Extractor broke today

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My Kahr MK9 extractor broke today during normal shooting. Looks like a plastic failure, the hook part that pulls on the rim of the casing just broke off. I could not find the piece.

Never had something like this happen before.

I am wondering if I should just buy the 15 dollar part from Kahr and replace or if there could be something more wrong here.

Anyone ever had this happen?

Sorry for shitty cell phone pic but you can clearly see the jagged edge on the extractor where it broke off.

IMAG0361.jpg
 
Ask them for a free one. Don't have a Kahr, but have broken plenty of gun parts. They are mechanical devices, things break. I wonder it it's a MiM part.

B
 
How many rounds, approximately, did you put through the gun?
I would guess that I've put 750 through it in the 1.5 years I've had it.

Not sure on round count when I bought it from the first owner but I got the feeling based on discussion and inspection that it was low, maybe a hundred or so.

Overall the gun is sub-1000 rounds I would guesstimate.
 
I think he means that the way it broke (the fracture surface where he part broke) looks similar to the way a brittle plastic would break. That is the way I interpreted it.

B
 
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"Plastic" is also an engineering term. For example, materials can undergo elastic or plastic deformation - without being rubber bands or plastics.
 
I so rarely use the term that way it didn't even occur to me that's what he meant. Thanks for the clarification.
 
"Plastic" is also an engineering term. For example, materials can undergo elastic or plastic deformation - without being rubber bands or plastics.
This is exactly what I meant. I'm a mechanical engineer, sorry for the nerd talk.

I.e. it doesn't look like it deformed or anything, it underwent a brittle fracture. That's called plastic failure. It makes sense because of how impulse-oriented firearms are, short times and high forces. If you put the same force on the piece in a slow, consistent fashion, it may fail elastically instead (or maybe not, if heat treated or hardened somehow), showing malleability before the final break.

I sent the picture and an email to Kahr, we'll see what they say once they reopen for business this week.
 
"Plastic" is also an engineering term. For example, materials can undergo elastic or plastic deformation - without being rubber bands or plastics.

I so rarely use the term that way it didn't even occur to me that's what he meant. Thanks for the clarification.

This is exactly what I meant. I'm a mechanical engineer, sorry for the nerd talk.

I.e. it doesn't look like it deformed or anything, it underwent a brittle fracture. That's called plastic failure. It makes sense because of how impulse-oriented firearms are, short times and high forces. If you put the same force on the piece in a slow, consistent fashion, it may fail elastically instead (or maybe not, if heat treated or hardened somehow), showing malleability before the final break.

I sent the picture and an email to Kahr, we'll see what they say once they reopen for business this week.

See post 9. ;-)
 
This seems to be the norm for these guns. I have replaced quit a few for a gun that is not that common in Mass. I think the new extractor from Karr is a new and improved part because I have never replaced a replacment.
 
This seems to be the norm for these guns. I have replaced quit a few for a gun that is not that common in Mass. I think the new extractor from Karr is a new and improved part because I have never replaced a replacment.
They have a new/improved version?

I cleared out my inbox, I saw that you tried to PM me.

Thanks
 
So they asked me for the serial # and a phone number to give me an RA number. I guess that means they want me to ship it to them.

I asked if I could bring it there myself in order to not ship it (they are in worcester) and check out the factory as well. I was told they do not accept "drop offs" and do not allow tours or entry or anything like that as they are a "secure facility". Doesn't seem to be very friendly to me...

Hopefully the process will go smoothly though... I wonder if this will cost me $ in shipping and/or repair, he didn't mention.
 
So they asked me for the serial # and a phone number to give me an RA number. I guess that means they want me to ship it to them.

I asked if I could bring it there myself in order to not ship it (they are in worcester) and check out the factory as well. I was told they do not accept "drop offs" and do not allow tours or entry or anything like that as they are a "secure facility". Doesn't seem to be very friendly to me...

Hopefully the process will go smoothly though... I wonder if this will cost me $ in shipping and/or repair, he didn't mention.

It's not their fault with regard to their "secure facility" policy, blame the WPD. Herr Obersturmbhanfuhrer Gemme and a few other "progressive" souls (including selected members of the MSP) are not happy that there is a gun manufacturing facility in Worcester.
 
It's not their fault with regard to their "secure facility" policy, blame the WPD. Herr Obersturmbhanfuhrer Gemme and a few other "progressive" souls (including selected members of the MSP) are not happy that there is a gun manufacturing facility in Worcester.

I've never understood why Kahr stays in Worcester....such hostile territory.

-JR
 
It's not their fault with regard to their "secure facility" policy, blame the WPD. Herr Obersturmbhanfuhrer Gemme and a few other "progressive" souls (including selected members of the MSP) are not happy that there is a gun manufacturing facility in Worcester.

