Do you know what my favorite 9mm? It’s the HiPower. But I carry a Glock, and stockpile Glock handguns. Is the Glock my favorite? Nope, not even close. So, you might ask, why would I commit to the Glock platform when my favorite is the HiPower? Well, because what gun is my favorite has absolutely nothing to with what I think is the best gun for the ugly future.

I have a nice 6″ K-22 Smith and Wesson that is a lovely handgun. It is well made, accurate, and pleasant to shoot. It’s a classic in every sense of the word. BUT…in Mad Max world its got some drawbacks…it’s blued finish will wear and the exposed metal will suffer, some parts are a bit delicate for the apocalyptic lifestyle, the capacity of six rounds is a bit limiting, and the sights don’t give you many options. But, merciful Crom, it’s a fine, fine handgun.

So when it’s time to stow a .22 pistol in the backpack for that frantic evacuation to the beta site will the K-22 make the cut. Not if I’ve only got room for one. I’ll probably go with todays acquisition:

Stainless, replaceable front sight, built like a tank, and holds ten rounds….a 66% increase over the K-22. Is it as pretty? Does it handle as nicely in the hand? Nope. But I can drop it in the snow and mud, rinse it off in a creek, and be good to go. Technically, I could do that with the K22 but I’d fell pretty bad about it…its a nice pistol.

I’d been wanting a durable .22 revolver for field use for a while. Although I have a couple .22 Ruger autos, I still like the revolver for its utility…CB’s, shorts, longs, shot, etc….the revolver will shoot it all. Ten rounds puts it on the same level as the Mk IV in terms of capacity, and I don’t have to worry about magazines. On the other hand, when something goes wrong on a revolver youre pretty much stuck going to a gunsmith, whereas when something goes wrong on an auto its usually just a matter of swapping parts.

I’ll take this thing out this weekend and play with it. I rather enjoy shooting .22’s because I can actually shoot off a couple hundred rounds and not break the bank like I would with .223 or 9mm.

As for the utility of this thing….I doubt anyone could really swing a convincing argument that it’s not got a place in a survivalists armory. Plinking, pest control, small game hunting, sentry removal, etc….kind of a multitakser.

When Ruger came out with their new PC  takedown carbines in 9mm and .40 there was a clamor for one in .45 AARP.  Seems a reasonable dream…after all, there are still plenty of Luddites out there who wish they had a .45 carbine to go with their 1911’s. (There was, naturally, an equally clamorous din calling for a 10mm.)

The problem, it seems, is that the envelope of Ruger’s PC carbine in 9/40 can’t really accommodate the .45. But Ruger did have a platform that could – their LC carbine that was being sold in 5.7×28. By using the LC platform Ruger could do the whole rigamorole of M-lok, folding stock, pic rails, threaded barrels, and every other tacticool feature that was missing from the original Camp Carbine.

Since Ruger bought Marlin you could make an argument that this thing is the Marlin Camp Carbine 2.0. Obviously it isn’t…it’s a completely different style of gun although both are simply just blowback .45 cabines.

One huge evolutionary change was dispensing with 1911 magazine compatibility and going to Glock magazines. No doubt this absolutely enraged the 1911 devotees but if eight rounds of .45 is good then 13 must be gooder. One nice feature of the 9/40 PC Carbines was their interchangeable magazine wells. If Ruger had made this .45 carbine with an option to swap out the magazine well for one that could handle 1911 mags they really would have made a bunch of people happy.

Since Ruger owns Marlin I’m sure someone will ask why they just didn’t reintroduce the Camp Carbine. Well, I’m guessing that after thirty years the tooling and equipment was either long gone or not usable. And the Camp Carbine was not without its flaws…most notably a reputation for beating it’s stocks to death. Additionally, Ruger already had a product in the manufacturing pipeline with the LC carbine. Changing the barrel and a few other parts to make it in .45 was, no doubt, more economically viable.

So..I ordered one up. Mostly because I have several police trade-in glock 21s here and I’ve always liked the pistol/carbine combinations. I also have a .45 suppressor here and it seemed like a fun idea. 

