Owners of "Bad Kel-Tec" handgun question.

[makdaddy03]

To the owners of "Bad" Kel-Tec handguns. Are you guys tinkering around with the goods inside the gun? I fired a friends Kel-Tec P11 & P32 both were flawless in the function dept. My friends handguns are stock and have never been touched by any kind of polishing stones or whatever else is used. And he has no complaints. And from what I witnessed today (Thursday) I dont have any complaints either.
So are you guys playing around with the inside parts? If so Warranty is VOID.

 

[alamo]

Kel-Tecs warranty technically applies to the original owner but they repair pistols under warranty for 2nd owners no questions asked. I'm sure there may have been very extreme cases where an owner has negligently damaged their pistols and KT hasn't repaired it under warranty but I've never heard of one.

 

[concerned citizen]

What alamo and Flyer said.

I will only add that I have owned 2 P11's a p32 and curently have a P3AT ( which is my favorite!) and have never done any tinkering.

Both p11's were bought used and functioned 100% the 32 and 3AT were new and also 100%

 

[makdaddy03]

Cool. After firing my buddies P11 Im thinking about buying one for myself. And maybe the new 380acp. Weighs only 7oz whew........ I was just referring to what my friend said about the warranty. But im not one to tinker anyways. Be good.

 

[E357]

Kel-Tec is one of those rare weapons makers that actually encourage owners to tinker with their peoducts. I'm not talking insane mods - just the usual stuff. They are only too happy to ship you parts and will repair almost anything for free - no questions. THE PROBLEM is UPS Shipping which runs the same whether it's a $2,000 custom Wilson or a $200 P-32.

Elliot

 

[dsk]

I don't believe in fixing things that aren't broke. If you get a new Kel-Tec shoot it first, then see if anything needs tuning or fixing. Just taking a Dremel or sandpaper to any handgun without knowing why is a poor decision.

 

[concerned citizen]

Flyer,

Were you ever able to post the pics of a p32/p3AT ?

If you have not gotten around to it yet, no need to explain I know it can be a pain in the but to do.
If you have can you tell me where I can't seem to find them?

 

[makdaddy03]

My point is that all of these KT owners that B itch and complain about having to send their KT back for repairs, are probably screwing their KT up tinkering with them and then blaming the company for selling what they call junk. My buddy said that his has never given any problems period. And from what I saw just the other day I believe him. Im going out and buy me one of each the P11 & P32 or P3AT.

 

[firestar]

Im going out and buy me one of each the P11 & P32 or P3AT.

I dare you! I bet you won't and if you do, put 400 rounds through each and tell us how you did. Keep track of every jam and breakage and how many times you had to send it back.

Good luck, your going to need it.

 

[RJ likeguns]

Im going out and buy me one of each the P11 & P32 or P3AT

I guess I need luck too since I plan on getting a P-11 to go with my P-32. Absolutley no problems with the P-32 (250 rds).


Firestar, you must have had a lemon!

 

[Preacherman]

I'm afraid I'm one of those with consistently bad experiences of Kel-Tec's. I bought a P11 some years ago, and found repeated problems with failure to feed and/or eject. Had the gun "treated", but it still wasn't fully reliable (usually one or two failures per 100 rounds). I disposed of it. Later, I bought a P32, which out of the box would consistently fail to eject and/or double-feed every 5 or 6 rounds. I sent it back to Kel-Tec, and they worked on it, but somehow I just don't trust it. I won't be buying any more Kel-Tec's, I'm afraid - once bitten, twice shy: twice bitten, three times very, very afraid!

 

[makdaddy03]

Firestar, Thanks for the warning, but I have fired a friends P11 and P32, I was quite impressed with the KT pistols.

 

[KeysBear]

Hi everybody,
I believe that a lot of gun novices buy Kel-Tecs because of the price. Therefore, IMHO it is probably limp wristing that is the bug for most Kel-Tec newbies with problems. Getting the best matchup of ammo, recoil springs, and mag springs for a particular shooter's needs will help. Big guys with years of shooting experience will feel differently about a Kel-Tec than a petite lady on her first trip to the range. Wolff Springs makes a recoil springs power pack that is quite helpful at finding the right fit for your ammo/shooting style. Wolff springs Also, a lot of problems I believe come from the mec-gar mags that need a little lip tweaking, or a spring upgrade, also from Wolff.

The fluff and buff that is described at Kel-Tec Owners Group KTOG is simple for the most part, and in most cases requires little more than patience and some 400 to 600 grit sandpaper. Of course you can do a lot of cool mods on your Kel-Tecs if you want to, but that's more for feel, than for reliability.

Of the hundreds of thousands of firearms Kel-Tec has produced, we have heard from almost 3000 owners or prospective owners at KTOG. Some people come there seeking answers, and others just want to say what a fine pistol they've purchased. The Kel-Tec "problem" is vastly overstated. BTW, as far as customer service, I recently bought a P-40 conversion kit (used) for my P-11, that also came with a P-40 mag. The P-40 mag spring was totally messed up, so for less than five bucks including insurance I mailed it to Kel-Tec for an exchange for a brand new one, no questions asked. Their customer service is friendly, and they go out of their way to make the customer happy. Just my 2 cents. Regards, Keys

 

[dsk]

dsk,
If you were to apply that logic there'd be no tuned, custom 1911s.

Yes, and who seems to be the largest group of 1911 owners with complaints? The US military didn't seem to complain all that often about their sloppy, rough-looking mil-spec contract guns. If you refuse to fire even fire a single round out your gun without polishing the feedramp, barrel channel and trigger parts first that's up to you. But if the gun starts failing on you it's pretty hard to know whether anything you did caused it to happen in the first place.

 

[KeysBear]

dsk posted:

The US military didn't seem to complain all that often about their sloppy, rough-looking mil-spec contract guns.

Hey,
The military shoots ball ammo. If you want to shoot ball ammo for personal defense that's your choice. I like my Kel-Tecs, but IMHO the current vendor for the 9mm P-11 barrels in particular is supplying some very roughly machined barrels. The feed ramp on mine out of the box looked like a mini-washboard. Polishing the feed ramp actually reduces wear and tear because a JHP round hitting the same rough spot over and over eventually digs a rut. My older .40 S&W P-40 barrel looked clean in factory condition, and I've done nothing to it except a little exterior polishing - no feed ramp or chamber polishing. BTW, even though I bought the P-40 used, I know the previous owner didn't mess with it either. Regards, Keys

 

[Bren]

 

[mainmech48]

I have both a P-11 and a P-32. I haven't done anything to either of them but shoot and clean them. Nothing has broken, and they've both fed, fired and ejected everything I've thrown at them.

The P-32 is my "always" gun. It's in my pocket as I write this. I've put almost 1500 rds of assorted ammo through it . Even with the crude sights it'll put the entire magazine load into 4" or less at 15 yds as fast as I can fire it.

The P-11 is approaching 2k rds. I've had exactly two malfs, both in the first magazine load when it was new. Nary a bobble since with either 115 or 124 gr loads. It hits where I point it, and will group into 3 1/2 " at 20 yds from a rest, even with the short sight radius and heinously-long trigger pull.

They aren't pretty, and they aren't perfect. They're your basic, affordable alternative for folks who need a pistol for defense of self and home but can't spend much for one. I think of them as the modern H&R or Iver Johnson.

I'd sure as hell rather see someone I cared about get a KelTec than any of the zinc alloy crap from Phoenix, Bryco, Lorcin, Jennings, Davis or Hi-Point.