[makxsh1mum]

Hi all,

Super noob here. Bought my first handgun (a VP9) primarily b/c i read through the reviews, felt good, loved the fact you can swap out grip panels, and i could go on and on. That said, i just picked up the gun for the first time and am encountering something which I don't know whether is a problem or not with the gun itself. Gun is unloaded, magazine is seated. I rack the slide, and every time, it locks in the back position. I don't even have to push up on the slide lock lever. Nor is my hand accidentally pressing on the slide lock lever. I literally pull back and it locks. Every time. I've watched tons of videos on shooting and on most guns, people are racking the slide back over and over again with no problem. Is this proper to have it lock every single time? Seems not to be as I don't think in a shooting situation, you'd not want it to lock, and have to manually depress the slide lock every time just to chamber a new bullet.

When i take out the magazine however, it racks properly. I noticed that when i insert the magazine, the slide release lever raises a bit - which is causing the locking when i rack it (mag in). Is this proper?

And if not proper and is an issue with the gun, is this something a gunsmith would have to handle? Should i send it back?

Appreciate any help.

Thanks guys and gals!

 

[Crashmc]

It functions correctly ! That is the follower moving up and locking the slide open after the last round . You're good. Congratulations on the new pistol !

 

[makxsh1mum]

Thanks Crashmc...man, do i feel like a noob. It's just so weird when i watch videos, everyone else has no problem racking - it never locks up unless they push up on the slide lock lever. At first I didn't know whether people just always held down the slide release lever so that it wouldn't catch the slide as they rack back and forth to check the gun/clear a misfire.

Anyways, appreciate the quick response...was giving me sleepless nights thinking i had some wonky gun (I have horrible luck with technology - ordered a new tv and the new one that came didn't work).

 

[Teufelshund Tactical]

Mark has done a great job quickly answering your question, but since you are new here and to pistols, I'll break it down a bit further.
Semi-auto pistols are designed to function in a way that when the last round of a magazine is fired, the slide locks back to the rear. This serves two purposes. First, it is a visual indicator to the shooter that he is out of ammuntion and second, it sets the shooter up for a quicker magazine swap, where by he does not need to manually cycle the slide completely. He only needs to release the slide forward into battery.
The slide locking is accomplished by magazine follower, which is being forced up by the spring tension of the magazine spring. When a tab on the side of the follower makes contact with the inside detent of the slide release/locking lever, it forces that lever up and in contact with the face of the slide, stopping its forward movement.
Without the magazine inserted into your pistol, there is nothing to force the lever up and into the way of the forward moving slide, so that is why you don't have that issue then.
Hope that makes sense.

 

[FuZzzz]

Take the mag out and you should be able to rack without it locking.

Marine0303 beat me with a great response.

 

[makxsh1mum]

Mark has done a great job quickly answering your question, but since you are new here and to pistols, I'll break it down a bit further.
Semi-auto pistols are designed to function in a way that when the last round of a magazine is fired, the slide locks back to the rear. This serves two purposes. First, it is a visual indicator to the shooter that he is out of ammuntion and second, it sets the shooter up for a quicker magazine swap, where by he does not need to manually cycle the slide completely. He only needs to release the slide forward into battery.
The slide locking is accomplished by magazine follower, which is being forced up by the spring tension of the magazine spring. When a tab on the side of the follower makes contact with the inside detent of the slide release/locking lever, it forces that lever up and in contact with the face of the slide, stopping its forward movement.
Without the magazine inserted into your pistol, there is nothing to force the lever up and into the way of the forward moving slide, so that is why you don't have that issue then.
Hope that makes sense.

Marine0303 - awesome reply. Thank you very much for taking the time to help out a noob like myself. It all makes sense now. Same to you FuZzzz - good to know there's helpful people out there.

 

[AGG-closed]

Welcome to the site, and congratulations on the acquisition!!! :biggrin:

Tony

 

[Spart]

Mark has done a great job quickly answering your question, but since you are new here and to pistols, I'll break it down a bit further.
Semi-auto pistols are designed to function in a way that when the last round of a magazine is fired, the slide locks back to the rear. This serves two purposes. First, it is a visual indicator to the shooter that he is out of ammuntion and second, it sets the shooter up for a quicker magazine swap, where by he does not need to manually cycle the slide completely. He only needs to release the slide forward into battery.
The slide locking is accomplished by magazine follower, which is being forced up by the spring tension of the magazine spring. When a tab on the side of the follower makes contact with the inside detent of the slide release/locking lever, it forces that lever up and in contact with the face of the slide, stopping its forward movement.
Without the magazine inserted into your pistol, there is nothing to force the lever up and into the way of the forward moving slide, so that is why you don't have that issue then.
Hope that makes sense.

Yea, what he said.

If there are rounds in the magazine it wouldn't lock the slide back because the mag follower is not at its top most position. The gun would cycle normally until the last round is fed. The slide will lock at rear most when the magazine is empty.

 

[usefulidiot69]

I know this is an old thread but I'm having an odd issue with the slide lock on my USP .40 in the converse, my slide is locking every 2 or three rounds with rounds still in the magazine. An associate suggested it's my range ammo that's causing it (winclean 165 GR FMJ). Is this really a possibility? He said that that it's a hot load and has an over pressure that's not normal for standard personal defense loads and that's probably what's causing the locking issue.

 

[TooBigToFit]

I know this is an old thread but I'm having an odd issue with the slide lock on my USP .40 in the converse, my slide is locking every 2 or three rounds with rounds still in the magazine. An associate suggested it's my range ammo that's causing it (winclean 165 GR FMJ). Is this really a possibility? He said that that it's a hot load and has an over pressure that's not normal for standard personal defense loads and that's probably what's causing the locking issue.

Is this a brand new gun, or one that's been shot a while? When you take off the slide stop on your gun, look under the slide stop. You should see a cross shaped cutout in the frame, to the right of the slide stop hole. Is there a small little curved piece of wire there, sitting at the 6:00 position, and does it feel strong enough? This helps keep your slide stop in one place. Perhaps it is missing or worn out, and thus, your slide stop is flopping around and sometimes locking back the slide when not empty. Part #27 in the diagram below. Also linked to HK Parts where you can buy it...

http://www.parkcitiestactical.com/manuals/parts-hk_usp45acp.gif
https://www.hkparts.net/shop/pc/Slide-Release-Spring-HK45-HK45C-USP-USPC-P2000-199p1260.htm

 

[Klaustrophobia]

Also, check your grip and make sure you aren't just inadvertently pushing up on the slide release lever with your thumb.

 

[usefulidiot69]

I've had it since 2001 and have never had the issue before but this is a great suggestion thanks so much! The spring is still there but it may be time to replace it

 

[adlerburg]

I sometimes grip so hard with my trigger finger indexed, that is pushes the slide lock enough to lockout the entire slide.... user error I would guess, but should it even be possible?