For much of its existence, the 5.7x28mm cartridge was underappreciated due only being chambered in the FN Five-seveN pistol and the FN PS90 carbine, both excellent but somewhat niche and pricey options. With the introduction of the Ruger 5.7 pistol in 2019, the 5.7×28 cartridge became available on a broader scale in a more conventional and less expensive package.
Not being one to rest on its laurels, Ruger has outdone itself with the introduction of their new 5.7x28mm LC Carbine.
LC Carbine Details
The Ruger 5.7 pistol is user-friendly and very reliable. Not intending to reinvent the wheel when moving ahead with its 5.7x28mm carbine, Ruger made the new carbine an extension of the highly successful 5.7 pistol.
And it is a piece of engineering genius! A slightly modified 5.7 pistol grip frame forms the foundation of the LC 5.7 Carbine.
This commonality of design means that there was no need for Ruger to develop a new magazine system for the LC. Ruger’s smart design choice ensures compatibility with the same 20-round magazines, promoting cost-effectiveness and production efficiency.
Twenty-round magazines provide an ample supply of ammo without protruding below the frame, thus keeping the LC Carbine extremely compact. The LC grip frame retains the trigger lever safety of the pistol as well as the ambidextrous 1911-style thumb safety levers.
Rather than using the pushbutton magazine release of the 5.7 pistol, a lever style magazine is used. It came installed on the left side.
Depressing it downward pops the magazine out smartly. While the lever magazine release isn’t reversible, you can replace it with the reversible magazine release button found on the Ruger 5.7 pistol.
The reason for this redesign appears to be due to the grouping of the firing controls. Because of the length of the 5.7 grip frame from front to rear, shooters with medium-sized hands have to disengage the shooting grip to push in on magazine release of the Ruger 5.7 pistol.
The slightly elongated magazine release lever on the LC Carbine is more easily reached by the shooting hand thumb.
Ruger 5.7 Specifications
- Capacity: 20+1
- Weight: 5.9 pounds
- Overall length: 30.6 inches
- Length of pull: 12.69 – 14.62 inches
- Barrel length: 16.25 inches
- Barrel features: Fluted/black nitride/threaded: .578 inch-28
- Receiver material: Aluminum alloy
- Receiver finish: Type III hard-coat anodized
- MSRP: $1,009
The Ruger LC 5.7 Carbine comes with the charging handle installed on the left side, perfect for right-handed shooters. Left-side charging allows you to maintain full control of the carbine’s pistol grip with your shooting hand as you keep on target.
It also makes it easier to ensure that the chamber is empty since your hand is totally out of the way during the clearing/checking operation. I always charge and clear my AR-15s by hooking my left thumb and index finger on the left side of the T-shaped charging handle and not with the fingers on either side of it.
The LC 5.7’s charging handle is reversible if you want to move it to right side. The top of the LC carbine is continuously railed from the folding/collapsible/reversible stock attachment point to the front end of the stock, which is M-Lok compatible.
There are multiple QD sling points. Ruger’s plain black adjustable Rapid Deploy folding sights come already mounted.
However, this is a carbine that screams for a compact red-dot reflex-type optic.
Shooting the Ruger Carbine
During testing, I actually used two loaded Ruger 5.7 pistol magazines I had on hand as they were indistinguishable from the magazine provided with the carbine and of course functioned perfectly. Using the Ruger Rapid Deploy folding sights and a B27 E PROS silhouette target, the first shots were fired from 30 feet.
One of the two magazines was loaded with FN SS197SR 40-grain sporting rounds loaded with the blue tip Hornady V-Max bullet, and the other was loaded with 20 rounds of FN SS198LF 27-grain Green Tip Hollow-Point Lead-Free loads. I highly recommend the SS198LF for serious 5.7 as it is an excellent performer in my clay block shooting tests.
All the SS197SR rounds fed, fired and ejected as they should. The grouping was a bit low but tight and stayed within the X-Ring.
I fired the S198LF 27-grain HP ammo at the upper left scoring box since it was not solid black and was rewarded with a similar X-ring-sized group.
Should You Buy the Ruger 5.7 LC Carbine?
The Ruger LC 5.7×28 carbine is impressive! This carbine is conventional in operation yet easily adapted to the individual due to its innovative design. It folds up into a lightweight, compact size and is easily used by people of all statures.
Recoil is zero, making it a great choice for introducing new shooters to centerfire rifle shooting. The LC can be compactly stowed away for long-term preparedness, fired with the stock folded, be carried in a backpack on the trail or taken along in an RV.
At SHOT Show, Ruger announced an addition to the LC carbine family. The LC carbine in .45 ACP is available for those interested in closer range stopping ability.
It uses Glock type 45 ACP 13-round magazines. Price is also $1,009.
Source:
Ruger: Ruger.com
