View Full Version : New CW45 Owner
justbill
03-24-2014, 06:12 PM
Hello. I just purchased a CW45 as a summer CCW. This is my first Kahr and got it for a great price - $398 OTD. My first range session didn't go great, probably due to my own choice of ammo. I didn't want to use expensive brass case loads during the 200 round break-in, so tried some steel case Tulammo Ball. Bad decision. I had two light primer hits in 40 rounds. Oddly, both rounds also got stuck in the chamber and I had to wrestle with my new pistol in order to extract the troublesome cartridges. It was quite a push n' pull match. Has anyone else experienced similar issues with steel case loads?
Additionally, I'm thinking about trying Froglube for the first time with this pistol once I'm done with the break-in. Anyone have an opinion on using Froglube on their Kahr?
AFDoc
03-24-2014, 07:12 PM
Don't have an opinion on the froglube but did you check out the prep threads here? Check out the stickies in the Kahr-Tech folder. And welcome aboard!
DeaconKC
03-24-2014, 07:36 PM
Steel ammo has a rust preventing coating on it. It is often called lacquer, but it's not really. When the chamber gets hot, it will often stick and cause what you described. Some guns are "loose" enough so it is not a problem, some are tighter. Yours obviously doesn't like the steel stuff! And welcome to the place!
2tango2
03-24-2014, 07:48 PM
I used Frog Lube on my CW380 and it seemed to work well. I've since switched to M-Pro 7 to clean and Rand CLP from Viking Tactics for lube. I use the same combo on my CW9 without issues. The Rand is like liquid lightning on the rails
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Pointblank
03-24-2014, 07:58 PM
That's why I bit the bullet, (pun intended) and broke in my PM9 in with miscellaneous JHPs I had laying around. I didn't want cheap ammo shaking my confidence in my new main carry gun. By the way, it went 300 rounds without a hiccup. Sweet little gun.
HAP1978
03-24-2014, 08:42 PM
Great choice! I own a CW .45 and as Pointblank said I would use good ammo for the break-in period. Once she gets loosened up then you can try a variety of ammo.
It's a sweet pistol, the more you shoot it the more you'll like it.
trentu
03-25-2014, 09:57 AM
If you use steel case try and spray them with a light coat of lube. Seems to help in the chamber. That laquer coat on them varies so much. I love shooting my CW45. Nice gun.
jocko
03-25-2014, 10:12 AM
Hello. I just purchased a CW45 as a summer CCW. This is my first Kahr and got it for a great price - $398 OTD. My first range session didn't go great, probably due to my own choice of ammo. I didn't want to use expensive brass case loads during the 200 round break-in, so tried some steel case Tulammo Ball. Bad decision. I had two light primer hits in 40 rounds. Oddly, both rounds also got stuck in the chamber and I had to wrestle with my new pistol in order to extract the troublesome cartridges. It was quite a push n' pull match. Has anyone else experienced similar issues with steel case loads?
Additionally, I'm thinking about trying Froglube for the first time with this pistol once I'm done with the break-in. Anyone have an opinion on using Froglube on their Kahr?
break in any gun with cheap ass sh!t. If u have issues, u now don't know if it is the ammo or the gun so ur still gonna have to retest with good ammo to diagnose the guns issues. Some gunbs handle steel ok, some do not, My K9 hated steel, so I jusrt never mess with it. Shoot good over the counter brass cased american made ammo. Stell cased is certinly not americanb made ammo.
Give ur 45 a chnace to prove itself and to gain ur confidence. Because some of these cuntrys make steel cased ammo does not mean that our guns have to shoot them perfect, IMO. Just sayin
justbill
03-25-2014, 08:15 PM
Thanks for all the responses. No shaken faith here. I'm confident this little .45 will be just fine after a bit of range time. And better ammo.;)
ConfederateGunRunner
03-27-2014, 03:39 PM
I agree. Give the 45 a chance. I have one and love it. I just recently started using Froglube on it and really like it. Keeps it lubed well, and makes it a breeze to clean. Best of all it smells great and it's none toxic so I can clean my gun right at the kitchen table with no worries. Good luck.
