Taurus 709 Slim FTE

[kingmt]

My wife has a 709 that is having fte's. I sent it back to Taurus & they said they found no problem with it but changed the extractor in it. I got it back today & after two clean shoots every round was a fte. I started looking a little closer & found that there is a nick on the brass lip where the brass is being shoved past the extractor instead of flipped out by the ejector. I look at the head of the round & found that the firing pin is driving way to deep in the primer. It looks like it is about to drive all the way through.

OK. I said all of that to ask this question. Is it likely that the firing pin is knocking the brass fee from the extractor?

It doesn't seem like it could to me but it sure looks like this is the case.

 

[kingmt]

I take it there is no ideas.

 

[rcmodel]

I'd like to help but I have never even seen one except in magazine adds.

Have you tried switching ammo brands?

The firing pin should have retracted into the slide way before the slide gets open far enough for the extractor to come into play.

I would suspect a rough chamber.
Or not enough extractor spring tension.
Or an incomplete hook on the case rim due to extractor clearance problems in the slide.

rc

 

[Nick5182]

I'm gonna give you some hope and say that you very well could be right about that. If the firing pin is striking the primer with enough force to dislodge the cartridge from the ejector, that would cause FTEs. Instead of going back top taurus, is there a good gunsmith in your area that you could bring it to? If you could also explain your theory to him I'm sure it would help him in discovering what is causing this problem.

 

[kingmt]

I have never met anyone in my area that calls himself a gunsmith that I would let tuch my guns.

I talked to Taurus today & they are picking it up tomorrow. They didn't want to hear my theory though. As soon as I started talking he interrupted me & said "I don't need to know what you think the problem is only what it is doing which is feel to eject right?"

RC
I have tried a few different boxes of ammo but the first time I spoke to Taurus they told me to get a box of the WWB because this is what there guns are built to use.

What is happening is that the case is just setting in the chamber half way out & the next round is up against it & the slide is engaging the second round. If I lock the slide back & drop the mag the case falls out. The case is very loose in the chamber & Taurus said they changed the extractor (even though they said they could not find a problem). The extractor is ripping a chunk out of my brass so I would say it is hooking but I don't know about spring tension. Seems very tight to me. I would have to use a tool to get it to move much more thin a budge so I'm sure it is right. I seen this problem posted on here before & his extractor looked like it was broke from brass being ripped out of it so I'm guessing maybe the same problem.

 

[flhtcuibyhd]

There is a known issue with the Slim and WWB ammo. Mine runs 100% with every other brand and type of ammo I've tried except WWB. WWB will FTE frequently. Its a great little pistol and suprisingly accurate, so I just don't use WWB anymore.

 

[rcmodel]

What is happening is that the case is just setting in the chamber half way out & the next round is up against it & the slide is engaging the second round. The extractor is ripping a chunk out of my brass

That can be caused by the empty case rim catching on the case mouth of the loaded round in the magazine, which knocks it off the extractor hook.

Try firing single shots with no ammo in the magazine and see if it still does it.

In any event, try another brand of ammo before you give up.

rc

 

[kingmt]

That can be caused by the empty case rim catching on the case mouth of the loaded round in the magazine, which knocks it off the extractor hook.
rc

That does sound a lot more likely. Taurus his it back right now but when I get it back in a few months I will check that if I am still having a problem.

I have used my loads also in the gun with the same problem. I might see if I can roll the lip just a tad with a crimp & see if that helps.

 

[Ben86]

I just had my first range session with mine and it runs 100% with WWB.

 

[kingmt]

How many rounds did you put through it?

 

[Ben86]

I only had enough time for 50. I say enough time, because much of it was spent adjusting those lame sights.

 

[kingmt]

I haven't had hers long enough to know if I like those sights or not but I think I do. I don't like the ones on my 24/7 though but there not bad enough to spend money on more.

I have only had my wife's gun about 2 days of the 2 months that I have owned it. Taurus has had it the rest of the time & will have it a lot longer yet.

I'm glad to hear you got a good one. I bought both the 24/7 & the 709 at the same time & they both had to go back. The 24/7 works great now but the 709 came back just like I sent it the first time.

I'm really hoping it comes back right this time. I'm wanting the TCP also but after the problem with both guns at the same time makes me hung on it.

 

[Ben86]

Sorry to hear you have had a bad experience with Taurus. The 709 is my second Taurus gun. My first being a T Tracker in .22. Both have given me no issues. It's hit and miss with most brands honestly. I hope you get to enjoy yours as much as I enjoy mine. My usual rule of thumb is to wait at least a couple years after a new gun comes out to purchase it, so that all the kinks are worked out. I violated this rule because my glock 26 was becoming a pain in my side, literally. I needed something slimmer.

If I had to buy another .380 I'd propably go with the TCP because it is more comfortable than my LCP and locks open after the last round.

 

[kingmt]

Don't misunderstand me, I like Taurus. I have 2 24/7s, ultralight .38 (model 85 I think), now a 709, & looking into the TCP. I had heard alot of bad about the 709 but I bought it because I have had good guns from them before. I still like the but after both of these at the same time I am getting a little shy of them. Another thing I don't like about the TCP is that it can't be field striped in the field without tools (at least not by me). I about broke my thumb nail trying.

 

[Ben86]

Neither can the ruger lcp. But I usually have a knife on my that can pop the takedown pin out. I assume the tcp also uses the takedown pin.

 

[kingmt]

Yes. The Kel Tec does also. I pulled the pin in the Kel Tec out just a hair with my thumb nail but I didn't want to pull it apart since I didn't plan on buying from this store to start with. The Kel Tec was $360 there & I know I can get it for $280. The TCP for $295 & it has a stainless slide.

 

[Ben86]

$360 for a kel-tec is a ripoff. That's what I payed for the T709, but I think it is worth it. I can get the pf9 for $270 and the tcp for $280 at my local gun store.

 

[kingmt]

$360 for a kel-tec is a ripoff. That's what I payed for the T709, but I think it is worth it. I can get the pf9 for $270 and the tcp for $280 at my local gun store.

This same place was selling a 50 count box of American Eagle .22s for 14.99 during the ammo shortage.

 

[kingmt]

I just got the 709 back today. I only got to put 14 rounds through it but 7 of my loads & 7 WWB & I didn't have a problem with the gun. I did have a dead primer in one of my loads but not the guns problem.

Taurus said they adjusted the extractor to fix the problem.