How often do you un-chamber your Kahr?

[Mits3kgt88]

Im a fairly new Kahr owner and am wondering about the above question. I recently got my CC permit and am concerned about the striker spring getting weak from leaving the gun chambered for longer periods of time than carrying concealed(ie more than 12 hours). I'm not really sure if the striker is only partially pulled back when a round is chambered or if it's fully/mostly pulled back. I found this animation from Kahr's website:Kahr Arms / Quality Guns : Unique Design (http://www.kahr.com/KA-2E.html) and it looks as if the striker is in full c0cked position. Please enlighten me on this. Thanks in advance.

[Bawanna]

Unless I'm reloading or cleaning I never unchamber. I on occasion press check to make sure I'm still loaded but don't even do that often.
I don't think the striker spring will ever need replaced, if you ordered a spring kit someday and it came with one, I might replace just because but I'd not lose a minutes sleep over that spring.

[Mits3kgt88]

Oh ok thanks. I have read the thread on this forum about repeated chambering of rounds is trouble and now I mark chambered rounds with a sharpie to make sure that I keep track of them. I wouldn't want a kaboom or whatever to happen to me because of a lodged bullet.

[Bawanna]

Ok your talking two different things here. All you need to do is look at the round that comes out of the chamber and compare to the others. If it looks long or short or the bullet tip is just getting beat up, just set it aside to shoot on a range day and replace it.
It's not difficult to tell if the bullets been pulled a bit or pushed in.
A while back I had an officer tell me his glock 30 was full of glitter. I was at a loss till I saw that the glitter he mentioned was gun powder. The bullet had apparently got lodged, pulled from the case but wasn't stuck in the barrel. No one knows what happened to it. He was lucky and now he knows what gun powder looks like too.
You can chamber a a round a dozen times without issue or you can chamber it once and the bullet might move, you just don't know. Bullets are crimped differently apparently.
Again nothing to worry about, just take a peak when you unload and see if anything is amiss.

[dusty10]

Unless I'm reloading or cleaning I never unchamber. I on occasion press check to make sure I'm still loaded but don't even do that often.
I don't think the striker spring will ever need replaced, if you ordered a spring kit someday and it came with one, I might replace just because but I'd not lose a minutes sleep over that spring.

Forgive my ignorance but please explain this "press check". Thanks, Dusty

[hedgehog]

Forgive my ignorance but please explain this "press check". Thanks, Dusty

retracting the slide just enough to check if the gun is loaded. i personally do it with thumb around the grip and fingers of the same hand retracting the slide

[Bawanna]

Exactly correct. Just confirming a loaded chamber without unloading and reloading and I do the thumb on the back fingers on the slide routine sometimes also. Works good on a Kahr size gun. On a 1911 or bigger gun I usually use the front end to push back just a bit.

[jlottmc]

Well you guys have this one licked, guess my two centimes are not needed.

[ripley16]

How often do you un-chamber your Kahr?

Only a couple times a year. When I go to practice, I'll drop the mag of my expensive carry ammo, if I choose not to shoot it, but I always shoot the chambered round regardless. I may unchamber a round to do a cleaning and lube if I haven't been to the range in a while.

I don't worry about spring compression, either in a hammer spring, striker spring or mag spring. In my experience they tend to hold up well.

[Mits3kgt88]

Ok thanks for the replies guys. I was just paranoid that I'll be in a situation one day where I'll actually need my CCW for defense and it wont go bang. Thanks for putting my mind at ease.

[Roadblock]

Leaving a gun cocked, or loaded will not weaken the springs. Same with the magazines, leaving them loaded will not weaken them.

What weakens springs is constant and repeated compressing and decompressing. This isn't something that happens in a measured period of time either.

Take it out, shoot the piss out of it. Leave it loaded for years, unload it daily, it doesn't matter.

What you really need to worry about more then the gun is yourself. Saying you want the gun to be 100% reliable and always go bang is great but they don't always. Even a working gun can encounter issues when the shooter finds himself in a high stress shooting situation. What you need to do is learn how to properly handle the situation IF the gun doesn't go bang. If the gun fails to feed. If the guns fails to extract etc. Hell, you can have failures to extract and feed if your holding the gun wrong and those types of things seem to happen when you add stress to the situation as mentioned above.

I would be much more worried about that then the gun itself having issues

You don't need to be an LEO to take a GOOD extended tactical training course that deals with the what ifs of gun failure. Might just save your life. Check around at your local gun clubs and see who does tactical training in your area.

Any gun can have issues but if you really just want a gun that will go bang without needing much training, consider a revolver. If it fails to fire, simply pull the trigger again. Unless your firing pin is missing it should go BANG! I like the S&W Airlites and the Ruger LCRs.

Reminds me of a funny story. I'll post quote!


Follow-up on maintenance of carry pistols:

From a friend on the Metro-PD, Michigan.

