Odd FTF at the range with my new SP 01 Tactical 9mm

[OldGringo]

I'm new here - just posted in the newbie section.

When I first took my SP 01 Tactical to the range along with my 75BD 9mm I encountered 2 malfunctions.
I chalked it up to limp-wristing and moved on. I was actually there to test the 75BD new mainspring I had installed which resulted in no light strikes BTW.

So having had no problems with my 75 BD with over 1500 rounds, today I took my new SP 01 Tactical out by itself.

It seems to have FTF problems with 147gr FMJ Federal American Eagle. I had about 15 left in a box and 3 FTF in one mag.

I didn't get any pictures and the pro shop was out of 147gr FMJ 9mm ammo so I went to a surplus store across town that has a good selection of ammo but at nosebleed prices. They didn't have 147gr but they did have S&B 140gr FMJ. Since the bullet has a similar profile I thought it might be a decent substitute. After all one would think of all ammo S&B should work in a CZ. I only bought one box ($28!!) and went back to the range.

Here is the setup:



After firing the first round of the first mag this happened:




After taking the photo I did a tap and rack (not thinking that it would clear)  and, sure enough resulting in this:



I cleared the malfunction marked the mag on the base with a sharpie X and proceeded to try the other mags.

No failures followed.

I'm guessing my next thing would be to wait until I can get several boxes of 147gr FMJ (at normal prices from the pro shop) and try all the mags. Curiously, it seemed to have no problem with Hornady JHPs.

I can see hand loads or uniquely designed JHP rounds but 147gr FMJ is pretty standard stuff and Federal American Eagle is about as common as it gets.

Has anyone else had something like this happen out of the box?

BTW my shooting was abominable; I was looking down the slide after every round to see if they ejected. Even after I shot a mag of 115gr FMJ which I know runs fine, I couldn't concentrate on the target. 

[Beak Boater]

In my SP-01 Shadow Target I had a problem with 147 grain XTP Bullet loaded by Freedom Munitions. The over all length was too long. The bullet would hit the rifling and keep the slide from going into full battery. The 147 FMJ and JHP from Freedom Fed ok with no failures.
Do a plunk test.....take your barrel out of the slide and drop a round in the breech end and see if you can spin it in the barrel. If not, the bullet is too long and will cause a problem. Ammo makers load their rounds to different OAL.
Never had a problem with anything except the 147 grain XTP bullet. Shot them in 115 and 124, and they ran great.
Good Luck.

[OldGringo]

Sorry this took so long but I finally got back out to the range today with my new SP-01 Tactical (along with my faithful 75BD) and 2 boxes of 9mm 147gr FMJ American Eagle (sorry no pictures).

Before I went out I did the plunk test and checked the cartridge in the disassembled barrel and slide and it fits just fine.

At the range, I was careful where I braced with my left hand, lest I accidentally ride the slide stop with my thumb which may have possibly led to the issues.

I still got 5  FTF  while my 75BD ran just fine. These occurred with multiple factory mags which also fed the 75B with no malfunctions.

I swapped out the slide stop with the one from my 75BD and I had no more failures.

When I examined all the FTF rounds they had a telltale scrape on the side of the bullet. It seems the larger FMJ bullets (147 American Eagle and 140gr S&B) are rubbing against the inside of the slide stop when feeding causing the failures. I also shot 124gr FMJ with the original slide stop and there were no failures. All the FTF rounds were extracted and fired from the 75BD with no problems)

I think I've been pretty exhaustive in ruling out other possibilities to say that the slide stop that was shipped with the pistol seems to be causing the malfunctions. Thankfully the is an easy and painless fix.

If anyone has any suggestions that I'm not considering please let me know.

I understand how some guns can have issues with patented JHP rounds since they can have different geometries depending on manufacturer, but I think that  standard ball ammo should run with no problems.

I'm just glad it's not the barrel.

I guess I'll be contacting CZ-USA about a proper slide stop.

Edit: I just emailed CZ-USA. It's my first time dealing with their customer service. Lets see how they handle it.

[M1A4ME]

Seems I remember issues with the P07/P09 guns and slide stops.

Some of those slide stops were shaped differently (the inside portion that is pushed upwards by the follower in the magazine) resulting in bullets pushing against the ones with a more square profile inside.

Do you have pictures of the slide stop out of the gun (like lying on a table/bench top)?

[OldGringo]

Yes, I was actually curious when this first happened since it looks different from older SP-01 slide stops in pics and videos online. I posted pics in the SP-01 board.

http://www.czfirearms.us/index.php?topic=89488.0

[1SOW]

Fact,  the newest slide stops are Reshaped slightly for clearance of 147 gr and other "long" bullets.
This phone is is a PITA to get the pics,  but the CZ Custom Shop has pics.  If you read the custom shop 9mm "custom" pistols description,  the slide stop is almost always mentioned.
A file and some sandpaper can do the same pretty easily. 
Someone here can post the two pics showing original and modified slide stop.
Hope this helps.

[OldGringo]

I went to the CZ Custom website with a pic of the aforementioned slide stop.

It shows it from behind; however, looking carefully it seems to have a bit of a ridge on the front like the slide stops I've seen previous in pics of SP-01s. Mine would seem to be different, at least cosmetically from the front.

I'm guessing mine would be an even newer design slide stop.

[HeinyO]

Any answer yet from CZ custormer service?

[OldGringo]

Yes, they said to send it into them so they can extend the throat in the barrel.

Has anyone else had this done to their 75 or SP-01?

[krehmkej]

Neither of my two 9mm CZs (Pre-B) and SP-01 Compact will plunk the 147 grain XTP loaded to Hornady's recommended length.
Ogive is just too fat.

[OldGringo]

Yes, I understand that defensive hollow point rounds can vary from manufacturer (usually they're patented designs).

However, 9mm 147 American Eagle FMJ is pretty standard (even generic) stuff. Even more disconcerting is that the pistol malfunctions with 9mm 140gr Sellier & Bellot FMJ  which (despite the French-sounding name) is the Czech brand of ammo they typically use to test fire the pistols at the factory.

[longgonedaddy]

Aren't those subsonic rounds in the first pic the shorter, semi wad cutter bullet shape?  That is the only bullet shape that will not feed reliably in my 97B.