Ruger RXM. 250 rounds. First impressions

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Dec 15, 2002
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As title says, 250 rounds downrange and some have expressed interest in how it is. First, these are my opinions and mine alone based on how I felt using it. Second, it's a Glock G19 clone so a lot of impressions are common with that and I'll try and spare a full comparison dissertation on the G19. That said, this WILL be a long read as I like to get detailed ad nauseum, so I apologize for that. If you tl;dr it, I understand.

As with all new firearms, I do a full disassembly, cleaning, and lubrication before going to the range. This gets me familiar with the inner workings and also to clean any excess lubrication or machining material from the firearm. It had none of either. The RXM is almost Identical to the G19, so complete disassembly is about the same. The main differences are it uses a large pin (take down pin) and locking block pin, that must be removed before the FCI (fire control insert) can be removed. This is a one piece affair that holds, the trigger, trigger bar, trigger housing, trigger spring, connector, ejector, locking block, and slide stop all together instead of separate pieces. It's also the part that is serialized and considered the "firearm". From what I can deduce, all but the entire rear trigger housing with associated parts can be removed from the insert. At least I don't know how as the insert seems to be folded around all of this. The other parts can be removed, including the locking block after the trigger pin is removed. All parts on the slide are exactly like the G19, and disassemble/reassemble as such. Re-lubed in all the typical areas (left factory lube on connector/trigger bar) and slid it all back together. Function checks just like the Glock and all checked out fine.

Dry firing the trigger felt great. Has the typical take-up feel, but not that little bit of mushiness the Glock trigger has right before the wall. Really linear pull with a distinct wall, then a very crisp break. Reset is a touch long on the release like the Glock, with a very similar tactile feel and audible click. Lyman guage has trigger pull out of the box at around 5lbs. consistently. Frame is Goldilocks textured, not too aggressive, not too smooth. Fits in my hand like a glove with the undercut trigger guard and extended beavertail. Fosters that good high grip and while I haven't ever been "bitten" by any Glock I've used, this one has a tad more insurance that it won't happen here either. Magazine release has a bit of a relief on the frame in front of and behind that makes it slightly easier to find and actuate, but it's not an earth shattering revolution. The Glock one does just fine as it has for eons. Frame has small, textured "gas pedal" pads on either side near the slide lock that are supposed to make a good finger purchase point for stability, but are way too forward for my short fingers to get to. There is a small ledge along the frame closer to the grip though, that allows the same kind of stabilizing affect for a thumb forward style grip. Has same rail/accessory attachment up front and will take just about anything that mounts this way. Machining and finish are exceptional for this price point, in some cases better than what it imitates. Especially the slide and other metal pieces. Just in the eye of the beholder type thing, and doesn't affect function one way or the other with either pistol. Frame finishing is typical Magpul and very nice.

I did mount a reflex optic and the system Ruger uses is very straight forward. It has all mounting holes for practically any optic already drilled/tapped and does not need any mounting plates or adaptors. One thing that must be observed is how long the mounting screw for the right side (looking from the top) is and if it will interfere with the function of the extractor rod. First attempt with mine using a Holosun 407 and the longer screws did cause interference on the extractor side. Other side was fine and there really isn't anything underneath to bind up on. Used the shorter supplied screw on the extractor side and all was good. Optic sits low and allows for co-witnessing the pistols excellent sights in the lower 1/4 of the reticle. The included sights are one of my favorite type set-ups: plain blade type rear with Novak style serrations and a square notch. Front is a square housed tritium vial up front. Both are metal. Simple, easy, fast acquisition. Always thought forward slide serrations were a little gimicky, until I mounted the optic and tried racking the slide in the usual way. Optic gets in the way in almost every manner I try when using the rear serrations except from directly behind using a pinch grip. Not so comfy for me, so I tried the front ones. Much better, and with a little more practice will become second nature just like "slingshotting" a Glock slide, just a slight distance more forward (duh).

