cgw recoil springs p07

[coach]

I was under the impression that a lower weight recoil spring would make it easier to rack the slide. After installing the 15# the slide is now so difficult to rack I took skin off my fingers. I was able to easily rack the slide before using the 15#. I can no longer fully rack the slide even remotely close to easily. There are times I can't even pull it back at all. I can drop the stock back in and there is zero issue. This doesn't seem right.

Since I also have the 18# I tried that. Don't have an issue with the 18#. Spring labeled incorrectly or the tension is wrong possibly?

[CCWLearner]

That doesn't sound right at all.  Did you buy your P-07 new, with the original polymer captured recoil spring and guide rod assembly?  It has been several years now, but I recall mine in two different P-07's being very stiff when new, then breaking in after a few hundred rounds of live fire.

I also have both the 18 and 15 lb CGW springs and they also initially start out more stiff, but break in with live fire.  I run with the 18 lb ones because they give me a decent ejection pattern with my particular guns and ammo, but the 15 lb ones also worked fine, and weren't exceptionally stiff.  I assume you are using them with one of CGW's stainless steel guide rods?  I have had no issues with that setup, or using their springs with some titanium alloy guide rods I got from another vendor.

Generally speaking, if your gun is brand new out of the box, these guns do feel very tightly sprung... I would encourage you to go run a few hundred rounds through it with stock everything and let it break in some, to establish a baseline of what to expect out of it, before adding any aftermarket parts.

[coach]

Yes, it was purchased new and was completely stock. I did the short reset and springs. I am using the SS guide from CGW as well.

I have 200 rounds through it. I brought it to a friend who is a cz guy and told me to email them and ask for a new spring.

The 18# has no rounds and the 20# also has 200 through it.

[CCWLearner]

Yeah, maybe you got a bad 15# spring.  Hopefully a new one will work better for you, especially after it has been broken in.

The stock spring in the guide rod assembly, which I assume is 20# although I never saw that officially published anywhere, was pretty stiff when new.  The stiffest recoil spring I tried was the guide rod assembly I ordered from ssguiderods.com which was supposed to be made to factory spec, so probably also 20#.  That thing would leave some nice indentations on my thumb and forefinger with the slide serrations when I would slingshot it.  It also broke in over time though.

The 18 and 15 lb CGW springs were never that stiff, and they also broke in and became easier.  Still it takes some hand strength and obviously you can take some skin off your hand if you aren't careful about it.  Even with a broken-in 15 lb spring, a P-07 will never be easy to rack like ex. a S&W Shield EZ model or the Sig P290RS .380 I often carry.  Also, if you're shooting +P ammo, you probably want to go up to at least the 18 lb spring anyway.  You can check your ejection distances and decide based on your particular ammo and pistol.

[coach]

Stock was pretty bad new, but after the first 200 it loosened up to what I would consider acceptable. The 15# did not. I went to the 18 until I can get a new 15 as I don't feel safe carrying a pistol I can barely rack.

I emailed them and will see what they say.

[coach]

Instead of sending me a new spring they want me to do a full return and order another. Pretty bleepty service.

[coach]

Forgot about this post.

They eventually agreed to send me a new spring. Spring arrived and it was an over an inch difference in size. I shot a couple hundred rounds through it and it was still larger than the previous spring and even more difficult to rack. I switched back to the stock configuration and it's a night and day difference how much easier it is to rack compared to using the aftermarket springs. I've also noticed there is a huge difference in ease of racking depending on the mags being used. Stock thinner baseplates and 17rd mags are easier to rack than the newer thicker baseplate mags like for the p10's or the 19rd.

Kind of odd their lighter springs make it more difficult to rack. I've even found a large number of users who also experienced the same thing on reddit. So, I sold the guide rod and springs and have been happy ever since.

[Claymore504]

Finding stock P07/P09 recoil assemblies is a challange most of the time. Keep an eye out and grab some spares when they show up. Another aftermarket option is Primary Machine. Very odd you had this issue in general. I am on my 4th P07 and have gone through just as many P09s. I now have 2 P09s and never had an issue with recoil springs being that stiff. Do you have issues with your hands by chance? I could see that being an issue with the short CZ slides.