KAHR PM45 recoil springs

[taxifolia]

Also posted on KAHR forum:

Friend and I just got our new PM4544s. As anticipated, tough to rack the slides due to recoil spring. Feels like the last 1/4 inch or so is toughest.

I have two K9098s - replaced the factory 20# with Wolff 18#. Also have MK9 - replaced the factory 20.5# with Wolff 18.5#. Helped racking on all those and have not found any problems due to lighter recoil springs.

For PMs - will recoil spring loosen up with shooting and does it help to let it sit with slide locked back ?

I do not see lighter recoil springs for PM45 on Wolff site. If it does not loosen up, I'm considering cutting off one coil at a time on outer spring till slide racks easier and testing function each time.

Has anyone cut coils ? If so, did it help, did it work ?

If I mess up, KAHR shop has
Recoil Spring Guide Assembly with Recoil Spring
$23.10

Thanks, tax

 

[hawkeye10]

I say you are going to ruin the spring if you cut it off. There is a right way and a wrong way to rack a slide. I think if you look on youtube you will find a how to do video. Don

 

[orionengnr]

More importantly, you may do serious damage to the frame. Think about the physics.

The PM45 has a lighter slide than the P45 because it is shorter. As a result, that slide will accellerate (recoil) more quickly. Due to the shorter slide/frame, it also travels a shorter distance.

Shooting the same .45acp round, the PM45 has two disadvantages stacked against it.

The PM45 needs a far stiffer spring to slow and stop that faster moving, lighter slide in a shorter distance.

Cut off a coil of two and that slide is going to batter that frame. If it were a steel slide and a steel frame, you will feel the force transmitted directly to your paw. (It will also be flinging the brass about a mile away...that's your first clue.) There will be some damage to the gun... sooner or later.

With a steel slide and a polymer frame, the same impact is occurring. You may not notice it (immediately) because the polymer is absorbing it but that force is going somewhere...care to guess where? Ever look at that frame closely?

Making any 3" .45acp work correctly is challenging, whether it is a 1911 or a Kahr PM45. (I own both). I would be very circumspect before cutting a spring or making other mods.

Honestly, I would contact Kahr. FWIW, I currently own a PM9 (4 years), a P45 (2 1/2 years) and a PM45 (a bit over a month). The PM9 and P45 are proven reliable, the PM45 is a recent addition that I have not thoroughly sorted yet (< 100 rounds so far).

I'm not a barrel-chested macho man (more like a skinny old geek) but I have no problem racking or ejecting chambered rounds.

Your PM45 is a very good pistol; in fact, there is really nothing else like it. That is a blade that cuts both ways...the other side is, it operates very close to the edge of the envelope.

Everything in life (and especially in the CCW world) is a compromise. If you want the smallest, lightest, most accurate 6 round .45acp around, you've found it. You will have to live with the recoil, the stiff slide, the short sight radius, etc.

My PM9 is just a bit smaller, holds one extra round (6+1) and is somewhat more pleasant to shoot.

My P45 is just a bit larger, holds one extra round (6+1) and is just as accurate as my 3" Kimber Ultra Carry. It is what I have been carrying every day for the last year and a half.

As soon as I have 110% confidence in the PM45, I will be carrying it. In my mind, it is the perfect compromise.

YMMV. Good luck.

 

[Viper]

What orionengnr said! Kahr puts that spring in the gun for a reason. A short stroke pistol needs a stiff spring for reliability. I sent my PM45 in for a minor cosmetic repair, and even though the gun had never been fired, they replaced the recoil assy. They want that spring stiff. Mine has been 100% with the stock spring. It will, however, loosen slightly with use.

 

[taxifolia]

Also posted on KAHR forum:

Friend and I just got our new PM4544s. As anticipated, tough to rack the slides due to recoil spring. Feels like the last 1/4 inch or so is toughest.

I have two K9098s - replaced the factory 20# with Wolff 18#. Also have MK9 - replaced the factory 20.5# with Wolff 18.5#. Helped racking on all those and have not found any problems due to lighter recoil springs.

For PMs - will recoil spring loosen up with shooting and does it help to let it sit with slide locked back ?

I do not see lighter recoil springs for PM45 on Wolff site. If it does not loosen up, I'm considering cutting off one coil at a time on outer spring till slide racks easier and testing function each time.

Has anyone cut coils ? If so, did it help, did it work ?

If I mess up, KAHR shop has
Recoil Spring Guide Assembly with Recoil Spring
$23.10

Thanks, tax

Deleted.

 

[DeepSouth]

My PM45 was very tight in every respect when I got it, after a few hundred rounds things started to get smoother and yes the slide did get a little easier to rack. (I never found it very hard to begin with) I don't believe it had anything to do with the recoil spring. I also expect if you lighten the recoil spring, or jack around with the factory spring you will get FTF's, among other problems, but for $25 you can give it a shot.

BTW: KAHR recommends changing the recoil spring in the PM series every 1,000 rounds. They also recommend using the Slide Stop to release the slide.

I love my PM45, I miss it to. She left home last week on the way to Cylinder and Slide for some "up grades" You will love the little thing if you treat it right.

 

[PabloJ]

My PM45 was very tight in every respect when I got it, after a few hundred rounds things started to get smoother and yes the slide did get a little easier to rack. (I never found it very hard to begin with) I don't believe it had anything to do with the recoil spring. I also expect if you lighten the recoil spring, or jack around with the factory spring you will get FTF's, among other problems, but for $25 you can give it a shot.

BTW: KAHR recommends changing the recoil spring in the PM series every 1,000 rounds. They also recommend using the Slide Stop to release the slide.

I love my PM45, I miss it to. She left home last week on the way to Cylinder and Slide for some "up grades" You will love the little thing if you treat it right.

Is it painful to shoot?

 

[DeepSouth]

Is it painful to shoot?

Not nearly as bad as you would think. It does have a lot of muzzle flip to it but the recoil isn't that bad, to me. My wife says it is easier to shoot than her sub compact XD40 and I pretty much agree with her. The day I brought it home I put just over 250 rounds through it and the last 50+ were mostly +P JHP's. If I can do that with it then it's not that bad.

 

[mic_poo]

I must be the oddball here... i find my PM40 less hand fatiguing than my PM45 was. The recoil and aggressive checkering on the grip always made me ready to be done with a range session after 50 rounds. With the PM40, I'm usually still up for more.

 

[DeepSouth]

I agree that the checkering is a bit to aggressive, especially the front. A Hogue Handall Jr is worth the few bucks it costs, I had one but took it off so I could put on a C/T laser and I do miss the Handall Jr. I've never shot a PM40 but I would have thought they would have more recoil than the 45's, maybe one day I'll get to shoot one and compare.