Endyo

Thank you for that input! I did handle a S&W M&P 2.0 today with a comp. I believe it should be full ambi (if I recall the mag release is reversible).

I've been out of pistol shooting for 10+ years working my 20s and 30s away, and a lot has changed in the firearm and competition scene. Since I'm basically starting IDPA fresh with the new rule changes allowing compensators in CO and most guys running optics I figured I'd get caught up the right way. I know the advice will be "shoot what you carry" or "spend your money on ammo"., buttt IDPA is a game and I don't want to compete in a division where compensators are allowed without using one myself (I currently shoot SSP/Practical Irons but plan do go down the RDS path last match there were 4 guys shooting Iron Sights). I've been dry firing religiously, doing grip and wrist exercises, I just took a practical shooting course from a World/National champ, I'm watching training videos every day, and have 3,500 rounds downrange this month to date. No longer being a broke college kid I have disposable income to spend within reason ($2,000 is the most I'm willing to part with for a pistol, I'm not interested in a true race gun). ________________ Very open to suggestions if you were to start IDPA CO today with what you know and a $2,000 budget for just the handgun where would you spend your money? About Me: I currently shoot a SSP legal Glock 34 Gen 5, I am comfortable with using a DA/SA or SA, but do tend to lean towards striker fire. I do have smaller hands I'm 5'8" G34 grip without modules tends to run a bit large for me, but I'm used to it. Wants: -$2,000 or less -Left Hand Controls are a Must: Ambi Slide Stop and Magazine Release -Optics Ready or Suggestions on where to get Milled -Compensator Ready or Suggestions for aftermarket options -Has to fit the Box -Plan to use a Weapon Mounted Light so need some spare weight -Ergonomic Grip/Options for Grip Tape or Grip Panels __________________ Options I've researched: -Glock 17 + Many Upgrades + Ramjet Compensator / KKM Compensator / Others for Glock Platform (Glock Overall Weight still a bit low and grip Ergonomics could be better) -Sig P320 Spectre Comp (Heard ergonomics leave a bit to be desired, Arrogant Marksman actually prefers the AXG Legion recoil impulse and tracking, compensator is very effective, maximizes weight limit with flashlight gets uncomfortably close) -Sig P320 AXG Legion (Ergonomics are supposed to be great, good recoil impulse and tracking, will be close to but under the weight limit with flashlight) -CZ SP-01 Shadow + Upgrades (Don't think it will fit the box. My Limited research hasn't found any compensated options, love the ergos, recoil impulse, and aftermarket support. I read on the forums CZ was the highest represented manufacturer at nationals) -Canik SFx Rival + Compensator (Unfamiliar with platform, looks Glock-ish just more ergonomic, different mags, doesn't look like it will fit the box with comp) -EAA/Tangfolio (Don't think it will fit box.)

Considering keeping this project for a USPSA gun. There's the issue of fitting the sear. It seems the Sear is hardened throughout and ok to start filing on...Henning's has most of the prep work done, but still needs some work. I'm leary of doing a modification without much knowledge on sears. Looking at the sear I initially believed I just needed to remove a little material so the retaining pin would line up with the frame, I thought this was what Hennings website meant by "fitting to the safety", but reading what a few others here have talked about I believe there is another part of the sear that will have to be worked on. I talked to one of my local gunsmiths today...on of the more talented ones, and he said he hasn't worked on a Witness in years and is backed up from 3 weeks to 6 months depending on the project size. I will try to do some more learning on this subject matter and post some pictures.

Yes! Thank you I had so many google tabs open my head was about to blow up. I'm still learning nomenclature. I've actually polished my firing pin stop to help with hammer contact. Didn't know that was it's name.

