KEL-TEC P-3AT Question

[kwp]

Greetings. New to Forum.
Took my chl class, submitted papework and waiting impatiently for license

Had a question about a used KEL-TEC P-3AT I picked up this week..
After 10 rounds I was suprised to see the assembly pin was coming out (1/4 in)
I was able to get it back in though.

Any suggestions? Break it down and clean it good? Replace pin?

Thanks

[longtooth]

This is a common occurance w/ some of the 3ATs. I hope you are not disappointed but many of us have had bad experience w/ Kel Tec in general & the 3AT in particular.
I have seen several do exactly what yours is doing but have never seen one actually work out far enough to cause a malfunction even on the range.
Folks either loveem or hateem. No one is indifferent about KTs.
Are we Flint

[anygunanywhere]

http://www.ktog.org/

Lots of information. I have two, my son has one and we have no experience with that phenomena.

Anygun

[PhilR.]

If I remember correctly (hey, it can happen!), there is a small wire spring inside the frame that fits into the groove of the pin when the pin is in place, thereby holding it there. The spring is visible in the pin hole when the pin is removed. Is there a spring in your frame?

PhilR.

[Skiprr]

What LT said.

I will never buy another Kel-Tec product.

[propellerhead]

I just got my Keltec back from the factory. They replaced the frame to fix a walking roll pin. I bought it because I was curious about pocket pistols. I wouldn't feel comfortable carrying it.

Contact Keltec. Send them pics via email. Their warranty is only for the original owner but they never ask for proof of purchase.

[mctowalot]

Sold my Kel-Tech. Couldn't trust it. (Yes, new owner warned) At the time of this edit, Ruger has just introduced a pocket .380 that looks an awfull lot like a PT-380, but they are not saying what there relationship (if any) is.
Next time I'll wait for a product to be proven.

[Skiprr]

We'll think on this.

Paragraph breaks would help.

But:

I sold the Kel-tech this morning (with a fair warning to the new owner).

How fair was the warning?

I wouldn't give you my P3AT without telling you it may not fire when you pull the trigger.

How forthcoming were you to the new owner?

[mctowalot]

We'll think on this.

Paragraph breaks would help.

But:

I sold the Kel-tech this morning (with a fair warning to the new owner).

How fair was the warning?

I wouldn't give you my P3AT without telling you it may not fire when you pull the trigger.

How forthcoming were you to the new owner?

I promise to work on the paragraph breaks, and spelling, and long windedness, and punctuation while I'm at it.
Re: The warning. I told the new owner just what I wrote in the post, even my views in regards to washing machines. And for what its worth, it never failed to fire the round in the chamber, it just might not cycle properly to the next. I told him to keep it clean, and I also directed him to the Kel-techie sites. I can see where I might be setting myself up by also informing you that the buyer is a friend, and we have had frequent conversations in regards to this specific gun and its characteristics - so he knew what he was getting. Thanks.

[locknload]

kwp, the assembly pin has bulged on our P3AT a number of times. It seems to happen every time I've tried to clean it, even though I've followed the directions completely. The slide has refused to cycle. The pin has come out. It has failed to eject a spent casing so many times I've lost count. It has ejected and hung up on unfired rounds just as often. Yet, DH still carries it. It's cute and it's small and it's highly concealable.

It flips up when fired, making one think that you're going to shoot yourself in the forehead, and it has a mule's kick. It was also disconcerting the first time I saw flames come out the front of the barrel just over an inch from my precious wittle finger!

It has caused me to have carpal tunnel syndrome, for which I have had one surgery and will have another later. On the other hand, my .45 cal. 1911 in solid steel has almost no perceived recoil by comparison and I can fire it repeatedly without hurting my hands or wrists.

When we bought the P3AT, we were told that it is not fun to fire, but it is a capable carry weapon or BUG, it is for defense only, and we would not enjoy firing it. We were not lied to.

Personally, I would never buy another, and I would sell this one, if DH would allow it. However, it is cute, if cute is what you're into.

We have a friend, who has a Seecamp. He has had no problems whatsoever with it. It is a much better made and more reliable BUG. It's about as small, but has less recoil, according to him, but he's not fired the P3AT, yet. The Seecamps are made with more care and precision. Just my opinion, for what it's worth.

Hope this helps some in your deliberations re: the P3AT.

Yeh, I know they're cute. We just can't get past the "but they're cute" thang. And they really are cute. And I have to keep telling myself, "So is a skunk, but you wouldn't want one in the house." Drat!

[anygunanywhere]

Don't hold back, locknload! I detect a little hesitation in your post. You know, keeping all that stuff inside will only harm you. Let it all out.



Anygun

[locknload]

Nope! Won't do it! Gotta save some of it up to let out at the range.

As an aside ... ever wonder how that guy keeps missing that 'nanner?

[mctowalot]

[We have a friend, who has a Seecamp. He has had no problems whatsoever with it. It is a much better made and more reliable BUG. It's about as small, but has less recoil, according to him, but he's not fired the P3AT, yet. The Seecamps are made with more care and precision. Just my opinion, for what it's worth.

Hope this helps some in your deliberations re: the P3AT.

I also have friend with Seecamp. Seecamp good. I like Seecamp. Seecamp run!

[Keith B]

I have two female friends who are in their late 60's that just took their CHL courses. I happenend to run into them at a gun show. They had never really shot much before their CHL qualification, but did use a friends Glock to qualify.

I suggested they look into a S&W 642 or similar as a revolver was fairly foolproof and easier to manipulate than a semi-auto for someone with a lower experience level. I suggested they go to the local range and rent one and see how they liked it. They both ended up purchasing one and loved shooting them.

Unfortunately, another friend talked them into buying P3AT's at the next show, without ever having shot a micro-semi.

I ran into them yesterday at a seminar, and they were VERY dissapointed. These ladies are very small in stature, with weak wrists. One of them had shot two magazines through hers, and her thumb joint was swollen to twice normal size. She said her wrist also hurt tremendously. The other lady decided not to even try and shoot hers. They commented they were sorry they had not taken my advice and rented one an tried it before they bought these. From now on out, they will use the old 'try before you buy' method.

Moral of the story, cute and small can become mean and nasty if you are not careful!

[Dan20703]

Kel-Tec produced a reliabe mini-auto when they created the P-32. I own a 1st generation model that I've shot under all sorts of conditions just to see how reliable it was. Never had a hiccup of any kind for about 600 rounds.

Then someone at Kel-Tec decided to use the same design with a .380 ACP. That is when the neverending list of problems started. That design couldn't handle the upgraded cartidge. I've shot a friend's P3AT but would never buy one. Like everyone else here, I'd rather carry a gun I trust.