Slide flying off during shooting, magazine dropping

[96sexton]

Hello everyone,

This is my first post here and I am glad I found you all.

I got my first P64 recently and picked one up for my brother as well and have been experiencing a few issues. I was surprised as I had been told these things were built like tanks.

Firstly my safety seems to be off. When it is loaded, if I decock it slowly the firing pin will be blocked but the hammer stays cocked. If I move the safety a little but the hammer will usually drop. Any ideas?

I brought it out to the range and put 100 rounds through it no problem

Then the other day I switched to a #18 trigger spring and #22 recoil spring on it, and a Hogue grip.

I excitedly took it out to the range and immediately started having problems, firstly I had two or three light strikes usually on the first round. Secondly the magazine kept dropping out and the magazine often wouldn't lock back on the last round. Does anyone know what is causing this?

I got through about 50 rounds and all of the sudden the slide flew off after shooting a round, I can now take it off and put it back on without maneuvering the trigger guard. What should I do? I am losing faith in this little thing

Thanks guys!

Kevin

[wlockridge]

Your slide stop is broken. You should stop using it immediately before someone gets hurt ..... badly, The safety is malfunctioning either due to wear or dirt or a combination of the two. Again, stop using it before you drop the hammer on a live round in which case refer to the above outcome. As far as the light strikes and mag dropping, that normally only happens with the 17 lb. hammer spring but at this point that's the least of your worries. If you can, take it back where you got it a see if they’ll exchange it. It sounds like someone might have bought a parts gun then turned around and sold it as a serviceable weapon. Who knows anymore. Good luck.
Bill

[96sexton]

Thanks for the quick reply, I got in contact with the seller to see if there is anything they can do

If not, is this something I can fix on my own or did I just buy an expensive paper weight?

Best,
Kevin

[wlockridge]

Thanks for the quick reply, I got in contact with the seller to see if there is anything they can do

If not, is this something I can fix on my own or did I just buy an expensive paper weight?

Best,
Kevin

Kevin,
Unless you're a gunsmith, considering that all your problems are safety issues, if I was going to have it fixed I would have a licensed gunsmith do the work. It won't be cheap but neither is a hospital bill or worse yet, a funeral. If it were me, and the seller won't help, I would just keep the gun for parts and buy another from a more reputable seller. Classic firearms usually has them from between $225.00 and $240.00. Apparently the weapon you have has been shot ....... a lot because it takes a lot to wear these things out. I've got over a thousand rounds through mine and the wear is barely noticeable. I'd still be willing to bet that someone bought some of these on the cheap as parts guns and then, after finding some that worked .... sort of, sold them as working firearms. These guns are great, reliable, and well made little pistols. Yours having as many issues as it does points to something shady to me or possibly an honest mistake. Either way the seller should make this right.

[Curly1]

Welcome to the forum Kevin.

Check the front end of the trigger guard for damage, new guards can be found on Gunbroker if you want to replace it.

If it looks like the bore is shot out on it you may want to move on to another one if the seller won't take it back or fix it.

[craig]

Kevin, did you buy it from a private party or one of the military surplus stores?

[96sexton]

Hey all,

I got it from Classic and so far they have been incredibly helpful and it it looks as if the will be facilitating a replacement through CAI.

Ill keep you all updated

Kevin

[Curly1]

Good news.

[craig]

Classic is very good at resolving problems, in my experience.

[manicmechanic]

Glad that they are working with you on your P64. You will find out how great the little pistol really is!

[Borg Warner]

Thanks for the quick reply, I got in contact with the seller to see if there is anything they can do

If not, is this something I can fix on my own or did I just buy an expensive paper weight?

Best,
Kevin

Assuming that what you've already done to this gun was done on your own, you may have caused or contributed to the problems that you're experiencing and maybe you shouoldn't take the chance of doing any more damage if that is indeed the case.

I took mine to a gunsmith to put in the springs and then I watched what he did and now I have a better idea of how the gun works. Someone who works on guns for a living every day is almost always going to be better at it than someone who only does it once in a while.

Too many people are reluctant to take their guns to a gunsmith and fancy themselves to be a highly competant do-it-yourself-er whether they are or they aren't. And because of this and because of onerous regulations on small business's with additional restrictions of gunsmiths, gunsmiths are slowly going out of business and we aren't helping the situation either if we don't support them.

That said, it's as important to find a competent gunsmith just as it is to find a competent auto mechanic. Most Auto mechanics are not dishonest, but many of them are incompetent and they take too long and spend too much to fix a simple problem. With gunsmiths I can usually tell by talking with someone if they are BS'ing me or if they know what they're doing just by asking questions like how long will it take to do a certain job and what the price will be and then maybe asking 3 different peop0le the same question.

But it requires good character judgment to tell if someone is being either up-front and straightforward or evasive and tending towards flakeyness.

[96sexton]

Hello all,

I just wanted to update everyone. Century Arms sent me a new gun and hopefully I will get it out to the range tomorrow. One thing that is different on this one is the import stamp is rougher then the rest of the slide, has anyone seen this before? Is it something to get worked up over or am I being too nitpicky?

Best,
Kevin

[Weasel640]

Post a pic.

[Curly1]

Maybe, let's see pics.