Author Topic: EARLIEST R9 for Sale  (Read 3419 times)

Offline Tom

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EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« on: March 14, 2020, 07:01:44 PM »
I am new to this forum so PLEASE excuse me if I say something inappropriate.

In April, 2004 the NRA Show was in Pittsburgh - where I live. I won an R9 at the show. At that time, I worked as a Regional Sales Manager in Northeast US and had a very good customer right in Farmingdale, Long Island so I was able to visit the Rohrbaugh facility there. I am sorry, but I cannot remember whether it was Eric or Karl I met and spoke with....but I think it was Eric.

Eric gave me a quick tour of the facility, which - I regret to say - I was not knowledgeable enough to be duly impressed with. I did not appreciate the precision and quality of the operation...I deeply regret that missed opportunity. I do remember the cardboard cut-out of Angelina Jolie (of Mr. & Mrs. Smith) & "her" R9.

Eric had a special serial number on this gun to designate its uniqueness (NRA - 04 - 1). I believe it was intended to show this was the first production gun manufactured for the 2004 NRA show. (PLEASE- see pictures). I think April 2004 was still a month BEFORE production was in full swing. Anyway, I am now looking to sell the gun....hopefully to someone who will benefit from it and value it more than I have. I have picked a number ($1500.00) for the gun + holster (OWB - right) & mag loader, but not including any shipping costs or FFL fees

ERIC ...if you read this, you are welcome to either confirm, correct OR expand on anything I have said.

I have a slight tremor n my left hand so the pictures may be blurred, but I can have better ones taken if you desire. If anyone is interested, you are welcome to message me or email me directly

Offline MRC

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #1 on: March 14, 2020, 07:34:37 PM »
PM sent.

Offline thewalk

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #2 on: March 14, 2020, 09:57:28 PM »
Thank you for posting this beautiful and unique specimen here. She's a BEAUT!!

Offline PhilZ

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #3 on: March 15, 2020, 10:31:54 AM »
It makes me wonder just how many unique serial number guns are out there.

Offline Brenden

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #4 on: March 18, 2020, 04:35:29 AM »
Very nice!!
I had never heard of this number either before now!!
I am wondering about the grips?
They appear to be black. I always 💤dreamed💤that all the true early pups carried blue grips!😎
It is still a beauty!
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Offline ECR

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #5 on: March 20, 2020, 05:02:32 PM »
Hello Tom,  Eric here. . . . . .

I do remember the gun, and yes, I still have the cardboard cut-out of Angelina Jolie (of Mr. & Mrs. Smith) & "her" R9. LOL

So, you are correct in the gun's provenance. I liked to make "special guns" all the time. I got bored doing the same thing day after day. You have a one off R9 from Farmingdale, NY. Obviously early in production and it looks like you pretty much didn't use it and "left it alone", i.e. Stock configuration. Good on you for doing so! Those black Carbon Fiber Grips were the first of the new batch of CF grips that we went with. The blues were tough to do and so we decided to simply go to black CF for the R9s. I can say that the paddle holster you have with the R9 doesn't look familiar at all. The gun, except for some scuffs on the slide, looks great for the age.

Pricing for a one-off R9 is spot on in my view. Good Luck with your sale Tom.

Regards,

Eric R.
Makers of the NRA Shooting Illustrated: "Handgun of the Year for 2005" and receiver of an NRA Golden Bullseye Award.

Offline MRC

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #6 on: March 22, 2020, 05:26:04 PM »
Eric

While you're giving out history lessons, I purchased the "NRA Gun" from Tom.  What is the story on it?

I have volunteered for the local Friends of NRA Committee here for 17 years.  Eleven of those years I was Chairman, Treasurer, or Ticket Chairman and sometimes several at the same time.

