Vern Evans
It’s been 30 years since the zippy little 5.7×28 cartridge was introduced, it it was only in August of Anno Domini 2024 that the round was officially accepted by SAAMI (Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute). While the round was popularized early on in the FN P90 (and its video game incarnations), the round has found its way into more conventional firearms as well. Such is the case with the Ruger LC Charger, a large-frame pistol design released in 2023 that many have dubbed the “MP7 at home.”
Lets cover the finer details before going hot.
Tech Specs
- Barrel: 10.3 in. Nitride Finish
- Overall Length: 16 in.
- Weight: 66.5 ounces
- Twist Rate: 1:9RH
- Receiver Coating: Type III Hard-Coat Anodized
- Handguard: MLOK Attachment Slots
- Magazine Capacity: 10 and 20 rounds
- Sights: None
With the back of the receiver having a vertical 1913 picatinny rail, the LC Charger is begging for a brace or SBR stock. Likewise, the threaded barrel yearns for a suppressor, so I added an SAS Reaper. While some will shoot without either, I refuse. The Ruger LC Charger comes with no iron sights, similarly remedied in a hurry with a Bushnell TRS-125.
The LC Charger comes in naked at just over 4 pounds, extremely heavy by traditional handgun standards, and light by modern SBR/PDW standards. With a stock/brace, optic and suppressor, it’s still in the 6 pounds range.
Doing some dry fires and manipulation drills, the LC Charger shows promise. The ambi-safety, bolt release and mag release are all stationed closely together. The charging handle is found forward and left, in the location made common by HK guns like the Mp5, and more recently the PSA JAKL. It’s a good location, and I’m happy to see more guns using it.
The trigger is pretty standard modern fare, which is no insult at all. A good pull, a little creep, before you hit the wall with a clean break. Taking up the slack almost feels like you’re pulling a 2-stage trigger. It might not be a 2-stage, but it’s not going to be your limiting factor in excellent accuracy unless you’re pretty damn good.
Range Days
I hit the range with four types of ammunition, with projectiles all at 40 grains. There were American Eagle, FN GUNR SS201, Speer Gold Dot Personal Protection and FN SS197SR.
First up, I grabbed a quick zero at 25 yards, and shot a few 5-round groups with each type of ammunition. Groups ranged from 1 to 2 MOA. FN SS197SR hovered around 1 MOA, despite being the cheapest round currently (around $.42/per), while Speer Gold ($.73/per) was consistently at the 1.1 MOA mark. American Eagle ($.46/per) grouped well enough, regularly beating 1.5 MOA by a sliver, and FN’s GUNR ($.43/per) round liked the 2 MOA mark.
I popped a couple rounds into 10% calibrated ballistic gel from Clear Ballistics. Both FN rounds, as well as America Eagle penetrated through the 16-inch block and got caught in the vintage level IIa soft armor behind the target. Speer’s Gold Dot stopped very consistently 12.5-inch deep in the block, +/-.5 inch.
I shot steel at 100 yards, working over the mini E-type silhouette with ease. Each round dropped right where the red dot was holding. The LC Charger is light and nicely balanced.
I did CQB drills at 15 yards with the suppressor off, because as much as I like shooting with a can on, I do have some responsibility to make sure it runs without one. Even with the SAS Reaper Ti muzzle brake/suppressor mount on, this gun doesn’t have much ‘boom.’ There’s a lot less powder and pressure than with a .223 round and it’s noticeable.
Just for kicks, I set up the old Level IIa soft plate on the Infinite Defense target and popped it with each round. As I completely expected, there were little laser beam holes through the armor. I didn’t really need to do this, but it was fun.
What I Liked
There’s a lot to like in the Ruger LC Charger, so I’ll rapid fire here. This is an accurate gun. Ergonomics are pretty good. The safety especially, I naturally hit it when I lower the rifle. It’s in just the right spot. There is laughably little recoil. In a couple range days (and no cleaning), I’ve had one failure-to-feed. It happened in the first 200 rounds and hasn’t happened again since. The LC Charger is light and compact. It’s definitely a good truck gun if you don’t need a caliber with more ass.
What I Didn’t
The 5.7 is longer than most “pistol” calibers. This matters in guns where the mag is within the grip, as it is in the LC Charger. The grip is longer front-to-back than I prefer, but my caveman hands are shorter and wider than most. If you’re over 5 foot, 7inches I doubt you’ll notice. It’s not such a huge grip that it’s unshootable, just less comfortable. I bet my kids are going to love shooting this, regardless.
There’s one little hiccup that happened, and is interesting to me. The first round from every mag was loaded by letting the bolt drop from the locked position. The recoil impulse on that first round was significantly different than every other round. Caught me off guard a few times, to the point I broke the gun down to check for a squib. Nope, functions and accuracy were unchanged on these “light” recoiling first rounds… Maybe the bolt is locking up differently when dropped from a locked position rather than racking and dropping the bolt from full rearward travel? Worth mentioning even if it never led to a problem, as it might throw you off the first time, too.
End of the Line
Small rifle/large pistol, check. The LC Charger is fun to shoot, and shoots well, check. The 5.7 round holds up its end of the bargain as a low recoil, zippy little fella, check. If a .22 Magnum hit the gym for leg day, the 5.7 is what you’d end up with. This is my first experience with 5.7, and I’m now a fan. Now, I’m looking forward to getting some terminal data gathered on critters.
The Ruger LC Charger has an MSRP of $999 and a current street price around $750. If you’re on the fence, I hope my experience has given you a stronger opinion one way or the other. As for me, I dig the LC Charger and look forward to making this a part of my permanent collection.
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Check out more articles from Jens “Rex Nanorum” Hammer or visit him on Instagram @Rexnanorum.
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