[Cheeseburger]

What is that extremely thin piece of polymer for?

There's a cut-out where one side near the slide lock release is really thin, almost paper thin. It seems as if too much brushing or aggressive wiping during cleaning could break it.

Has anyone ever broke or damaged that area?

What's the purpose of it being so thin?

 

[TooSixy]

It may help if you post pictures.

 

[Kost]

Its there by design, I would not break it, not sure what purpose it serves, but it does serve one, or would not be there. I usually use a toothpick to push a piece of a patch thru it for cleaning.

 

[Cheeseburger]

Wondering why there's such a fragile piece on a robust gun?

Does anyone know what its purpose is?

 

[H&K 4 LIFE]

While I don't know why it is there, I imagine it is a not a load bearing portion of the frame. Therefore, I doubt you would see breakage of the frame in this location under normal firing conditions. In expanding on that notion, I never have seen it happen and cannot find any instance of such a breakage being reported.

 

[Farmalljon]

Yeah, gotta see a picture......

 

[williamthewolf]

man. that is thin... To clarify for people who don't know what the OP is talking about... take the slide off your USP. It's the piece of the frame that's bordering/above the take down lever hole. It is very thin.. and flexes if pressed. I've never noticed this before! It's in the design. I'm sure it wasn't a cost cutting measure.

 

[Uriah]

The part/side of the frame directly between the shaped slide release/catch lever spring and forward rail tab.

 

[Uriah]

Fancy paint :wink:

 

[orfeo]

Oh THAT??! Everybody knows what that is. . . I'm surprised you have to ask!

It's a cooling fin for the warp drive of course.

 

[Cheeseburger]

Oh THAT??! Everybody knows what that is. . . I'm surprised you have to ask!

It's a cooling fin for the warp drive of course.

ha...that's exactly what i thought it was for.

hypothetical: if one were to "remove" that piece would it adversely affect the functionality of the USP?

any speculations?

has anyone ever broke their's off?

 

[azimuth]

Other than aesthetics, I can't see why it would matter that you remove it, but I have to ask, why in the world would that bother anyone enough to make them want to remove it? It almost seems OCD...

 

[Cheeseburger]

it's no big deal, just wondering.

i'm generally rough on my weapons. especially when cleaning; former usmc. brand new usually turns into beater when i'm through. i highly doubt it would break during firing, but cleaning is another matter. i'm just curious as to why it's so thin and flimsy.

i can see myself trying to clean out the crud in the slot, then "pop."

 

[Uriah]

I'm curious as well. That little bastard can be sharp too.

I was thinking it could either be for access to other components during the assembly process, which doesn't appear necessary - or perhaps something necessary with the molding form during the frame manufacturing process.

Perhaps post this in the Customer Service section and see if HK CS responds?

 

[azimuth]

It's a carrot peeler...

 

[HK CS1]

It is simply a piece left over from the polymer injection molding process. It has no function other than completion of the frame during manufacture. It is get broken, it can be trimmed off with no adverse effects on function or anything else.

 

[Uriah]

^Good to know.

Thank you.

 

[Uriah]

Interestingly enough, a part of the frame on the P30 that Todd Green shot, which is somewhat relevant to this discussion, sheared off after having approximately 86,000 rounds through it.

pistol-training.com » Blog Archive » P30 Thursday: Week Forty

 

[Cheeseburger]

86k rounds through a gun is a lot by anyone's standards. this doesn't surprise me. i wonder if the gun still functions.

thx for the pics, very interesting.

 

[Uriah]

He states in that link that it still functioned fine afterward.