Ok, to the range. First up were plain Jane Federal 115gr. FMJs. I did a 10 round break-in, then cleaned the barrel. Mostly due to land and groove rifling vs. the polygonal type. Extreme? Maybe. But in other firearms it makes a small difference and I'm just programmed to do it. Kinda like early "break-in" OCIs in my new cars that I do each time. Re-lubed and shot the remainder of the 50 round box. I thought the trigger was good dry-firing. Wow, with live fire it is one of the best triggers that comes on a pistol I've ever used. Again, travel is linear, take-up is definitive with no mush right to the wall, then the break is super crisp with no over-travel. Reset feels great, with that sharp tactile and audible "click" that allows for rapid, smooth follow-up pull to the wall and break again and again. No slop and very consistent. No need for any type of trigger mods on this one! Bonus that it's flat-faced one, and feels good on the finger. The trigger safety is very unobtrusive and disengages with no hang-ups or other rough feel. Not much muzzle rise with 115s, so follow-up shots come quick and on target. Didn't have to re-grip at all for each magazine's worth of rounds, just locked in my grip and go. 7 yards I was able to keep all shots within 1.5" groupings of five in a rapid fire rhythm. I used the "iron" sights for this round of 50 and they were spot-on. Time to sight in the optic. Co-witnessed showed the 2MOA dot pretty much right "on target" from the get go. Eventually did 1 click left to get my eyes and optic display to jive. I do both eyes open combat style shooting and since my left eye is now the dominant eye (ischemic stroke in right eye destroyed macula), and shooting right handed, it makes it rather mandatory to keep them both open for me to produce accurate POA/POI shots. Front slide serrations definately made it easy to rack the slide with the optic and used them most of the time. Finished range time at 10 and 15 yards with similar results using another 150 rounds of 115gr. Cleaned the barrel once again and then fed it a box of Winchester Ranger SXT 124gr. +P LE ammo, which is my 9mm defense carry round. Little more rise, little more recoil, little more violence. Pistol handled it all without any fuss or drama as expected. Recoil is more vertical than rearward like a bigger, heaver round like a 45ACP if that makes sense. Does not "flip" in the short 4" barrel with hot ammo like a .40 S&W does in the same sized G23, but does have more snap than the regular ole 115s. This is about the warmest round I'll put through it and I think it handles things just fine. No grip readjustments as before and texturing didn't beat up my hand at all. Very controllable and super smooth. I like it.

Took it home and stripped it all down again for a thorough cleaning and inspection. No signs of any unusual wear, but could start to see where the high pressure areas were and all are covered within standard lube points. Fire control insert went into the ultrasonic cleaner as a unit since it can't be taken down to individual parts as the Glock can. Otherwise, comes apart like the Glock, and dare say most of those parts are interchangable between the two. I won't be doing that though. Overall, it's a really nice pistol, even if it is a clone of another really nice pistol. Has some differences that I feel are improvements such as the trigger, optic mounting system, and the ability to make it into exactly the pistol you want using the FCI in a different frame. Of course you can do that with the Glock too, it's just a bit more money to get in the door. Do I think this will replace my Glocks? Hell no. But if you want a very nice shooting pistol, at a very good price, with some features that make it more "improved" and customizable, you can't go wrong if you get one. I know this was long, and hope I covered things that folks are interested in. If there is anything more specific, I'll be happy to try and address it, just don't ask me which between the RXM and a G19 is best. Not gonna start that battle 😁. Thanks for reading.
 
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According to Magpul, grip angle is 20.5 degrees. Glocks are right about 22 degrees. I personally noticed no difference in the way it handles, but did not shoot it back to back with a G19. While the RXM is a bit closer to a 1911 grip angle, it is still a little off and could probably be felt for someone that prefers the steeper angle.
 
My coworker picked his up last Wednesday so we went to go test it out. I'd say it's fairly even with a G19 but I like the grip and iron sights of the RXM just slightly more. For $400, IMO it's well worth it.

Nice review, appreciated. Did you notice a difference in the grip angle?

I noticed it. I don't like the angle of glock grips (even though I shoot better with them vs my very comfy 365XL) so the RXM felt a lot more natural to my body position.
 
Another aside about the grip/frame. Magpul has info on what they are planning to make in the near future for the RXM frames. They will be available in 4 colors, black, stealth gray, OD green, and FDE (flat dark earth). 3 sizes, mostly with grip length akin to a G17, or the G26 type lengths and the standard G19 one. They state no change to grip angle or texturing is being considered. All will come with the magazine release and spring, slide lock spring, and take down pin spring already installed. MSRP right now is $39.95 for the standard in black or gray. I'm sure the aftermarket will become flush with all kinds of variants pretty quickly.
 
Thanks for the incredible review @shortyb !

I am strongly considering this gun. Also looking at the SpringField XD line that was mentioned in another thread. Possibly selling the Taurus G3C.
 
Thanks for the incredible review @shortyb !

I am strongly considering this gun. Also looking at the SpringField XD line that was mentioned in another thread. Possibly selling the Taurus G3C.
Thanks! Glad you stuck around for a typically @shortyb long winded post 😁.

