Heaps of problems w/ CW45

[cdubya]

Hello all.

I recently purchased a CW45 and had read through all the posts about prepping a new Kahr before heading to the range. I had also read through the known issues and was hoping I would be one of those that "never have problems." Unfortunately, after my second trip to the range, I seem to have nearly every possible problem listed. I'm very disappointed, frustrated, and fighting very hard the temptation to curse this gun as a piece of trash (just being honest). When you spend good money on a new gun you expect it to simply work, not have to do all kinds of modifications, tweaks, or even returning it to the manufacturer. It seems I'm going to have to do all these in order for it to work properly. I want to love this gun, but right now I'm not feeling it. Here are the issues I'm having after only 150 rounds:

The slide stop pops out when firing or chambering a round.
Slide does not lock back on last round.
Premature slide lock back. lol^
Many FTEs and stovetops.
Damage to the barrel hood.
Damage to the infamous "missing notch."
Very poor accuracy at close range.
And finally, my favorite insult to all the injury, piping hot cartridges often hit me in the forehead.

I thought I would ask for some advice before I either [pay more money] send it back to the manufacturer or get a whole different gun altogether. :eek:

Thanks!

[Jeffw78]

I hate to hear of the issues. If it were mine, I would send it to Kahr. Most decent manufactures will make shipping arrangements for you and pick up the tab. I agree it sucks to have to send one back. I would make them fix it.

When these guns are right, they truly are a great carry gun.

[Bawanna]

Was this a new gun or a used gun. Each individual issue isn't difficult to cure but the total of all the maladies would make me lean towards a call to Kahr.

They may or may not send a call tag to pick it up.

It totally is a pain that you have these issues but they will make it right if you give them the chance.

We've actually been hearing of fewer and fewer issues but apparently there are still some out there.

[Longitude Zero]

Give Kahr a chance to make it right if it is a new gun. If you purchased it used the term caveat emptor comes to mind.

[cdubya]

Was this a new gun or a used gun. Each individual issue isn't difficult to cure but the total of all the maladies would make me lean towards a call to Kahr.

They may or may not send a call tag to pick it up.

It totally is a pain that you have these issues but they will make it right if you give them the chance.

We've actually been hearing of fewer and fewer issues but apparently there are still some out there.

Brand new gun. Thanks for the advice. I'll give them a call.

[Jeff00042]

Sorry to hear of your problems with the new gun. I'd certainly send it back to Kahr. Problems 1,2,3,4 & 6 started after several hundred rounds in my P380 and were resolved when I replaced the slide stop spring. Good luck.

[nmkahrshooter]

Mine is the second that I have purchased and so far not a problem with either of them. CW45 shoots great and is easy to carry even in warm weather. Got rid of the first one cause I was stupid. Will not get rid of the second one! Hope you get your problems worked out!

[gb6491]

Hello all.

I recently purchased a CW45 and had read through all the posts about prepping a new Kahr before heading to the range. I had also read through the known issues and was hoping I would be one of those that "never have problems." Unfortunately, after my second trip to the range, I seem to have nearly every possible problem listed. I'm very disappointed, frustrated, and fighting very hard the temptation to curse this gun as a piece of trash (just being honest). When you spend good money on a new gun you expect it to simply work, not have to do all kinds of modifications, tweaks, or even returning it to the manufacturer. It seems I'm going to have to do all these in order for it to work properly. I want to love this gun, but right now I'm not feeling it. Here are the issues I'm having after only 150 rounds:

The slide stop pops out when firing or chambering a round.
Slide does not lock back on last round.
Premature slide lock back. lol^
Many FTEs and stovetops.
Damage to the barrel hood.
Damage to the infamous "missing notch."
Very poor accuracy at close range.
And finally, my favorite insult to all the injury, piping hot cartridges often hit me in the forehead.

I thought I would ask for some advice before I either [pay more money] send it back to the manufacturer or get a whole different gun altogether. :eek:

Thanks!
Welcome to the forums.
You've gotten good advice from other members here when they suggest giving Kahr a chance to resolve the issues with your pistol.

If you're a DIY type, I've some suggestions in regards to:
The slide stop pops out when firing or chambering a round.
Slide does not lock back on last round.
Premature slide lock back. lol^
I suspect your slide stop spring, washer, or screw are not installed properly or there is damage present. The fix might be as simple as tightening the screw (fixed similar issues with my CW45)
Fixing this might fix the Many FTEs and stovetops, but I would strip the slide and give all he extractor parts (to include the tunnel in the slide) a good cleaning. This might also fix the piping hot cartridges often hit me in the forehead.
These:
Damage to the barrel hood. (if we're talking about the top, outside edge (http://i52.tinypic.com/27yyjqq.jpg))
Damage to the infamous "missing notch."
Can be cleaned up with a file.
Regards,
Greg

[cdubya]

Just got around to getting a Return Authorization today. The Kahr rep confirmed that the pistol was manufactured in May of 2010. Is this the lot where most of the reported problems have come from? I guess this one had been on display at the shop for a while.

