Frustrated P32 owner seeks advice!

M

mini14jac

New member
I've owned two P11's, and we currently have two P32s.
I am quite familiar with "F&B", and have given all of my guns the treatment.
I recently had my slide chromed. I was a little apprehensive, because I had F&B'd it quite a bit, so that I had no feed failures.
I was very pleased when I got the gun back and went through several mags of fmj and jhp with no jams.
But then....
the started locking open in the middle of a magazine.
The next trip to the range, the hammer started "short stroking" causing light strikes.

I sent it in, and they had it back in my hands in less than two weeks. According to the invoice, they replaced the trigger group.
Light strike problem is cured.
Slide still locks open!

Talked to Cliff.
He thinks it is the FN ammo that I am using.
I tried to tell him that I have shot over 800rds through this gun, and the problem just started.
He says that if I want to send some of the ammo seperately, they will try it in my gun.
This is getting to be a pain!

I had the frame replaced about a year ago, because of the same hammer problem.

I am seriously considering selling the P32 and waiting for the next great mousegun.
:(

Any ideas?

Thanks,
JP ><>
 
I know this is after the fact but sometimes education costs money: Don't fix it if it ain't broke.
 
I know this is after the fact but sometimes education costs money: Don't fix it if it ain't broke.
Click to expand...

Well... you know what they say about hindsight.

Seriously though, I wonder if this problem wouldn't have shown up anyway.
I don't think it is a slide related problem, so it was probably just a matter of time.
 
I don't think that these mouse guns are made to be shot as much as you seem to be doing.

For example, I thought I read somewhere that the .380 Seacamp recommends that it only be shot something like 200 times.

The P32 is obviously not as roboust as a Glock etc. It may only have a life expectancy of 1000 rounds.

I don't know...... just food for thought.

I fire mine every now and then just to make sure that it still works. For target practice etc. I use my Walther P99 or others.
 
The Seecamp .380 (which still hasn't been produced for sale yet) is supposed to have a life expectency of 1,000 rounds according to Larry Seecamp - saw that in Gun World 1.5 years ago.

Have you tried using different ammo in your P-32 yet?
 
Is the gun locking open with any other type of ammo, or just a single type?

If it's locking open on a single type of ammo, then it most likely is ammo related.
 
The slide kept locking back on mine just after I bought it. Found a burr on the slide, touched it up, no problems since. You might want to check out the slide/frame interfaces for this problem. Initially I switched ammo and bought a new magazine.

Just to check out the burr theory, does the slide go home when it sticks if you just hit the back of the slide? Mine did, which pointed to a binding type of problem.
 
Frustrated p32 owner seeks advice

Small pistols were never invented for continuous high volume fire. They were invented to be carry much and shoot seldom. If you must practice then do it with the .22 rimfire and do it with a full size rimfire pistol. No small auto will last very long when a lot of rounds are fired through it. They just are not built to take it no matter what the brand or what the quality. My Seecamp .32 is already starting to disintegrate after firing only 200 rounds through it. If a high quality pistol like the all steel Seecamp cannot take it then cerainly the bargan basement variations will do no better or have any longer service life. I think you were lucky to get 8oo rounds of life out of this small pistol. My advice is to trash it and if you like this type of pistol buy another only this time only break it in with about 50 to 100 rounds and then do not fire it ever again unless you absolutely have to. W.r.
 
Agree with WR. I have a P32 and have only shot 10 or so rounds. This is a put in my pocket when I can't carry a 9mm gun. Sort of like a hi-tech deringer.
 
"I think you were lucky to get 8oo rounds of life out of this small pistol." -- WR

Nonsense.

The P-32 is a very sophisticated locked-breech design pistol of superior engineering.

I know many with thousands of rounds thru them, mine included.

Next time, buy a Kel-Tec instead of a Seecamp...then you'll get Mr. Kelgren's superior customer service. ;)
 
OK, here's the deal.

1. I know a lot of people that have shot thousands of rounds through their P32. Any gun with a limited lifespan isn't going to get my $. And, anything that I may need to defend my life with is going to be shot a lot. I want to be proficient if I ever need it.

