Category: TP9SA

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TP9SA Trigger, Trigger Bar, Firing Pin Block, and Springs Replaced!

I recently published the following post – Issue with one of my TP9SAs (or maybe both).

I sent the tan TP9SA back the week of April 15 in the hopes that Century Arms (the importer of Caniks) would replace some worn parts on the firearm.

I received the gun back today (28 April).

Per the work ticket that they provided when returning the firearm, the gunsmith noticed the trigger parts were “worn/poor” and replaced the trigger, trigger bar, firing pin block, and upgraded the springs.

They also checked headspace, mag catch fitment, ejector functionality, and test-fired 18 rounds (presumably to check the trigger work they performed).

Just dry-firing it, there’s a night/day difference with the trigger. The new trigger spring is still different from what’s in the black one, but at least they fixed the tan handgun’s worn parts. The trigger bar where the trigger spring attaches is flat, vs the original part having nooks at the top portion. It no longer feels that the trigger bar is dragging on another part when pulling the trigger.

I was on the fence on sending the gun back to them, after reading of complaints here and on the FB groups. They were very engaged with the process of me reaching out to them, them sending me info on how to file a claim, them receiving the firearm and working on it in a timely fashion, and them sending me back the firearm (in a real gun box that was discreetly packaged). The gun is also clean (they stated they cleaned it after the test firing). I’ve no complaints at all…I received outstanding service.

I guess I’ll need to visit the range with this firearm soon.

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Issue with one of my TP9SAs (or maybe both)

I’ve two Canik TP9SAs.  I bought a black one in Jan of 2014.  Back then I was planning to move to CA.  I’d decided to buy another TP9SA since no Caniks are on the CA DOJ Approved List of guns, so I bought the tan TP9SA.

I’d always wondered why there was a drastic difference between the two triggers.  For reference, the below are the trigger pull stats for both handguns:

Black handgun:

2 lb 14.3 oz

2 lb 15.8

2 lb 7.3

3 lb 1.4

2 lb 8.0

Average – 2 lb 12.6 oz

Tan handgun:

3 lb 12.3 oz

3 lb 3.3

3 lb 2.1

3 lb 2.9

3 lb 4.8

Average: 3 lb 5.1 oz

Initially, I’d noticed that the trigger bar on the tan one appeared to be rubbing against the frame, so I thought that was why.  Maybe two weeks ago, I decided to remove the slides of both and put them side by side so that I could compare components, knowing that the black TP9SA had the good trigger.  Well, I noticed that the trigger springs appear to greatly differ between the two guns!  The black handgun appears to have the lighter spring with more coils.  The tan gun’s trigger spring is heavier with less coils.

When I posted pictures to Canik Fanatik’s forums, I was told that the tan gun had the standard spring and that the black one may be out of spec.

Keep in mind, both guns were bought new.  The black handgun was bought locally, at a gun store.  The tan gun was bought from Prepper Gunshop.

I dry fire both a lot, although I don’t shoot them much.  I’ve a lot of handguns, so I tend to rotate my favorites a lot…the Caniks are good but are not my favorites, so the round counts for both are low.  I’ve shot 150 rounds from the tan handgun and 100 rounds from the black gun.  Still, that’s way too much wear from just dry firing.  As well, I dry fire them roughly the same amount, but only the one handgun has excessive wear.

I mention the dry fire because the tan TP9SA has a lot of wear on the bar/lever that the spring is attached to.  On the top of that lever is supposed to be a 90 degree edge.  That edge is completely gone and almost worn level.  On the black handgun, the edge is present.  As well, on the striker surface that the trigger bar actuates, the surface is worn and material appears to be missing (it’s supposed to be a flat surface, but the area is beveled from excessive wear.

I’m currently OK with the way the black handgun’s trigger is.  It’s light but not too light (it’s about as light as I’m willing to allow).  There’s no wear.  At least one person at Canik Fanatik’s forums thinks there’s something wrong with the black handgun, but I don’t think anything is wrong with it….as long as there’s no excessive wear, I’m OK with it.