[jocko]

doucument everything u told us so the karh rtech people can see each and every issue ur having troubles with. Dpon't expect them t6o see all that u have mentioned. givbe them a path to follow and it willcomeback ready to go.

[DKD]

A PM-45 once doted me in the forehead, but quit after the first hundred breakin rounds. Most issues with being hit in the forehead, FTF or FTE are caused by too loose a grip on the firearm. These guns are light and need something to push back against to function...just the laws of physic's. My guess is that you are possibly new to double action pistols especially light weight pistols.
Also watch your grip, if you hit or rest your thumb on the slide stop you can interfere with the premature slide stop issues. Sometimes it is just an out of spec spring on the slide stop. Give Kahr a call and explain your issues. Many issues are resolves right hear on the forum.

[TheTman]

Greg, or anyone else,
do you have any idea why my CW45 won't fire from the 7 round extended mags? The 2nd round nosedives back into the mag, and the third round get's wedged into the chamber at about 45 degrees, and locks up. After that the rounds feed fine most of the time. I sent it back to Kahr, but they didn't fix it. They polished the feed ramp and rails. Then tested OK, I doubt if they loaded the mags to capacity, if you don't load the mags to full capacity, the problems don't appear.
I probably forgot to mention that in my letter. I think next time it goes back it will be with instructions to load the mags to capacity when test firing, and maybe send some pics of the 2 types of jams. It's nearly always the same, on 3 different mags, round 1 chambers fine, round 2 nosedives back into the mag, then round 3 jams up at an angle to where it won't enter the chamber. Rounds 4-7 shoot fine.

[TheTman]

I just talked to Kahr again, they have a new Ian, Eon, or however it spelled with an American accent, and talked to the American one, and he said to make sure I used the slidestop on the first round. I can't see how that would make a difference, but I'll run out back and test a couple mags, using the slide stop, since I don't remember if I used the slide stop or not when I got it back from Kahr and tested it. I think I did both ways and no difference either way, slide stop and hand racking it, but just can't be sure.

[kerby9mm]

Its Eoin. English guy who seems to want to make it a short conversation on the phone. He is the one handling my RMA on my mk9. His knowledge about the guns seems limited.

[jocko]

Greg, or anyone else,
do you have any idea why my CW45 won't fire from the 7 round extended mags? The 2nd round nosedives back into the mag, and the third round get's wedged into the chamber at about 45 degrees, and locks up. After that the rounds feed fine most of the time. I sent it back to Kahr, but they didn't fix it. They polished the feed ramp and rails. Then tested OK, I doubt if they loaded the mags to capacity, if you don't load the mags to full capacity, the problems don't appear.
I probably forgot to mention that in my letter. I think next time it goes back it will be with instructions to load the mags to capacity when test firing, and maybe send some pics of the 2 types of jams. It's nearly always the same, on 3 different mags, round 1 chambers fine, round 2 nosedives back into the mag, then round 3 jams up at an angle to where it won't enter the chamber. Rounds 4-7 shoot fine.

how about checking this out. as it seems to me that it could be a follower issues in round 2/3 causing it.

Take the magazine apart, with the slide off the gun. Now insert the empty mag tube back in the gun, and now withthe follower and the springs together slowly push that follower up in the magazine tube and look down from the top to see if it is grabbing on the magazine relase button. It if is, IMO that is ur issue and it is so so easy to fix to. Take the follower4 out and look at the right side of it and u will see a slight lip/ledge on the follower. with some 600+ grip paper just sand that lip away and then retest to see what hapens, if it doesn't get it yet, then with the paper on the flat surface just rub the right side of that follower a few dozen times to remove ever so little material that you can't even tell it. Then retest, soon is will side right past that magazine release button with zero restricftion . This has been done before with excellent results.

The gun can't count and round 2/3 is a magazine issue IMO.

Try it Symanski and let me know..

[cdubya]

doucument everything u told us so the karh rtech people can see each and every issue ur having troubles with. Dpon't expect them t6o see all that u have mentioned. givbe them a path to follow and it willcomeback ready to go.

Great advice. Thanks!

[cdubya]

Its Eoin. English guy who seems to want to make it a short conversation on the phone. He is the one handling my RMA on my mk9. His knowledge about the guns seems limited.

Haha. I just laughed out loud. That's the same guy I talked to today. I got out one sentence before he was wanting to get me off the phone with simply a new spring on its way. I said, "Wait a minute. Let me tell you the rest of my problems before we go any further." After going down the list of my problems and stating that I really felt like the gun needed to go back, his reply was "Hold on, sir," and then came back with an RA number. :19:

[TheTman]

Yes Jocko, it has to be a mag issue, the 6 round mags work fine.

I did that mag thing, and it hangs up when there would be about 2 shots left, but not when there are 5 or 6 left when it does hang up. I tried a loaded mag, to see if the bullets were hanging up, and they didn't seem to be hanging up, so I'm still not sure what is going on. I'll mess with it some more see if I can figure out something.
I'll check for differences between the 6 and 7 round ones again. Must be something small and hard to see.
Thanks for the suggestion.

