My striker broke

[z8894]

CW380, 540 mostly error free rounds. On 541 click but no boom. I took it home and stripped the slide. I've got a 2 piece striker, formally a one piece. I called Kahr, told them what happened. They said they preferred I ship the gun back but would ship me a replacement stiker one time only. I offerered the serial number but he didn't want it. He asked for my address and confirmed it was correct. This guy was very good, he got me off the phone quick. So quick that once off the phone I realized I've got no confirmation the call ever happened. No reason to suspect they won't ship it but if they don't, I've got nothing to confirm it should have ever been shipped. I've ordered a replacement striker from ww.kahr.com . It was only $16.50.
I really like the CW380. It shoots great and is remarkably accurate for a gun so small. It was feeding RNFP 100 grain ammo with no problems at the time the stiker gave it up. After closely inspecting the striker, no wonder it broke. Going forward I'll proactively replace the striker every 400 rounds.

[BEARDOG]

"After closely inspecting the striker, no wonder it broke"

Can you explain in more detail why you said this?
I have read a few posts now of broken strikers on the .380's. I wonder what's up with them???

[muggsy]

I doubt that there is a need to proactively replace the striker every 400 rounds. I have over 2,000 rounds through my P380 and it still has the original striker. All that I would do is keep a spare on hand just in case. If you do happen to break a second striker send the gun back to Kahr. There maybe a problem with the striker channel in the slide. You can request an RMA and a prepaid mailing label, or ship it back through your local FFL to save yourself some money on shipping costs.

[z8894]

I don't have a picture. I'll try to get one. There are 2 very small places where the tip of the striker connects to the larger body of the striker. This is where it broke. I'm no metallurgist but seems to me these tiny points could only take so much before they break. With 95 grain rounds the recoil isn't much. I was using 100 grain and it feels a bit like catching a baseball, bare handed, in the palm of your hand. Not too bad but you do feel it. I don't if that makes any difference but where it broke is such a tiny bit of metal I can't imagine it could take too much repeated abuse. A clean break on both sides. I'm not bashing the CW380 or Kahr , I like the little booger.

[timboy]

Hmm I am seeing a pattern here..

[BEARDOG]

I don't have a picture. I'll try to get one. There are 2 very small places where the tip of the striker connects to the larger body of the striker. This is where it broke. I'm no metallurgist but seems to me these tiny points could only take so much before they break. With 95 grain rounds the recoil isn't much. I was using 100 grain and it feels a bit like catching a baseball, bare handed, in the palm of your hand. Not too bad but you do feel it. I don't if that makes any difference but where it broke is such a tiny bit of metal I can't imagine it could take too much repeated abuse. A clean break on both sides. I'm not bashing the CW380 or Kahr , I like the little booger.

Thanks, some pics would be great.
Does the striker channel have any marks inside it? Like down around the firing pin hole, like it would have been hitting off to the edge slightly?

[topgun1953]

I think Kahr had some issues a while back. I bought a CW380 about 14 months ago and broke the striker after 300-400 rounds. I bought a P380 while Kahr was fixing the CW. The striker in the P380 broke after about the same number of rounds. Kahr replaced it. It broke again after a couple hundred rounds! This time they also replace the slide. I traded the CW but I've kept the P and I have many hundreds through it. Bottom line..you shouldn't have to replace it every 400...or even close to that.

[z8894]

Looks like metal fatigue. My eyes aren't what they used to be but I can't see anything wrong with the slide.


http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j38/keith_sweat1/striker_zpsd72c0365.jpeg (http://s76.photobucket.com/user/keith_sweat1/media/striker_zpsd72c0365.jpeg.html)

[Redstate]

Just curious as to whether you examined the strikes on the primers?

[z8894]

No I didn't. I should have but didn't think of it at the time.

[Fedupmech]

I have about 500 rds through my CW380. No issues with it after the break in period. Wondering if anybody knows. Is the striker on the CW380 the same as the P380 in quality. How it's made? Hope this isn't a problem with all of the CW380's.

[topgun1953]

They are the same. I'm not sure how they are made but they don't look to be machined. In an earlier post I mentioned how I thought Kahr had a bunch of bad ones.. I bought my CW in 11/13 and my P in 1/14. I experienced 3 broken strikers between them. This includes a second one in my P in about May of 2014. Most reports I've seen have them breaking 200-400 rounds in.

