Just picked up my P380! Now i have an issue...

[markg]

just got my P380 out of California 10 day jail.

havent loaded it up yet, just playing with the gun to familiarize myself with it.

this is the model with the LCI and magazine disconnect since thats what they sell here (if it makes a difference)

anyway, tried to lock the slide back - no go. wont do it either with or without magazine inserted.

does this version just not do that? it seems like it would; perhaps it was disassembled/reassembled improperly?

what do i look for? otherwise it seems to function as expected. just want to make everything is right before i take it out to put 200+ rounds through it

thanks,

mark

[gb6491]

just got my P380 out of California 10 day jail.

havent loaded it up yet, just playing with the gun to familiarize myself with it.

this is the model with the LCI and magazine disconnect since thats what they sell here (if it makes a difference)

anyway, tried to lock the slide back - no go. wont do it either with or without magazine inserted.

does this version just not do that? it seems like it would; perhaps it was disassembled/reassembled improperly?

what do i look for? otherwise it seems to function as expected. just want to make everything is right before i take it out to put 200+ rounds through it

thanks,

mark

Mark,

Congrats on the new acquisition.

As to why you can't lock the slide back, could you be more specific? (can't move the stop, can't move the slide far enough, etc.)

In the absence of further info, my first guess would be a problem with slide stop spring.
The spring may be damaged or not properly positioned. The stop may not be installed correctly in relation to the spring.
Pull the stop and check the spring. The leg should also be parallel to the frame and positioned as shown below:

If that checks good, install the stop making sure the protrusion on the backside of the stop goes under the spring leg:


Regards,
Greg

[yqtszhj]

It should lock back. Try making sure that the spring that should be pushing up on the slide release is under the slide release and not on top of it pushing down instead. I think I did that once before on my cw45. Others should chime in shortly.

[Bobshouse]

Take it to the range and give it a try, working the slide by hand is really tough on these little pistols. Make sure and read your instructions, the California model comes with a orange fake magazine for a reason, if you don't use it you risk damage!

Can you lock the slide back by racking the gun open and pressing up on the release?

[markg]

ok, so from the pics i can see that spring might not have gone where it was supposed to.

i disassembled it, and without the slide, put the slide stop in to see where it went. the little spring didnt have any clearance, and the stop actually pushed directly on it, so i pushed it up a bit, and then it snapped above the slide stop after it was entirely in. might not have done that last time due to the positioning of the spring, not sure.

then i put the slide/barrel back in without the recoil spring to make it easier to pull back, to check the functioning.

but now i cant get it back apart....

it seems that it needs me to depress the trigger to get the slide off. not sure what the internals look like to bypass this issue, but it is definitely hanging up on the back of the slide at the cocking cam.

but what happened; the barrel slipped a bit forward in the slide when putting the slide on (due to no recoil spring), and the feed ramp wont go by the ledge there on the frame. And because i cant move the barrel back, i cant pull the slide back enough to cock it. so when i pull the trigger nothing happens...

this the first gun ever i havent been able to get it back together from just looking at it.

other than this start up issue i like the gun.

[markg]

well that was fun, learned how to disassemble the slide while it was still on the gun

so its back to normal

still not sure about the slide, but at least now i can test it

[edit] it stays back now, IF i can pull the slide back far enough. so it was likely the spring.

thanks.

also just found out that the case has a space for another magazine - pulled out the foam and i can now fit 3!

[yqtszhj]

ok, so from the pics i can see that spring might not have gone where it was supposed to.

i disassembled it, and without the slide, put the slide stop in to see where it went. the little spring didnt have any clearance, and the stop actually pushed directly on it, so i pushed it up a bit, and then it snapped above the slide stop after it was entirely in. might not have done that last time due to the positioning of the spring, not sure.

then i put the slide/barrel back in without the recoil spring to make it easier to pull back, to check the functioning.

but now i cant get it back apart....

it seems that it needs me to depress the trigger to get the slide off. not sure what the internals look like to bypass this issue, but it is definitely hanging up on the back of the slide at the cocking cam.

but what happened; the barrel slipped a bit forward in the slide when putting the slide on (due to no recoil spring), and the feed ramp wont go by the ledge there on the frame. And because i cant move the barrel back, i cant pull the slide back enough to cock it. so when i pull the trigger nothing happens...

this the first gun ever i havent been able to get it back together from just looking at it.

other than this start up issue i like the gun.

If I remember right greg has a video on this too. Best I remember it goes lkke this:
1. Slide stuck too far back and cant get it off. Slide stop is already removed.
2. Push the slide forward until its in its normal position and hold it there.(back of slide is even with back of frame like it should normally be.)
3. Pull the trigger. This releases the spring.
4. You should then be able to remove the slide.

[yqtszhj]

Here is the video

https://youtu.be/j6fOQ7fC8ks

[Bills1873]

Now, Markg, shoot it like you stole it and let us know how it performs!

[markg]

took it to the range, put 200 rounds through it. NOT ONE malfunction shooting. pretty impressive!

as for the slide lock, not bad.

i had three magazines; one 6 round, one 7 round/extended, one 6 round with the magguts pieces installed to make it a 7 round.

they each had a few failures locking the slide, with the magguts the worst and the 7 round the best.

but not a single failure to feed, so im happy!

this was with a couple different ammo types, so its ready to carry.

way better than i expected!

[tony k]

Awesome. I have a new CW380, so I Know the feeling.

As far as slide locking back, did it get better or worse as you got closer to the 200 round mark?

[dsk]

On these little pistols it is very easy to hold the slide stop down with the thumb whether you realize it or not. Since speed reloads aren't exactly part of the equation when carrying a tiny pocket pistol it never really bothered me anyway.

[markg]

Awesome. I have a new CW380, so I Know the feeling.

As far as slide locking back, did it get better or worse as you got closer to the 200 round mark?

didnt really change.

i alternated between the 3 magazines, each mag getting 10 uses, got random failures on each, and they seemed to be randomly spaced round wise

[tony k]

didnt really change.

i alternated between the 3 magazines, each mag getting 10 uses, got random failures on each, and they seemed to be randomly spaced round wise

I was hoping it either got better (pistol breaking in), or it got worse (shooter fatigue) 😀.

If I was in your boat i'd try these:
1. Evaluate my grip to make sure it isn't shooter error. Maybe your thumb is intermittently resting on the slide release?
2. Try more powerful self defense ammo.
3. Study how the mag follower makes contact with the slide release. You want good contact between the inner protrusion on the slide stop and the little metal insert on the mag follower.

Edit: I say slide release and slide stop interchangeably. Sorry for confusion

[markg]

I was hoping it either got better (pistol breaking in), or it got worse (shooter fatigue) .

If I was in your boat i'd try these:
1. Evaluate my grip to make sure it isn't shooter error. Maybe your thumb is intermittently resting on the slide release?
2. Try more powerful self defense ammo.
3. Study how the mag follower makes contact with the slide release. You want good contact between the inner protrusion on the slide stop and the little metal insert on the mag follower.

Edit: I say slide release and slide stop interchangeably. Sorry for confusion

thanks for the suggestions.

i will try more powerful ammo first. im sure it isnt my grip, and i dont think it is the contact since it happens with all 3 mags (except the magguts was significantly worse then the two stock ones, so im going to try to see whats different about that one; perhaps that will shed some light on this issue)

since i couldnt even get it to lock open at all (manually) when brand new, perhaps it just needs more rounds through it to loosen the recoil spring up? more powerful ammo would do the same thing, so thats easier to try quickly.

now i just have to find some, since the local stores have been pretty limited with small caliber ammo lately (hoarding before the 2018 ammo law kicks in).