cleaning handgun and FTE

[kjolly]

I am suspicious of reloads. Brought some a while back and had 7 0ut of 100 require a double strike to fire. They are not that much cheaper unless you are doing the reloads yourself. would absoultle never use reloads in EDC for self defense.
The other issue in a 380 could be limp wristing. The gun requires a firm arm otherwise the limper grip absorbs a lot of the recoil that the action needs to properly complete its cycle.
I'm using a new product called Trueoil which does not build up dirt the way heavier lubricants such as Remoil can.
As others have said fire several hundred rounds to get the pistol broken in proper.

[thatTexasLady]

Got the LCP back from Ruger. Barrel repaired, slide, recoil spring and pin replaced. Guy at Gander said when he took it apart when I bought it, he may have put it back together wrong. Then we shot it, probably damaging it. Then hubby cleaned it and put it back together correctly. Then we shot it, still problems so he thought the springs were in wrong, took it apart and put it back together wrong. More damage. UGH!

Ruger fixed it free, and were super about it. Several lessons learned:

1. Don't let the sales clerk take apart your gun, even if he is a Marine.

2. Clean your gun right out of the box, had I done this, and checked the manual for proper insertion of the spring assembly, I could have avoided this.

3. Check the manual for proper assembly!!!

4. Know your gun, learn your gun, clean your gun! Don't let anyone else do it, then you can't get mad at anyone.

[lonewolf]

Except yourself......

[Excaliber]

My Ruger .380 LCP is new, I've been to the range twice and each time after we go hubby cleans the guns with rem oil and gets them ready to go again. Last night I had two FTE's. Is this normal for a new handgun or should he be using something else? In the reviews I've read the LCP has about a 1 in 100 FTE, but I just want to know so that I am taking the best possible care of my handgun.

Keep shooting it. See if your mate has similar issues with the gun; could be a grip issue. Generally 380's are easy to hold on too but its a small gun.

Try different ammo. Start by varying the bullet weight then, if you don't find what it likes to eat, vary the manufacturer.

I've found cleaning to be an issue after dozens of rounds; even then it will depend on the gun.

If this don't work Start worrying after a couple of hundred rounds.

You might also try dry firing a few hundred times with a triple-checked for empty gun.

The slide, frame rails, and other parts do some wearing in against each other during the first few hundred rounds, and many guns operate noticeably smoother after that. You can do a lot of the same thing by dry firing the gun a few hundred times, since you have to cycle the slide for each shot. The dry fire process is a lot cheaper than doing the same thing with a few boxes of ammo.

I don't worry about an occasional FTF or FTE during the first couple hundred rounds fired and consider it part of the breakin process.

After that I get really picky.

[thatTexasLady]

I've read several people talk about dry firing to cure a flinch and stuff. Hubby says that the Army taught him that dry firing is bad for a gun. Is this not so?

[BrianSW99]

With most modern semi-autos, it's not a problem. Check your manual. It will often be addressed there. If you're concerned, get some snap caps. Then you can also practice loading/unloading without using live ammo.

Brian

[Excaliber]

I've read several people talk about dry firing to cure a flinch and stuff. Hubby says that the Army taught him that dry firing is bad for a gun. Is this not so?

It is a problem with rimfire guns (.22) because without a cartridge in the chamber the firing pin strikes the end of the barrel and can break the pin.

As BrianSW99 correctly pointed out, in most modern centerfire guns it's not a problem because there's nothing for the centered firing pin to hit when nothing is in the chamber, and the firing pin and breech face don't suffer any harm. Many if not most top pistol competitors do this all the time to refine their trigger manipulation skills.

Many operation manuals will cover the point specifically. If yours doesn't and you're in doubt, you should contact the manufacturer of your gun or, if you're really worried about it, simply use snap caps as Brian suggested.

[thatTexasLady]

From Ruger:

Yes. All Ruger pistols can be dry fired without damage, and dry firing can be useful to familiarize the owner with the firearm. However, be sure any firearm is completely unloaded before dry firing!

Thanks guys!

[mr surveyor]

I don't personally have any hands on experience with the LCP, but have had several years experience with the pistol it was originally cloned from... the KelTec P3AT. If Ruger copied the firing pin and extractor screw in fine detail from the P3AT, I would suggest not dry firing for normal "training purposes". The screw that holds the extractor in place also acts as the retainer for the lightweight firing pin...it keeps the firing pin from backing out, but not from forward overtravel. When the P3AT is dry fired (on empty chamber), the firing pin will overtravel through the breachface and the shoulder of the pin will hit the retainer screw. Since these guns don't have a last round hold open feature they will obviously be "accidentally" dry fired occassionally and is normally not an issue. Repeated dryfiring, at least the P3AT, will most likely result in a damaged extractor screw and or a broken firing pin. Check the LCP manual and/or call Ruger before you go into a major dry fire training ritual...unless you use snapcaps.

Another source of FTE's on these things can often be traced to improper tension on the extractor, but it sounds like the issue here was unrelated to that.


surv