Ruger RXM Review: Setting Itself Apart

By Paul Rackley, GunBroker Editor

Ruger & Magpul’s New RXM 9mm Pistol

What does it mean when a company says something is new? Is it new to the world, to the company or a new take on a long-lasting idea? To be honest, I’m not sure. I just know that firearm companies keep bringing out new guns with interesting features. 

Ruger and Magpul are excited to unveil the RXM 9mm pistol. In the highly competitive market of 9mm polymer-frame, striker-fired pistols, the Ruger RXM distinguishes itself with its exceptional flexibility and customization options. Featuring a removable stainless-steel Fire Control Insert (FCI) housed within an interchangeable Magpul Enhanced Handgun Grip (EHG), this pistol allows users to tailor their firearm to their personal preferences. As part of their ongoing partnership, Ruger and Magpul will provide a diverse selection of grip frames, enabling consumers to adapt their pistols to evolving tastes and requirements. Read below for my Ruger RXM Review.

Part of the new comes from the looks. This semi-auto pistol doesn’t have the thin, smooth lines and narrow grips for which Ruger has become known with pistols. The LCP and ECP are smooth and slick, and the Max 9 isn’t much bigger. The Ruger RXM is more blocky up top and thicker in the grip. 

Another new with this 9mm is it comes with the latest craze in guns, a serialized insert. On the Ruger RXM, the company calls it a Fire Control Insert. Shooters can swap these inserts between other frames. Basically, shooters can move the FCI between two frames, such as a full-size and a compact. This provides two handguns that shoot the same but with different purposes at a lower cost than purchasing two handguns. Or, shooters can simply use the insert as the base to customize a gun to personal specifications. This, of course, makes an assumption of success, but since it is coming from Ruger, it is a pretty good assumption. 

The “New” Ruger RXM 9mm Pistol

It is kind of exciting to get an email saying that a company is bringing out something new. That feeling increases with certain words included in that email. Sure, new matters, but new to the company piques interest as it is probably going to be a new take on a favorite. Finally, when the email mentions a Ruger and Magpul partnership, the heart goes all aflutter in excitement. At that point, it becomes real. 

Is the RXM Compatible With Gen 3?

I got the gun before I looked at the marketing paperwork. Upon opening the box, I couldn’t help but think that it looked an awful lot like a handgun from an Austrian manufacturer. In fact, it looked real similar to the third iteration, which just happens to be one of the most popular. Then, I read the paperwork, which stated the Ruger RXM is Gen 3 compatible. I contacted someone to find out exactly what that means. 

The response confirmed that the Ruger RXM is compatible with most Gen 3 components and aftermarket parts. There are quite a few companies that produce upgrades for the Gen 3, and most of them will fit the RXM. This includes magazines and holsters. 

And while the RXM might be a clone, it is not an exact replica. Ruger used a Magpul Enhanced Handgun grip for the frame. It also included higher sights. This is for co-witnessing with optics, and the front sight features Tritium for low-light conditions. 

Other changes include no finger grooves and an aggressive yet comfortable texturing on the grip. It also comes with deep but smooth serrations on the slide, along with an extended magazine release and raised slide stop. Finally, it comes with a universal rail for mounting accessories and two 15-round PMAGs. Safety features include integrated trigger safety, internal striker block and chamber inspection port. 

RXM Performance: Cloning Around the Range

A self-defense pistol needs to go through self-defense paces. As such, I conducted most of the testing at 7 yards and under. Only accuracy was tested at longer ranges, which were 10 and 15 yards. 

At 10 yards, I shot 10 rounds slowly and carefully, twice for 20 rounds total, and measured the groupings. In both strings, the 10-round groups measured just 4 inches, with no flyers. From there, I backed up five more yards and fired eight, five-shot groups from a rest, using 124-grain Federal Syntech Training Match rounds for 20 shots and 115-grain Ammo Inc. Signature Target for the other 20. I only fired 10 rounds of 147-grain Federal Personal Defense HST 9mm ammo to ensure function with hollow points and get a feel for recoil. 

In the five-shot groups, Federal came out a little ahead, with groups averaging 2.7 inches with a 2.4-inch best. However, the difference was minuscule, as Signature averaged 3.1 inches with a 2.6-inch best group. 

From there, I performed some self-defense drills, including the failure drill and the Dot Torture. The Tritium in the front sight, against the black rear, made targeting quick, allowing me to get back to 7 yards before failing in the Dot Torture; I started at 3 yards and moved to 5 yards before 7 yards. 

The magazines dropped free during reloads and the flared well helped guide loaded magazines into the gun. Recoil was on par with expectations, even with self-defense loads, as it was quite manageable. At no point did I have any failures to feed or eject, even with a few shots where I limp-wristed trying to force a jam. The Ruger RXM ran well, with zero problems or issues. 

Ruger RXM Review: The Good, Bad & Interesting

The Ruger RXM is a nice handgun. It shoots well and comes with nice features, decent capacity and good reliability. Ruger might be on to something here with the RXM; it is different from the usual Ruger offering, even if it is a Gen 3 clone.

The Gen 3 just happens to be a popular iteration. There are countless upgrades for improving this pistol. However, Ruger didn’t just make a replica. The company included upgrades to the RMX. 

The first are the grip and the trigger. The Magpul grip is hand-filling without being overly large and the texturing is quite comfortable. Adding a flat-face trigger provides a natural pull that was smooth and crisp after just a touch of play. It measured right at 5 pounds with a reset that can be heard and felt. Both the magazine release and the slide stop are easy to reach, while the mag well is flared with a ramp at the back for instinctive insertion. 

Is the Ruger RXM Optics-Ready?

The slide is cut for direct mounting of a variety of popular optics. This includes Trijicon, Leupold, Vortex and Holosun. Even better, the sights are high enough to co-witness the optics. That’s important, as not co-witnessing is a major flaw that some manufacturers are making. Being able to work with Gen 3 magazines adds another checkmark. There are lots of them on the market. 

Finally in this Ruger RXM Review; the Fire Control Insert hints to the fact that additional grip frames are coming. And it probably won’t be long before they’re available. Customization might be fun. 

There is not much on the Ruger RXM to not like. I would prefer a less prominent bump under the indexing pad and I wish it didn’t have an open area behind the magazine, like its predecessor. Neither, however, are deal breakers. 

Some folks might write off the Ruger RMX as just another clone, with the old saying of, “A GLOCK is a GLOCK is a GLOCK.” But the Ruger RMX isn’t a GLOCK. It’s a well-thought out semi-auto pistol designed for concealed carry and self-defense.

Ruger RXM Specs

  • Action: Semi-Auto
  • Caliber: 9mm
  • Slide: Alloy Steel; Black FNC Nitride Finish
  • Slide Width: 1”
  • Barrel: 4” Alloy Steel; Black FNC Nitride Finish; 1:10 RH Twist
  • Sights: Tritium Front; Drift-Adjustable, Black Steel Rear; Co-Witness
  • Optic Ready: Yes; RMR, DeltaPoint Pro, RMSc Footprints
  • Grip Frame: Stealth Gray Magpul Enhanced Grip
  • Overall Length: 7.15”
  • Weight: 23.2 ozs.
  • Height: 5.31”
  • Capacity: 15 Rounds, 10 Rounds for Compliant models
  • Magazines Included: Two
  • MSRP: $499
  • UPC: 736676194001 and 736676194018

Thank you for reading our Ruger RXM review. Stay tuned for more.

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