Posted: 11/8/2004 6:44:18 AM EDT
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I took the plunge Saturday at a local gun show. A friend/local dealer had a new P345 on his table and he made me a good deal on it. It was in his shop that I had first held one & "gotten the itch." I don't usually buy firearms that have just come onto the market. Usually I wait until there is plenty of word-of-mouth and, most times, until I've had a chance to shoot someone else's example of the gun in question. But I was very impressed with the P345's design & feel, so this time I am taking a chance and rolling the dice myself. This is the first Ruger semi-auto that doesn't feel like a brick in my hands - this coming from a guy who likes Glocks...  I have not had an opportunity to shoot it yet, but I have four days off in a row this weekend coming up & should have a chance then... I'll post more after I shoot it.  Anybody else here have one of these? Impressions/experiences? |
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I picked up one just as soon as they came available. I have a little over 2k thought it, equally divided between 230 gr ball and a variety of JHPs. Funtioning has been flawless and it's accurate, too. I picked up the P345PR because I purchased this to take over night stand duty from my CZ P-01. (My P-01 has become my carry gun.) Plus, I have already had 3 other polymer P-series Rugers with one being the .45 caliber P-97 and the .45 mags are the same. I've added a Streamlight M-6 unit that I originally bought for the CZ P-01. No issues with it, either. If the grip thickness of the polymer P-Series Rugers was something you didn't like, the 345 will be a nice change. Much better feel than the P95 and P97. -- Mike |
I don't have an M6, but I've already attached one of my M3s to it (I have a half-dozen M3s that do shared duty on many of my weapons that either have rails or to which I've attached Streamlight adapters). Now if we could only talk Ruger into making a .45ACP version of their nifty little PC Carbine that uses the P345 mags. Hmmmm... 
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I saw one in my local shop for $465 new in box. I was pretty tempted to get it but wanted to wait until I knew more about it. Most people seem to think Rugers in general are tough, reliable bricks but don't elicit the flames of desire the way HK's and Sigs do. I have never owned a Ruger before but it doesn't seem like you can go wrong with that price. I don't konw weather to go with this or some 1911 style piece. JMN |
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I finally took it out to my range yesterday & I generally like the way it shoots. It was very controllable. Not as much muzzle-flip as most of my .45s - about like my (larger) G21. It did consistently shoot about 2 inches below my point-of-aim at 25 yards, but once I adjusted for that I could hit very well with it from the bench at that range. Off-hand at 15 yards went very well. I shot 200 rounds of ball (Wally-World Winchester 100-round value packs) and 50 rounds of my .45 defensive ammo (185gr. +P Gold Dots) without any hiccups at all. My only concern/complaint was with one of the two (outwardly identical) supplied magazines. It fed/functioned fine, but I could only get 7 rounds into it. The 8th round simply would not go in. I loaded/used 8 rounds easily in the other mag. I don't know whether to bother contacting them & returning it for replacement or not. I plan to buy a couple more mags for it anyway, so I may not bother. (FWIW, CDNN has factory mags for the P345 at about 2/3 the cost from Ruger.) Overall, my first shooting impression of this pistol was very favorable. 
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| Have any of you P345 owners had a problem when inserting a magazine causes the open slide to close, chambering a round in the process? It doesn't do it every time, but it's a bit unnerving when it does! None of my other autos (Kimber, Springfield, Ruger, Colt) does it. Other than that, it shoots great! |
Not me, not yet - and I "slam 'em home" fairly solidly.  ETA: My AMT Longslide Hardballer used to do that sometimes back when it was box-stock, before all the custom work went into it. |
Just got mine yesterday. Only fired 50 rounds but did test it for the slide sitiuation you were referring to with no problems. I Did notice that the mag felt full at 7 bullets but figured it was just the tension of a new mag. Plus I was in a hurry to start shooting before it was to dark. I'll investigate in tonite and get back to you. |
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Just got home from the gun store and I was checking out this Ruger 345. I have a P97 but I was attracted with the slim grip of the 345 for carry. I think I'm going to buy one this week. Will do a little more research with this pistol and so far everything I read looks good. 556man |
| I was a LEO in the late 80s and was attending an F.B.I. (SWAT) tactical training class. The instructor demonstrated how to bypass the magazine disconnect on S&W autos of that era. He simply applied slight pressure on the trigger as he released the magazine. It sure enough worked as many of us tried it on our duty S&W autos. I don't know if this would apply to other makes of autos with this feature. |
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Hello, I new to ar15.com and this is my first post ever. My wife bought me the P345 a month (JUNE) after they hit the dealer shelves. I went to the gun shop looking to buy a deer rifle and ended coming home with the P345. I'm left handed and for the money this most comfortable .45 I have shot. With controlled slow fire from a rest I get about 2-3 inch groups at 25 yards. I've mostly used winchester white box 230 grains and federal amer. eagle 230 grains. I noticed though SXT 230grains shoot a little high to point of aim. I don't have the 7 round magazine problem or the slide closing when inserting a magazine quickly. I dislike magazine disconnects so I removed mine. Don't tell Ruger. However I noticed once I removed it and fired a round with the magazine out the empty case would either go back in the chamber or stove pipe. Occaisionally (twice) it would actually fully eject the case. It doesn't bother me though as long as it still goes bang. It's easy to remove the magazine dsiconnect. Just look at the parts diagram and take of the rear sight and remove the correct part. Thanks for reading |
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I got mine at Sportsman's Wherehouse for $399. They don't last very long in the store. I'm very pleased with this pistol, and at that cost, it won't tear my guts out if someone breaks into my truck and steals it. Actually, I am so fond of it that if they break into my truck and steal it I'll hunt them down and skin them alive if I have to cross the earth to do it. 
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