2. It looks like the KT gunsmith and some of you other gentlemen were right. Ammo.

I haven't fired it yet, but here is what I have found so far:

I stripped the gun down last night, got out some different ammo and some extra mags.
I noticed right away that the lever that locks the slide rides very close to the ammo. With Fiochi fmj, Silvertips, or Hydrashocks, the lever only misses the nose of the bullet by a couple of millimeters or so.
I thought that was really close, but the clearance on my wife's P32 is the same.

On checking the ammo that had been locking the slide, FN ammo that was sold by AIM Surplus, some of the rounds in a given box will actually "bump" the slide lock lever. Some other rounds don't.

I really don't get it. I have shot nearly 1000 rounds of the FN ammo with no problem. I have mixed two different batches together, and I am not sure if I can tell which is which. I am hoping I can find a lot number on the boxes.

Anyway, I'll get back here when I get to shoot some different types of ammo, but with bullets bumping the lever, I am pretty sure that is going to be the problem.

Thanks everybody,

Jack:cool:
 
Ammo

Try Fiocchi, Sellier & Belliot, Winchester white box, Silvertips and CCI/Speer Gold Dots.

Regards from satisfied P32 owner

Mike Ledbetter
 
The Kel-Tec P-32 is the strongest of the "vest-pocket" pistols, due to its polymer construction and locked-breech (as opposed to the common blowback) action.

You should get many thousands of rounds through it. If you shoot it enough to die, send it back to KT, and they'll send you another.

I had some problems using that same FN hardball. The OAL length of that FN is quite long. Combine that with the lower power it produces than many dedicated defensive rounds, and the blunt shape of the bullet nose, and it's easy to see why malfs (especially failure to feed) are more common. (This round is so long, that if I attempt to eject an unfired round, the round typically hangs up in the ejection port, and I have to push the round down through the mag well!) Regardless, I like the bullet profile for defense.

I had a few failure to feeds between rounds 50 and 60. I gave it a thorough cleaning, of course, and have only had *1* malf since then (I believe the shooter limp-wristed), in several hundred rounds.
 
How economicially sound would it be for a company to produce a weapon with only a limited lifespan and then back it with a life-time warranty? I put over 1500 rds thru my P-32 in the 3 months I owned it. I spoke to the girl I sold it too yesterday and she's run another 5oo rds thru it. The only problem I ever had with it was with magtech ammo, hardest primers in the known world. And if there's a company out there with better customer service, I haven't found it.
 
Hey, nobody has said anything about the NAA guardian. I've shot my just like I do my .22, a lot. Only problem i have is getting thegrips to stay on! It's a great little gun. Smaller but heavier then the P32.:)
 
.32 NAA Gaurdian

I own one of these too. It was jamming a lot at first (with hydroshock, gold dots, and various brands of FMJ) I recently put a couple boxes of silvertips thru it with no malfunctions. I think these things are typically fussy about the ammo they like, but if I can get another couple boxes of silvertips thru it with no problems I'll feel comfortable with it. It's worth taking a look at -- it's beautifully made (Kahr makes the frame or the slide) and for a mouse gun, comfortable to shoot, and surprisingly accurate (the sights could stand a lot of improvement though). It's is a bit heavy and blocky, but with a good pocket holster, very easily concealed. http://www.naaminis.com/ (be sure to check out the message board)
 
Just to update anyone that is interested:

Took the P32 to the range with 3 mags, 75 rds of FN "lot 3" ammo, 25 rds "lot 01" FN, 50 rds S&B fmj, 50 rds Win. Silvertip jhp.

The FN "lot 3" seems to have slightly oversized bullets.
Had the slide lock open 2-3 times per box of 25.

FN "lot 01" did not lock open in 25 rds.

S&B, 1 lock open per 50 rds.

Winchester Silvertips, 35 rds, no lock opens.

The gun now has over 1000 rds through it.

I carry Silvertips for CCW, so I guess I can live with the problems at the range.

The FN "lot 3" rounds actually brush the slide lock lever when you insert a mag into the gun, so I am not surprised that they occasionally lock the slide open.
Must have been some poor QC at the factory that day, as I had shot nearly 1000rds of FN in the P32 before this showed up.

Thanks all,
Jack
:cool:
><>
 
Even before Kel-Tec came along, ALL of the "mouse guns" had reputations for being finicky. even those that cost mega-bucks.

My advice comes from an old Navy SEAL. (not me).

Shoot it till it breaks. Then fix it, and shoot it some more.
 
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