I had high hopes for this gun because I actually really liked the camp carbines. This gun is…okay.

The Ruger stock is atrocious. After a few rounds it flexed and wobbled like the folder on an underfolder AK. Don’t even try to make it work…just throw it away. The back of the receiver is pic rail so you have all sorts of folder options. What kind? Glad you asked. Lets look at…stock options:

First up is a JMAC stock I pulled off my other JAKL. A simple no-frills stock, it has a couple QD sockets and is rock solid. All of these stocks, actually, were quite an improvement over the factory stock. This style gives the right hand thumb plenty of access to the safety and slide lock.

Next up is an AR-180-style stock. These were discontinued but were previously available from Midwest Industries and Brownells. When folded, the contour of the stock matches the contour of the right hand thumb as it grips the pistol grip. Surprisingly ergonomic. This stock is the most comfortable of the three and is still rock solid.

This is a triangle folder, also from JMAC, that I have come to regard as my ‘universal’ stock. This goes on the back of my JAKL, PC Charger, 10/22 Charger, etc. If youre gonna swap stocks between guns, this one goes with everything.

Although you can, in theory, fire the gun with the stock folded, it makes getting a grip around the left side of the pistol  grip difficult.

The safety flips in the right direction at least…down to fire. I am hoping an extended safety is soon available because the factory one is a bit awkward.

Ruger knockoffs of Magpul BUIS were provided but they seemed crowded and too small for a nice fast sight picture. In fact, while Magpul BUIS usually have a large peep and then a flip smaller peep, these sights just have a tiny peep which seems counter-intuitive considering the close-range nature of a .45 ACP carbine. Most people would, I think, agree that a carbine like this is a short range sort of thing so optics might be overkill. I think a set of peeps with a big aperture and post would be a winner.

How’d it shoot? Very well, actually. Accuracy was good although the sights were a bit coarse. The recoil was a bit harsh… straight blowback doesn’t do shootabilty any favors. No hiccups with 230 FMJ. I didn’t have any lighter bullets or hollowpoints to test on this trip, but that’ll be coming up.

Also, this is not a takedown gun…which was one of the major attractions of the Ruger 9/40. I suppose its possible that Ruger will make a takedown version but only time will tell.

Much like the original Camp Carbines there is the question of What Is This Thing Good For? It’s not really powerful enough for hunting*, it’s not accurate enough for varmint shooting, and the ammo is too expensive for plinking….so what is it for?

For me, it’s greatest utility is for a ‘package’ of guns/ammo for stashing somewhere. If I were stashing a pistol-n-carbine combo somewhere I would want as compact a package as possible. While I could stash a Glock and an M4, I would also have to stash two different types of ammo, two different types of magazines, two different types of mag pouches, etc, etc. I absolutely recognize the superiority of a rifle cartridge over a pistol cartridge, but I also recognize that sometimes space and logistics are at a premium. For example, while the 9mm is way underpowered compared to the .223, a takedown Ruger 9mm carbine and a 9mm Glock, with happysticks, fits into a laptop case.

Aesop had low hopes for Ruger’s .45 Carbine and he’s probably getting about 500 words ready to sum up what could be summed up in three words: Told Ya So.

Ruger’s PC Carbine in 9/40 is, in my opinion, a superior platform. The distinct magazine well with interchangeable inserts, the takedown feature, solid barrel mounted peep sights, etc, all make the 9mm or .40 carbine a better choice than this, in my opinion. However, if you are married to the .45 ACP this gun is an addition to the rather limited offerings that are out there.

TL;DR: if you absolutely have to have a .45 PCC this might scratch your itch but it couuld have been done better. If youre someone who isn’t so caliber dogmatic as the Cooper tribe, get the 9mm or .40 caliber version of the PC carbine instead and enjoy the superior features and ergonomics.

 * = Yes, I know you can kill a deer with a .45 ACP. You can also kill a deer with a baseball bat. That doesn’t mean its a good idea.