Confidence in Gun?

[kg4ghn]

Since I started carrying, I have carried my G19. Awesome gun, it has never had a FTF, FTE, FTRB, or any other malfunction. It just works.

I also have a Kimber Ultra Raptor II that I bought recently, and haven't carried yet b/c I don't have a holster for it yet. I bought the gun used from a guy that carried it, but it has been taken care of.

So far, I have put about 300 rounds through it and hadn't had a hiccup until today.

I pulled the trigger, (second round in magazine), gun went boom, then the slide looked like it was locked back.

What actually happened was after the first shot, the casing did not eject but about halfway. Not a stovepipe or anything, the casing was still halfway in the barrel. I had to lock the slide back and pull the casing out with my pocket knife. I was shooting Winchester White box FMJ.

So now for the question:

This is only one malfunction I've had so far, but it is enough to make me feel iffy about carrying this pistol.

Would any of you still feel ok about carrying this gun?

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Ram Rod]

First off.....if you practice, you should also practice clearing malfunctions. My Glocks have malfunctioned from time to time...and it always ends up being a magazine issue.

This is only one malfunction I've had so far, but it is enough to make me feel iffy about carrying this pistol.

No way! But it is enough to get you practicing even more, and narrowing down the issue to the ammo, magazine, pistol, or maintenance. Personally, I'd look at a malfunction as a welcomed test of true love for my pistols. All of my experienced malfunctions have been related to the magazine(s). Murphy's law and so many other factors play a role. One could only guess as to why this happened, but it's not the end of the world or a good reason to not trust your pistol. Just ask any of the frequent shooters on this forum.....statistics will catch up to you in time. Find the problem and cure it. In this case, I'm just guessing the ammo. For what it's worth.

[MWNF]

I'd say don't worry about it if it's WWB.. I've gotten to the point where I won't even shoot the stuff anymore. I used to love it years ago, but these days it always seems to give me a malfunction of some sort. Such as 6 FTF's and a couple other problems in 300 rounds out of a brand new Sig P226 a few months ago. Got kinda busy since then and didn't get a chance to test the gun again until today. Used some Federal 9mm's this time and didn't have a single problem in 300 rounds.

[raevan]

Now you have a great excuse as to why you need to keep buying ammo and go shooting.

[svinfinity45]

I started training before I even had a permit (at the range only of course) with an older Glock19 that was a little worn and would malf occasionally regardless of the ammo used. It used to be such a PITA when shooting, but when I finally took a tactical pistol class, I was unknowingly SOOO much faster at clearing malf's than I thought I would be when I was actually expecting it and needed to do it in front of the class. I think if you have a gun like that it's a great trainer.

As for your question, 1 FTF in your first time out doesn't sound like a range queen label yet, I would take it a few more times and see if it "wears" in and if you get the same malf repeating, you can get it fixed pretty easily.

I didn't CC my current gun until I had fired est. 3-400 rnds of my actual carry ammo, which is +P so it was a nice night for my wrists, but my gun proved itself. Actually to date the only malf I had with it was when I was purposely limpwristing to demonstrate it to my SO and I had a FTE.

[AlongcameJones]

First off.....if you practice, you should also practice clearing malfunctions. My Glocks have malfunctioned from time to time...and it always ends up being a magazine issue.

No way! But it is enough to get you practicing even more, and narrowing down the issue to the ammo, magazine, pistol, or maintenance. Personally, I'd look at a malfunction as a welcomed test of true love for my pistols. All of my experienced malfunctions have been related to the magazine(s). Murphy's law and so many other factors play a role. One could only guess as to why this happened, but it's not the end of the world or a good reason to not trust your pistol. Just ask any of the frequent shooters on this forum.....statistics will catch up to you in time. Find the problem and cure it. In this case, I'm just guessing the ammo. For what it's worth.

+1, Do some troubleshooting and narrow it down first. Start with an ammo change and go from there.

[EdC]

I hope things work out with your Ultra Raptor. I've got one on the way from Bud's Gun Shop, and it should be delivered by Wednesday if they get on the stick. I'm already bracing myself for some issues, as I understand that all 3" 1911 types can be finicky.

Obvious question: Are you following the break in instructions? The manual (I read it online) says before firing the gun should be field stripped, cleaned, oiled, and repeat every 100-150 rds. After 400-500 rounds of 230 FMJ ball ammo, it's supposed to be broken in.

Finicky or not, it's a beautiful pistol! Good luck.

[Sgt.Sausage]

One thing I learned as an infantry grunt in the Army: All weapons (no exception -- *all*) will malfunction from time to time -- especially while in the field being dragged through mud, sand, crawling through the bushes/leaves/twigs, etc.


