The PC9 has some similarities to the 10/22 such as the trigger guard cross bolt safety and the bolt hold-open lever. Trigger pull is quite good with a pull weight of 4 lb. 6 oz. with a small amount of smooth takeup, minimal creep and overtravel. Both the bolt handle and the magazine release lever are easily reversible for right- or left-handed users. Length of pull can also be adjusted by removing or adding the provided spacers. In addition to the iron sights there is a Picatinny-style rail on the receiver for easy fitting of optical or red-dot sights.
Pistol Caliber Carbines
From an agnostic to a believer
Ruger’s PC Carbine in 9mm Luger is a great camp or home
defense gun. Dave’s is equipped here with a Streamlight
light/laser and a Magpul 21-shot magazine.
Pistol-caliber carbines is a firearm niche I’ve overlooked in the past. It always seemed to me if I could get the cartridge in a handgun there wasn’t much point to using it in a rifle. The only example I owned, long ago, was a Ruger .44 Magnum carbine. I liked its compact size and moderate weight. It was certainly more pleasant to shoot than my Ruger Super Blackhawk revolver but carbines for cartridges such as 9mm Luger, .40 S&W, .45 ACP didn’t interest me much.
The Ruger PC Carbine takes down in seconds and can be reassembled just as quickly.
An adjustment collar on the barrel assembly keeps things bank-vault-tight.
Well, I’m not too old and stubborn to learn. I tried a Rossi 92 carbine in .38 Special/.357 Magnum and liked it so much I eventually acquired several similar carbines from Henry, Marlin and Winchester. Here’s some of what I have learned about pistol-caliber carbines:
• They are great fun to shoot. It’s like plinking with .22s but on a bigger scale, plus if you are a reloader and buy cast bullets in bulk it is almost as inexpensive.
• Most people can shoot a carbine more accurately than they can a handgun.
• As range increases the advantage of carbine over handgun becomes more evident. I can hit an IPSC target at 100 yards, or a steel ram at 200 meters with a handgun, but I can do it faster and easier with a carbine.
• Longer barrels generally increase bullet velocity, flattening trajectory and reducing wind drift.
• Felt recoil is reduced substantially due both to firearm weight and the fact the carbine is held against the shoulder.
• The longer barrel reduces muzzle blast and the level of the report. Of course you must always use ear protection when shooting but there’s loud and then there’s really loud. Short barreled .357 and .44 Magnum revolvers, centerfire rifles with 16″ to 18″ barrels (especially under a roofed shooting point) can wear you out even when wearing both plugs and muffs.
For home defense you could do a lot worse than one of these little carbines. The late Jeff Cooper once referred to lever-action .357s as “Brooklyn Assault Rifles.” In locations with unduly restrictive firearms laws, these traditional-looking cowboy-era rifles tend to fly under the radar. My only concern is the lack of an accessory rail (though I know they are available on some models), the fact they take two hands to reload and the risk of jamming due to operator error under stress.
All of which made me take a second look at the pistol caliber carbine scene. I find the Ruger PC9 particularly appealing. I like the very fast takedown procedure. Taken down, it is easy to store in a pickup truck, UTV, canoe, boat, or small plane — if I had a small plane. Typical of Ruger it is built the way the Romans used to build bridges and offers remarkable value for the money. As a home defense carbine, or for camp security on fishing trips it is about ideal. My wife says, “Another ideal camp gun. What does that make, around 15?” I may have to come up with another reason for buying a new gun.
Winging it
Both front and rear sights are mounted on the barrel. The front sight is protected by vertical wings while the rear sight is a large aperture. I wasn’t sure how it would work being so far from the eye but in fact it worked very well. The forearm has an accessory rail to which I fitted a Streamlight light/laser. Personally I want an accessory rail on any firearm used for home defense whether it is a handgun, shotgun, or rifle. The PC9 barrel is heavily fluted to reduce weight with a twist in 9mm of 1:10. The muzzle is threaded to accept accessories with 1/2″ to 28 threads and has a protective cap.
The Ruger PC Carbine is fully ambidextrous with the provided extra magazine well assembly and can
feed on either Ruger or GLOCK magazines. The charging handle (below) is easy to swap from right
to left side while the push-button safety and bolt latch are accessible from either side.
Range Time
For accuracy testing I fitted a Leupold M8 3X scope I had on hand. Five-shot groups at 50 yards were typically around 2″ and so far the carbine has proven completely reliable.
The PC9 comes with one Ruger magazine. By removing the receiver and trigger group from the stock a provided extra mag well can be fitted to accept GLOCK magazines. The switch is simple and fast with Ruger even providing the necessary Allen wrenches. What I like and use are GLOCK magazines made by Magpul. My favorite is the 21-shot version, very well made, reliable, and its proportions just look right.
If like me you’ve not had much interest in pistol caliber carbines, it may be worthwhile to take a second look!