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Acasper708
03-27-2014, 03:56 PM
Nice CC choice!
I love my CW45. The only hiccups mine has had was when I was using a 1911 mag.
I have only used rem oil on mine. I have considered froglube.
wsgrady
03-27-2014, 05:08 PM
Have shot @ 250 rounds of ammo in this pistol using federal hydra-shock, cci gold dot and Remington hd. Use Wilson, kahr and act mags. Have a failure to feed almost every other magazine using all combos of above. Followed break in recommendation and cleaning recommendation per this site. Will polish the feed ramp and re-try, though it looks fine to my eyes. If it continues to ftf I will send it back to Davidsons for replacement per their guarantee. Have nick named it " Jam-o-Matic ", I do like the ergos of this thing and hope to get used to the long trigger pull.
bob98366
03-28-2014, 01:05 AM
Two comments: I found Hornady's aggressively tapered bullet feeds well. Also, with the slide locked back, slowly slide a loaded magazine in and see if the top bullet touches anything. I had to sand off and smooth a portion of the slide lock pin assembly where the arrow points. Feeds fine now, even wad cutters.
wsgrady
03-28-2014, 02:33 PM
Thank you Sir, I'll give that area a look see..
jocko
03-28-2014, 02:38 PM
Thank you Sir, I'll give that area a look see..
about reqading the kahr tech section under proper preping of ur ahr ad also wyns cw45 fixes. somewhere in there is ur cure, Sonds fixable to me what ever it is. If it was a real mechanical thing it would duplicate itslef alot more. These fourm guys here can help u alot. Last esort is to always send it back but certainly not at this stageof the game either.:Amflag2:
moosedan
03-28-2014, 09:16 PM
I had a little issue with mine set it back and has been great since. Kahr CS was great.
Gun runs great now. My wife's cw9 has had zero problems from day one. I would stick with kahr mags thru break in. That's all I use now and I'm happy.
100percent
03-28-2014, 09:31 PM
Failure to feed... think extractor.
wsgrady
03-29-2014, 01:23 PM
Thanks for the help all, one way or other will " Get R Done " .
Tenesseerebel317
03-31-2014, 08:14 PM
I have one and love it. The first 50 rounds I put through it were steel cased and it ate um up no problem. Just recently started using Froglube on mine and have found it to be all they claim it is. And my gun smells sooooo good.
muggsy
04-10-2014, 08:03 AM
about reqading the kahr tech section under proper preping of ur ahr ad also wyns cw45 fixes. somewhere in there is ur cure, Sonds fixable to me what ever it is. If it was a real mechanical thing it would duplicate itslef alot more. These fourm guys here can help u alot. Last esort is to always send it back but certainly not at this stageof the game either.:Amflag2:
Jocko,
You've really got to think about seeing a Dr. to have at least one of your ten thumbs replaced with a finger. Your posts are almost impossible to read. To show you what kind of guy I am I'd be more than happy to donate a finger and I think that you know exactly which finger I'd be willing to give you. Yer pal.
muggsy
Parker
04-10-2014, 10:22 PM
I use Frog Lube on my CM9 and CW45 and it seems to work great. The smell took me a little getting used to. I used Frog Lube on the break in of my CM9 and it saw me through fine. Both work flawlessly!
TheTman
04-11-2014, 12:57 AM
RE: Tulammo, Wolf, and other Russian steel cased ammo, I save the Russian ammo for Russian guns, or those from former communist countries. Like the SKS and AK's, Makarovs, CZ's and such. A friend tried some Wolf ammo in his Ruger Mini 14 or Mini 30. and it caused all kinds of problems. FTFs, FTEs, primers not going off. He said it seemed like every other shot had a problem. He switched back to some American made ammo and had no problems at all.