So, I reached out to Canik and told them the issues.  They replied back asking for a slew of information so that they could process the RMA.  Once I get the RMA number from them, I’ll send it to them to check out, tune, or replace.

I’ll update the blog as I’m updated by Canik.

UPDATE – 4/22/2021:  Century Arms currently has the Canik.  Due to Coronavirus, it may be awhile before it’s repaired and sent back to me, but I’m patiently awaiting.

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Canik DA/SA TP9SA TP9SF TP9v2

Canik TP9v2 Now On The Market!

I knew awhile back that Canik was supposed to be revamping the original TP9 and renaming it the TP9v2.  Well, it’s out.  I discovered this while researching if the TP9SA’s sights can be replaced.

It has not yet been reviewed online (not when I looked last night on YouTube), James Yeager has a quick video of it.  I thought MAC did as well, but he was actually quick-reviewing an SF model (it has no decocker).



NOTE:  I’ve taken some unneeded heat for using Yeager as a resource.  1) I don’t care what you think 2) I’m just trying to share information on the gun…no one else had footage or spoke extensively about the gun at the time of my post.  I’m not a Yeager groupie, but if you don’t like Yeager, that’s your problem.  My post is about the gun, not about Yeager specifically.

I’m seeing the gun listed between $308 and $380, which was roughly what the SA model was selling for 6 or so months ago.

The gun is essentially a TP9 with the TP9SA’s frame.  The gun is shorter (4.1 inches) than the TP9SA, though.  The difference between the TP9 and the new version is the trigger…both DA and SA modes are supposedly great!  Yes, there’s still the decocker, only now it’s used to go from SA to DA mode.  What’s cool is that it’s confirmed that the TP9SA and TP9v2 can share magazines…that’s a huge plus.

I find myself intrigued, but I already have two Canik TP9SAs (one black and one tan).  I’ve already mentioned that I could sell one of them to fund another gun.  Then again, the gun is so cheaply priced, I could probably get by without selling a gun to purchase a v2.  I can also wait, as Canik is supposed to be releasing compact models too.  They also have .40Cal versions but I’m not sure if they’re exporting them to the U.S.

I’ll be paying attention to the upcoming reviews, especially since James Yeager thinks the v2’s trigger modes are excellent.

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decocker FX Hummel Hickok45 MAC rant Sootch00 TheYankeeMarshall TP9SA

TP9SA Decocker Rant

I forgot that I published this video.  This is me ranting about the people complaining about the Canik TP9SA’s decocker.  There are also several other people that have similar videos, in response to TheYankeeMarshall’s complaining about this gun not being a good defensive weapon due to it having a decocker (he complains about it but has never handled the gun).  Others (MAC is one) have also complained about it…I’m not sure if they’re getting on TYM’s bandwagon and I assume they are since they complained within days of each other.  This gun has pretty much gotten rave reviews from well-known internet gun guys, such as Sootch00, Nutnfancy, Hickok45, Hank Strange, Iraqveteran8888, James Yeager, and MrGunsngear.  TYM said the other reviewers were “sucking the manufacturer’s dick”.  Really?  It comes down to name-calling when he hasn’t even touched the gun?  In fact, TYM never has anything good to say about anything.  All he ever does is whine or complain…he does this in EVERY ONE OF HIS VIDEOS.  I’ve never taken him seriously but his TP9SA “review” just bugs the hell out of me.  In this day and age, it’s difficult to take anyone serious about guns, since everyone offers subjective opinions…nothing is ever objective.

FX Hummel mentioned that it might be difficult to rack the TP9SA’s slide using a belt or other non-hand method without actuating the decocker, but that’s actually a pretty valid concern, so I didn’t rant about that.