Offline ECR

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #7 on: March 24, 2020, 08:15:35 PM »
Nice buy Rob. Really, the only thing I can remember about that particular NRA gun is the special serial number. It was a stock R9s, of which I grabbed the best-looking parts and frame I could find, engraved the s.n., had it anodized that "funky purple" color and assembled it with the utmost care, as we did with all of the pistols. Nothing else to say about it. We displayed it at the 2004 NRA show and we had quite the buzz going on at our booth. There was no "downtime" there for sure! The was an actual NRA R9S we did that had NRA engraved on the grip panels by Patrick Hogue of Hogue Grips. The rest of the gun was another top pick of parts and assembled, test-fired and that was it. Both versions of The NRA guns were nice examples of our pistol. Fun to do during fun times for us.

Eric R.
Makers of the NRA Shooting Illustrated: "Handgun of the Year for 2005" and receiver of an NRA Golden Bullseye Award.

Offline MRC

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #8 on: March 24, 2020, 08:48:33 PM »

That is about what I figured on the gun.

Are the black CF grips original or did it come with blue?  Time wise it seems to me that when the 2004 Show was held you still would have been using the blue CF's.

Offline PhilZ

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #9 on: March 25, 2020, 11:46:49 AM »

That is about what I figured on the gun.

Are the black CF grips original or did it come with blue?  Time wise it seems to me that when the 2004 Show was held you still would have been using the blue CF's.

Eric stated above that this gun had the first of the new batch of black CF grips.

Offline MRC

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #10 on: March 25, 2020, 12:35:35 PM »
I read that but I am curious if they went with them by early in 2004, the timing does not seem right.

When were the first R9's shipped?  Maybe they used the black ones for the show and shipped blues until they ran out before switching to black. 

I'm curious.
« Last Edit: March 25, 2020, 12:37:47 PM by MRC »

Offline ECR

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #11 on: March 25, 2020, 09:17:08 PM »
Gosh, now you're testing my memory guys. . . lol. . . wow. . .  There were 48 no-prefix R9 pistols plus a few silver framed pistols, that went out by mid-2002 or so, just after the 2002 Shot Show and into 2003. The first R9s with the R prefix upgraded frames started going out in earnest by early April of 2004. They started out with the blue CF grips but quickly went to the black. We made approximately 800 to 900 pistols per year throughout our run. We had I believe 350 sets ordered of the blue carbon fiber grips in those early days, Karl wanted them to be different, and they were at the time, but many of the last sets to be used were really not what we were wanting to put out and we scrapped a lot of them and, sadly, took the hit cost-wise. As we looked through the batch, there were many that were tough to match up together to make a nice set, so the earlier sets were the real deal. As time went forward, I had to match the blotchy ones with other blotchy ones that sort of were similar in "blotchiness". . . . lol. . . . if that makes sense to you guys. lol. Perhaps 200 to 275 nice CF blues went out that year, 2004, but by later in the year, they switched to black from then on. We didn't have the next batch of grips yet and with the difficulty of the blue kicking in, and we had to get the product out, we did the absolute best with what we had at the time and Karl and I made the decision to go with the black carbon fiber grips because they were easier for the manufacturer to make even in color, obviously. That R600 pistol may have had one of the nice set of blue carbon fiber grips on it originally, and may have been changed "out in the field" to the black ones. In a court of law, I would have to respond: " I do not remember". Sorry.   
« Last Edit: March 25, 2020, 09:21:02 PM by ECR »
Makers of the NRA Shooting Illustrated: "Handgun of the Year for 2005" and receiver of an NRA Golden Bullseye Award.

Offline MRC

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #12 on: March 26, 2020, 07:04:53 AM »
Thanks for the reply.

I am sure that Tom never switched the grips, I just had the time line screwed up.  You started shipping guns earlier than I thought, I did not think you started until late 2003 or 2004.

Offline Brenden

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Re: EARLIEST R9 for Sale
« Reply #13 on: March 26, 2020, 05:53:49 PM »
Nice catch on the NRA Pup Rob!
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