It also doesn't help that a number of years ago there was a corrupt foreman at Kahr who was letting unserialized guns fly out the back door. Since that incident got buttoned up, they've been a lot stricter about security.

-Mike
 
I've never understood why Kahr stays in Worcester....such hostile territory.
-JR

Mainly because there are lots of skilled people in firearms manufacturing in this area. I know that the firearms manufacturing industry has moved out of its traditional northeast base and the so-called "Gun Valley" over the last 30 years to places south and west, but this still remains the "core" region for gun making. I think to that Worcester's location makes distribution easy with access to supply.

Remington may now be based in the South, but they still make guns in Illion, NY. Ruger has a very high tech plant in Arizona but there is still a production facility in New Hampshire, and corporate offices in CT. Sig could have located anywhere in the country to make guns, but they chose Exeter, NH.

Naturally not all gun makers have followed suit, Beretta USA is in Maryland and Glock's US headquarters is in GA and FN is located in Columbia, SC but there is still a lot of guns being made in this region.

The founder and owner of the manufacturing company in Ayer that my wife worked for and retired from, told me that the main reason that he stayed in New England was because of the availability of a skilled labor pool, that understood manufacturing.

Of course times change, and we are seeing more manufacturing in the Sun Belt, and maybe someday Kahr will relocate, who knows?

As an aside in addition to the Kahr scandal where unserialized guns were being sneaked out of the factory like Mike pointed out, there may be a certain prejudice towards Justin Moon because of his father and the "Moonies" religious cult. Guilt by association, I suppose.
 
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It's not their fault with regard to their "secure facility" policy, blame the WPD. Herr Obersturmbhanfuhrer Gemme and a few other "progressive" souls (including selected members of the MSP) are not happy that there is a gun manufacturing facility in Worcester.

I've never understood why Kahr stays in Worcester....such hostile territory.


Yeah, because firearms manufacture has been so bad for the city:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H_&_R_Firearms

220px-H%26R_Factory_Postcard.jpg
220px-H%26R_Factory_ruin.jpg



http://www.hr1871.com/about/default.asp



Mainly because there are lots of skilled people in firearms manufacturing in this area. I know that the firearms manufacturing industry has moved out of its traditional northeast base and the so-called "Gun Valley" over the last 30 years to places south and west, but this still remains the "core" region for gun making. I think to that Worcester's location makes distribution easy with access to supply.

Remington may now be based in the South, but they still make guns in Illion, NY. Ruger has a very high tech plant in Arizona but there is still a production facility in New Hampshire, and corporate offices in CT. Sig could have located anywhere in the country to make guns, but they chose Exeter, NH.

Naturally not all gun makers have followed suit, Beretta USA is in Maryland and Glock's US headquarters is in GA and FN is located in Columbia, SC but there is still a lot of guns being made in this region.

The founder and owner of the manufacturing company in Ayer that my wife worked for and retired from, told me that the main reason that he stayed in New England was because of the availability of a skilled labor pool, that understood manufacturing.

Of course times change, and we are seeing more manufacturing in the Sun Belt, and maybe someday Kahr will relocate, who knows?

As an aside in addition to the Kahr scandal where unserialized guns were being sneaked out of the factory like Mike pointed out, there may be a certain prejudice towards Justin Moon because of his father and the "Moonies" religious cult. Guilt by association, I suppose.


Here you go:

NE manufacturers & "gun valley"
 
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Sorry to dredge up this old thread, but I was in a shop over the weekend and saw an MK9 with one factory magazine, aftermarket magazine and factory plastic case. It was $330 out the door. I was ready to buy it when I found a broken extractor in the bottom of the case. The claw was no longer on it and the surface where it had broken off had a very grainy appearance (MIM?). It had had another extractor installed but as a used gun had no warranty from the shop.

Was this a problem with these pistols all along and does anyone know if Kahr made and provided an improved extractor that might have been used as a replacement in the pistol I almost bought? Thanks.
 
A potential problem comes to mind. An extractor that is too long can cause this problem.If the extractor is long enough for the tip to strike the forward wall of the case groove when the round is chambered, this repeated battering will eventually cause the extractor tip to break off. This problem is rare, but is occasionally encountered in 1911s. The cure is to test the gun/extractor with a dummy round and inspect the case groove for contact with the extractor tip. If contact occurs, remove enough material from the tip for clearance. When removing material from the extractor tip, take care to maintain the original shape of the extractor tip as it will affect extraction/ejection.
 
Extractors take a beating. I don't think it is uncommon for them to break. I had one break on my MKIII not long ago. It has probably 30K rounds through it.
 
Extractors take a beating. I don't think it is uncommon for them to break. I had one break on my MKIII not long ago. It has probably 30K rounds through it.

Lots of truth in this. Parts break on all firearms and semi auto pistols are probably more prone to parts breakage than revolvers. Personally, I wouldn't be too concerned as parts can easily be replaced.
 
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