[RRP]

The Kahr website shows two different part numbers for strikers for the P380 (http://www.kahr.com/Pistol-Parts/Kahr-020P38-Striker.asp) and the CW380 (http://www.kahr.com/Pistol-Parts/Kahr-020CW380-Striker.asp). The photos look the same and the price is the same. It strikes me as odd, though, that Kahr would stock two different part numbers if the strikers were exactly the same.

[muggsy]

From the photos that I've seen it appears that the metal crystallized at the point where the striker broke. This could have occurred when the strikers were heat treated or from work hardening. Using snap caps lessen the possibility of work hardening because the force of the blow is mitigated by the spring inside of the snap cap. When actually shooting you gun the force of the blow is mitigated by the indenting of the primer.

[Exiledviking]

The Kahr website shows two different part numbers for strikers for the P380 (http://www.kahr.com/Pistol-Parts/Kahr-020P38-Striker.asp) and the CW380 (http://www.kahr.com/Pistol-Parts/Kahr-020CW380-Striker.asp). The photos look the same and the price is the same. It strikes me as odd, though, that Kahr would stock two different part numbers if the strikers were exactly the same.
Kahr also shows 2 different part numbers for the recoil spring for the K9 and the P9. I'm quote certain that they both use the same spring.

[RRP]

Kahr also shows 2 different part numbers for the recoil spring for the K9 and the P9. I'm quote certain that they both use the same spring.

We can speculate, all day long, that different part numbers are identical, but in the end we can't be certain until it is verified by the manufacturer.

[CJB]

1. Agreement with the esteemed Mr Muggsy on the crystaline coarseness in the front at the point of failure. I'm gonna go with the heat treat error, perhaps too hot prior to quench, perhaps incorrect temper (after hardening), or perhaps the alloy used was not to spec (which throws heat treat recipe out the window). Tending toward the latter, not too hot before quenching.

2. Appears machined, or at least "finish machined" to me. That is, it may have been a really nice MIM part (nothing wrong with MIM btw), that needed to be drilled and outer turned at the tip. I do not believe those machine marks would have allowed a MIM part of that design to be released very well from any sort of reusable mold.

3. In the past, its been verified (someplace in the myriad of threads) that Kahr uses seperate part numbers (to the public at least) for every pistol, even though they may be the same part (and possibly carry the same Kahr-internal-use-only part number). Things like triggers, cocking cams, strikers, even the washer used with the slide stop spring get different numbers varying on model.

[livefreeordie1]

Do you dry fire this gun much?

[z8894]

I did, maybe +300 times. I have snap caps but that is the one thing it doesn't feed well.

[livefreeordie1]

I wonder if that might have something to do with it. Without a primer there all of the energy has to be absorbed by the striker instead of deforming the primer. Kind of like firing a bow without an arrow in it, all the energy meant to be transferred to the arrow has to be absorbed by the bow, breaks them. I know you're supposed to be able to do it without harm but I'd be leery of dry firing the gun if I was going to carry it. Or maybe replace the striker at regular intervals. Every steel has a fatigue strength and if dry firing it exceeds that strength enough times then it's going to give eventually.

[z8894]

Good point. I also have a Glock 26. Took a while to get used to the trigger on it too. I did and can shoot it very accurately. On the Glock 26 I could reset the trigger without ejecting the snap cap. The CW380 has fed everything well but snap caps. I couldn't reset the trigger without a jam when using snap caps. It was such a pain I just didn't use them. That may have led to the striker failure.

[gun papa]

On my cw380, the trigger is reset with a mere 1/4 inch retraction of the slide. No ejection.

[z8894]

Kahr shipped the replacement striker. I installed it and got to the range today. 60 error free rounds. (1 box of 50 + the 10 left over from the broken striker trip). All is back to normal. I ordered a spare striker just in case. Stripping the slide and replacing the striker is quite easy.
Gun Papa, I measured about 5/8" to reset the trigger which pulls the snap cap out far enough that it won't go back in. I'm used to the trigger so I won't be dry firing much now anyway.

[sharpetop]

I haven't been following this issue closely enough. Is there a serial number range for the broken strikers on the CW380?

[gun papa]

700 rounds in. Broken striker. RH serial

[z8894]

RH7XXX serial number for mine.

[gun papa]

RH for mine