CW45 frame rail shaving off

[longtalltechsan]

Howdy everyone, this is my first post to this site. I just acquired a CW45 in trade and was able to shoot it today. No malfunctions other than I believe my thumb was hitting the slide stop, so I'll have to work on that. It sticks out more than other handguns I have had in the past.

However, the big issue that I have is that after I was done firing, I grabbed the rear of the slide to lock it back and it wouldn't budge. Not at all. But if I grab it at the front of the slide then it would go back fine. Disassembled it and saw that the front right frame (the short section) has the lower part of it shaved off making it thinner from top to bottom. I put the slide back on and noticed that when trying to lock the slide back from the rear of the slide, it applied downward force at the rear of the slide and upward force at the front so it would, I guess, catch part of that frame rail and not slide back. I also then noticed a larger gap between the bottom of the slide and the frame at the front of the slide.

The frame rail
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v521/jpruessner/1012131852a_zpsb54d48a2.jpg


Gap on right side of slide
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v521/jpruessner/1012131901_zpsd29cf681.jpg

Normal gap on left side
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v521/jpruessner/1012131901a_zpsb5274f14.jpg

I will be calling Kahr on Monday to see what they say. I am not very optimistic as this is part of the entire frame. What does everyone think?

[gb6491]

Welcome to the forums!
The frame rail in your first photo is there to help guide the slide onto the metal rails at the rear of the frame and in the dust cover (http://glocktalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=765313)
We see some initial wear on the poly rails as the gun is used and it usually ceases after a certain point. The poly rails can also show wear/damage from installing the slide with less than optimal alignment.
As to why you can't retract the slide from the rear and the uneven gaps at the front of the frame, I'd suggest checking the fit and condition of the metal rails in the dust cover. They should look/fit in similar to these (that's a CW45 on the right):
http://i43.tinypic.com/504qwl.jpg (http://i43.tinypic.com/504qwl.jpg)
Regards,
Greg

[longtalltechsan]

Well there was a piece of the poly rail that actually came off. I understand normal wear and perhaps my picture and original description were poorly done but I don't believe this is normal. I did say shaving off but it was more like a small chunk that is now gone.

As for the gap issue and the lower metal rails, maybe there is an issue there as well because the gap between slide and frame is much more noticeable on the right side than on the left. So I will call Kahr and talk to them about it to see what they say. And the issue about not being able to pull the slide back from the rear portion of the slide started immediately after the piece of the rail came off. Do the Kahr customer service people look at these forums? It would be nice to direct them to these images while describing it over the phone.

[Decado]

My CW45 did the same thing when it was brand new, if I didn't apply downward pressure to the rear of the slide it would not retract, I went out and shot it, it worked fine, then I cleaned it and it still did the same thing.

Then I decided to try lubing it with grease instead of oil, I cleaned all the oil off the entire gun, then greased all the locations that need to be lubed, I cannot repeat the issue anymore.

I initially was going to start a thread but after greasing it up and not having an issue I just figured the gun needed better lubrication to function properly.

[Decado]

Oh, and that gap at the front is normal, my CW9, P9, CW40 and the 2 CW45's I had all had that same gap at the front area of the slide.

[gb6491]

Well there was a piece of the poly rail that actually came off. I understand normal wear and perhaps my picture and original description were poorly done but I don't believe this is normal. I did say shaving off but it was more like a small chunk that is now gone.

As for the gap issue and the lower metal rails, maybe there is an issue there as well because the gap between slide and frame is much more noticeable on the right side than on the left. So I will call Kahr and talk to them about it to see what they say. And the issue about not being able to pull the slide back from the rear portion of the slide started immediately after the piece of the rail came off. Do the Kahr customer service people look at these forums? It would be nice to direct them to these images while describing it over the phone.
Your picture and explanation were done well enough. If you don't believe it's normal, then by all means contact Kahr (http://www.kahr.com/contact.asp). You can ask them to view this thread or they may have you email the photos to them.
FWIW, here's a photo of the same "rail" on my CW45 (it has quite a few rounds through it:)):
http://i39.tinypic.com/16bmx7b.jpg
The damage you see to it was most likely caused by me being a little sloppy when removing the slide. This has had no effect on the operation of the pistol.
Regards,
Greg

[longtalltechsan]

Ok so it seeming like this is normal. However, does anyone have any ideas on why when I try to rack the slide by holding the rear of the slide (pulling) it will not go back, but when I try from the front of the slide (pushing) it goes back fine? Something has to be catching somewhere.

