Catastrophic Failure, ALL CARACAL OWNERS PLEASE READ AND BE SAFE

[mr.trooper]

How do you get two perfectly clean, non symmetrical, breaks in a slide with no obvious inclusions?

I'm not going to point any fingers, but my first reaction to the close ups was that the breaks look intentional. That is just my uneducated opinion.

[armarsh]

Originally Posted by mr.trooper

How do you get two perfectly clean, non symmetrical, breaks in a slide with no obvious inclusions?

I'm not going to point any fingers, but my first reaction to the close ups was that the breaks look intentional. That is just my uneducated opinion.

I don't see any evidence of that. It would take quite a bit of planning and effort to destroy that slide without making any marks.

[nwilliams]

With a all the Caracal's that have been sold up to this point I think if this kind of thing was a common occurrence with this gun it would be well known.

When a gun goes Kaboom it's usually a result of bad ammo. I had a kaboom a while back using Chinese ammo in my AR.

Not saying this incident didn't really happen however it wouldn't persuade me from buying another Caracal in the future.

[FIVETWOSEVEN]

To me it sounds like all the Chinese ammo was overloaded but not to KABOOM specs. That last round was the bird that broke the camels back.

[HKGuns]

I won't speculate on the failure. I do wish your brother a speedy recovery and am sorry to hear of his injury. I hope Carcal will do the right thing in this case.

It was interesting to read the thread over on PAC guns. For example,Weedpimp says chicks like scars!

[ezypikns]

In the meantime, I believe I'll follow a previous poster's advice and.....

let somebody else be the beta tester.

[cactus02]

It sounds like the early Beretta 92 failures due to metalurgy in the slide. New berettas have an oversize pin head to retain a broken slide. P. S. Beretta found the problem was slides made for the French were of different specification steel.

[PabloJ]

Originally Posted by ezypikns

In the meantime, I believe I'll follow a previous poster's advice and.....

No kidding. I would wear face shield and good pair of gloves. Thank God for 'Ove Glove made with Kevlar & Nomex by Dupont'.

[bds]

Looks like Caracal has responded to this incident - http://www.caracal-usa.com/press/Rec...odel-C-Pistol/

Recall Notice - Caracal Model C Pistol
Feb 27, 2013 4:07:28 PM

Caracal International LLC has been informed about an incident in which the slide of a Caracal Model C pistol malfunctioned and broke during firing causing personal injury. We are thoroughly investigating this incident to determine the cause(s) and are initiating this voluntary recall to protect the safety of our customers.

Caracal aims to conclude its investigations as quickly as possible. Updates will be posted on Caracal’s website to include further information on the limited number of defected Caracal Model C pistols.

Until this investigation is concluded and if you own or have access to a Caracal Model C pistol,

PLEASE DO NOT LOAD OR FIRE THE CARACAL MODEL C PISTOL.

Customers may choose to wait until more information with respect to the investigation or arrange to have the pistol replaced free of charge, using the following steps:

Step 1: Contact our customer care center nearest you and provide the serial number of your pistol.

For Customers in the United States:
Contact us directly at 205-655-7050 or info@caracal-usa.com

For Customers in Europe:
Contact us directly at +49 (0) 3681 854 257 or info@caracal-germany.de

For Customers in other countries:
Contact us directly at customerservice@caracal.ae

If you have sold or transferred your Caracal Model C pistol, please contact us using the above information and provide us with the name and contact information for the person to whom you sold it so that we can notify them of this recall.

Step 2: After contacting customer care center, we will send you a prepaid shipping box with instructions so that you can return your pistol to us, free of charge.

Step 3: We will replace your pistol and return it to you free of charge as quickly as reasonably possible.

Caracal apologizes for any inconvenience that this may cause, and thank you for your patience and cooperation.

[bds]

They have concluded their investigation and determined a limited number of slides were improperly heat treated - http://www.caracal-usa.com/press/Car...Recall-Notice/

Caracal Model C Pistol Recall Notice
Mar 28, 2013 3:23:56 AM

TRUSSVILLE, Alabama – Caracal International LLC instituted a recall of Caracal Model C pistols on February 27, 2013 pending an investigation, because the safety of its consumers is paramount to Caracal.

Caracal has completed its investigation and determined that this recall only applies to a limited number of slides of Model C pistols that had been improperly heat treated.

We are firmly committed to safety and would like to exchange all affected Model C pistols with new ones.
How to determine if your Model C pistol needs to be exchanged:

Remove the slide from the pistol, following the steps given in the user manual for your pistol. On the inside bottom of the slide you will find an engraved batch number starting with SC, as shown in the photograph below.

Only slides with batch numbers from SC188- to SC222- are covered by this recall and have to be exchanged.



If you own or have access to a Caracal Model C pistol covered by this recall, PLEASE DO NOT LOAD OR FIRE YOUR PISTOL. Contact customer care to arrange to have your Model C pistol shipped to Caracal. We will replace your pistol and return a new one to you free of charge as quickly as possible.

If you sold or transferred your Caracal Model C pistol, please contact customer care and provide us with the name and contact information for the person to whom you sold or transferred it, so that we can notify them of this recall.

How to arrange to have your Model C pistol exchanged

Step 1 - Contact us and provide your name, address, telephone number, the serial number of your Model C pistol, and the batch number on the slide.

For Customers in the United States:
Contact us at 205-655-7050 or info@caracal-usa.com

For Customers in Europe:
Contact us at +49 (0) 3681 854 257 or info@caracal-germany.de

For Customers in other countries:
Contact us at +971(02) 4927111 or customerservice@caracal.ae

Step 2 - We will send you a pre-paid shipping label and package with instructions so you can return your Model C pistol to us FREE of charge.

Step 3 - We will ship you a new Caracal Model C pistol, FREE of charge. When we do, we will also send you a FREE magazine to thank you for your patience and cooperation. Again, we will make every effort to return your new Model C pistol as soon as possible.

[Gtscotty]

I guess I missed this thread the first time around, the pics on page six of the original thread screamed brittle fracture. No signs of plastic deformation and the grain boundaries have that velvety un-tempered look. Good to see Carcal's standing up and doing a recall, hopefully the guy on this thread that "ring tested" his slide gets the memo and sends that bad boy in.