The slide is smooth-contoured to minimize wear on clothing when carried and features a large tactile cocking indicator in the center. The low-profile rear sight is click-screw adjustable for elevation and drift adjustable for windage.

Given the quality of all modern reputable-brand handgun manufacturers and the quality of all major-brand commercial ammunition, I have come to expect malfunction-free 5,000-round-plus performance from just about any gun I review. In fact, these days, I'm surprised and disappointed if I don't.

The Ruger SR9 did not surprise me. It digested all types of 9mm ammunition I fed it without mechanical malfunction or broken parts. Again, this was no surprise because Ruger had submitted individual prerelease SR9s to tens of thousands of rounds prior to signing off on the design.

However, I did encounter four ammunition failures to fire during the 5,000-round run. One came at round 1,257, one at round 2,864, one at round 3,675, and one at round 4,989. That last one really irritated me, coming only 11 rounds shy of the end. Each time, I ejected the magazine, extracted the failed round, noted that the primer showed a light indent, and set the round aside while I stripped and cleaned the gun, paying particular attention to the firing-pin channel. Then I put the failed round back on top of the magazine, loaded, and continued. Each time, the "failed" round fired on the first pull.

9mm Ruger SR9 25-yard Accuracy
FACTORY LOAD	VELOCITY (fps)	STANDARD DEVIATION (fps)	25-yard ACCURACY (in.)
Remington 88-gr. JHP	1478	19	4.00
Federal 115-gr. JHP	1025	9	3.13
Hornady 115-gr. FMJ	1177	15	3.50
Remington 115-gr. JHP	1138	16	2.85
Speer Blazer 115-gr. TMJ	1039	11	2.88
Winchester 115-gr. FMJ	01189	22	3.00
Winchester 115-gr. Silvertip	1238	17	2.83
Federal 124-gr. MCSWC	1092	6	2.75
Hornady 124-gr. HP\XTP	1016	11	2.88
Remington 124-gr. BJHP +P	1169	10	2.75
Speer 125-gr. Gold Dot	1145	8	2.50
Federal 135-gr. PD Hydra-Shok	1028	5	2.50
Black Hills 147-gr. FMJ/Subsonic	981	27	2.63
Winchester 147-gr. FMJ/Subsonic	986	7	2.25
Notes: Accuracy is the average of five, five-shot groups fired from a sandbag benchrest at 25 yards. Velocity is the average of 10 rounds measured 10 feet from the gun's muzzle

This tells me the failures were simple "crud duds" caused by accumulation of firing residue in the chamber or striker channel, which had the effect of slowing and/or cushioning the impact of the firing pin against the primer. It also validates the well-known reality that the vast majority of all pistol malfunctions are due to poor maintenance, not mechanical or ammunition failure, and that the vast majority of all so-called "dud" rounds indeed go bang when given a second chance.

The SR9’s magazine release, slide-lock lever (arrow), and manual safety are placed in conventional locations.

Once I properly cleaned the gun, the problem evaporated. Anyone who doesn't give their life-defense pistol a routine cleaning at least every several hundred rounds fired needs to rethink his maintenance policies.

New Era For Ruger
The world has been watching the Ruger organization very closely since Bill Ruger's health-driven retirement from direct management of his company in 2000. As is the case with any human entrepreneurial organization created and directed by a strong founder, Ruger's most critical test is to successfully survive the founder's passing.

As the first new Ruger product platform to emerge from the "post-Bill Ruger" era, the SR9 is a key indicator of the company's ongoing direction--both in terms of its quality and performance and in the new and different way Ruger brought it to market--representing an unprecedented coordination between the announcement of Ruger's new product introductions and the actual presentation of these new products for sale.