I think you will really like it if you go that route. I put another 250 rounds through it and it just keeps getting better. Not a single malfunction, fail to feed, fail to fire, nothing, in those first 500 rounds. Starting to wonder why I waited so long to put a RDS on a pistol.
 
Thanks for the thorough review. The RXM looks like an interesting piece, but I'm trying to convince myself it's any better than my Gen2 G19 I've had for 30 years. I suppose the ability to mount a light and an optic make it "better". I'll keep my eye out for a good used one.
 
In looking at Lenny McGill video on the Ruger Glock........a few thoughts

I kind of like the removable chassis. It would be a breeze to detail clean, and you can see in real time if there are issues with the FCG.......one thing that is hard to do sometimes when it is buried in the gun.

I could see a simple holding fixture to hold the FCG for fine tuning and inspection of operation.

Of course, Magpul will or if they are smart, come out with many "frames" for the setup, and since the FCG chassic is the gun.........no reason at all for there not to be a pistol caliber carbine "shell" for this system.........one Gun, several different setups.

I like it.
 
One last thing. Since this is a Glock Gen 3 copy.........of course the within the last few years, the patent on the Glock gen 3 ran out. Many makers were dripping from the mouth for this to happen, precisely for the reason of copying a great and most popular design.

That being said, there is nothing wrong with the factory recoil spring and guide rod. Nothing. If you are into "guccing" your gun, fine. But there is nearly always a tradeoff when swapping factory parts, with aftermarket parts that are compatible. I have never seen a Glock plastic guide rod fail, ever. I have seen countless aftermarket triggers and slides, in concert with factory parts in Glocks, that create failures.

So, in short, leave the gun alone, unless you are 100% certain the effect of the combination of parts will result in no adverse effects on reliability.

Stay away from KCI glock mags, especially for a Glock clone, with a modified grip angle. Stick with Glock factory....and a distant second Magpul, mags. It has to do with the grip angle and feed angle of the Glock in relation to the mag. Some aftermarket mags when used in a glock gen 3 clone will not function properly, nor will they hold the slide back on the last round, nor will they 100% feed the last round.

I have used several different aftermarket glock mags and found that sometimes, they will hold the slide open, on the second to last round.

Buy the gun, use the mags it comes with. If you go changing parts, and the gun fails to operate, it is not the "crappy" gun, it is operator error.

Spring rates if changed need to be changed proportionally. Meaning, if you decrease trigger weight, you also need to decrease recoil spring rate, which means that high power ammunition might not function properly. If you increase recoil spring rate, you also need to increase magazine spring weight, to maintain feeding speed.......especially in a gun that is capable of 1400 rpm........

thats all I got, not specific to just glocks but really any gun.
 
Stay away from KCI glock mags, especially for a Glock clone, with a modified grip angle. Stick with Glock factory....and a distant second Magpul, mags. It has to do with the grip angle and feed angle of the Glock in relation to the mag. Some aftermarket mags when used in a glock gen 3 clone will not function properly, nor will they hold the slide back on the last round, nor will they 100% feed the last round.

I have used several different aftermarket glock mags and found that sometimes, they will hold the slide open, on the second to last round.
You kinda went off on a glock rant there.. Which thread isnt about an actual glock.
So for this thread:
you dont want to use glock parts.
you actually want to use ruger/magpul mags. in. a. ruger. ;)
I also wouldnt try glock aftermarket or oem parts in it.
unless you like to experiment and tweak.

That being said glock mags mostly work.
 
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You kinda went off on a glock rant there.. Which thread isnt about an actual glock.
So for this thread:
you dont want to use glock parts.
you actually want to use ruger/magpul mags. in. a. ruger. ;)
I also wouldnt try glock aftermarket or oem parts in it.
unless you like to experiment and tweak.

That being said glock mags mostly work.
Yeah i did go off on a bit of an informative rant.

The McGill video, and the next one I watched was showing how factory glock parts will fit. "Fit" does not mean work nessessarily.......so to save some some heartache I figured I would give my opinion of Glock aftermarket compatibility in the past few years since everyone and their mother has started copying the Glock Gen3.
 
Sorry, I'm an unknowing heathen regarding such matters. I assume that any Glock patents have expired at this time, so it's fair game for companies like Ruger to openly copy the design? And from the reviews I've seen, the RXM is as good as the original, but cheaper?

I've been wanting a home defense firearm for some time, and this Ruger has jumped to the top of the list.
 
assume that any Glock patents have expired at this time
No, not the gen 4 and 5, just the Gen 3 and below

As far as the Ruger being as good as the OG Glock, time will tell. No one could make an assumption like that at this time, with any trtuh behind it.
 
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