P40 doesn't want to feed 1st round?

[lawndart]

I picked up a used P40 the other day. When I load the mag, and forward the slide, it jams (about 75% of the time). Once I get it loaded with one in the pipe and some in the mag....it runs great. What could be causing this? I was thinking maybe the feed ramp needs to be polished a little. Anyone have any ideas?

Oh, the gun was very clean, and properly lubed when this happened, so grime or dirt isn't a likely cause.

[JustinN]

My first question is how you are loading it? Are you locking it open, inserting mag, and using slide stop lever or are you loading it and operating the slide by hand? When you operate it, are you pulling it all the way back and letting go so it can run forward? What kind of ammo are you using? Have you tried it with different bullets in case it is a really flat HP or something? Finally, you may check the feed ramp for smoothness and the magazine tension. Does it do that with only 4 rounds (for instance) in the mag, or just when completely full?

[Nitro700]

lawndart you might look at this thread in the General Discussion (slingshot vs the proper way to rack a slide) may help. I believe others might be having same problem.

[lawndart]

I lock the slide back and activate the slide release after the mag has been inserted. I own four other Kahrs and haven't had this sort of issue with any of them.

[JustinN]

I would try sling shotting it instead the release lever as well as try it with a round or two out of the mag to see if either of those help....could help narrow down or eliminate possible problems...

[lawndart]

ok, I'll give the 'sling-shot' thing a try. The answer has to be simple, because the gun runs, fine once it's charged.

[lawndart]

Well, as far as I can tell. The 'sling-shot' method seems to work....at least it did the few times I tried it with this gun. I'm still a little puzzled as to why this one acts different than my other Kahrs, but as long as it works...no big deal.

[kpm9]

Usually its the other way around.

Does the gun seem real tight?

[lawndart]

Usually its the other way around.

Does the gun seem real tight?


Not really. I would say it has about 200-300 rounds thru it, based on wear.

[jocko]

change your recoil spirngs. that would be the first thing to do. Using the slide lock lever should be the best method of loading as it always releases the slide with the same velocity.

If u can rack it Ok, then stick with it. A new set of springs usually solves these issues..

One can't really tell on a kahr how many rounds have been through it either They show no appreciable wear at 200 rounds or at 5000 rounds. Mine PM9 has 24,850 rounds and you would not believe how perfect everything looks . It may just need a few hudred of your rounds down range to get running perfect to..

[lawndart]

change your recoil spirngs. that would be the first thing to do. Using the slide lock lever should be the best method of loading as it always releases the slide with the same velocity.

If u can rack it Ok, then stick with it. A new set of springs usually solves these issues..

One can't really tell on a kahr how many rounds have been through it either They show no appreciable wear at 200 rounds or at 5000 rounds. Mine PM9 has 24,850 rounds and you would not believe how perfect everything looks . It may just need a few hudred of your rounds down range to get running perfect to..

You might be on to something about the springs. I took the gun to a friend, who said the same thing....I'll probably order a spare set of springs for all of my Kahrs in the near future.

[Cappy]

change your recoil spirngs. that would be the first thing to do. Using the slide lock lever should be the best method of loading as it always releases the slide with the same velocity.

If u can rack it Ok, then stick with it. A new set of springs usually solves these issues..

One can't really tell on a kahr how many rounds have been through it either They show no appreciable wear at 200 rounds or at 5000 rounds. Mine PM9 has 24,850 rounds and you would not believe how perfect everything looks . It may just need a few hudred of your rounds down range to get running perfect to..

Your numbers speak mountains about these guns!! ;)

[beanfield]

I picked up a used P40 the other day. When I load the mag, and forward the slide, it jams (about 75% of the time). Once I get it loaded with one in the pipe and some in the mag....it runs great. What could be causing this? I was thinking maybe the feed ramp needs to be polished a little. Anyone have any ideas?

Oh, the gun was very clean, and properly lubed when this happened, so grime or dirt isn't a likely cause.

Check the vertical edge of your magazine follower. Part of the plastic on that vertical edge broke off one of my original magazines within the first 200 or so rounds. It would cause all kinds of feeding problems as the bullets wouldn't align properly in the magazine. I contacted Kahr tech support and they stated (quoting from memory) that they thought the plastic in a batch of magazines was bad and I got one of the bad ones. They sent out 8 replacements. That was about 2 years ago. 3 of the 8 replacements broke in the exact same way.

[lawndart]

Update: I ordered a new spring, and that didn't really help (it still has problems, but not as bad). So I called Kahr. They were very, very helpful. They are going to send me a couple of new mag followers, if that doesn't solve the problem, they said send it in to them.

I was impressed with their customer service.

[kpm9]

Leave your mags loaded between range sessions. Stiff mag springs, along with out of spec followers can cause additional drag on the slide, slowing slide movement, esp from slide lock.

[lawndart]

Leave your mags loaded between range sessions. Stiff mag springs, along with out of spec followers can cause additional drag on the slide, slowing slide movement, esp from slide lock.

You're the Man! I tried the mag out of my CW 40 and it runs just fine....and the springs in the P40 mags are much stiffer than the CW mag. When my new followers get here, I think I'll be good to go.