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22TCM Canik flash MS Ultra muzzle range report RIA tactical TP9SA velocity

RIA MS Ultra Tactical Combo in 22TCM/9mm – Range Report

A range officer saw the ammo on the range table and was asking what type of ammo it was.  He stayed while I shot the first magazine.  He was awed and saw how tight the shot groupings were…many of the target holes were on top of each other.  He also commented on the muzzle flash.  It was bright enough to where I was sometimes flinching!
I’m disappointed with the video footage…the footage wasn’t framed good.  I may try to go to the range again tomorrow.

I shot 100 rounds through the gun.  There were only two feed issues.  One was when a spent case didn’t want to come out (common issue that’s related to the ammo case out of round or expanding).  The other (right after the first feed issue) was a double-feed.  After that, there were no more issues.

This 1911 has next to no recoil and had tight groupings, but I’m STILL not in full control of trigger pull (working on it…practice makes perfect).

Oh, and there’s copper along the slide, next to the ejector.  I’ve heard of someone mentioning that issue before (not sure what the cure was, other than sending it back to Armscor to have the extractor tuned).

By the way, the .22 TCM round is basically a shortened .223 round (no, it isn’t a necked down 9mm).  It’ll pierce 3/16″ steel. It has an approximate velocity of 2000 feet/sec, but realistic speeds from the Commander-sized barrel is in the 1900 feet/sec range, while RIA’s .22 TCM rifles will shoot this round at 2800 feet/sec. 
 
I also fired my FDE Canik TP9SA.  The gun had no issues.  I fired close to 100 rounds from it (half of it JHP that was also shooting flames…wonder if it was +P…I think it was some left-over Remington JHP that I was firing during my last range session).  There were no jams, but the mags are super-tight…I could only get 17 rounds into the mags up until the 3rd refill.

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Slide Scratches/Gouges – TP9SA

I’d noticed that the underside of my TP9SA’s slide has some unusual metal wear.  I couldn’t find what was causing it.  Well, someone else did:

At 1:18 and 1:22, he shows his slide’s wear…it looks very similar to mine.  He discovered that the magazine was scratching the slide!  My slide scrapes weren’t as bad as his (I’ve only shot 100 rounds through my gun).

I checked my magazines and some of the paint was missing from the very top of both…to double-check, I used a black Sharpie to coat the bare metal both of my magazines’ wear marks.  I also covered the slide’s wear in black Sharpie.  Then I placed the magazines into the gun and racked the slide maybe 10 times each.  I checked the slide and mags again.  The marker ink had rubbed off.

I used a Dremel to grind a bit of metal from where the ink had rubbed off…I removed just a tiny bit of metal with a grindstone.  I covered the ground areas with Sharpie again, then racked the slide with both mags again.  There was no more wear.  Fixed!

The guy in the video actually sent his gun back to Century Arms as a warranty claim.  He also had a trigger spring that was mangled a bit that Century Arms is going to take a look at, too.

I’m glad he posted his issue…I’d have never figured out what was causing it.

UPDATE:  I wanted to keep the readers informed on this issue.  I bought a tan TP9SA not long ago and performed the same grind of the mags that I did with my black TP9SA.  I took the tan TP9SA to the range on 4/3 and it performed flawlessly.  There are no more slide gouges.  It has minor scrapes due to dry racking while the mags were inserted…I covered them in black magic marker to determine if the scrapes would still occur and it hasn’t occurred.

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9mm Canik Elite Shooting Sports range SP2022 TP9SA visit

Range Report – Canik TP9SA

I took the TP9SA to the range this weekend.  It shot well!  I’m very impressed.