Realized during install of Henning's Ultimate EGW's Prepped Trigger Kit for an EAA Witness that the new sear does not have the "leg" that acts as a firing pin block. Ergo disabling a safety, big no-no in IDPA. (http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=112939) Now I can't use it for my intended purpose - IDPA <---Insert a big Homer Simpson Doh! I was reading around on the innernets that Henning's made a run of "flat bottom firing pin stops" http://www.thehighroad.org/archive/index.php/t-652426.html I'm not terribly familiar with how this would interact with the new sear, hammer, and firing pin. So now I'm confused as to 1. Difference between a firing pin stop and firing pin block? 2. Am I correct in my understanding that the EGW sear, Hammer, and Firing Pin is non-IDPA compliant? 3. Is there any Trigger Pull weight reduction installing the flat trigger alone?

You have had two in 2 to 3 years of reloading Please change your routine, I think you should be seating the bullet after inserting the powder. Yes one at a time. I seat a bullet one at a time after measuring the powder on a chargemaster 1500. The first squib was ignorance and cheap equipment. I had all the signs there and fired another round. 3.8 is a light load, I've since bumped it up. I think that may have contributed to this issue.

Draw and fire practice with a live primer? I'm not familiar? Also Thanks Sarge. Learned something new been reading up on bulged barrels.

I too am in the market for a new barrel. I've used a Lone Wolf which like most have said is equal to a Stock Glock barrel. I've always heard good things about the Bar-Sto. Sounds like from other posters the KKM may have a tight chamber which may cause problems with feeding bullets and lead rounds?

Now that I know what to search for I'll research "Bulged Barrel" and "Types of squibs", etc. I'll also pull all those rounds from that session in case I loaded a double charge. Lastly I'll have to deprime each round and find a new method for priming. Thanks Everyone!

I've had a squib before from a light powder charge. When the bullet on bullet contact happened it was painful. The energy was enough to knock the slide off the lower frame completely and it split the barrel completely in half. That's why I check my visually check the inside of the cartridge up to three times (once when staging the brass, once before dropping the charge, once before seating the bullet) and weigh every charge at least once after metering. This squib presented completely differently (i.e. No split barrel, a compression ring, the firearm stayed in one piece, the firearm cycled, the firearm locked up immediately after cycling.) which led me to believe that the compression in the rifling happened from a different mechanism. Of course it's possible I loaded a round without a powder charge, but I believe it unlikely. I learned that lesson the hard way already. I would have had to overlooked a no-drop it in three separate powder checks or skipped the three checks I normally do altogether. I load very slowly on a single stage after having experienced the first squib and I only load about 100 rounds at a time. My hand priming tool was kicking my butt. The primers weren't feeding consistently so I would shake the tray to help them feed I noticed some primers would flip even with the lid on, and at one point I found one round double primed at another point I found one round primed upside-down. I threw these rounds out immediately. I have to agree with Sarge that the Burrs theory isn't very sound. It's something someone suggested that I quickly threw out. Of course I have to defer to those more experienced about what happened and continue learning. If I can't isolate what the problem was I can't move forward. If I can't move forward I can't reload safely and that'll be that.

I cleared the firearm yesterday and it sits disassembled. I wanted to get on the forums and see what was up before messing with it anymore. I don't know if I'm brave enough to try shooting it again. But your post is very interesting that the actually did this with a USP. Anyone think it's safe to fire?

What happened: (A partially CRUSHED primer can also cause that, if the wafer is shattered by a hard insertion, it can cause a hangfire or partial misfire, which will barely ignite the powder; powder burning far slower than normal can cause the gun to unlock and eject the brass, leaving the bullet in place) -The Reloading Room FB Group Remember, barrel and slide move backward together as soon as the bullet starts to move down the barrel; if it doesn't make it out before the breech unlocks then the shellcasing goes flying and the bullet remains, stops dead in it's tracks as the gas vents out the breech. On a normal ignition the bullet is gone before the breech unlocks, venting pressure out the muzzle before unlocking. This happened "ass backwards" due to low pressure. ME: There's a possibility there was an issue seating the primer. I'm hand priming with an RCBS. The tool has issues feeding the primers due to the design. I caught one round being "double fed" with one primer cup being stuck on the bottom of a another. Of course I threw this round out. The primers will also "flip" in the tray with the lid on if I move the tray around. I love RCBS but their handpriming tool is junk for small primers. Works perfectly fine for my Large Rifle Primers (Yes I swap out to the small primer parts, ram, etc.) I shouldn't have primed on the hand tool knowing it was acting up with the small primers. This makes more sense, b/c even though there are noticeable burrs I wouldn't think it would cause that much of an issue, otherwise the factory ammo would potentially have a catastrophic failure. Use a rubber band to bind the top half of the tray to the bottom. I ended up shaving a bit off the middle junction so the top seats just a hair lower. Either should solved the primer flipping problem. I've primed a *lot* of small rifle and small pistol with my RCBS hand tool and don't have much issue with it anymore.