"Our lieutenant bought a Colt Cobra (snubby, six-shot revolver) shortly after joining the Force. I'm not sure where he got it, but he carried it as a back-up for the last twenty-five years of his police career. He continued to carry it, now as his only gun, during his retirement years.

In all the years he owned it, it was never checked-over by an armorer, nor was any maintenance ever performed on it, nor did the lieutenant, nor anyone else, ever fire it.

Years later, while in his seventies, he was walking in the woods near his retirement cottage. On a whim, he decided to finally fire his little revolver (for the first time) at a discarded pop can.

It did not fire, not the first time he pulled the trigger, nor the sixth!

A local gunsmith examined it the next day and discovered that the lieutenant's revolver did not have a firing pin, and apparently had never had one! A subsequent investigation revealed that the gun had been used as a trainer and had thus been rendered sterile, decades earlier. Obviously, up until that moment, no one had ever noticed!

This officer had been carrying a non-functional pistol for over thirty years, and never knew it, nor, I'm sure, even suspected it!"

Comment: He was lucky to have gotten away with it! Who are that nonchalant in our time, probably won't!

*Update* LOL sorry for the 3 month Necro-Post, I didn't even notice the thread was that old. Sometimes I forget to check being that this forum doesn't get as much traffic as some of the larger ones such as GlockTalk etc. :D

[Bawanna]

It's a great post no matter how old the thread and we all can learn from your story.
Everytime you take your gun down for cleaning it should be function checked 6 ways from sunday.
And I have a personal 300 round minimum range test before a gun gets approved to wear on my person.

I'll add a short story of my own.

Our officers had a range day and afterwards were cleaning their Beretta 40's in the training room. One officer decided to be thorough and removed his grips to clean under them. He inadvertantly knocked out the trigger bar spring which incidently looks like a bent paper clip.
Put it back together sans spring and loaded and holstered.
Fortunately he had a training day about 10 days later and you guess it, he go one shot off and then he had a paperweight. Once the bar drops it's all over.
A little bit of function checking following the cleaning and he wouldn't have been patrolling the streets with a useless gun.

[earle8888]

Wolff Springs Say's Leaving a modern spring in one position, either compressed or relaxed, doesnot hurt it. Compressing and relaxing is what wearsout springs. See their website.

[Roadblock]

It's a great post no matter how old the thread and we all can learn from your story.
Everytime you take your gun down for cleaning it should be function checked 6 ways from sunday.
And I have a personal 300 round minimum range test before a gun gets approved to wear on my person.

I'll add a short story of my own.

Our officers had a range day and afterwards were cleaning their Beretta 40's in the training room. One officer decided to be thorough and removed his grips to clean under them. He inadvertantly knocked out the trigger bar spring which incidently looks like a bent paper clip.
Put it back together sans spring and loaded and holstered.
Fortunately he had a training day about 10 days later and you guess it, he go one shot off and then he had a paperweight. Once the bar drops it's all over.
A little bit of function checking following the cleaning and he wouldn't have been patrolling the streets with a useless gun.

That could have been bad. If he didn't know how to work on his gun, he should have put a few mags threw it before he started to carry it again. That and or had someone else double check it work. Even then I still would have put a couple mags down range.

So many of the guys/gals I work with know nothing about the guns they carry. Seems to be the case with a lot of people unfortunately. They are issued a gun, maybe they have an extra at the house etc but they only know enough to qualify with them and that's it. That's how you end up dead. Carrying a gun is not for everyone but if your going to do it, don't half-ass it and just assume relying on the gun is going to save your life.

Situational awareness is more then just avoiding dark alleys and crack house neighborhoods, it's also knowing your gun, knowing how to use it and knowing what to do if it fails etc.

How many people can effectively clear a stove pipe with a swipe of the hand? How many people can effectively chamber a round if they experience failure to feed? You know, when the thug car jacking you is firing his Hi-Point .40 at you! Those are the things to worry about, not the gun itself failing. The thing is if people learn about their guns, learn how to shoot them, learn how to clear failures etc chances are the gun won't fail because you will known enough about the gun to know when things need maintenance and or to be replaced. You will just know when something is not right.

Most people pass the CPL/CCW and maybe go the range once every few months, that is bad in my opinion. Train train train and then go train some more!

Also a little dirt on a gun is OK. I like to actually fire my guns after I clean them. Functions checks are great but 25~50 rounds threw it is better. If your worried about dirtying up your clean gun, don't be cheap and buy some good ammo that uses cleaner powder.

When I shoot I normally put 250 to 500+ rounds threw a single gun in a single range trip or shooting event. I'll bring my guns home, clean them and then put another couple magazines threw, just to make sure its working right. Then I wipe them down with a silicone rag and call it good. Little carbon never hurt anything!

OK I'll stop rambling now! My wife says I like to hear and see (forums) myself talk sometimes! :D



Wolff Springs Say's Leaving a modern spring in one position, either compressed or relaxed, does not hurt it. Compressing and relaxing is what wearsout springs. See their website.