Pointblank
04-11-2014, 07:04 AM
Jocko,
You've really got to think about seeing a Dr. to have at least one of your ten thumbs replaced with a finger. Your posts are almost impossible to read. To show you what kind of guy I am I'd be more than happy to donate a finger and I think that you know exactly which finger I'd be willing to give you. Yer pal.
muggsy
:bump2:
justbill
04-12-2014, 08:51 PM
I wanted to update everyone who has responded to or followed this thread so far. I did the full Frog Lube treatment and headed for my in-laws' place for further break-in shooting. One hundred rounds of WWB 230-gr. Ball functioned flawlessly. Twenty-four of those were through a Wilson 47D, my preferred 1911 magazine. The only minor issue with the Wilson mag is that it won't hold open the slide after the last round. Big deal. It will only be used as my on-belt reload mag. If I run dry after fifteen rounds, I've got more problems than the slide not staying back. :D
So it's looking good so far. I'm anxiously awaiting the release of Viridian's Reactor 5 ECR laser and leather holster upgrade kit. Both should add a great deal to this pistol.
Decado
04-13-2014, 10:26 AM
I had this same exact problem with tulammo, had to bring a screw driver to the range with me to work the slide open, I think the oal is too much, I don't shoot this ammo through my cw45 anymore.
100percent
04-13-2014, 10:32 AM
I am trying to imagine how you used a screwdriver to get your gun open!
I had this same exact problem with tulammo, had to bring a screw driver to the range with me to work the slide open, I think the oal is too much, I don't shoot this ammo through my cw45 anymore.
DougGuy
04-16-2014, 10:14 PM
For break-in I used 230gr plated hollowpoints over 5.3gr WW231. Worked great! Had no issues with the Kahr magazine, and I found a MagPack 7rd Officers magazine on ebay that needed only the typical mod on the follower to not hang on the magazine catch and it works really well now.
http://store.iqmetals.com/hsmplatedhandgunbullets.aspx
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/DougGuy/Kahr%20CW45/302ed6d6-70e5-47b4-b64f-a7ff4708a33e_zpsebeff6fa.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/DougGuy/media/Kahr%20CW45/302ed6d6-70e5-47b4-b64f-a7ff4708a33e_zpsebeff6fa.jpg.html)
Quite impressed with groups right out of the box:
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/DougGuy/Kahr%20CW45/baee7a0f-63d5-49df-a04e-4c6c3cf9b353_zps9b6785e1.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/DougGuy/media/Kahr%20CW45/baee7a0f-63d5-49df-a04e-4c6c3cf9b353_zps9b6785e1.jpg.html)
This CW45 really took a liking to Hornady's 230gr +P hollowpoint!
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/DougGuy/Kahr%20CW45/87a4ec1a-19e1-4000-9071-a4b602819870_zpsb22946ab.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/DougGuy/media/Kahr%20CW45/87a4ec1a-19e1-4000-9071-a4b602819870_zpsb22946ab.jpg.html)
yqtszhj
04-17-2014, 06:28 AM
For break-in I used 230gr plated hollowpoints over 5.3gr WW231. Worked great! Had no issues with the Kahr magazine, and I found a MagPack 7rd Officers magazine on ebay that needed only the typical mod on the follower to not hang on the magazine catch and it works really well now.
http://store.iqmetals.com/hsmplatedhandgunbullets.aspx
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/DougGuy/Kahr%20CW45/302ed6d6-70e5-47b4-b64f-a7ff4708a33e_zpsebeff6fa.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/DougGuy/media/Kahr%20CW45/302ed6d6-70e5-47b4-b64f-a7ff4708a33e_zpsebeff6fa.jpg.html)
Quite impressed with groups right out of the box:
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/DougGuy/Kahr%20CW45/baee7a0f-63d5-49df-a04e-4c6c3cf9b353_zps9b6785e1.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/DougGuy/media/Kahr%20CW45/baee7a0f-63d5-49df-a04e-4c6c3cf9b353_zps9b6785e1.jpg.html)
This CW45 really took a liking to Hornady's 230gr +P hollowpoint!
