In my ongoing quest to avoid buying and carrying the snub-nosed, hammerless revolver that is likely my destiny, I took my Rohrbaugh R9 to the range for a little quality time. I purchased this R9 used with about 150 rounds on the clock. Prior to this, I’d run about 100 rounds through it with no failures at all except when shooting Aguila ammo. The R9 simply could not light off the primers of the Mexican ammo. Yesterday, I just wanted to get a feel for the gun again, so I purchased a box of each of Wally World’s finest: Federal, Winchester White Box, and Tula ammo and headed to the range. I set the target at five yards and let fly with slow, two handed fire . . .
With the WWB ammo, my first group was tight: about six inches across. I followed this with a six-shot group through one ragged hole with one flyer. For the second mag, I loaded the Rohrbaugh with the Federal ammo. I experienced one failure to extract on the second mag. I tried the Tulammo and found that, again, the R9 could not light off the primers. So no testing with that ammo then; I’ll feed the leftovers to the extremely un-picky Glock.
I ran through 60 rounds, alternating ammo, and did a couple fast strings, emptying the mag quickly. The pistol ran well, but I did have a failure to extract in one of the later mags, again with the federal ammo. The recoil is stout, but not unmanageable, I don’t think I would want to put 200 rounds through the gun in a range session.
Our esteemed senior editor likes to call the R9, the gun you aren’t supposed to shoot. Actually he is correct. The Rohrbaugh HQ recommends you shoot it enough to get familiar with it, and be sure your carry ammo works in it, then stop firing and carry it. Run a couple mags through it when you are at the range shooting the other guns, to refresh the ammo, but otherwise: shoot little, carry much. The factory recommends recoil spring change ($5) every 200 rounds.
On the carry issue: The Rohrbaugh R9 is the smallest, lightest pistol chambered for the 9mm Parabellum round that I know. As such, it carries like a dream. The R9 is as smooth as a used bar of soap, and would be about as slippery if wet I imagine. It is very comfortable for carry, and easy peasy to conceal in pocket or in waistband. It is designed purposely without a slide lock, safety, or mag release on the side so nothing would catch from pocket deployment. In fact, the pistol originally had no sights, but they were added by customer request, and it is available either sighted or sight free (R9S or R9 respectively).
Handling the pistol is natural for me. Doing dry fire exercises from a draw found the pistol pointed naturally and finding the front sight was a breeze. The grip is a bit short and very smooth, making it a bit hard to hold on to. I have seen many videos of shooters of this gun adjusting their grip after each shot. I was able to make things a bit better with a ghetto mag extension solution. The mag extension is from Pearce and made for single stack 9mm Kahrs. It just needs a little modification in the form of a notch cut in the back of it to allow use on the R9. I also went at it with a Dremel until I liked the fit. Beautiful custom Al mag extensions are sometimes available on the Rohrbaugh forums for approximately six times the price of the Pearce extensions.
R9 is not as light as the plastic Pocket .380s from Kel Tec and Ruger, but is about the same weight and size as the Sig P238 and the newly re-introduced Colt Mustang Pocket Lite. I expect the Bersa Thunder .380 is about the same. By most accounts, the former pistols are not a reliable as the Rohrbaugh, and the latter heavier pistols are more shooter friendly than the R9.
I typically carry the pistol in my pocket in either a Desantis Nemesis Holster, or a Recluse pocket holster. My default is the Nemesis, but the Recluse is nice when I am worried about printing (it prints as well, but prints “wallet” not “gun”). I like both designs, but the Nemesis is just a touch lighter and feels more balanced. The Recluse draws faster. I have a custom kydex IWB holster that allows for occasional belt carry.
The R9 is built with a steel slide on an aluminum frame and carbon fiber grip panels. It comes in two finishes, stainless or “Stealth” which is a darker tint. Technically, my model is an R9S Stealth.
The R9 barrel is short, as expected, but the 9mm cartridge still probably produces 50% more energy than an equivalent .380 ACP load, along with a heavier bullet. This should lead to better penetration and bullet performance. In the real world, does it make any difference? I think .380 +P loads would narrow that difference even more.
