with hard ball, hollow points and lead semi-wadcutters. It is VERY accurate. Felt recoil is less than any other .45 I've owned and has a very nice single and double action trigger. Clean the damn sight and just shoot the thing for Christ's sake! Try one - you'll like it.