Took my P3AT to the range today and had several failure to fire problems..
I was using Magtech FMJ and Remington FMJ.
Every 10 shot or so I would get a round that would fail to fire.
When I extracted the round I noticed the on the primer the firing pin barely put a dent in it.
I would put the round back intro battery and it would then fire.
The gun was very clean upon arrival at the range. I started to have this problem after only 10 or 15 rounds.
I switched to my carry loads GD and GS and it seemed ok until I tried to rapid fire and then it occurred again.
I have put a little over 250 rounds total thru this gun.
The firing pin spring seems very tight to me.
Any suggestions?
I love this little peashooter. I hope this is not end for me and keltec.

I'd take that firing pin and spring out of the gun, inspect it and clean out any gunk ( including any thick grease). Look for any evidence of drag on the pin or on the retrun spring. Very lightly lube and reassemble.

Is possible to crank the set screw that holds the pin in place too far, whouch ould keep the pin from moving...so be careful on reassembly.

Try another range session.

Took my P3AT to the range today and had several failure to fire problems..
I was using Magtech FMJ and Remington FMJ.
Every 10 shot or so I would get a round that would fail to fire.
When I extracted the round I noticed the on the primer the firing pin barely put a dent in it.
I would put the round back intro battery and it would then fire.
The gun was very clean upon arrival at the range. I started to have this problem after only 10 or 15 rounds.
I switched to my carry loads GD and GS and it seemed ok until I tried to rapid fire and then it occurred again.
I have put a little over 250 rounds total thru this gun.
The firing pin spring seems very tight to me.
Any suggestions?
I love this little peashooter. I hope this is not end for me and keltec.

Also, if nobody here can help fix the issue, I'd send it back to Kel-Tec and ask them to correct the issue before you decide to give up on the whole company. *Every* manufacturer has a few mistakes slip through quality control.

Some swear that an defense gun should be shot at least 500 times to smooth the action. ALso with these small autos, it's easy to flop the wrist under the harsh recoil...which can lead to a failure to feed.

Hold on tight and fire another few hundred rounds!

I've seen this failure to feed even w/ a heavy Sig when shot by a small woman with a dainty grip.

I know one person who has owned two and they both had trouble firing, and I know another person who has owned one and he had trouble with it as well. It seems I recall the American Rifleman doing a review on the KelTec and said the gun they tested had issues as well but did ok after sending it back.

I think I fixed it.
Upon closer inspection it seems previous aggressive cleaning around the back of the firing pin had turned it slightly within the slide.
It appears as though it was just enough to increase the friction or cause friction against the setscrew.
After removing the firing pin and cleaning it well I replaced it back into the slide with the proper angle between the setscrew and the recess for the setscrew on the pin itself.
It feels as though it is much easier to move in and out.
Thanks for everybody’s input.
Should be problem solved.

I can't speak for all the p3at's out there but I like mine and it seems to be a reliable gun. I know it isnt as much fun to shoot as my glock 32, but I have large hands. I finally got rid of a taurus 94 .22 revolver cause it was too small of a frame for me to shoot. Now I bought the p3at cause it was small, besides I dont plan on taking it to a shooting match anytime soon, just self defense and some plinking for familiarization

Kel-tec's seem to be hit or miss. The p-11 i had was a reliable weapon but i have been reading up on some problems especially with the new 9mm they came out with.
a very good board on kel-tec is:

www.ktog.org

they cover everything about all models in the bulentin board section. Lots of ideas there also about some home smithing and fixing on them.

Early ones had more problems. Mine has 420 rds though it without one stoppage you could blame on the gun. There was one stoppage but my young friend "limp wristed" the gun. This is definately a gun you need to hold on to.

hi everyone,

I have a little problem. I just bought a P3AT for a CCW for my wife. I haven't even fired it yet but upon attempting to reassemble it after an initial cleaning I found I couldn't push the slide back to complete resetting the assembly pin. The extractor is in place, the springs seams to be in the correct location, and I was careful to place the pin in at an angle so as not to bend or break the metal "bar" that seems to block the entry hole. I place the pin and try to push back the slide (to the rear) and it's simply stuck. I can easily pull it back forward and remove it. It just won't go back after I insert the pin.

Any advice would be very helpful.

