Slide reassembly problem on a CM9

[thatoneguy650]

I just got a CM9 and went to break it down. Followed the video on here and it went fine. Went to reassemble the gun and could not get the slide to go on the frame. I'm not sure if the guide rod is supposed to be flush after you put it on the slide or it becomes flush with the slide when you put the slide back on the frame. What am I doing wrong here? Here's a video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6q0heMADCRw (http://youtu.be/6q0heMADCRw)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6q0heMADCRw

[CJB]

Your problem is you need to slightly adjust the recoil spring guide to the left or right slightly, let it get into its proper place in the frame as the slide is positioned.

The lower lug (and ramp) is slightly offset, so the recoil spring guide does not center on the lug, its more in the center of things.

[MW surveyor]

Also, from what I can see, you need to make sure that the end of the rod sits down onto the step.

[thatoneguy650]

Still no dice. I have the rod sitting right on the flat part under the barrel. It will go on except for that last 1/4". Isn't the guide rod supposed to be flush with the front of the slide when you put it in? Mine sits back a ways and looks horribly off center (first picture)

http://i.imgur.com/wWt3T.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/bBdiv.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/XgSCZ.jpg

[thatoneguy650]

Seems exactly like this problem, but there aren't any real solutions in there. http://kahrtalk.com/showthread.php?t=11817

[kahrnut1]

just tore mine down to check the front of guide rod does not go flush until slide is installed. it looks to me like you do not have barrel seated in slide properly the feed ramp should line up closer to slide stripper bar. also check to see if button on recoil spring is as far down on barrel as it will go it starts out lower on back in than it will be after slide is installed and it slides level

[thatoneguy650]

The barrel fits in great and looks right. I have the guide rod seated as close to the barrel as it will go. If you will excuse the horrible drawing, the guide rod is in red and the barrel is in black.

http://i.imgur.com/1m8Bl.png

I'm about ready to give up.

[TucsonMTB]

I believe the barrel is in just fine. But, the front of the recoil assembly needs to be inserted through the hole in the front of the slide and the flat plate on the back of the recoil assembly fits into the ledge on the barrel as little forward of where it is right now.

Place the slide nose down on a firm surface. Use a paper towel to protect the finish, if you like. Then muscle that recoil spring into the front hole in the slide. You will know when it is place properly because it will drop in and suddenly it will be relatively easy to position the rear of the recoil assembly correctly. Check out the Kahr assembly video on the Kahr.com site (http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=G2cZgVg_SwA) for a demonstration of the process.

Edited to add: Getting the nose of the recoil assembly through the hole in the front of the slide is the key to success. :)

[gb6491]

I just got a CM9 and went to break it down. Followed the video on here and it went fine. Went to reassemble the gun and could not get the slide to go on the frame. I'm not sure if the guide rod is supposed to be flush after you put it on the slide or it becomes flush with the slide when you put the slide back on the frame. What am I doing wrong here? Here's a video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6q0heMADCRw
Once you have the slide on the frame (as in your video), have you tried installing the slide stop before working the slide?
Regards,
Greg

[thatoneguy650]

Thanks for the help everyone. I got it back together. I put the spring in and it goes together easy until the last 1/4" then it will only rack about 1". I just racked it a bunch of times and one time it racked all the way back. It cycles rounds just fine, so I guess it is fixed. I will run some rounds through it before I attempt disassembly again to break in those springs. So far I am regretting buying it, but I'll hold off judgement until it is fully broken in.

[falcondriver]

Mine did the same thing today. After much confusion I watched a video on how to take down and reassembly and that guy slightly pulls the trigger for the last 1/8 inch before it is in the proper place to insert the slide stop. I could feel the slide just click into place and no more trouble. I took it back apart 5-6 more times and it works like a charm now. I got 200 rounds thru mine with no trouble.
FD

[sharpenit]

Thanks for the help everyone. I got it back together. I put the spring in and it goes together easy until the last 1/4" then it will only rack about 1". I just racked it a bunch of times and one time it racked all the way back. It cycles rounds just fine, so I guess it is fixed. I will run some rounds through it before I attempt disassembly again to break in those springs. So far I am regretting buying it, but I'll hold off judgement until it is fully broken in.

