CW45 owners

[marcinstl]

when I first posted about the loose slide, I was lazy and just came here to drop off my question. I should have googled the question. here's same/similar question on different boards.
http://pistolsmith.com/kahr-pistols/...frame-fit.html
http://www.kahrtalk.com/showthread.php?t=12240
and my favorite,
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_5_35/10...lide_fit_.html
(I just picked up the new(virgin in the box) CW9 and it's tight. see what it looks like after the 200 round break in, that's really about a 500 round break in.)

[tony k]

Update

I was getting a little impatient, so I called Kahr yesterday to inquire about the status of my cw45. Ian told me they received the gun on March 24 and to expect a 4-6 week turn around time. That puts the gun back in my hands sometime between april 20 and may 9.

I always thought the 4-6 week time frame was a cya statement. I guess it's true for Kahr at the moment. Maybe moving ops to Pennsylvania has something to do with it.

Maybe I'll just go the route of MarcinStl and buy a CW9. Kinda want one anyway, and I like his justification of not having to learn a new platform .

Maybe I'll go back to the hardware store to see if they still have the CM9 and the CW380. Maybe I can get them to come down a little bit in price on theCM9. Not expecting the smokin deals Smokersteve got, but I got a tax return burning a hole in my pocket.

[gb6491]

Thanks for the update. My CW45 is back there as well.

I happened to check a new CW45 at a local shop yesterday and found that it has the same issue, not an encouraging sign

For those interested, the issue is that the front metal rails are not engaging the slide when the pistol is in battery (see post #3 by tony k)

Regards,
Greg

[muggsy]

hello 45 owners. I was sitting here doing a little Sunday afternoon dry firing and noticed something odd. holding an empty CW45 in one hand, grab the slide in the front using finger and thumb. try to lift the slide up. try to wiggle the slide up and down. mine moves about 1/16th of an inch. is this normal? probably just the first time I noticed this? thank you.

The barrel and slide move up and down in unison, so it shouldn't affect accuracy. There has to be some tolerance or the slide wouldn't be able to move freely. Without even looking at your gun I'd say it was normal. If you look at the front rail you will notice that it is quite a bit narrower that the grove in the slide that it runs in. You guys are worrying about things that you needn't worry about. As a good friend of mine is prone to say, "Just shoot the fokker like you stole it."

[gb6491]

The barrel and slide move up and down in unison, so it shouldn't affect accuracy. There has to be some tolerance or the slide wouldn't be able to move freely. Without even looking at your gun I'd say it was normal. If you look at the front rail you will notice that it is quite a bit narrower that the grove in the slide that it runs in. You guys are worrying about things that you needn't worry about. As a good friend of mine is prone to say, "Just shoot the fokker like you stole it."

My apologies, I guess I've not explained the issue with my CW45 well enough.
My pistol's issue is more in keeping with what tony k wrote in post #3; "the slide sticks out farther than the front metal guide rails. In other words the front of the slide is completley unsupported untll it travels back far enough to begin traveling on the rails."
It's not about the width of the grooves in the slide as compared to the rails in the dust cover. What I'm seeing is that when the slide is completely forward/in battery, the grooves are ahead of the end of the frame rails.
I think a properly made poly Kahr (or least it's how my CW9 is made) would have a slide and front rails interface something similar to that in this photo:

My CW45 has this instead:

In this condition, the front of the slide is being held in alignment by the poly rails on top of the frame. If I apply a small amount of pressure to the dust cover at this point, it's not possible to retract the slide. I'll grant that the chances of an sort of similar pressure happening during the actually operation of the pistol is remote, but I also find it conceivable that conditions of heat or cold might possibly cause the frame to move out of alignment enough to produce similar results.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbM9ADBIQcc
Regards,
Greg

[jocko]

doesn't look normal to me GB ur showing two cw45 andone has the rail inside the slide groovbe and the utter not. I would forward this to Jay at kahr and ask for an explanation. This just seems a$$ backwards

Nice photos. the bottom photo wold concern me ..

[gb6491]

I talked to Ian two weeks ago and sent it in afterwards (well truthfully, the shop I bought it from did the shipping).
Regards,
Greg

[tony k]

Perfect illustrations, GB. Thank you. The bottom one is what mine does in full battery. The only thing I'd add is a big ole burr forming on the leading edge of the frame rail from misalignment during firing.

I vote GB as the official Kahrtalk illustrator/photographer!

[yqtszhj]

I talked to Ian two weeks ago and sent it in afterwards (well truthfully, the shop I bought it from did the shipping).
Regards,
Greg

Hey Greg, how many rounds have you got through yours? I can't remember how many I have through mine but maybe it's 500 or so. I'm trying to gauge how long someone can go with the issue before it may cause a problem.

I looked at mine and it's looks like in the beginning maybe they barely touched because if I push down lightly on the front of the slide I can't nudge the slide back at all even a fraction of an inch. It's locked up. Also when looking at the front of the rails I can see some wear also.

I will say it still shoots fine though. :59:

[yqtszhj]

Side note, can someone with a PM45 check theirs and see if they have the issue?

[gb6491]

Hey Greg, how many rounds have you got through yours? I can't remember how many I have through mine but maybe it's 500 or so. I'm trying to gauge how long someone can go with the issue before it may cause a problem.

I looked at mine and it's looks like in the beginning maybe they barely touched because if I push down lightly on the front of the slide I can't nudge the slide back at all even a fraction of an inch. It's locked up. Also when looking at the front of the rails I can see some wear also.

I will say it still shoots fine though. :59:

I'd estimate well on the plus side of a thousand rounds through it. I'll also say that mine still shot fine, though I recollect noticing a slight hitch once in a while when working the slide (never gave that much thought before). I guess the poly rails do a better job than we or Kahr give them credit for. That's not to say that I want to rely on them to continue to do so.
Regards,
Greg

[marcinstl]

hey Greg

I went over to youtube and watched your vid, left this reply--
"I followed this over here from Kahrtalk, I'm the OP. thanks for the video. my CW45(now nicknamed, "Ol, Lucy", does the same thing, I can lock it up by squeezing the slide in the plastic. the more I think about it, this isn't a Kahr problem, although they should have forseen some of their OCD customers like me. hehehehe. the barrel and the slide and the sights are not moving relative to each other as the trigger is pulled. the trigger bar still works the striker. the gun goes bang and even with me operating it the bullet hits the target. what we got here is an Age of Plastics aesthetics problem. maybe Kahr will take the CW45 in on trade for one of their all metal Auto-Ord 1911's? "
(I'm shooting the CW9 better than the 45 as it has less recoil and is easier to manage. I also shot a Glock 17 and with that "single action" type trigger was really putting rounds on target. G17 is a range gun, good target trigger, not sure I'd use a Glock for a carry gun, kind of like a cocked but not locked 1911.

[marcinstl]

so it's been a couple of months, anybody hear back from Kahr?

[Kansas53]

so it's been a couple of months, anybody hear back from Kahr?

Just bought mine and have a definite interest in this as well. Mine has the exact problem as everyone else here. I have contacted them twice by email and haven't heard back yet.

Thanks!!!

[adooley]

Just bought mine and have a definite interest in this as well. Mine has the exact problem as everyone else here. I have contacted them twice by email and haven't heard back yet.

Thanks!!!

Try calling the support line. I called and Ian didn't even wait for me to describe the problem. He immediately wanted a serial number to setup a return shipping label. I was calling from the office and didn't have it available. All in all, I've shot it and am hesitant to send it off for 1-2 months when the issue doesn't present any functional problem under normal conditions.

Having said that, I'll probably still send it in.