And thanks for all the feedback.

[Decado]

Try some grease on the rails, was an instant fix for me

[longtalltechsan]

I just cleaned and relubed everything, using grease on the rails. It will be awhile before I can shoot again, but hopefully that will take care of it.

[Decado]

Try racking the slide a bit, that's what I did when I realized that it stopped sticking with the grease on the rails.

[longtalltechsan]

I have done that Decado and it still does it. I talked to Kahr this morning and told them about it. They asked me to send pictures so I did. Waiting to hear back from them.

[hardluk1]

Do you any buddies that own kahrs?? See what they think about racking the slide. They do take a far better grip to rack from the rear than with a top side grab and push pull type rack.

[Decado]

Sorry that didnt fix it bro

[longtalltechsan]

I have had 2 others try racking the slide and the same things occurred when they did it too.

[longtalltechsan]

I finally talked to someone at Kahr today about the gun. I was told I need to send it back as it sounds like the front lower steel rails may be misaligned since there is a problem pulling the slide back. So I will ship it back and hope for a quick fix.

[longtalltechsan]

Well, I was going to ship it back, but was told to ship it per the instructions on the website, which is fed ex or ups overnight, which will cost about $75. I really can't afford this right now. So I will shoot it again and see how it fares. If it operates correctly with no malfunctions, which I am hoping it does, then I guess I am just worrying for nothing. I can't get it to replicate the issue where it catches completely and can't bring the slide back. It does still catch a little, but nothing like before. I did grease the rails like it was suggested so we'll see if that helps. I really hope this takes care of it as I love the size, feel, and the way the gun feels when shooting. Its great to have a .45 in this size w/o much recoil.

I am also hoping that tightening the slide stop spring screw takes care of the slide locking back with rounds in the chamber, whether it was loose and engaging from recoil or my thumb getting in the way and slightly pushing it up.

Thanks again for all the feedback from everyone.

[Decado]

Same thing happened to me when Jay told me to send mine in, I just didnt have the time or money to drive to FedEx or my ffl to drop off the gun, I asked if I could get a shipping label emailed to me but they refused, Ruger didn't have a problem sending me a label when I explaind that it was a brand new gun, I live in a rural area very far from a shipping hub and my FFL guy is an hour drive away.

You can have an FFL ship it USPS IF you can find one who will do it, some of them refuse, my FFL ships everything USPS , handguns are usually $20 to $25 max to ship.

Maybe if you just shoot it a bit more the issue will resolve itself, but that's more money for ammo.

[yqtszhj]

Hey Longtall,

How many rounds have you fired through it and does it function OK otherwise? They do loosen up after the first couple hundred rounds. Mine is smooth as silk now but it does take a fairly good grip to rack the slide. It also is a CW45.

[longtalltechsan]

I admit I bought the gun used, but I believe it was manufactured in the last 2-3 years, well within the warranty period. That is just a cost I can't incur right now.

I myself only have about 30 rounds through the gun. The only malfunctioned that I ran into was the slide locking back with rounds still in the mag. So hopefully tightening the screw for the mag spring will resolve that. Otherwise there were no malfunctions. It was just after shooting that I noticed the "issue" (maybe no issue) with the frame rail and it locking up. So I will try shooting it again and getting some more rounds through it and see what happens. I was told by the previous owner that he put no more than 500 rounds through it and that the original owner bought it but never fired it. So honestly, there is no telling. I will say though that it doesn't appear that too many rounds have been put through it.