[hoghunter]

Need some help from the P30L owners here. Is there any way I can get a few pics of your grip on this firearm? Or if you can do a great job of describing it I would be fine with that too. I have had many issues with the slide not locking back on the last round and I have to assume it is me. When I use thumbs forward and rest the weak hand thumb on the square "witness mark" on the frame I am consistently having this problem. I went to a thumbs levitated forward (not touching anything) I have success but it just doesn't feel too natural. I'd love to see some pics of how you are gripping the P30L just to give me some options. If you think there may be some other issue causing this is like to hear that too. If you would prefer to PM the pics so as to not make public your secrets I understand. Thanks for helping a HK brother out.

 

[hoghunter]

I should add that I tried 8 different brands of ammo and couldn't narrow down any particular ammo causing it. Various 124gr ball, +P, NATO. Gotta be the grip.

 

[Pistol Shooter]

I just gripped my P30 L after reading your question. I'm right handed, grip as high as possible on the pistol with both thumbs forward.

I noticed that my right thumb rests on top of my left thumb, away from the slide release.

Hope that helps, good luck.

 

[Montrala]

Strong hand thumbs rests on base of strong hand thumb and does not touch side of slide/frame (no sideway force from thumb on pistol). I do no have photos, but I will look if one of my videos have some close up.


ETA: Look there:

 

[tesseract]

Need some help from the P30L owners here. Is there any way I can get a few pics of your grip on this firearm? Or if you can do a great job of describing it I would be fine with that too. I have had many issues with the slide not locking back on the last round and I have to assume it is me. When I use thumbs forward and rest the weak hand thumb on the square "witness mark" on the frame I am consistently having this problem. I went to a thumbs levitated forward (not touching anything) I have success but it just doesn't feel too natural. I'd love to see some pics of how you are gripping the P30L just to give me some options. If you think there may be some other issue causing this is like to hear that too. If you would prefer to PM the pics so as to not make public your secrets I understand. Thanks for helping a HK brother out.

I had this problem for a while with my P30. It's unsettling for me, since I'm a lefty, and so I'm not used to dealing with this. After trying various alternate thumb positions, I find I am better off not adjusting the grip I'm used to, and just dealing with the non-locking slide.

EDIT: Also, I think there are after-market slide releases that are shorter than standard, so your thumbs might not brush them. You might try to investigate that.

 

[BoppaBear]

I just gripped my P30 L after reading your question. I'm right handed, grip as high as possible on the pistol with both thumbs forward.

I noticed that my right thumb rests on top of my left thumb, away from the slide release.

Hope that helps, good luck.

Don't have an L, but the Operator's Manual says all dimensions are the same on the 30 and the 30L with the exception of barrel length. I have the same grip as Pistol Shooter, high with thumbs foward pointing towards target, and my thumbs don't ride the slide either. Strong hand thumb rests on top of support hand thumb at the joint and both are clear of keeping the slide from locking back. I've noticed, not that it's true or a science or anything, a lot of 1911 shooters have issues with riding the slide stop lever, moreso than those that came to HKs from say Sigs. May have something to do with needing to actuate the safety on a SA 1911. Not sure if this is applicable to you or not hoghunter. Good luck!

 

[hoghunter]

Thanks for all of the comments. I will fiddle with my grip and maybe even change backstrap/side panels. I may also investigate smaller slide stops.

 

[hoghunter]

Found a really old post from Todd G. on the forum. He said that he ran a 3000 round test using the Medium Backstrap, Small Right Sidepanel, and Large Left Sidepanel and he had no lockback issues. Todd said this set up kept his left palm and fingers away from the slide stop. I just switched it out so we shall see what happens at the range.

 

[e0603]

My strong hand thumb angles just slightly away from the gun and rests on the base of my weak hand thumb.

Early on with my P30L I realized that my initial grip was good (no interference with the slide release) but after a string of fire (especially if I was a bit fatigued) my support hand shifted slightly such that I had occasional issues with lockback (wasn't supporting the strong hand thumb properly anymore). So that's another thing to consider, take a close look at your grip before firing, and the next time you have an issue with lockback, "freeze" and examine your grip. The issue pretty much went away for me once I focused on improving the consistency of my grip.

 

[Monkd]

My strong hand thumb angles just slightly away from the gun and rests on the base of my weak hand thumb.

Early on with my P30L I realized that my initial grip was good (no interference with the slide release) but after a string of fire (especially if I was a bit fatigued) my support hand shifted slightly such that I had occasional issues with lockback (wasn't supporting the strong hand thumb properly anymore). So that's another thing to consider, take a close look at your grip before firing, and the next time you have an issue with lockback, "freeze" and examine your grip. The issue pretty much went away for me once I focused on improving the consistency of my grip.

Agreed. I've had the same issue with my p30 and it has to do with my support hand. If I get a good high grip with 100% surface area coverage with the support hand the support thumb runs in line with the slide release, covering it. I have a tendency to get a lower grip in a hurry or when tired where my support hand thumb runs just under the slide release exposing it allow my strong hand thumb to barely rest on the release.