CW380 doesn't like Personal Defense Ammo

[dhenze]

My CW380 is nearly a year old and I'm close to shooting a 1000 rounds through it. Because of initial problems and forum member suggestions, I've replaced the factory striker and recoil spring with Lakeline ones, and Magguts in all 3 of my 6 round factory mags. A trip back to Kahr and the Magguts solved most of my failure to feed problems. I've tried a dozen quality ammo brands and stayed away from reloads and cheaper ammo. My experience at the local indoor range yesterday was typical: Mag1- last round of Hornady Critical Defense didn't feed. Mag2-all 8 Critical Defense fired, but slide failed to lock open on last round. Mag3-all CD fired perfectly. Mag4-Barnes TACXPD-jammed after first round, rounds 2-8 fired. Mag5-8 rounds of Barnes, perfect. Mag6-7th round of Barnes didn't fire (light primer strike). Obviously, the gun is now filthy, but continued with 6 more full mags, and 2 single rounds firing perfectly all 50 Remington UMC round nose target rounds. I'm totally comfortable with the reliability of this .380 with most round and flat nosed ammo I've tried, but not at all with any quality self defense rounds I've tried, especially hollow point FMJ. That's why I am so disappointed with Hornady Critical Defense rounds that have gotten such rave reviews with other CW380 owners. I'd be tempted to stick with ball ammo for reliability alone if not for the over penetration and low expansion stopping power issues I've read so much about. Any suggestions from you with similar experiences?

[Ronni3_J]

I've had good luck with Hornady XTP and Freedom Munitions XTP in my CW380. I haven't tried Critical Defense due to the success of the XTP but maybe I should

[DavidR]

Critical Defense was the only ammo, HP or FMJ that ran in my CW380.


Dave

[Ed M]

But it's "only" a 380...

Hornady Critical Defense 110 gr 38 Special +P..........1010 fps.........290 ft lbs energy

Underwood Xtreme Defender 65 gr 380 +P..........1400 fps.........283 ft lbs energy

[dsk]

As mentioned Critical Defense is one of the few rounds you can actually count on to work in a .380 Kahr. Your pistol might be having issues with the extractor, or else the feed ramp needs polishing or the breakover angle taken care of.

[dhenze]

What is the breakover angle?

[dustnchips]

My CW380 runs perfect on Federal Premium HST. I'd try a little work on your extractor. One thread on here suggest shortening the pin that pushes against the extractor spring .015. Anothe thread suggests rounding the bottom corner of the extractor a bit. I did both of these even though I didn't have any problems and I also polished the under and outer faces of the extractor.

[joemsj51]

My CW380 is nearly a year old and I'm close to shooting a 1000 rounds through it. Because of initial problems and forum member suggestions, I've replaced the factory striker and recoil spring with Lakeline ones, and Magguts in all 3 of my 6 round factory mags. A trip back to Kahr and the Magguts solved most of my failure to feed problems. I've tried a dozen quality ammo brands and stayed away from reloads and cheaper ammo. My experience at the local indoor range yesterday was typical: Mag1- last round of Hornady Critical Defense didn't feed. Mag2-all 8 Critical Defense fired, but slide failed to lock open on last round. Mag3-all CD fired perfectly.

Easy fix and still able to use the Hornady Critical Defense is to load the first round of the magazine with FMJ - then load the remaining rounds ontop of the FMJ with Critical Defense.

2nd option would be to try another magazine and/or change the recoil spring assembly.

[dsk]

What is the breakover angle?

I'm referring to the top edge of the feed ramp where it meets the chamber. As the cartridge makes it up the ramp and then enters the chamber, if that top edge is too sharp the case can dig in and stop. Therefore it needs to be polished slightly, but not too much or else you'll remove too much metal and reduce support for the case head. You only want to eliminate the sharp edge.

[dhenze]

I checked out several posts regarding the various modifications to the CW380 extractor. They seemed fairly straight forward until I removed my extractor, and realized how small it actually is. The first thing I'll need to do is buy some super high powered reading glasses. I'd planned on using my Dremel to do the grinding, but don't think there are any bits small enough. Another post mentioned that Kahr had recently modified the 380 extractor, so I was hoping my problems might be solved. I just called the Kahr service dept, and the rep said that there has been no such modifications to the extractor, so I guess I'm back to the high powered glasses and looking for some very small files.

