P64 Slide not holding open

[roblox84]

I've had this issue since I bought the gun but really didn't do anything about it since it doesn't bother me too much but i've got some spare time on my hands so I wanted to tinker with it.

My issue is that the slide doesn't stay open after the last round 98% of the time. And when it does lock back after the last round, it locks back so hard that I have to use allot of force to pull the slide back to get it to release.

Does anyone know what could be causing this issue? Can it just be my 22lb Wolf spring just not letting the slide go fully back in order to lock?

[Curly1]

If you have the stock spring I would switch it and see if that makes a difference.

If you don't have it is the chamber end of the recoil spring ground flat like the original?

[roblox84]

It is not the stock spring but I did grind it flat like the original. I will compare to the stock spring just to make sure I did grind it down enough though.

[gemini1]

What aamo were you shooting? Try different ammo brands. I heard that the Prvi Partisan were a little on the weak side.

[roblox84]

The only ammo I've shot in it so far are silver bears and hornady critical defense. I bought several boxes of different ammo recently so I'll give them a shot.

[gemini1]

Hmn, those were the same factory ammos I tried, the first time I shot my P64. But the recoil spring I used was the 20# one. I've re-installed the stock spring, I shot over a hundred rounds of my reloads and I dont noticed any difference in felt recoil over the wolff spring I had before.
Maybe you should try your stock spring and see how it goes?

[roblox84]

The slide wasn't locking back with the stock spring either which is why I switched it out for a wolf spring. I also had quite a bit of jams with the stock spring which disappeared after I changed it out. Maybe the spring or gun just needs to wear in? I don't shoot much these days with ammo costing much more than usual. Ive probably shot 200-300 round since I bought it a few years back.

[tech 1]

Sounds to me like it's a problem with the slide stop lever, the empty magazine pushes against a small tab that protrudes from the lever, moving the lever up and locks slide open. The front corner of the magazine is what hits the tab of the lever. Maybe that tab on the lever is worn or broken off....

[Curly1]

Does it lock back on an empty mag w/o shooting it?

[roblox84]

Yes it locks back just fine on an empty mag without shooting.

[Curly1]

I would then take tech's suggestion and check the slide stop lever.

It may just be worn enough to lock back with out firing but when fired the impact doesn't allow it to catch.

[roblox84]

Thanks I'll check it out when I get home. Just in advance though, if the slide stop lever is worn out where would I buy a new one?

[Curly1]

The guy from Poland has them.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewIt ... =465799804

Check the spring to.

Should look like this.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewIt ... =475104934

[roblox84]

So it's been a while since I posted but I did change out the slide stop lever and went to the range today. After the first three mags shot the slide did hold open and that was it, after that it didn't hold open after last round anymore. What was weird is that 2 of those times that the slide held open it locked back so hard that it took quite a bit of force to pull back on it to release it. My only guess is that the slide isn't going back far enough. Maybe I should cut the recoil spring down by one coil?

It's such a minor thing but it's pretty annoying that the gun doesn't work properly. I've searched for a long time and I seem to be the only one having this problem. If anyone has any other ideas please let me know.

[robhic]

I had a similar problem (partially) with one of my pistols. It locked back, all right - so tight you had to pry it back to get it to close!!! What was happening (all was stock) was that the lock-lever was sliding off that ridge in the slide that it is supposed to hit to stop the slide. Something somehow had worn it a bit and the lever slipped off, essentially pinching the ridge/slide between the lock-lever. I carefully bent the lever but I could never get it to act right. Finally, I took a Dremel with a pointed tip grinding bit and CAREFULLY ground the ridge flat and even ground back a TINY bit into the body of the slide to give more area to hit.

Swapped levers with another pistol and it has worked flawlessly since. Take a look with a light and see if the edge of that ridge where the lock-back lever hits is worn and silvery looking from the lever slipping off. That may have been your problem and if you can flatten out that ridge along with the new lever, I give you a good chance of having fixed your problem. Good luck! (There's a thread in here somewhere if you care to look.)