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/DougGuy/Kahr%20CW45/87a4ec1a-19e1-4000-9071-a4b602819870_zpsb22946ab.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/DougGuy/media/Kahr%20CW45/87a4ec1a-19e1-4000-9071-a4b602819870_zpsb22946ab.jpg.html)
Good shooting. I can do the same with my CW45 with the full length grip. I struggle a little more with my CM9 . :amflag:
justbill
04-20-2014, 08:48 PM
I recently bought some X-Treme Bullets 200-gr. plated SWC's. They look good and are quite reasonably priced. Shipping is included. Should be loading up the first test batches in a week or so.
pbagley
04-22-2014, 02:49 PM
Hey Bill, I had some issues with Berry's SWC's in my CW45. The bottom of the ejecting case seems to hook the step in the SWC bullet profile. When it causes a little damage the new round can have difficulty chambering. It could be my load, and I have only tried one powder so far. I think you may find a thread on this (and brass damage) in the reloading section.
I have had very good luck with RMR plated 115gr.HP in 9mm, and I plan to try the 200gr .452 version soon. I'll post something in the reloading section with the results in my CW45 as soon as I have something interesting to write about.
justbill
04-23-2014, 06:20 AM
Thankfully my CW doesn't damage brass at all. This includes the additional 50 rds. of WWB Ball and approximately half a box of 230-gr. JHP's fired on Monday. Oddly, during this session my brother tried this Kahr for the first time. He had failures to feed with every round! I was quite perplexed since this was quality ammo that had proven itself reliable. I thought it may be a case of limp wristing but this seems doubtful. My brother has been shooting a wide variety of handguns over the past thirty years and competed in several styles of pistol competition without any major hang-ups. What nakes it even stranger is I then shot the CW for around 50 rounds after him without the slightest hiccup. Slow fire or as fast as I could keep the front sight on target, it mattered not. Strange.
bob98366
04-23-2014, 11:11 AM
Oddly, during this session my brother tried this Kahr for the first time. He had failures to feed with every round!
Since you shoot it with no problems, it's probably something in his grip. Check his weak hand to make sure he's not squeezing on the bottom of the magazine causing it to be misaligned. Try shooting one handed, both strong and weak.
Bawanna
04-23-2014, 11:32 AM
That is weird. As stated it has to be his grip somehow. If your brothers bigger than you I'd certainly not use the word limpwrist. I actually hate that word myself.
Apparently he's just not holding it firmly enough or letting the gun roll just enough that it doesn't cycle properly.
This kind of reinforces reports of many guns going back to Kahr that they can't find anything wrong with.
Do continue the research, let brother shoot it some more and try to pin down the issue here. Could be really good help to others.
justbill
04-23-2014, 04:37 PM
Bob,
I hadn't thought of his grip misaligning the magazine bottom. It's possible and I'll have him try it again when we next get to the range.
Bawanna,
My brother and I are very similar in build and strength. I'm actually older by two years. We've both done a heckuva lot of handgun shooting over the years. The first handgun in our family was a Ruger Super Blackhawk and I've never seen him have the slightest problem with heavy-recoiling and/or lightweight firearms in 30+ years. That's what made this so darn perplexing. Regardless, it makes a lot of sense that grip is his issue. It has to be. He's been shooting heavier and physically larger pistols for some time. A 13-rd. Para LDA is his regular CCW. Maybe his grip is a bit "off" for the slim n' trim CW45. I will continue to pursue the cause and post as new data becomes available.
dorangolv
04-24-2014, 04:39 PM
Just for laughs, check the trigger bar to make sure it gets pressed down as the slide passes over the top.
http://www.kahrtalk.com/showthread.php?t=21904
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