Damaged Glock

[winchester270]

So I made a simple but costly mistake. As I was disassembling my glock 17 in the garage the slide slipped out of my hands and hit the concrete floor. Stupid mistake but now I am left with a Glock slide with a bent recoil spring retaining tab. Lesson learned..
It is severely damaged and still functions well, but this makes me nervous about the structural integrity of the retaining tab now.

Has any one experienced a similar problem first hand? Or possibly have an extra glock 17 slide for sale?

I am trying to decide whether I should sell the gun for a discounted price and start new, buy a new slide, or just run this one.

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[B5Ben]

If it were me, I would take it to a Glock armorer and see what they say before buying a new slide. Honestly, I don't think I would be worried about it too much, but would be worth an hour of his time to make sure.

 

[winchester270]

I looked online and found that when they use the Tennifer treatment process it makes the steel extremely "hard" wich also means brittle. Other wise I would just bend it back into shape. But yes I will look into finding an armorer

 

[Velzey]

I have seen one bent over even farther than that! I placed it in a padded vise, amd very carefully bent it back into shape. Put in on my granite block to check for square and it's spot on!

I advised my customer to let me take a look at it after a few hundred rounds...Well it's been a few years now and 5000 plus rounds and it hasn't moved!

I would still be very cautious about bending it to far past 90*! It could snap right off!

 

[rick benjamin]

If it was me... A couple taps between a hammer and anvil would bring it back into place.
I'd shoot it without worries.
All it does is anchor the return spring.
Slides are available
Glockparts $200
Lone Wolf $206
Glockmeister $260
Brownells $280

 

[winchester270]

I can see some small cracks around the edge of the retainer, but I dont know if that is the finish or the steel?
I am a welder by trade and I am quite familiar with hard steel but with out grinding off the original finish its hard to tell.
when the gun is assembled the bend is not noticable but I believe it contacts the guide rod and causes a slight drag. But I can not tell if that is a new feeling or not.

 

[IronMonster]

If it was me I would warm up that ear and then tap it back into place on the anvil. When I say warm I mean warm, not heat to red. Just getting enough heat in that will release some stress and allow the metal to move a little easier. Something on the order of 300 degs. After I got it where I wanted it I would give it a little more heat and let it cool slowly.

A pretty tricky thing. A little two much heat (probably more than 400 degs) and you could anneal the metal softening it. I own a metal shop, have been a blacksmith for years and would feel pretty good about trying it on my own gun I screwed up. I probably would not attempt it on another s handgun.

 

[DieselScout]

If it's not a defensive weapon and still works, then just shoot it like it is. If it fails, it's not like it's going to kill you or makes the gun unsafe. If you no longer trust it and want to trust it again, replace it. It's not rocketsurgery.

 

[IronMonster]

It's not rocketsurgery.

But is it Brain Science?

 

[winchester270]

I Will go ahead and attempt the repair this weekend. Then I will update this with the news.

 

[wired]

I looked online and found that when they use the Tennifer treatment process it makes the steel extremely "hard" wich also means brittle. Other wise I would just bend it back into shape. But yes I will look into finding an armorer

Tennifer, or as everyone else calls it, Carbon Nitriding, is a surface coating. It does not make the metal harder under the few microns on the surface.

Straighten it out and it will probably be OK. Lone wolf sells a good slide for not too much.All parts interchange although you will need a new spring guide.

 

[Velzey]

Have you called Glock? You may be surprised and they send you a new slide!

 

[Certaindeaf]

If you're going to DIY, do what Velzey said. Don't hit it with a hammer or blow torch it.
If you want to heat it up, just bend it back and forth real fast! (that last part was a joke, of course).
good luck and maybe G will replace it.

 

[Certaindeaf]

However, this is your new avatar. lol

 

[mjbskwim]

I would shoot it as is.If something drags then maybe try what the others have mentioned.
And that wouldn't bother me to try.Like mentioned a LW slide ain't much money. probably not as much as you would lose selling it,with disclosure

 

[winchester270]

Tennifer, or as everyone else calls it, Carbon Nitriding, is a surface coating. It does not make the metal harder under the few microns on the surface.

Straighten it out and it will probably be OK. Lone wolf sells a good slide for not too much.All parts interchange although you will need a new spring guide.

The Tenifer-treated slide and barrel
"Glock barrels and slides are made from quality steel which has been treated with a special "Tenifer" process. This colorless carbo-nitrate formula enriches the steel with oxygen, sealing its pores. Tenifer makes the steel extremely hard (as hard as industrial diamond on the Rockwell scale) and corrosion resistant. The steel will not scratch or rust, period! In fact, the slide is so hard you can use it to sharpen your knives."

http://www.f-r-i.com/glock/misc/overview.htm

Now I can not personally vouch for the truth of that statement but its the best info I can find.
But last night I straightened it out a little bit more getting it to about 85* almost perfectly square. And that is close enough for me now.

 

[mjbskwim]

I'm sure Iron Monster has bigger hammers if you need a little more help.
He may have a nice 10ton press too

 

[IronMonster]

I'm sure Iron Monster has bigger hammers if you need a little more help.
He may have a nice 10ton press too

I would be happy to help, I dont have a 10 ton press though. Smallest one is a 30 ton, biggest is 400 ton.

 

[wired]

The Tenifer-treated slide and barrel
"Glock barrels and slides are made from quality steel which has been treated with a special "Tenifer" process. This colorless carbo-nitrate formula enriches the steel with oxygen, sealing its pores. Tenifer makes the steel extremely hard (as hard as industrial diamond on the Rockwell scale) and corrosion resistant. The steel will not scratch or rust, period! In fact, the slide is so hard you can use it to sharpen your knives."

http://www.f-r-i.com/glock/misc/overview.htm

Now I can not personally vouch for the truth of that statement but its the best info I can find.
But last night I straightened it out a little bit more getting it to about 85* almost perfectly square. And that is close enough for me now.

Carbon Nitriding (Tennifer) is a surface treatment. It makes the surface hard. Bellow the layer of "tennifer" its just plain old steel. Glock puts their own marketing spin on it but carbon nitriding has been around a long time. BTW its not Oxygen that the metal is saturated with ON THE SURFACE. Its Carbon and Nitrogen. A good Carbon Nitriding process will yield 60-62 HRC surface hardness.

 

[winchester270]

Thank you for the more in depth info. I always appreciate having more information.