Ruger Police Carbine

The History of Sturm, Ruger & Co.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc., more commonly known as Ruger, is an American firearm manufacturing company headquartered in Southport, Connecticut. Founded in 1949 by Alexander McCormick Sturm and William B. Ruger in a rented machine shop in Connecticut, the company has since become one of the largest firearm manufacturers in the world - shadowed only by Remington and perhaps Smith & Wesson.

Ruger is widely recognized for producing firearms that span a broad spectrum of uses such as bolt-action rifles and pistols, semi-automatic rifles, single-shot rifles, shotguns, and revolvers. As recognition of its quality products grew so did the public’s interest in investing in the company’s shares. Ruger went public in 1969 and grew exponentially since then, and it is on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE:RGR) since 1990.

In 2020, Ruger made another big move with their acquisition of Marlin Firearms from Remington Outdoor Company.

For decades now both newbie and seasoned shooters have been consistently trusting Ruger’s guns for their excellent accuracy and superior long-term performance as evidenced by its continued success over all these years.

Today, Ruger’s most popular products include the Ruger 10/22 semiautomatic rifle, the .22 rimfire semi-automatic pistol Ruger MK IV, the bolt-action Ruger American rifle, the tried and tested Ruger No.1, and, of course, the timeless Ruger Security-Six revolvers.

Ruger Police Carbine Rifle Review

Figure 1: Ruger PC4 Police Carbine (By Phillip Williams - Phillip Williams via. email, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5697899)

The Ruger Police Carbine, a blowback centerfire semi-automatic carbine, was designed for use with pistol calibers. It was made to be used alongside Ruger semi-auto pistols, creating a handy duo. Sharing the same magazine as the Ruger P-Series pistols, it was an easy transition for users.

The design of the Police Carbine was based on the more successful Ruger 10/22 rimfire rifle, which is still in use today. Originally, this carbine was intended for law enforcement use, but civilians could buy it too. The idea was simple - officers could carry a Ruger P-series pistol for most cases, and switch to the Carbine when they needed better accuracy and stopping power, using the same magazines.

However, the Police Carbine was discontinued in 2007 due to low demand. A decade later, Ruger brought it back with an updated version called the Ruger PC Carbine, a takedown model, reintroduced on December 29, 2017.

The Ruger Police Carbine has a barrel length of 412 mm (16.24 inches) and an overall length of 873 mm (34.37 inches), giving it a solid feel without being too bulky. Its trigger is nicely tuned, providing a crisp break at around 2.7 kg (6 pounds), a comfortable weight for most users. The Carbine also features a crossbolt safety button located at the rear of the trigger guard, which is easy to access and use.

The stock is made from thick, durable polymer, ensuring it can withstand rough handling in the field. It ends in a comfortable rubber buttpad, making the recoil a bit easier on the shoulder.

Visually, the Police Carbine bears a striking resemblance to the newer Ruger PC Carbine. At first glance, it could be difficult to distinguish between the two.

There is a difference in the receiver, however. While the new PC Carabine features a Picatinny rail for scope mounting, the Police Carbine came with the well-known Ruger-style scope bases machined directly into the receiver.

Ruger Police Carbine Calibers

Ruger Police Carbine was made specifically for pistol calibers and can be chambered for:

• 9x19 mm

• .40 S&W

Ruger Police Carbine Variants

There are two versions of the Ruger Police Carbine:

• Ruger PC-9 Police Carbine, made for 9 mm caliber,

• Ruger PC-4 Police Carbine, made for .40 S&W caliber.

Both versions of the Ruger Police Carbine were made with the Ruger-style scope bases machined directly into the receiver.

Figure 2: The receiver of the Ruger Police Carbine with the Ruger-style scope bases machined directly into the receiver (Source: https://www.gunsamerica.com/901977319/RUGER-PC9-Semi-Auto-Carbine-9mmx19.htm)

Scope Mounts Interchangeable with Ruger Police Carbine

Rifles That Have One-Piece Scope Mounts Interchangeable with Ruger Police Carbine

The necessary condition for rifles to have one-piece scope mounts interchangeable is that the mounting surfaces of these rifles match in every dimension.

Rifles that have one-piece scope mounts interchangeable with the Ruger Police Carbine are:

• Ruger Mini Thirty (Ranch)

• Ruger Mini-14 (Ranch)

• Ruger 99/44 (Deerfield Carbine)

Rifles That Have Two-Piece Scope Mounts Interchangeable with Ruger Police Carbine

For two-piece scope mounts to be interchangeable, the mounting surfaces of the rifles must match in every dimension except the action length which can vary.

Rifles that have two-piece scope mounts interchangeable with the Ruger Police Carbine models are:

• Ruger 77/44

• Ruger 77/357

• Ruger 77/17 (.17 HMR)

• Ruger 77/17 (.17 WSM & .17 Hornet)

• Ruger 77/22 Centerfire

• Ruger 77/22 Rimfire

• Ruger 77/50

• Ruger No. 1

• Ruger Mini Thirty (Ranch)

• Ruger Mini-14 (Ranch)

• Ruger 99/44 (Deerfield Carbine)

• Ruger Model 96/44

Best Scope Mounts for Ruger Police Carbine

Fixed Scope Mounts for Ruger Police Carbine

Warne produces all kinds of quality scope mounts, especially for American rifles. It comes as no surprise, then, that they also offer a great fixed scope mounting solution for Police Carbine.

We recommend these Warne Maxima Vertical-Split Fixed Rings for Ruger No. 1 which will also fit on the Police Carbine. They are made of steel and come with a 10-year warranty.

Check out Warne Maxima Vertical-Split Fixed rings

Weaver Base for Ruger Police Carbine

One simple way to solve a lot of scope mounting problems on the Ruger Police Carbine is to install a Weaver base that requires no drilling. Burris has a solution for that.

We recommend this Ruger to Weaver Base Adaptor from Burris. It is made specifically for the Ruger integral mounting system, and it is made of steel.

Order Burris Ruger to Weaver Adapter

Detachable Repeatable Scope Mounts for Ruger Police Carbine

With the aforementioned Weaver base installed, you can then proceed to mount this detachable repeatable Recknagel SSK-II One-Piece Mount for Weaver.

It is made in Germany and also comes with a 10-year warranty.

Click here for Recknagel SSK II One-piece mount

Help Us Build Our Riflescope Mounts Database

If you happen to own this or any other rifle, we would appreciate it if you could help us expand our database by sending us some photos of the rifle receiver (the bare mounting surface of the rifle without the mounts installed). For your help, our company offers a fair return in terms of practical rewards.

Please send us an email for more information. You can contact us here: info@optics-trade.eu