About that +P thing: the R9 should not be run with +P loads. Not designed for it, not recommended.
The trigger is double action perfection. Ultra smooth, with a very sharp, crisp break and zero stacking. I can not tell at all when this trigger will break. Reset is long, and you shoot it like a revolver with quick, smooth, full strokes of the trigger. The magazines are held with a Euro type heel magazine release. Don’t expect to swap mags quickly.
The R9 has good support both from the factory and at the independent Rohrbaugh Forums. The forums are filled with friendly, enthusiastic, helpful and knowledgeable folks. They recommend Speer Gold Dots as carry ammo, and I had zero failures of any kind when running through 50 rounds of this ammo.
Summary: It is a nice pistol clearly built well to tight tolerances. It is as accurate as its pilot. It is easy to carry. It does suffer some of the same flaws as other small, light, powerful weapons: Ammo preferences, difficult and or painful to shoot, reliability issues, and general lack of robustness.
SPECIFICATIONS
Caliber: 9X19mm standard pressure
Barrel: 2.9″
Overall length: 5.2”
Capacity: 6+1
Weight: 15oz unloaded with mag, 18oz loaded with 7 rounds.
Operation: Locking recoil
MSRP: $1195
RATINGS (Out of Five Stars)
Ratings are based on other similar firearms. Final rating is not calculated from the constituent ratings.
Accuracy: * * * * *
For what it is, this thing is as accurate as the user and ammunition allow.
Ergonomics: * * * *
Superb to hold and carry.
Ergonomics Firing: * *
Slippery when firing.
Reliability: * * *
Chokes on some ammo. Reliable in its role firing two magazines once in a while. Owners should find ammo the gun likes and stick to it.
Customization: * * *
Not a lot of options for this niche firearm. Mainly grip replacement.
Overall Rating: * * * *
This pistol fulfills its intended role of allowing 9mm power in the smallest, lightest package possible. Think of it as a 7 round 9mm revolver, without the lack of maintenance.
As an owner of the company I just need to post some info since there is dis and misinformation out there.
First: I personally have placed 3ooo rounds with changing my recoil springs as needed. I have actually forgotten to change them at times so I have surpassed my round counts and still worked flawlessly.
Second: This firearm is made from METAL, it is not a bic pen (polymer gun if you haven’t figured that out). the machining is flawless and time consuming.
Three: the miniturization required to make this firearm is amazing. We have taken the 9mm to the smallest size that physics allow-
I think you people who are those amazing pundits who know everything about guns should get off their own lazy … and design, manufacture , distribute and sell their OWN firearm. When you do all of that, they you are free to add your own 2cents
No Mike, we firearm users are pretty much free to slam or praise a product for whatever reason we see fit; be it price, fit or finish, performance, usability, etc. It is the reader’s responsibility as to whether to assign any weight to a review or opinion – great concept, huh?
I can hardly believe that one of the inside guys at Rohrbaugh would actually insult customers on this site. A higher up in a gun company telling potential customers that they should not criticize a gun is worse than bad customer service in warranty.
The same thing happens with Patriot firearms, Sccy firearms, and the now-bankrupt KBI/Charles Daly. Unprofessional management not taking their job serious while stagnating in old technology. Put more into engineering and less into worsening your rep.
Mike,
Insulting little Rant there sir.
I will have to rethink doing business with your Company.
Wow Mike, I have always been open to the possibility of purchasing a Rohrbagh until this arrogant and insulting rant of yours.
Wow. I was looking at this gun as possible addition to my collections.
Thanks Mr. Warg for helping me with my decision.
I LOL’d at these comments. It seems that this Rohrbaugh discussions get almost “religious” and “personal”. Everyone trying to rate the gun and engage in positioning to support THEIR decision and what they spent their own $$ on. I for one would be similarly “insulted” to have people chiming in, comapring my golden apple to a prune…and ultimatly insisting that my Rohrbaugh spend was a waste.