I've been on another reloading forum. General consensus was a squib. Likely enough energy for the first round to have almost exited the barrel and the second round following through pushing both bullets through and causing the "pressure ring" in the picture. One shooter experienced the exact phenomenon 18 years ago in his Glock. While other shooters may have a catastrophic split of the barrel, which I've seen before. It was unlikely the powder measure as I weigh each powder drop once on the chargemaster and some get weighed twice on both a manual and electronic scale. A no powder drop scenario is also unlikely as I check the empty cartridge once as the powder is metering to make sure there is a primer and stage the brass separate the other brass on the loading block. I then double check that the case is empty "through the funnel" before I drop the charge. I sometimes check a third time before seating the bullet. One possible theory was a squib caused by the burrs around the flash hole OR the flash hole being obstructed by tumbling media. I noticed really bad burrs on some of the brass, but ignored it thinking it would only effect accuracy. None of the burrs actually covered the flash-hole, and plenty of people shoot brass without deburring. This is also how the brass comes from the factory. Also I don't use walnut or corn cob media. I use SS media that is larger than the flash hole so it won't get stuck.

Hey Y'all, 124gr Montana Gold FMJ 3.8grs Vihta Vhouri 320 Mixed Headstamp on brass (mostly range pickup all inspected during hand priming) Reloaded on a RCBS Single Stage, Loads metered and weighed with an RCBS Chargemaster 1500 Some loads double checked on an RCBS 5-0-5. My barrel is wrecked and I don't know what happened. I was practicing double taps at the range and my Glock 34 locked up with a live round in the chamber. The slide sat back about 1/4'' and would not cycle forward or backwards. I eventually was able to work the slide back far enough to remove the backplate, firing pin, etc and got the slide off the rim of the 9mm case that was lodged in the barrel. I carefully removed the cartridge from the chamber using a butterknife on the rim. Loads Chronographed at 960 avg. Varied A LOT from 901-1020fps with most in the 930 to 980 range. When I examined the inside of the barrel a "pressure ring" on the around the rifling is noticeable. Looks like the rifling got compressed. Anyone experienced this or have an idea what the heck happened? I've been anal rententive while reloading (about 2-3 years experience. I can't afford to have this mistake happen again, but I'm not sure what I did. My loads are a little under powered. I'm fairly certain the standard deviation is from the mixed brass. Some of the flash holes have really bad burrs from the factory. But none of that explains what happened. I'm sure I'm missing something.

If you're debating whether or not it's worth lightening your FP spring to "lighten the trigger". I'll give my .02cent. For what little it's worth. I had 7 light primer strikes during this past weekend's shoot. Obviously, hard primers won't work in your gun so if you have to use some one else's ammo or factory ammo this may happen to you. Even if you know primer brand X will work. You've now relegated your firearm to one specific or a few specific types of ammo. I did not notice a change in the trigger, but maybe because I'm a newbie. Changing over to a drop-in Vanek made the biggest change I added at least 30 seconds to my time clearing the weapon and getting a procedural for not being able to complete the course of fire. Any change in springs decreases the reliability of your firearm drastically. Chasing a few seconds or miliseconds at the risk of losing 30+ seconds...not a good gain IMHO. YMMV.