The key is learning to deal with it. The drill for the old Army issued M-16A1 was called SPORTS S-P-O-R-T-S: S:Slap (the magazine -- make sure it's seated properly) P: Pull (the charging handle -- eject the jammed up round ) O:Observe (the chamber -- make sure it's clear) R:Release (the charging handle to chamber the new round) T:Tap (the forward assist to make sure the round is chambered and seated properly) S: Squeeze (the trigger to begin firing again).


It's largely the same drill for most any automatic pistol, except most don't have a "forward assist" -- I usually smack the rear of the slide with the heal of my hand to make sure it's pushed all the way forward, sort of a manual "forward assist". Ditto pulling the "charging handle" -- doesn't exist on most pistols but you substitute pulling the slide to the rear instead.


As with the old M16, this clears about 99 % of any issues and can be completed in about 1/3 of a second -- the key is to not panic and fiddle around with the weapon. Know what's going on and clear is ASAP, as the other guy may be shooting at you or closing distance fast.

Important: There is no such thing as a 100% reliable piece of equipment -- even a gun. Just because your favorite hasn't jammed up in the past, doesn't mean it won't in the future. Learn how to deal with problems quickly. Train for the inevitable malfunction and get the time down to an absolute minimum.

[dmorris68]

SPORTS in 1/3 second on an M16? That I'd love to see. I was pretty good at it myself, but can't imagine anyone completing the whole drill in less than a second.

I do agree that sooner or later, in the right (wrong) conditions, given all the variables involved, any firearm will fail and it is imperative that one practice malfunction drills if one trusts their life to said firearm.

I find remedial action with a semi-auto pistol (especially 1911's) to be pretty easy to master, and with just a little practice can get you back in the fight with very little time lost.

[Firkin]

I have a relatively new XD9 SC that has had a few similar malfunctions. In my case, however, the empty was extracted almost all the way out of the chamber. However, the malfunctions have all been with cheaper ammo. None, and I mean none, of the high quality defense ammo I have used has had any problems (300-400 rounds). Maybe it's that the high quality stuff has nickel plated cases, or it may be that the cheaper stuff is just that--cheap. I would begin by suspecting the ammo first, and if you still have failures, start looking elsewhere for problems.

[KenInColo]

My CCW instructor (a police sergeant) recommended a Glock 19 or 26 for carry. He said they never FT(anything). I told him that I had my eye on a Kimber and he said they jam a lot more frequently than a carry gun should. I didn't get the Kimber but I didn't get the Glock either.

I got an H&K P2000. I have over 2,000 through it; all kinds of ammo: Most of it WWB 115 gr 9mm, a few hundred rnds of real cheapo stuff, including aluminum case Blazer, about 50 rnds of Federal Hydra-Shok and 50 rnds of Rem Golden Sabre 147 gr JHPs. Not even a hiccup.

When I showed him the gun, he just smiled and said "Nice gun. If I knew you could afford that, I woulda charged you more for the course! Anyway, you won't have to worry about that one [the H&K] jamming." and it hasn't.

[kg4ghn]

Thanks for the replies guys. It probably was the ammo.

To answer a few of the questions: I bought the gun used so it had been broken in by the guy that had it before me. I know the guy, and he shoots and carries regularly.

This was my second time out with the gun, first time I didn't get to shoot much (around 50-75 or so rounds).

The thing that got me about this is that is wasn't something that could be fixed by a tap, rack, bang. I had to stop, lock the slide back, and pry the casing out with my knife.

Guess it's just back to the range, for more shooting. (Yay )

[retsupt99]

Training for malfunctions is important, and being able to do it, almost naturally, is even more important.

From what you have described, I'm betting it is an ammo problem...easy enough to find out...get thee to the range.

Stay armed...plan ahead...stay safe!

[SealBeach]

Kimber makes excellent guns, I have several, my primary carry gun is a Kimber Custom II. That being said, I have learned to run through at least 500 rounds with a Kimber before planning on carrying it--the guns are made with very tight tolerances, you need to put a lot of ammo through it to get the mating surfaces to ease up.

I have also had to send 2 Kimbers to the gunsmith (in one case, back to Kimber) for adjustment and polishing. One was a Warrior 5" which often had FTF FTE problems, Kimber took care of it, works great now. The other one was a Kimber Ultra CDP 3" which kept jamming in the symptoms you described. A local smith polished the feed ramp and it works great now. Yes, i wish they worked perfectly out of the box, but I believe they are excellent guns, and worth working out the kinks in the long run.

[AEA]

I no longer use WWB due to some light loads that would cause that malfunction that you described.

I suggest three things. Do these in order and only progress to the next one if you still have problems after the first.

1. Use only FRESH Federal Factory 230gr ammo. I personally use Federal American Eagle (Red Box). Cost is slightly more than WWB but worth it to me.

2. Buy yourself some Wilson Combat Magazines.

3. Change the factory recoil spring to a Wolff replacement setup (much better springs than ANY Factory spring).
These have corrected a LOT of 1911 problems by themselves!

I am sure one or all of these will fix your problem.
Happy Shooting!