New LCR .357 or 9mm?

Which LCR would you choose?

  • .357

    Votes: 34 57.6%

  • 9mm

    Votes: 25 42.4%
  • Total voters
    59
  • Poll closed .
It does use moon clips. If I'm not mistaken, it will fire properly without them. Of course it won't eject them without the moon clips.
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All correct.

Also, would there be any harm to the gun by firing without them?
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No but would be a real PITB to do it much. One valid technique would be to carry with a clip but carry a reload on a speed strip. You won't be able to eject the 2nd wheel but by then you'd either be good to go or toast anyway.

the LCR isn't available with a 3" barrel in 9mm is it?
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Not yet anyway. The only 3" LCR is in .38.
 
I voted 9mm, it seems to do really well in these short barreled revolvers. Pretty good ballistics with much less blast.
 
I had the lcr in 357. I traded it for the new lcr 3 inch 38 this winter. 357 is great in it but the average 357 loses quite a bit of punch when you go down to a 2 inch barrel unless you buy some short barrel specific ammo. I have found the same to be true of 9mm. That said, if I were choosing between the two I would still go with 357. Greater power, option of lesser power 38s and you don't have to fiddle with moonclips. I'm not recoil sensitive but my hand did ache the rest of the day after shooting a box of 357 through it. Poi is a few inches lower when shooting 357 v 38 in it. Great gun. Solid. Light. Accurate. You really can't go wrong with the lcr in any caliber.
 
The three inch has adjustable sights, a longer sight radius, an exposed hammer, a better grip, and it is lighter. I was using the 357 primarily as a kit gun for hiking and camping and the 3 inch 38 really fits that bill better. Plus the extra inch really does wonders when you look at the ballistics for handguns.
 
Radny97, how would you compare shooting 38 and 38+P from the 357 and the 3" 38 LCR. I am having wrist issues and have stoped shooting 357 ammo I would like to add the 3" LCR but am afraid it may be too light. I have been waiting for the 3" 357 so I can get the heavier gun. I can handle 38 and 38+P just fine out of the 2" 357.
 
No but would be a real PITB to do it much. One valid technique would be to carry with a clip but carry a reload on a speed strip. You won't be able to eject the 2nd wheel but by then you'd either be good to go or toast anyway.
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The logic of that escapes me. Why not just carry a reload in the form of a loaded moon clip, not a speed strip? It seems to me that moon clips would be the way to go. Jerry Miculek seems to do fairly well with them.
 
dahermit said:
The logic of that escapes me. Why not just carry a reload in the form of a loaded moon clip, not a speed strip? It seems to me that moon clips would be the way to go. Jerry Miculek seems to do fairly well with them.
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Only weakness in full-moonclips is their tendency to bend out of round when carried in a pocket or other non-rigid pouch. That ties up the revolver and ruins your day. And the moonclip carriers that can protect from bending aren't very concealable.

Oddly enough, half-moonclips don't seem to have that problem. I'd like to see Ruger come out with 2-rd & 3-rd clips that can be used in the LCR. Would make carrying reloads much easier.
 
Only weakness in full-moonclips is their tendency to bend out of round when carried in a pocket or other non-rigid pouch. That ties up the revolver and ruins your day. And the moonclip carriers that can protect from bending aren't very concealable.
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That makes sense viewed from that perspective.
 
Could you carry a 5 round moon clip in a split belt speed pouch?

My pouch works great with the 5 star speed loader and .38 special.
So good that I can carry it exposed and no one even questions what it is.

If someone wants to mail me a clip to try, I will try it, photo it and send it back.
HVR
 
The three inch does have less recoil shooting 38s over the two inch barrel but I attribute most of that difference to the grip. The larger hogue grip that the three inch comes with is really nice. The barrel length is likely only a small part of the reduced recoil. If hogue starts selling the grip separately that would be good option.
On a side note I don't think the next three inch lcr will be a 357. You will notice that the LCRx is not out in 357 or 9mm. I think it is because the exposed hammer makes for a slightly weaker design in the LCRx so they haven't yet put them out in the higher pressure calibers. Therefore I don't think an LCRx3 in 357 is coming out soon (they could do a LCR3 without an exposed hammer, but who knows). It seems to me the more likely next LCRx3 will be in 22lr.
 
Here are my thoughts on the subject. Stormyone said "The 9mm appears to lose less velocity in short barrels than 357 in short barrels.". Both the 9mm and 357 are straight sided cases with essentially the same bullet diameter (.355/.356 versus .357). Neither has any ballistic advantage over the other. Of course, there are differences in case length (9mm - 0.750, 38 spl - 1.155, 357 - 1.29). Any minor differences in internal ballistics associated with case length are negligible in the 1.875" barrel of the LCR. However, clearly; the 357 has many advantage in choosing factory ammo because you can choose from a plethora of offerings in 357 mag, 38 spl+P, or ordinary 38 spl. Also, the fact that you have to use moon clips with the 9mm LCR is a huge drawback in my opinion. I also don't think that 357 in a light revolver is much of a problem particularly for defensive use. I have a Taurus 605SH2 which is a 16-ounce titanium revolver with a 2-inch barrel. With 125 grain factory loads the recoil is stout but not really a problem. Of course, I practice a lot with 38 spl and the recoil is quite mild. It kind of goes without saying that 38 spl+P in between. :)
 
I voted .357. I prefer a rimmed cartridge in a revolver. More importantly, I'd go with .357 because there is a much wider variety of ammunition available.
 
The LCR 9mm is currently on my shortlist. I want the 9mm because I already have a huge supply of 9mm ammo.
 
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