[onalandline]

I recently went to the range with my Dad and his new CW45. It had problems several times returning to battery. It would be about 1/8 to 1/4 inch from full battery. I would have to tap it in place. I am pretty sure it was the ammo. We were using Herter's aluminum cased/nylon jacketed ammo. I noticed that some of the cases would dent slightly when I loaded the magazine. I am almost positive it was an out of round condition, and will be using brass the next time out. I will report back.

[Charlie98]

I have a used CW9 that runs 100%, it's my daily carry and I love it.
I have a used P45 that is having some problems, but I'm working through them... based on the service I get from the CW9, the Kahr is definitely worth a little trouble to get it to run right. It's a fine pistol and I don't think there is another pistol that is as small as it is and still fits my hand well... and is accurate to boot.

Let us know how Kahr does...

[onalandline]

I recently went to the range with my Dad and his new CW45. It had problems several times returning to battery. It would be about 1/8 to 1/4 inch from full battery. I would have to tap it in place. I am pretty sure it was the ammo. We were using Herter's aluminum cased/nylon jacketed ammo. I noticed that some of the cases would dent slightly when I loaded the magazine. I am almost positive it was an out of round condition, and will be using brass the next time out. I will report back.

Update: I changed ammo, but a new problem came about. The first round would go off, then the trigger would not reset most of the time. I would have to tap the back of the slide or flick the trigger to get it to reset. I talked to Kahr, and they had me send it back to the factory.

Kahr has a problem with the CW line. There just should not be this many issues with a gun. The 200 round break-in is a joke too. A gun should be ready to go out of the box. All my Glocks have been flawless from the start. We'll see what they find.

[wyntrout]

Some of these problems could be caused by bad extractors. My second P380's extractor claw rested on or VERY close to the breech face. It was essentially operating as blowback instead of locked breech, as the extractor was resting on the back of the rim, rather than in the groove. I could push the slide into battery, but the case would not always eject.

In the case of my P40, removing a bit and smoothing/polishing of the bottom of the extractor claw to make the rims slide UNDER it more easily helped it get past the cartridges getting cocked at about 45 degrees halfway into the chamber. The case rims are supposed to slide up and under the claw and be held in place until ejected, so don't make that TOO loose.

Wynn:)

[yqtszhj]

Update: I changed ammo, but a new problem came about. The first round would go off, then the trigger would not reset most of the time. I would have to tap the back of the slide or flick the trigger to get it to reset. I talked to Kahr, and they had me send it back to the factory.

Kahr has a problem with the CW line. There just should not be this many issues with a gun. The 200 round break-in is a joke too. A gun should be ready to go out of the box. All my Glocks have been flawless from the start. We'll see what they find.

When they fix the trigger you'll be good to go. I had the same reset trouble you described but fixed it myself. It was relatively easy but a good move to let them have it back.

The CW45 is nice but VERY TIGHT when new. It is also about the thinest 45 you can get too.

[onalandline]

When they fix the trigger you'll be good to go. I had the same reset trouble you described but fixed it myself. It was relatively easy but a good move to let them have it back.

The CW45 is nice but VERY TIGHT when new. It is also about the thinest 45 you can get too.

Thanks for the words of encouragement!

[onalandline]

My Dad's CW45 came back. The trigger problem was fixed, but there were a couple of ejection problems. Also, if you do not hold the grip way up high and tight, the end of the frame digs into your thumb knuckle quite a bit. He has decied to trade the CW45 in since he wants a more reliable pistol that does not need a 200 round break-in period and have to be sent back to the factory out of the box. The grip really does kinda dig into your thumb knuckle also.

I am sure Kahr is a good gun, but I really question the CW series after having joined this forum, and heard about all the problems. Sorry Kahr gurus.

[kerby9mm]

When I go to the range I wrap 2 band aids around my thumb knuckle especially for my mk40,my mk9 is not bad for me in that spot. Despite that small inconvenience I still love those guns. Just something about them.

[onalandline]

When I go to the range I wrap 2 band aids around my thumb knuckle especially for my mk40,my mk9 is not bad for me in that spot. Despite that small inconvenience I still love those guns. Just something about them.

Not for me. I just want to wrap my hand around a gun that does not need to be prepped, broken in and sent back to the factory several times. I'm sure the higher-end Kahrs are fine pieces of machinery, but too expensive for me. The CW line needs improvement.

[cdubya]

Sorry it has taken so long to report back, but believe it or not I was just able to get this gun back to the range a couple of days ago. I had to wait in line a while for a lane, so only had time for 50 rounds. When I got it back from Kahr they had replaced the ejector and slide stop spring, along with reworking the barrel. I'm happy to report I had no failures and the accuracy was great. Here's to hoping it continues!

I also just got my back-ordered night sights pressed on. Next project... flush magazines with an additional round.