RichardY

In my original post I said I was going to put in a support request to Canik. I did and told them of my "modifications" because I didn't want them to get it, take one look and send it back. I thought to clear it with them first. They would not accept it. When I did finally get the slide off, I informed them what the issue was. They replied that they would send me a new barrel (subject to some conditions too long to list here). Did the light recoil spring I used hasten the wear? Perhaps, but their guns have heavy recoil spring assemblies because they are designed for 9mm NATO, approximately 155PF? So, under their spec conditions, sure they have heavier recoil springs but heavier loads too so I wonder if the lighter springs was really the core issue. I'm not enough of a mechanical to answer that. I retired in 2019 after 42 years in electronics engineering and manufacturing, employed by an Original Equipment Manufacturer. Mistakes happen in manufacturing. Bad production runs happen. Just look at our own auto industry. I believe the measure of a company is not that they get everything perfect every time, but that when presented with an issue, they take ownership, treat the customer fairly and try and make things right for the customer. This Canik has done for me. Thanks for reading this, best of luck to you all.

Update: I finally got it off. Cause was a cracked barrel locking lug. I continued to work with it until I noticed it moved slightly after many attempts at pulling it off. I used my hard plastic gunsmithing hammer to tap-tap-tap it off. It seems this is an all too common occurrence. One of my friends at a match last night said his locking lug snapped completely off, so he had no trouble getting the slide off. Another friend had not one but two extra barrels in his bag that I could borrow until my replacement arrives. I'll continue to love and shoot my Caniks. I've shot some of my best matches ever with the TP9. It's just a disappointment they have this issue.

I did take out the striker and it didn't help. I talked to a buddy last night who also shoots the TP9. He said when his was new, it was hard to depress the take down tabs enough to release the slide. He said he lubed the locking lever that releases the slide very well and hasn't had the problem since. We think that locking lever is the only thing that could be holding up releasing the slide, so I'm working on how to get it to go down more. Thanks for your suggestion, tho.

First off, this is NOT one of those “I tried to put my slide on like a Glock…..” posts. I’m a competitive shooter with 18K to 22K rounds through this TP9 in the 18 months I’ve been shooting it. Shot it last weekend in a match, all went well. Went to clean it this week and the slide would not come off. I have a Freedomsmith trigger in it. A W74 guide rod with a 14# Commander spring from Wolff. Also a 6.5# striker spring. I guess something has broken inside, nothing I can see, or has something worn into a position simply blocking takedown? I unload the piece, pull the trigger, depress the take down tabs, the slide goes forward about an eight of an inch and stops HARD. I’ve Googled this situation but it seems it has happened to no one else. At least publicly. I’ve tried tapping the back with a rubber mallet, but I have a Vortex Venom optic I don’t want to destroy. Tried "upside down", also tapping here, there and everywhere to try and get it lose. Took the striker out to see if that changed anything, no. I guess my next step is to put in a support request at Canik. I’m hoping I won’t have to do that as I’ll lose my trigger and other upgrades. May be charged too, but I don’t care. I’m hoping one of you will show me the light, what an idiot I’ve been. Thank you for your time.

I'm an Arizona native and the only one I know who actually says "howdy" as a greeting. Anyhow, old guy, retired engineer. Long time competitor in USPSA, (CRO) IDPA (SO), recently Steel Challenge. Fell in love with a Canik TP9SFX about 18 months ago. Got a Rival-S (chrome) in June. Been working through the Rival-S issues well covered in this forum. Thanks for reading this.