[dsk]

I just called the Kahr service dept, and the rep said that there has been no such modifications to the extractor...

My experience with gun manufacturers (and many other companies for that matter) is that the service department is often completely clueless about what goes on in production. Sometimes they're simply clueless all on their own. Once I called Colt to ask what the difference was between two extractor SKUs they had for their 1911s, and I was told one was specifically for the "O" frame (which all Colt 1911s are) and one was for the Government Model. In other words the idiot had absolutely no idea and was just reading from a sheet.

[wyntrout]

I've been using +P ammo with the Speer 90-gr Gold Dot since I got my P380 back in 2010. I've fired several hundred or more of those with no problem. The P380 is very tight and gets dirty quickly at the range. After addressing the possible extractor problem, keep the feed ramp clean at the range.

I use these and they do have a kick:

https://underwoodammo.com/wp-content/uploads/380gd__67826.1479419914.1280.1280-1.png
380 ACP +P 90 Grain Bonded Jacketed Hollow Point

5.00 out of 5 based on 1 customer rating
(1 customer review  ) (https://underwoodammo.com/shop/380-acp-p-90-grain-bonded-jacketed-hollow-point/#reviews)

Please Note: Sold in Boxes Of 20 $15.50


In stock



https://underwoodammo.com/shop/380-acp-p-90-grain-bonded-jacketed-hollow-point/

Technical Information:


Caliber:380 ACP
Bullet Weight: 90 Grains
Bullet Style: Speer Bonded Jacketed Hollow Point
Case Type Ducta-Bright 7a Nickel Plated Brass

Ballistics Information:


Muzzle Velocity:1200 fps
Muzzle Energy: 288 ft. lbs.


My picture is with the Buffalo Bore, but they stopped using the 90-gr GD a long time ago and I switched to Underwood... used to be cheaper and under $30 a box for 50. I believe they have a slightly higher velocity than the BB.

[dhenze]

Wyntrout,

I just read where Ed M recommended the same Underwood brand but with Hornady's XTP vs. your Speer Bonded JHP bullet. I'm going to order a couple boxes of each and see what happens. If anyone can tie down the answer to my question about the "new CW380" extractor, I'd appreciate it. I'd hate to order a replacement or two and find out they're the same as the one I have.

[wyntrout]

It's weird... the halting positioning of the guide rod. A piece of the polymer in the recoil assembly "tray" maybe grabbing things? Sometimes there's a bit of battery on the sides in there and a buildup happens.

The +P isn't fun to shoot, but gives you a pretty good defensive load... more than up to +P snubby .38's.

Good luck.

[Ed M]

Wyntrout,

I just read where Ed M recommended the same Underwood brand but with Hornady's XTP vs. your Speer Bonded JHP bullet.

Actually, I just put a link in a post for Underwood's XTP loading, but my preferred self defense round is Underwood Xtreme Defender +P.

It's a similar round to their Xtreme Penetrator bullet, but does more damage with a little less penetration.

Nasty little bullet.....



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LczfeWK9lHw&t=290s

[topgun1953]

I I just called the Kahr service dept, and the rep said that there has been no such modifications to the extractor, so I guess I'm back to the high powered glasses and looking for some very small files.

I emailed Jay at Kahr a few weeks ago now and he confirmed the extractor has been updated. Jay is generally considered the key guy in Karh's service so I tend to believe it has been updated. If you're going to do anything, just take a few thousandths off the back pin of the extractor chain....the pin you push down to remove the back plate.

[dhenze]

I emailed Jay at Kahr a few weeks ago now and he confirmed the extractor has been updated. Jay is generally considered the key guy in Karh's service so I tend to believe it has been updated. If you're going to do anything, just take a few thousandths off the back pin of the extractor chain....the pin you push down to remove the back plate.

I ordered an extractor from Kahr, and it just arrived. I'd hoped the straight, front edge would have been rounded off a bit as suggested in a previous video, but it's still straight across the whole surface. I've done some filing on my current extractor, but haven't tested enough to report reliable results. I'll post again when I get to the range and see if one performs better than the other.

[CPTKILLER]

Youtube and the ballistic ammo tests is your friend.