My First Range Report - R9S

[kwesi]

I found the R9S to be very manageable even for my large hands. A little history first: I sold my Kel-Tec P3-AT Hard Chrome (.380 ) in favor of the R9. I'm wondering if what happened to my right index finger has happened to anyone else.  Looking down at my finger there is a good bump on the right side of the first joint.  I had the same problem with my Kel-Tec.  I suspect it is possibly due to the length of my fingers.  I did not allow the recoil to slam my finger back into the trigger guard.  Anyways on to the report.

I tested my pup between 4-5 yards.  She is very accurate and the more I shot the easier it was to handle; really not and issue.

I started off with two mags of Blazer Brass 115 gr FMJ's with no issues.  I followed that with 2 mags of the Win-X 115 gr Silvertip HP's again with no issues.  Then 2 mags of Speer 124 gr HP's with a "double feed" on the 2nd mag with the final 2 rounds. She locked partially open with one round only partially fed with the last round stuck behind it.

I continued to fire another 24 rounds of Silvertips again with no issues and finally another 8 rounds of the Speer without any issues.

I'm generally not one to limp wrist. In fact I also fired 38 rounds on 9mm (Glock 17) and 100 rounds .45acp (Glock 21) with no issues.

Any thoughts on the double feed?  How about my beat up finger?

I rate her an A+!

Michael

[riffraff]

Michael,

I don't know about the finger issue myself.

Do you have a brand new gun or did you get a used one?
If you have a used one that does not have the improved magazine springs and recoil spring my first advice is to get these immediately.  If you do have a new one and it already has the latest springs installed OR if you order and install the latest springs then I recomend you do this:  clean and relube, shoot a few mags of the ammo that did NOT jam, clean and relube, shoot some more but not to much, clean and relube and shoot again.  This is basically a "break in".
If you can get to the point where trust your gun to shoot 2 mags reliably and then clean and relube it, carry or let is sit for a month then shoot 2 more mags without a jam and you feel it will do this reliably you are done.  Since you did shoot 32rds with out a problem after the 2 jams you did have it sounds to me like your gun is going to run just fine.

If you get/have the updated springs and still have jam problems after the "break in" then I would sent it back for a look see.

Mike

[kwesi]

I am the 2nd owner. The first owner put two boxes thru it without any issues.

I have a brand new original recoil spring and the original mag springs.  I spoke with Maria this morning and she said "you got a good one" with it running 34 continuous rounds without cooling before the jam (this was a single jam involving 2 rounds).  Especially since after clearing and firing them I continued on firing another 32 rounds without an issue.

Maria concluded that I may have limp wristed that one time, etc. or maybe it doesn't like the Speer 124's.  It sure does like the 115 Silvertips!

I think I figured out why my finger got beat up: I dry fired it and noticed that side of my finger rides across the outside of the trigger guard.  If I fire from just the tip of my finger it appears that I'll just clear the guard.

I think it's more the length/shape of my finger.  We will see next range visit after the finger heals.  Until then my Glocks will get a workout  

[45ACP2GO]

Kwesi,

First off welcome to the forum and congrats on getting one of the greatest little pups with a big bite.

I have a R9S Stealth and its primary diet is the Winchester 115gr silvertips. I have never had a malfunction with this round. Gold dot 115gr jhp also is a good performer.

If you run a lot of rounds through it in a short period of time, say 50 rounds in 20 mins. it will get hot and you probably start having some malfunctions. I have never had feed or eject issues with mine but I have had a few misfire issues when it is hot.

My standard procedure, when ever I go to the range I will pull the pup out of the pocket holster, empty the 7 rounds of silvertips, reload with the spare mag of silvertips and fire them. I have never had the first problem with this procedure. I then clean and lube it with Hornady One Shot cleaner lubricant and then repeat this the next time out.

[sslater]

Kwesi,
I'd like to welcome you to the forum, too.

My index finger also gets a bump if I fire a lot of rounds.  My fingers are long and thin, and I suspect it's the shape of the trigger that gets to me.  Most pistols do that to me, so I live with it.

Before updating my R9S with the new mag springs I had a number of double feeds.  They're hard to clear on any gun which doesn't have a slide lock, but I found a simple way to do it.  Here's what I found works best on the double feed you described:  
1. Keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction.
2. Take a piece of wooden chopstick (or Hedley "Stop Stick") and push down on the rim of the top round in the magazine. (If you press down further forward on the top round in the mag, you may dent it.)
3. The slide will then be able to move into battery, chambering the round that was stuck.
Pull the stick out the gun.
4. Fire gun. Actually, I usually drop the magazine, examine the top round for damage, eject the chambered round & check it for damage.  Then I reinstall the mag, rack the slide, and continue.

[kwesi]

Good advice...thanks!

[grandpa]

Kewsi:
       I took mine to the range for the first time last night. Ran great, no problems. It sounds like we have matching index fingers. I also have a bump in the same place also wore the skin off. Next time I'm going to shoot 40 or 50 rounds I think I will try a Bandaid. I'm pretty sure mine was caused by recoil.

[kwesi]

Kewsi:
       I took mine to the range for the first time last night. Ran great, no problems. It sounds like we have matching index fingers. I also have a bump in the same place also wore the skin off. Next time I'm going to shoot 40 or 50 rounds I think I will try a Bandaid. I'm pretty sure mine was caused by recoil.

Grandpa: I had the same problem with a Kel-Tec p3-AT but not with any other gun that I own.  If you dry fire and watch I think you'll find that the side of your finger rides across the trigger guard.  In my case it is not caused by letting the trigger reset and slamming the finger; I've learned to hold the trigger until hearing the "click" on my Glocks.

I had less of an issue with it on the Win-X 115 gr Silver Tips and she runs prefectly on them; real accurate too! The 124 gr. Speer Gold Dots really made the finger hurt after just a couple rounds though.

I doubt it would matter if we ever have to use her for self defense. I found that the light weight white tape used with bandages works best!

BTW: welcome to the forum!