Which is what I said in my above post! ;)

[deuce]

I never knew that it was the compressing and relaxing of the springs that cause them to wear out. I always keep mine locked and loaded,unless I'm cleaning after the range, but I learned something new today.

[Mits3kgt88]

Thanks for the replies, even three months later :D

I do admit that when I first started carrying my Kahr, I didn't know close to as much as the knowledgeable guys here on the forum. I now leave my P40 chambered every time that I carry and know that tactical training is a must. I learn new things about Kahrs and carrying every day from reading threads on is forum and talking to other people.

Roadblock: I wasn't sure about how Kahr's trigger system worked when I had asked that question in my OP. I'm sorry that I didn't know everything about guns as soon as I owned a Kahr, let alone carry. I don't assume that I can just carry my Kahr and that it'll save my life. I ask questions here for getting information, but I understand if examples have to be made. I am willing to learn as much as I can and have learned a lot in the past six months of owning my Kahr.

[Roadblock]

I never knew that it was the compressing and relaxing of the springs that cause them to wear out. I always keep mine locked and loaded,unless I'm cleaning after the range, but I learned something new today.

Yep yep. Even with that knowledge, you can compress and relax them hundreds and hundreds of times normally before they start having issues. Most mags will function for tens of thousands of rounds before you will see failures to feed etc.

This is also something most people need never worry about. You will known when your mags start to wear out due to the failures. Replace them springs or get new magazines and the problems go away.


Roadblock: I wasn't sure about how Kahr's trigger system worked when I had asked that question in my OP. I'm sorry that I didn't know everything about guns as soon as I owned a Kahr, let alone carry. I don't assume that I can just carry my Kahr and that it'll save my life. I ask questions here for getting information, but I understand if examples have to be made. I am willing to learn as much as I can and have learned a lot in the past six months of owning my Kahr.

Really all I was trying to say was that you don't really need to worry about stuff like that. As long as your guns broken in properly, it will work as well as you do! :)

I hope you didn't take anything I said wrong. :(

[jocko]

probably the truth be known, we would never wear out magazine springs. They are durable to say the least. That being said mag springs are low in price and to error on the side of caution is very wise IMO. replace as u see fit and can afford to do so. My bet is that most owner and I say most owners never touch the mag springs. If it ain't broke, don't fix it..

[Mits3kgt88]

Roadblock: Yeah I did feel that you were aiming those things at me but after I thought about it and read your reply I didn't think you meant it that way. Sorry.

[garyb]

- I unchamber every day, when I dry fire practice (5-15 min daily).

- Secondly, when I send a piece of lead out the barrel during live fire practice.

- Finally, when I clean her and lube her up...once a week AND every time I shoot (even if it is one round).

Otherwise, my little sword is clean, lubed and loaded....ready to go with one in the pipe and always with me (even in the house). (I also rotate the loads in my magazines depending how I carry. More capacity on the hip...less in the pocket. All the mags get routinely tested, as each is used at the range and they all function perfectly.)

[Hoop1101]

I unchamber about once a week to practice unholstering and dry-firing. I replace carry ammo every 4-6 months.

[ltxi]

Other than for cleaning, just when the mag runs dry. To date, at least with my PM9, that's only occurred on the range. :)

[JodyH]

I usually shoot my PM9 one range session per month (it's my BUG not my primary).
The first magazine downrange is my carry ammo.
I then go through 100-200 rounds of FMJ, clean and lube then reload with new carry ammo.

[Riccardo]

Unless I'm reloading or cleaning I never unchamber. I on occasion press check to make sure I'm still loaded but don't even do that often.
I don't think the striker spring will ever need replaced, if you ordered a spring kit someday and it came with one, I might replace just because but I'd not lose a minutes sleep over that spring.


retracting the slide just enough to check if the gun is loaded. i personally do it with thumb around the grip and fingers of the same hand retracting the slide

Why bother with that? I just stare down the barrel and see if there is a bullet in there. :p To be sure I don't drop the gun, I've usually got my thumb on the trigger and 4 fingers wrapped around the grip.

[ltxi]

Why bother with that? I just stare down the barrel and see if there is a bullet in there. :p To be sure I don't drop the gun, I've usually got my thumb on the trigger and 4 fingers wrapped around the grip.

Why didn't I think of that! I've always just run my index finger over the the loaded chamber indicator, aka the leading edge of the extractor, but that's kinda sharp and you can cut your finger. I like your method much better.

[MW surveyor]

geez, is that why it sticks out :)

I do like Riccardo's method. Reminds me of some of the stuff I see on Saturday and Sundays at the range.

BTW - this is an old thread!

[Willieboy]

Don't know yet. I'll have to get back to you.

[jocko]

or just point it at your next door neghbors dog and pull the trigger!!