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Hard To Rack

3K views 21 replies 17 participants last post by  DrBillC 
#1 ·
I just bought a P3-AT. I found it very difficult to rack the slide. In fact, when the slide slipped out of my hand, it caused an accidental discharge. Are there different springs available or does it loosen up after firing? I am not pleased with this condition and will sell the gun if this condition cannot be changed.
 
#2 ·
the springs supplied are the minimun required for it to handle the recoil.

How did you have a Negilgent discharge? releasing the slide so that it slams as quicky as possible is the recomnded method to load the first round.

the rounds loaded following firing will have the slide even faster
 
#3 ·
AD ? Unless the firing pin was stuck this sounds like a ND. Keep finger off trigger while racking slide.
1.All guns are always loaded.
2.Never point the gun at anything you are not willing to destroy.
3.Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on target (and you have made the decision to shoot).
4.Be sure of your target and what is beyond it.
As far as how hard it is to rack, it gets easier with use. Racking the slide is not about strength.
It is all about technique.

http://corneredcat.com/RunGun/rack.aspx
 
#7 ·
I had a similar problem (very hard to rack) when I picked up my p3at. Oiling didn't do much, turned out it had rusted up a bit. Admittedly, it was an old and mistreated piece I got in an auction. If yours is used you should double check the slide and rails for rust or other issues.
 
#10 ·
Danman28 said:
what can i do to get the slide to be smoother?
You can also sit in front of your TV and rack the slide a couple hundred times. That ought to polish the rails up a bit.

I recently bought a G17 with an incredibly bad trigger, much worse than my wife's G26, so I started a daily dry firing routine (with snapcap) and it has really helped. The trigger is now almost as good as the wife's after only 3 weeks of this. A little break in never hurts.
 
#11 ·
The best thing you can do is shoot about 250 rounds through it to break it in.
And use grease on the slide rails.

I can rack mine one-handed now in a pinch.

And I agree the gun didn't AD when you racked the slide.
You pulled the trigger!

Keep your bugger-hook off the bang switch at all times, unless you want it to go off.

rc
 
#12 ·
On a light trigger gun, its very easy to rack/shoot by mistake.  The slide bangs the gun forward, sort of the opposite of recoil, and if your finger is on the trigger, guess what happens (been there, done that..), if your grip is not very very solid it will go off.  I dunno about the AT, but that *seems* less likely as the trigger is not that light.  Still, its also easy to squeeze it while trying to grip it.  

If you are in any doubt, rack the slide with it pointed down range on live ammo, with your finger away from the trigger.  Convince yourself that the gun does not fire from slide release, or, if it does, get it serviced (no matter that you should be safe when racking the slide, if it fires due to a slide rack it is a malfunction, and can lead to full automatic fire, or doubles, or other such problems, not to mention rack-shoot by mistake wastes ammo and can be dangerous if you let down your guard).  

I just do not see how a DAO gun can fire this way, however. It is a posible issue on a gun where the hammer is supposed to stay back after slide rack, if the hammer slips (malfunction) it can happen. But a DAO gun, the slide would have to hit hard enough to cause inertia to slam the firing pin into the ammo primer or something odd (and nearly impossible).
 
#13 ·
If you think the P3AT is tough to rack try a Taurus PT22. My KT was a dream compared to this. I have to wear my golf glove for the grip pressure to rack it. Fortunately it has a tip up barrel for loading and I only rack it after cleaning to make sure the slide is in properly. But, with the finger off the trigger try the push/pull method to rack it. Push the frame with the right hand and pull the slide back with the left. ( providing you are right handed ).

It is my understanding all mouse guns can be difficult to rack.

Dave
 
#14 ·
Ka6otm said:
[quote author=Danman28 link=1279144682/0#7 date=1286068603]what can i do to get the slide to be smoother?
You can also sit in front of your TV and rack the slide a couple hundred times.  That ought to polish the rails up a bit.

I recently bought a G17 with an incredibly bad trigger, much worse than my wife's G26, so I started a daily dry firing routine (with snapcap) and it has really helped.  The trigger is now almost as good as the wife's after only 3 weeks of this.  A little break in never hurts.[/quote]


yeah and make sure it's unloaded ;D
 
#16 ·
Ka6otm said:
[quote author=Danman28 link=1279144682/0#7 date=1286068603]what can i do to get the slide to be smoother?
You can also sit in front of your TV and rack the slide a couple hundred times.  That ought to polish the rails up a bit.

I recently bought a G17 with an incredibly bad trigger, much worse than my wife's G26, so I started a daily dry firing routine (with snapcap) and it has really helped.  The trigger is now almost as good as the wife's after only 3 weeks of this.  A little break in never hurts.[/quote]


I wholeheartedly agree with the old "rack the slide til it glides" methodology. I prefer doing what comes natural to weapons to get the 'broken in' and not going immediately to electrical appliances (dremels, grinders, band saws, etc) to speed up the process and possibly ruin the weapon completely.
 
#18 ·
Is the fluff n buff polishing with a wire brush on a dremel? Forgive my ignorance...

For harder to rack slides, I find that different technique can help. As mentioned in the link above, using the offhand to stabilize the slide, and the strong hand to push works pretty well. If all else fails, a forearm squeeze thing to build some muscle helps with gun control in a lot of areas.
 
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