01/08/2023 – New Year’s Day has passed. Visiting family has gone, however, the house is filled with great tasty food that does not appear on an OK food list my doctor threatened to tattoo on my chest. What ever happened to “First do no harm”? So today was dedicated to HAZMAT disposal.
An open, but unused box of Krusteaz Buttermilk Pancake Mix was discovered in the pantry. It was 6:30 AM, the package instructions were controlling and authoritative so, politically motivated, I thought I could tweak the recipe into something more open ended.
One cup of mix was used, the rest of the box discarded with its overabundance of carbohydrates. Recipe water was reduced by two table spoons, water temperature was changed from cold to tepid, griddle temperature was increased to 400°F and greased with lightly salted butter. Cook time was increased to 4 minutes, 2 minutes each side, batter was whisked to work in dry mix, but not to delump… ify .
The recipe produced 8 symmetrical 4″ pancakes, light crusted, fluffy inside. Of the 8, 5 followed the excess mix into the trash. The remaining 3 received a light brush of melted butter, a light brush of sugarless maple syrup and a dusting of confectionery sugar. I meant to take a picture, but the 3 perfect pancakes were not available for a photo op.
Tomorrow will be a return to list approved Hannaford Egg Substitute omelet, Filled with chopped green onion and green bell pepper and a bit of Ricotta or Mozzarella cheese. Topped with black pepper, garlic powder… maybe sprinkled with hot sauce. In my senior years, I learned that preparing food with purpose makes for greater satisfaction and eating far less even with fat, juicy burgers and crispy fries on my mind.
Ruger’s Security – 380 Auto
The story headline could be, “Ruger introduces a big 380 Auto!!…! “, but then folks who own mini-micro 380 autos would show up in force with their little hands and 20 round magazines and attack the basis for this pistol existing… a purpose which is clearly illustrated below.
OK, perhaps a point made too subtle, so try this…
The upside of a mini-micro 380 is small form and ultimate concealment. The downside is the mini-micro’s small form. Grips are not only short, leaving many fingers dangling, but they are narrow, not palm filling, and sacrifice control.
Yes, mini-micro extended magazines do reduce the finger dangle factor, but grips remain narrow and not hand filling and this does not solve the additional problem of what a very short barrel does to 380 Auto ballistic performance.
So, apparently, Ruger thought; “Longer barrel to boost the performance of the 380 Auto and a longer slide and grip to make it steady in the hand and easy racking. Then they threw in a good trigger and real sights. The Security – 380 remains compact and concealable, but it is not compromised by ultimate concealment as its sole purpose. Factory specs and current MSRP.
Striking, not striker
The Security – 380 has an alloy barrel, black oxide finish. The Lite Rack™ system begins with a reduced rate recoil spring and goes on to clean edged serrations and cocking ears at the aft end of the slide. No spring loaded hand grip workout is required before a defensive event.
No, the arrow does not indicate the Ruger Security – 380 identifies as a boy pistol. It does, however, show hope that the end of the striker era is here. The Security – 380 is internal hammer fired. This approach manifests itself in the form of a clean trigger pull, reliable ignition and a hammer camming surface that is quite unique. The latter, no doubt, also easing effort required to cock the hammer.
Kudos to the engineer who made the takedown pin less.. welded to the frame; well retained, but pops out with moderate pressure. I do wish the disassembly instructions did not show someone using a common screw driver to pry out the pin from the slide starboard side, when a simple push with a soft punch or brass house key from the port side of the pistol will get the job done. If you are not familiar with that nautical jargon, look up the acronym POSH.
Not fully adjustable, but laudable and appropriate
A close in firearm… ten yards or so defense, with greater distance capability; the Security – 380 does not need elevation adjustment. The front fiber optic sight aligns the low profile, windage adjustable rear sight. Both sights are ferrous.
Controllable
Not only does the grip extend to support more fingers than a typical micro-compact, it is also wider, 1.02″, to accommodate more than adequate magazine capacity. This does not turn the Security – 380 into a club as it is still very compact.
The week I shot the Ruger Security – 380 at the range, I also had a 38 Special lightweight revolver. The Ruger was shot all day without any notice of recoil. The revolver, however, ended with my fingers stinging after a couple of boxes of ammo.
The 380 Auto is not a pellet pistol equivalent…
Ammunition | Bullet Type |
Bullet Weight Grains |
Rated MV FPS |
Recorded MV FPS |
Inceptor ARX | Poly/Copper | 56 | 1260 | 1312 |
Hornady Critical Defense | FTX | 90 | 1000 | 1019 |
PMC Bronze | FMJ | 90 | 961 | 875 |
Pistols chambered for the 380 Automatic have been used by large numbers by the world’s militaries and law enforcement agencies. Not convincing regarding the 380 Automatics lethality? OK, however, there are currently 66 commercial loads widely available, along with many that are not so widely available through large retailers.
The 66 loads are produced by an unbound consortium of 26 ammo manufacturers with a bullet weight spread from 50 grains to 102 grains. Bullets are of lead core, monolithic copper and composite construction. The table lists three types as a point of reference. My personal use is ARX types or Remington Golden Saber. Not a recommendation, just a mention.
Well behaved, but not without personality
A range day with the Ruger Security – 380 is a day of unicorns and puppy dogs and G rated conversation. Operation is smooth from magazine filling to slide racking. The grip is comfortable and the pistol comes up, or drops down on target, Recoil is just enough to confirm you are shooting a centerfire pistol.
Trigger pull is crisp, safety operation is a thumb flick, but positions have firm retention. Magazines are tapered up top to center cartridge in queue to be fed. The taper gives magazine insertion a good deal of latitude.
Accuracy? 5 shots in a playing card 7 to 10 yards out. An excellent house gun. An excellent concealed carry pistol, the Ruger Security – 380.
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