HK USP and CCFA barrel replacement

J

Joe Klug

New member
Last week I bought a CCFA "tactical" barrel and a Vortex accurizer / flash suppressor (www.ccfa.com) for my HK USP 45 from Krept here on TFL. He is moving to the People's Republic of Kalifornia (PRK) where such things as pistol barrels which have threads on the end are banned as "assault
weapons". Anyway, I thought it would be interesting to buy and I'd thought I'd share my impressions of the set up after a trip to the range.

The CCFA Tactical barrel is about an inch longer than the stock barrel and has an O ring located near the end for a tight lock up with the slide when the pistol is in battery. The barrel has standard lands and grooves rifling as opposed to the polygonal rifling of the standard HK barrel. The Vortex accurizer / flash suppressor is also supposed to aid in accuracy by directing propellant gasses in a certain way.

The swap with the stock barrel was very straight forward with no fitting required of any kind. The CCFA barrel has the same nice tight fit in the slide as the stock unit.

I started out shooting at 25 feet with the stock barrel and after 30 rounds I switched to the CCFA barrel and Vortex assembly. At this point all I really noticed was a slight weight increase, a bit less felt recoil and a bit less muzzle flip. After another 30 rounds I found that accuracy was right about what I was getting with the stock barrel. Mind you, I've never been disappointed with the USP in it's stock form in the accuracy department. I was, however, starting to think I had spent my money on a neat looking but otherwise only slightly useful set up.

All that changed when I did the same test at 25 yards. As before I started with the stock barrel and after 30 rounds I switched to the CCFA set up. What a difference! Group size reduced measurably. FYI, I was doing all my shooting off hand but I usually do better that way than using a rest. With the stock barrel I was putting 13 rounds into the 5½" center part of a standard 25 yard pistol target. With the CCFA set up I put 18 rounds in the same 5½" section and the rest didn't miss by much. I was impressed with the improvement.

Only problem experienced was the Vortex flash suppressor kept wanting to come loose. I didn't want to over tighten it so I was being careful how much torque I was applying to it. I guess that problem can be fixed by just tightening it up a bit better next time.

Next time I'll try to use some good S&B ammo instead of the Lawman I was using for this test. I usually have better luck with S&B.

Anyway, just thought I'd share my experience with you in case anyone is thinking about a Tactical barrel for their USP. Not only does the CCFA set up look really neat but it's more than slightly functional as well. I'm glad I decided to get it.

Thanks Krept!

Joe
 
USP barrel

Joe,

You got the one with the O ring, correct?

I was wondering if they offer a similar setup for the USP Compact in 40 S&W> That would really be sweet! Is your replacement barrel rifled or octagonal?

Thanks,

Ben
 
Joe, I'm glad everything ended up A-OK!

Did you get a chance to try the setup in low light conditions? The one time I tried it at dusk, all I basically saw was a slight orange flash and sparks... :D


BTW, here is what Larry @ CCFA (the guy running the show) said about tightening the barrel:
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"as far as tightening - what we recommend is to use a small screwdriver or allen wrench between the slots like a "T" handle, firmly snug the flash on when the barrel is cold - no gorilla it on but a firm secure snug - - after the first magazine resnug it - it will feel loose after the first mag because - as the four prongs are being bathed in flame they are acquiring heat faster than the barrel and therefore the flash body is expanding expanding faster than the barrel

- after the second mag, check again - if you have to snug it a second time, that is fine - it should be good for the rest of the afternoon as the two should have equalized by then - if you have to resnug it three and four times - give me a call and we will swap you a flash suppressor that is a little tighter"
-------------------------

On the four occasions I used the bbl, I did have to retighten it a second time, but it held up for the remainder of the box each session. Another person suggested to use a small piece of teflon tape on the threads as a fix, but I felt it unnecessary.

Let me know if anything comes up...
 
Ben,

Yes, the CCFA Tactical barrel has the O ring to improve accuracy. It has standard type rifling instead of the polygonal system that HK uses.

CCFA makes a Tactical barrel for the USP 40 (full size) but not for the compact. At least that was the impression I got from their web site. Having one of those barrels on a compact would kind of defeat the purpose of a compact pistol. :)


Krept,

Yes, everything worked very well. Thanks again.:)

I didn't get to shoot it in low light. The range I go to closes at 5 so it never really gets dark unless a good storm is coming up.

I read the instructions you posted on CCFA's web site also. I was being overly cautious with the torque applied. I've been known to strip my share of threads on bolts with the work I do (mechanic) so I wanted to start easy and work my way up. I thought about the teflon tape also but I, like you, doubt it's necessary.


Joe
 
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