I understand the pride that Rohrbaugh must have behind their high-quality, hand made, precision pistols. I also understand others that can’t justify the high price for thier needs. Everyone must keep in mind that what Rohrbaugh set out to do – they accomplished. The SMALLEST, finest, highest-quality 9mm pocket pistol available. This doesn’t come without certain drawbacks and you simply have to keep it all in perspective.
If you want a 9mm that you can completely forget about while carrying and is reliably able to protect your life – the Rohrbaugh accomplishes this in a way no other has. You simply have to find the ammo it likes and stick with it. You have to undertstand the purpose is a super concealable, “shoot occasionally, carry always”, effective caliber application. NO other handgun except for the Rohrbaugh have I found provides me with the features/characateristics I desire for that application.
For that admittedly narrow niche, it’s a clear winner. For those that can afford the high price tag for the hand-made/fit engineering produced by Rohrbaugh, why not? My J-frame .38 just doesn’t work in some sitautions where my soon to own Rohrbaugh will. Hats off to Warg and others at Rohrbaugh for producing something the big manufacturers’ can’t or refuse to supply. I for one think we need other high-quality US made options. Rohrbaugh is a fine example.
I can understand the pride and somewhat overly defensive position from Mr Warg but don’t take it personal. Some will “get it” and some won’t. With your price tag, you just won’t appeal to a large percentage of buyers. With that said, to have people constantly comparing a Rohrbaugh to a cheap, plasticy, horribly-triggered POS would annoy me as well.
MotoJB, it looks like a lot of companies make similar guns with good quality, such and the SIG P290 and P938, the Kimber SOLO, several different 9mm model Kahrs, the Ruger LC9, and the Beretta Nano. It looks like the Rohrbaugh beats the Kahrs by .1 inches, but the Rohrbaugh is in good company for comparable pocket nines.
As it goes now though, I haven’t heard any unusual problems with any of these comparable pistols, and I definitely haven’t heard any company owners disrespecting other companies by calling their guns “bic pen[s].” I would never compare a Kahr PM9 or other reputable gun manufacturers’ polymer-framed guns to a pen, because it’s simply hating to do so. As features go, most all of the competition offers more options like large tritium sights, different grips, and +P compatibility.
Another point is Rohrbaugh’s recommendation to not fire your carry weapon very much. It is a very dangerous and lazy habit to get into. I never expect my P290 to be as accurate as my P226, but I do expect it to be as reliable out to 10,000 rounds before noticeable internal wear.
One more point: many polymer framed guns have a steel chassis which the slide rails connect to. These extend the life of the pistol to about the same as a steel framed gun. On this point, the aluminum frame of the Rohrbaugh will probably wear the same or faster than comparable guns.
The Rohrbaugh is simply a fair-to-OK pistol with a high price tag and the PR of a crap gun company (thus why I compared them to Sccy and Patriot arms). I see it as sticking to old hydra-shoks instead of upgrading to bonded gold-dots or PDX-1′s–outdated engineering with less performance and the same price tag.
Is anything being done to address the light primer strikes? I’d be a bit concerned with the issue relating to a firearm I plan to use for self defense.
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I will bet real money that, if longevity and price are minor considerations, I can build an even smaller 9mm auto than Rohrbaugh. Just don’t insist that one can shoot it a lot. The people at Rohrbaugh deserve a dope slap.
Wow, Mike,
Your from Rohrbaugh? You sound so unprofessional. And your logic doesnt make sense. So you’re basically saying if you dont design, manufacture, distribute the product you use, then you cant negatively review it?
Then no one should review cars, restaurants, phones, computers, laptops, unless they build it as well… that makes no sense.
FLAME DELETED
Haha wow, look at the backlash! good job rohrbaugh!
Holy ****… I thought Eric posted an extra digit on that price. ****.
I think I’d rather spend the money on an M&P Shield in 9mm, .40 S&W, and an SCCY CPX-2 CB, along with some range ammo.
I wouldn’t spend $250 on a gun I couldn’t shoot at least occasionally with +P rounds, let alone $1k. I would say “**** this gun and the company making it” but I’m pretty sure the market will be taking care of that.