Broke my HK (Kinda)

[SixBravo]

This is a repost from defensivecarry.com but thought I might get some funny comments here as well.

So I'm about 21k or 22k rounds into my HK USP Compact. Went out shooting yesterday with a few friends. Did some hard drilling and ran about 350 rounds (Blazer 40 S&W) through the gun in about 90 minutes. Everything ran flawlessly. No feed issues, nothing. We happily head home and I begin my cleaning. Its not until I pull off the recoil spring assembly that things appear.. broken.

Check this out. The top picture is what my gun looks like with the assembly installed. The parts are technically broken in this photo but you cannot tell.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v368/Viper_998th_IP/RRSAssemblyInstalled.jpg

And here is the picture of what the assembly looks like out of the slide.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v368/Viper_998th_IP/RRSAssemblyRemoved.jpg

That round washer on the left should be installed on the end of the guide rod, holding the spring in place. As you can plainly see, something is amiss. :duh: The firearm still cycles properly and I have no idea when it broke yesterday. The tension on the spring still feels proper and the gun obviously went into battery while running through a rough session.

I know I need a new recoil spring assembly. That isn't fun. And I'll probably have to order one from HK - can anyone guess at the cost, by the way? My main debate now is whether or not I can still carry it. It is a firearm with broken internals not operating in the capacity it was designed to. However at the same time I can't ignore what all went on yesterday. It runs flawlessly - which is one of the reasons I'm not exactly angry about all of this. Its a testament that a firearm can still break and the owner have no idea while shooting it. I won't say that this is a bragging right exclusive to HK (obviously) but it still says something about the build quality of that particular firearm.

[Brownie]

SixBravo,

A new recoil spring and you are back in business. I've seen the captured recoil springs fail like yours on several semi autos in the past. I always keep a spare for my various glocks in the range bag while on the road or where the guns are stored while home because I've seen others go through the same thing.

That the HK didn't fail to work even with the broken recoil spring is a testament to those designed thusly. I bet HK wants a pretty penny for a new one, but I'd be telling them the gun had 980 rounds through it and failed. They may just send you another one to replace the broken one for free.

Any word from your buds on Flagstaff at all?

[DocH]

I just took down the full size USP .40 and looked it over to see if I could perhaps help.They appear to be slightly different. The full size doesn't have the plastic retaining piece(I assume it's plastic from the photo) but from what I can tell from the picture it would seem that either the washer that holds the recoil spring on the guide rod has wallowed out and slipped off,or the shelf on the guide rod that holds the washer in place has worn down,or broken allowing it to slip off. My eyes ain't the best anymore and I'm not an H&K armorer but that's all I can see at this point.
After that many rounds of .40 you're probably due for a new recoil spring anyway. I'd just make it simple and get the whole assembly.

[Brownie]

HK part number for the full recoil spring assembly is 215828, per HK is.

The three parts separately are

Absorber bushing=215932
recoil spring=215830
recoil spring retainer=215831

Can't find anyone who carried the full system or the parts except HK online so far:rolleyes:

[SixBravo]

Doc:
Yeah what happened is there is a smaller washer that sits in the groove at the tip of the guide rod. The larger washer slides along the rod and is kept in place by the retainer. The larger washer also keeps the plastic ring over the spring. Basically all I need is a new retainer but.. Gah. The prices for smithy work around here are stupid expensive and everyone is backed-up for a few weeks (until October). I'm not even sure I can get the part in time for the class if could afford it.

Brownie: Got a guy that is getting a handgun at the end of the month. Trying to talk him into the class. Working on a few others still. I'll keep you informed. I'm reluctant to pull from the class because of this problem with the HK, though. 350 rounds in 90 minutes. No problem at all. Its a tank. ...

[DocH]

SixBravo,you're right,it is a tank. The full size USP .40 in house is actually my son's pistol,but I've grown very fond of it. Even though it's a big piece and rather bulky to me,if I were policing in uniform again and had a choice of what I could carry,this would be it.
I like the comtrols on this pistol,and the carry condition options,safety features. It's a shooter,too. Hope you can get that fixed without too much expense.

[SixBravo]

Doc,
I have some buddies in law enforcement and all of them seem to have the same opinion of the USP. Until they learn about the cost off the shelf. I got lucky and snagged mine for $530 out the door. But I'm a big fan of manual safeties and all the things you mentioned. It really is very customizable which for what one pays - is the way it should be. But the full-size is a mean sidearm. Big, heavy, bulky. Not like a CZ ironblock but you get my point. Its a challenge sometimes even to conceal the Compact. I've been looking at alternative carry options for awhile and like the subcompcts in the XD's and 1911 sets. But I want something that I can beat the crap out of, shoot 2000 rounds a day, and will only grin back at me. I think I may have ruined myself on HK.

[Brownie]

But I want something that I can beat the crap out of, shoot 2000 rounds a day, and will only grin back at me.

2000 rds a day?:eek:

:D