I had problems with the slide on my CM9, too, though they were different from yours. And like you, I had a bad case of buyer's remorse, thinking I had been ripped off. However, the folks on this forum were very helpful with advice, and Kahr customer service is very helpful. Ultimately I had to put more than 400 rounds through my CM9 before it began to work properly. Since then, I've put another 300 rounds through it without problems.

But when you pay $400+ for a brand-new piece of machinery, you expect it to work right out of the box.

[jocko]

My 95K Porsche broke down in the first 600 miles. SH!T happens... u either live with it and adjust to it or jump off the bridge..

[thatoneguy650]

In case anyone else has this problem, I shot it a little over 100 rounds today. It went together a lot easier after cleaning and lubing it, so I guess it just needed a little breaking in.

[TucsonMTB]

In case anyone else has this problem, I shot it a little over 100 rounds today. It went together a lot easier after cleaning and lubing it, so I guess it just needed a little breaking in.
Good news! Congratulations! You are now an experienced Kahr owner. Work on your swagger, if you like. http://home.mindspring.com/%7Ejustsomeguy/icon_lol.gif

[thatoneguy650]

Good news! Congratulations! You are now an experienced Kahr owner. Work on your swagger, if you like. http://home.mindspring.com/%7Ejustsomeguy/icon_lol.gif

Thanks. Nice to see another Tucson person here. If you don't mind me asking, do you hit up the ranges, reddington, or somewhere else?

[TucsonMTB]

Thanks. Nice to see another Tucson person here. If you don't mind me asking, do you hit up the ranges, reddington, or somewhere else?The Pima Pistol Club range is less than 10 miles from our house. We bought an AR-10 about the time everyone else did. But, far away rifle ranges are not a big attraction for us. Mostly, my wife and I shoot our 1911's (and some smaller stuff) at PPC. It is a nice family oriented setting. I can ride my mountain bike to the range quickly enough to make starting a car unnecessary. :D

Day shooters are only $10. Annual family membership is only $100 (with NRA membership). You can do the math. ;)

[DKD]

I just don't understand all this buyers remorse thing....? Maybe I am just getting old and cranky. Now all of you new guys out there don't get your panties in a wad or nothin, but here is a news flash for Y'all....new high quality hardware are speced with very close tolerances. These Kahr pistols are llike a fine tuned race car, as such need to be properly preped , lubed, and broken in. Hell some of you guys are acting like your gut shot or something...you haven't even shot the weapon yet and already jumping to conclusions. Must be the new generation thing....instant gratification or something. Trust me on this most of you fellas are going to love these pistols once you learn the subtle newonces of the breed.
DKD out!

[jocko]

dead right DKD.

[wlc]

I think DKD might be a little too harsh. For most people buying a new gun is at least partially like getting a new toy. It's something they have spent a lot of time thinking and daydreaming about. The initial reaction to finding out your new toy is not perfect is disappointing. Whether the flaws are real or not doesn't change the initial reaction. I do agree that some of the concerns are very trivial or in some cases a lack of understanding of how things work. Usually a little reassurance that there is not a big problem is all they need.

[jocko]

andmany people do not read the mauals either. works both ways.

[thatoneguy650]

I just don't understand all this buyers remorse thing....? Maybe I am just getting old and cranky. Now all of you new guys out there don't get your panties in a wad or nothin, but here is a news flash for Y'all....new high quality hardware are speced with very close tolerances. These Kahr pistols are llike a fine tuned race car, as such need to be properly preped , lubed, and broken in. Hell some of you guys are acting like your gut shot or something...you haven't even shot the weapon yet and already jumping to conclusions. Must be the new generation thing....instant gratification or something. Trust me on this most of you fellas are going to love these pistols once you learn the subtle newonces of the breed.
DKD out!

