P380 Range Report - 1st after receiving new frame

[rogerthedodger]

I'm not sure what's going on with the P380. It gives Kahr some bad name. TCP and LCP are way more reliable than P380. Of all the people I know that own a TCP or LCP, they never had a FTF, FTE, or FTRB with their pistols in the range. Why P380?

To be honest, if your P380 still gives problem, sell it and get a PM9.
If you think PM9 is too big to carry, then get a LCP or TCP.
When times comes, you do not have a chance to "fix the problem" or "wonder why it does not go bang" but you're pretty much dead meat.

kahrlover123, I have to respond to your first paragraph. If you were watching other gun forums, you would know that the LCP did have issues. I am one of the owners who had to send mine back to Ruger. Most known issues have been resolved.
I think Kahr is going thru similar issues with the P380, and are resolving them. Again, I am one of the P380 survivors, and the gun is now performing well.
EVERY forum has postings with gun issues, even the "bulletproof" Glock. Buy a 4 gen G19 and find out.
Hindsite, don't buy a gun until it has been on the market at least 3 years, and most issues resolved.

[kahrlover123]

kahrlover123, I have to respond to your first paragraph. If you were watching other gun forums, you would know that the LCP did have issues. I am one of the owners who had to send mine back to Ruger. Most known issues have been resolved.
I think Kahr is going thru similar issues with the P380, and are resolving them. Again, I am one of the P380 survivors, and the gun is now performing well.
EVERY forum has postings with gun issues, even the "bulletproof" Glock. Buy a 4 gen G19 and find out.
Hindsite, don't buy a gun until it has been on the market at least 3 years, and most issues resolved.

I agree with your statement. What I was talking about is "current situations"
Right now, out of all pocket 380 carry pistols, P380 seems to be on the bottom of the list as far as reliable or trouble-free.
LCP and TCP are the top two.

[Kenjs2]

I have no desire for any other 380. A proper working, again I said "proper working" P380 IMO is heads above any other 380 that I've seen, no one is even in the same game. Yes, it would be great if my P380 was good from the beginning but I've left fairyland and am willing to work for perfection. When I find it, those other 380 owners that I shoot with will change their tunes real quick. My carry gun gives me no challenges other than to shoot straighter and faster. This is a quest!

[Snowman]

I put 44 rounds of American Eagle through my P380 last Thursday and I had one FTC (round #34). The slide cycled completely but all I got was a click on an empty chamber. I then manually racked the slide and got a "striker jam" (see previous pictures). After I cleared this failure I ran the last ten rounds with no problems.

What caused the slide not to pickup the next round?

Could it be a limp wrist?
I could have gotten over confident and loosened up on my grip because it has been running so good since I got my new frame.

Could it be in the magazine?

I still think this striker jam is a potential problem. My previous fix for this was not to pull the trigger on an empty chamber without re-racking to reset the striker but obviously this doesn't work when a quick-clear is needed on a range drill. I'm still looking for a complete understanding of this part of the cycle and a fix for this problem. Any suggestions?

My 380 is running so much better than before, I hope this was just a limp wrist problem...

I have no desire for any other 380. A proper working, again I said "proper working" P380 IMO is heads above any other 380 that I've seen, no one is even in the same game. Yes, it would be great if my P380 was good from the beginning but I've left fairyland and am willing to work for perfection. When I find it, those other 380 owners that I shoot with will change their tunes real quick. My carry gun gives me no challenges other than to shoot straighter and faster. This is a quest!

I'm in a similar situation as yourself, Kenjs2. Kahr has replaced the majority of my P380 including the frame and I'm having the same problem as you. I sent a message to Kahr and am awaiting a reply. Even though I have no issues once the initial round is chambered, it would be nice to know a second or third magazine could be utilized without a hangup. A salesman where I purchased said he heard there were magazine problems with the P380. When Kahr replaced my frame, they sent a new magazine that looks the same with the exception that the "Kahr P380" is stamped higher on the magazine. I know this because I have three other magazines. Next time shooting I intend to compare to see if hangup is happening on all mags or not.

[Kenjs2]

I'm in a similar situation as yourself, Kenjs2. Kahr has replaced the majority of my P380 including the frame and I'm having the same problem as you. I sent a message to Kahr and am awaiting a reply. Even though I have no issues once the initial round is chambered, it would be nice to know a second or third magazine could be utilized without a hangup. A salesman where I purchased said he heard there were magazine problems with the P380. When Kahr replaced my frame, they sent a new magazine that looks the same with the exception that the "Kahr P380" is stamped higher on the magazine. I know this because I have three other magazines. Next time shooting I intend to compare to see if hangup is happening on all mags or not.

I'd sure be interested in what Kahr has to say about this. There have been a couple of posts that refer to the magazine as a possible cause of this problem but I'm going to have to do a few tests this weekend to see if that's a factor in my P380. On the surface I don't think it is because, if memory serves me (and that's questionable), any time I pull the trigger, with or without a magazine, on an empty chamber the striker fails to reset. In the photo above you can see the striker ahead of the striker block. My quick fix was to always rack the slide after pulling the trigger on an empty chamber (this may solve your "initial round" jamming) but if you see my last range test above that doesn't work in a real life drill with the magazine in if you have a failure that fails to cycle the slide. Some say the striker is reset by the cocking cam and some say by inertia or maybe a combination of both. I've tried to address both of these possibilities but I can't see the cause of the problem. I'll post my results of my tests this weekend. Let me know if Kahr replies to your message. Thanks, Ken