Thanks,
Ken

Well Happy New Year everyone well I to have a slight problem with my PTA3. Seems like with the very ammo it was designed to use Cor-Bon DPX that when you pull the slide back and let go the bullet hangs and won't feed, it actually jams against the feed ramp. Doesn't seem to happen with anything but the Cor-Bon, any ideas? Shoots great really love this little gun. Thanks

Tom j

A KelTec.org F&B is indicated.

For the P-3AT's why wouldn't anybody do this, even prior to shooting for the first time ?????

My weapon has been flawless with Blazer and Gold Dots. -----pruhdlr

A KelTec.org F&B is indicated.

For the P-3AT's why wouldn't anybody do this, even prior to shooting for the first time ?????

My weapon has been flawless with Blazer and Gold Dots. -----pruhdlr


Do what??? try to load the weapon???????

Tom j

I bought a P32 for a friend. I liked the size and weight but not the cartridge so I jumped on the first P380 I could find. I did a lot of the clean-up, deburr and polish stuff outlined on the Kel-Tec website before I ever fired it. I have since tried about every sort of ammo on the market and have yet to experience any sort of failure, even with some rather crudely assembled light handloads. Considering the price, it probably is a bit of hit or miss but I think they all can be made to function well with a bit of "tuning". I've even carried mine while hunting and used it to finish a doe which was probably about 10 seconds from death from my rifle hit.

I've given up on Kel-Tec and the P3AT. It's a shame, I really wanted this gun to work - it is extremely easy to carry. However, it was never reliable enough.

I owned a P3AT for almost 2 years, sent it back to kel-tec twice. First time I shot it I had several FTE. KT replaced the slide. From then, I could put a couple of mags through without a hitch and then have a couple of fail to extract, fail to load issues. I shelved it for a while, worked with it for a while and after my last frustrating trip to the range I noticed battered slide rails, the retention spring for the takedown pin out of place (bulging the polymer frame) and loose extractor. In all I put about 400 rounds of S&B, Magtech and Lawman through it. The gun shop that I purchased it from even helped me write the letter to Kel-Tec noting that it should probably be replaced. When they shipped it back, after 7 weeks, all they had done was polish the feed ramp, although none of us could tell that they had done it. Gun shop and I couldn't believe that's all they attempted and was about to polish it for me. Then he offered me a great trade-in deal (well more than half of what I paid for it brand new) knowing that I had worked with this thing a lot. I jumped on it.

I won't be looking at any more Kel-Tec's in the future.

Curt31...re your problem getting the first round to chamber:

polish the feed ramp, make sure the cartridge is all the way back in the mag pointing slightly up, and the mag is as far in as it will go. Pull the slide ALL the way back and let it snap closed. It should feed.

If you don't pull the slide as far back as it will go, you will have trouble getting that first round into the chamber. The pistol should cycle fine once that first round is chambered. That's been my experience w/ 3 different Kel Tecs.

Mine has, after about 500 rounds, began to stovepipe. Any ideas?

Curt31...re your problem getting the first round to chamber:

polish the feed ramp, make sure the cartridge is all the way back in the mag pointing slightly up, and the mag is as far in as it will go. Pull the slide ALL the way back and let it snap closed. It should feed.

If you don't pull the slide as far back as it will go, you will have trouble getting that first round into the chamber. The pistol should cycle fine once that first round is chambered. That's been my experience w/ 3 different Kel Tecs.

Hi thanks! just bought one of those dremel tools could you give me the procedure for polishing the feed ramp. It's my understanding that it's possible to polish the feed ramp too much which can cause just as many problems.

Tom j

I've used elbow grease and some metal polish, just to smooth it and make it shine like a mirror. Don't change the shape...you just want to slick it up.

Mother's metal polish is good and so is JB compound. I'm sure there's lots of fine grained metal polishes that would work. In just used the same stuff I bought for shining up the metal on my shovel-head Harley.

I've used elbow grease and some metal polish, just to smooth it and make it shine like a mirror. Don't change the shape...you just want to slick it up.

Mother's metal polish is good and so is JB compound. I'm sure there's lots of fine grained metal polishes that would work. In just used the same stuff I bought for shining up the metal on my shovel-head Harley.

Hi so you wouldn't recommend a dremel tool even on a low setting? Thanks for all the help!

Tom j

Hi so you wouldn't recommend a dremel tool even on a low setting? Thanks for all the help!

Tom j

My dremel got swiped a few years ago and I never replaced it. I'm sure a dremel could be used effectively...I've just gotten used to hand polishing things. I like the grit under my fingernails.