I said I was having a little buyers remorse, but I would hold on judgement until I let the gun get fully broken in. That is exactly what I did. I was just a little weirded out that a gun needs to be broken in to be easily field stripped.

[ToneSurfer]

Sounds like you have it working but I'd like to add....

When I put my recoil assembly in, like yours, the rod does not end up flush with the front of the slide. It fits on the frame just fine and one rack it flushes itself up.

If you hand rack the slide and notice any kind of hitch or snag on the way back, or if you notice that the rod is hanging up on the slide you might want to take the outer spring off the rod and use a pair of pliers to slightly open up the end of the spring at the front (muzzle end of the slide). When my gun was new it had a horrible snag during racking and this fix took it out. You only have to bend it open a hair to make a big difference.

Also, Kahr suggests that you position the pointy tip of the spring so that it is at the 12 oclock position (pointy tip closest to the barrel) when assembling.

[wlc]

ToneSurfer has good advice about tweaking the spring a little. I had the same glitch when hand racking and it went away after this little adjustment.

[WilliamG]

Also remember you have to push down on the barrel (visible chamber part) as you slide the slide back onto the frame, or the barrel gets hung up. That drove me crazy until I figured out that part!

[CJB]

They're not all like that. Consider this - things are made tight on purpose. With that, you're gonna get a few quirks with individual pistols. Doesn't mean they're bad, just means that the fit of the parts is such that a bit of British English is needed.

For instance, a certain Morris Minor... in order to start:
1. Check temperature. If below 20C, turn on radio, turn fan to high, and step on the brake whilst cranking the engine. Depress accelerator one time only, then crank.
2. If above 20C, then use either the left or right signals, whilest cranking, and depress the accelerator half way, then release before cranking. Do not pump accelerator.
3. If engine fails to catch, turn on radio, fan to high, headlamps to passing beam, and depress the brake. Turn off electrical apparatus. Wait five minutes precisely, then attempt again using the alternate method from 1 or 2 above.

More or less the instructions given by the first owner to my GF (from close to Bristol, England, UK) when she got her first Morris. I'm guessing there is a quirk between available voltage and the way the (electrical) choke responds.

And you think your Kahr is hard to get going... jeeze. (no pun)

[WilliamG]

As a Brit, I find the above hilarious. :)

[bapple]

Also remember you have to push down on the barrel (visible chamber part) as you slide the slide back onto the frame, or the barrel gets hung up. That drove me crazy until I figured out that part!

This this this!!!!

I had the exact same problem when I first bought mine since it was so tight. When I started doing the pressing down on the barrel, all was right with the world.

[TucsonMTB]

As a Brit, I find the above hilarious. :)
As a guy born in Philadelphia and raised in the mid-west, so do I. All it takes is owning a few British cars in your youth . . . http://home.mindspring.com/%7Ejustsomeguy/icon_lol.gif

[sharpenit]

I just don't understand all this buyers remorse thing....? Maybe I am just getting old and cranky. Now all of you new guys out there don't get your panties in a wad or nothin, but here is a news flash for Y'all....new high quality hardware are speced with very close tolerances. These Kahr pistols are llike a fine tuned race car, as such need to be properly preped , lubed, and broken in. Hell some of you guys are acting like your gut shot or something...you haven't even shot the weapon yet and already jumping to conclusions. Must be the new generation thing....instant gratification or something. Trust me on this most of you fellas are going to love these pistols once you learn the subtle newonces of the breed.
DKD out!

When you pay $400 or $500 for a brand-new gun, it is not unreasonable to expect it to work properly. If you bought a new car, you would expect it to work from the moment you drive it off the lot. Cars have break-in periods, too, but that doesn't mean they fail to work. If you buy a new TV, you expect it to work as soon as you hook it up. Few of the problems that members have detailed in this forum appear to have resulted from a failure to clean or lube. A lot of these guns just don't work right until the owners send them back to the factory or Kahr CS sends them a new part or the owner figures out some fix on his own.