HK P30 Slide Releases when Loading Magazine...

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Shane Tuttle

Staff
My wife and I went to the range yesterday to verify some loads I've cooked up.

Upon inserting a magazine, the gun will sometimes automatically cycle closed. I thought she had her index finger riding on the slide release lever on the right (it's ambidextrous) while loading. She demonstrated that she didn't.

Is this a concern? Is there a defect? I'm using factory mags.

Where's my HK experts?:eek:
 
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Sturmgewehre

New member
The gun is malfunctioning. The slide should not closed unless you purposely close it with the slide release or pulling the slide to the rear.

I had a P30 for about two weeks, I had a couple of problems with it, one like yours. The other is that it would just barely kick spent cases out of the ejection port with WWB.

I got rid of it, I'm not impressed with the new HK's.
 
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Shane Tuttle

Staff
It chucks brass, even WWB, very consistently. This is the only problem that I have with it.

Have any idea what it is? Is this an unsafe issue to fire the gun and be mindful of this operation?
 
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Sturmgewehre

New member
It's not unsafe really. I mean, it can be unsafe if you're not aware of what's going on and you're not aware of where your muzzle is pointing or where your trigger finger is. But the pistol can't discharge unintentionally without you making a boo-boo. :D

I wouldn't like it, it would drive me nuts. But if it's something you can get used to, it shouldn't pose any real safety risk.

Most P30's do eject fine. I scoured the internet for video of other P30's being fired and most threw the brass quite positively. I just got unlucky with mine.

It hasn't soured me completely on HK's, I just don't think I'll buy any of their current offerings any time soon. Too many other things on my "I must have before I die" list. :p
 
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Shane Tuttle

Staff
I had time to do a little bit of troubleshooting.

I took some dummy ammo and loaded up a mag. It would stay locked back the first 3 or 4 times when slamming the mag in place. But I did get it to consistently cycle on the 5th or 6th time.

What I noticed was the right side slide release lever would ever so slightly trickle downward each time I loaded the mag. Eventually, it would release the slide. The lever seems to have a bit of play that I don't remember it having in the past. The left side lever is normal. I'm wondering if this is the problem and if HK will fix it gratis. I don't think I should be paying for shipping, but some companies won't pay...

Guess I'll be looking for their site for contact info....:(
 
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hoytinak

New member
My P2000 and Glock 17 do the same thing. It doesn't bother me at all, I look at it as a good feature for faster reloading. :)
 
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JohnKSa

Administrator
Most semi-autos can be induced to drop their slides if a magazine is slammed home with sufficient force. I've had it happen once or twice.

If you have a gun that is dropping the slide when you insert a magazine that's something that needs attention--maybe the slide stop spring is too strong and/or perhaps the engagement geometry between the slide & slide stop is improper. On the other hand if it only drops the slide when you slam the magazine into place it's not a problem.
 
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Shane Tuttle

Staff
Thanks John.

When I was troubleshooting the problem and when my wife was demonstrating the isssue, it was when we were "slamming" the magazine in. I used that term for lack of a better one.

I was tought to insert a magazine with authority, not gently. On the same token, I'm not putting all I have into it. I install magazines the same way every time to form habit/muscle memory. Then there's a lesser chance that I don't seat one properly if it becomes a necessity...

I haven't had the chance to call H&K yet. Talked to a couple of other people and they have the same sentiment as Hoytinak. It doesn't bother me at all that it does that operationally speaking. It bothers me if it's a safety issue. If I leave it this way, I don't want it to propagate another problem because I didn't resolve the issue to begin with...
 
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Jason_G

New member
H&K used to state in their manuals for the USP and some others that the slide will sometimes release upon forceful insertion of the mag. I have slammed mags in with authority in my USP45 many many times and have yet to see this happen in mine, but it seems to be a common thing from other folks' testimonies. FWIW, I hear many other brands of handguns will do this exact same thing.

Jason
 
4

45_Shooter

New member
Most of my high-cap guns (USP compact, Glock 17 and 23, M&P9L, Sig P226) show or showed a propensity to do this if you slapped a mag in hard enough. I'll take it as a bonus, especially on guns with small slide stops like a Glock.
 
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IZinterrogator

New member
Beretta 92s do the same thing. If the slide is locked back, inserting the mag hard enough to drop the slide is slamming it in too forcefully, IMHO.
 
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Icopy1

New member
+1 on Jason G's comment. My old USP 40's slide slammed home if a mag was forcefully inserted, just like the manual said it would. I got rid of it for that reason.
 
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Snuffy308

New member
Glocks are notorious for it. If you're not surprised by it, it's no biggie. Sure helps on that final reload when u know you're almost out of time;)
 
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Hokie

New member
Just another person here to say that my USPc9 does this, too. It's not a problem to me. If it really bugs you, get rid of the gun and buy a Hi-Power.
 
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Dobe

New member
Don't worry about it. The P30 is a great handgun, and tough to find right now. This is common with the P30, and some even look at this an advantage and not a detraction from this model. My HK45 will do the same with a full magazine with a slightly forceful reload.

I hope to have a P30L sometimes next year, after I get all of the AR's I want.
 
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