Some notes:

  1. This is the first striker-fired gun I’ve ever shot.
  2. I shot 108 rounds of Remington UMC 115-grain (megabox).
  3. I was shooting from a distance of 10 yards.
  4. There was one stovepipe that occurred when firing the first magazine.
  5. There was one failure to feed that occurred when firing the second magazine.
  6. The trigger is great!  It feels hyper-sensitive.  Reset is loud and tactile enough for me to know when it resets, without issue.
  7. I shot with the larger of the two backstraps…I honestly can’t tell which of the two fit better in my hand, though
  8. A lot of my shots were to the left of the bulls-eye (my left, when aiming).  At first, I thought the rear sight needed to be drifted, so I used Kentucky windage and aimed maybe 1-1.5″ to the right of the bulls-eye and I hit the bulls-eye.  I decided to stick with using the proper sight picture because I know from my prior range visits that I needed to work on trigger pull and finger placement.  Well, the last magazine was very good…I placed a good bit of my rounds in the bulls-eye while using the same sight picture I’d been using the whole session.
  9. Instead of continuing to become familiar with the TP9SA and work on muscle memory with this gun, I switched guns and shot with the SP2022 the last 20 minutes of the session.  This was a bad idea, as the next 20 minutes, my rounds were all over the place.  Next time, I’m only coming with one gun.

I’ve some video footage of the range session, but only of my SP2022. The video is here:

The target is far enough away to where you can’t see a damned thing…sorry about that.  I’ll work it out on the next visit.  I supposed I could lower the FOV setting on the camera, as well as move the target up a bit (in good/bad guy situations with handguns, 10 yards is a bit excessive as far as self defense goes, IMO).

Another thing I did was to test the 9mm Federal HST JHP I have, just to ensure it didn’t jam…I saved it for the last 5 minutes of the session, as I wanted to shoot them while the gun was dirty.  I shot 10 JHPs without issue.  As well, I was only able to shoot them through the SP2022.  I’ve 10 left…I’ll shoot those through the Canik on my next range visit.   The Canik cleaned up pretty well.  There’s quite a bit of barrel wear at the ejection port, though…just the paint coating, though.  It’s not a huge deal, although my SP2022 has more rounds through it and has NO outside barrel wear.  I did lube the Canik VERY well before the range session (with TW25B)…the rails looked good.  There was a tiny bit of wear on the underside of the slide itself, though, and I’ve no idea what caused it, but I’ll be sure to apply some grease to that area before the next visit.

The feed ramp already has what looks to be copper on it, where the bullets contact it while being fed into the ramp.  I’ll leave the ramp alone, though…as long as the gun functions properly, I’m happy.

I’m looking forward to the next range visit with this gun!

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Canik SA TP9 TP9SA Triune Triune Shooting Sports

Bought – Canik TP9SA

A few things:

  • This is the TP9SA.
  • Bought it locally ($369) at a place called Triune Shooting Sports.  Was in and out within half an hour, I think.  Staff was professional and moved with purpose…I did not have to beg them to see the gun.
  • No, it isn’t the FDE I wanted.  I’ll see if I can get the TP9v2 in FDE or OD Green. UPDATE:  Black and FDE are the only colors offered for this particular model of Canik.
  • There are two variants of the TP9 SA:  9mm and .40 caliber.  This is the 9mm version. The .40 cal version hasn’t yet reached the U.S.
  • The trigger is NICE, with a NICE audible and tactile reset!
  • The slide racks back nicely…there’s a very smooth, mechanical feel to it that’s different than my SP2022.
  • It comes with two 18-round mags.  I need 2-3 more.  UPDATE: since I now have two of these Caniks, I have 4 mags.
  • The fit is great.  The finish is good (not great).  This is a duty-type of gun, though…if you want great fit/finish, get a $1000 gun instead.
  • The sights are contrast sights, not night sights.  I’m OK with that, since night sights would jack up the pricing.
  • The grip and stipling is very good…not aggressive but not lacking.
  • The gun wasn’t dirty out of the case like my SP2022 was.  I cleaned it anyways, to get rid of the packing grease and get it lubed up with CLP and TW25B grease.
  • If you don’t like the decocker, don’t use it.  There’s one guy on YouTube that removed his (WTH?).  The main reason for having the decocker is that you can use it to disable the striker before tearing down the gun…no need to pull the trigger.  I imagine this was also a cost-saving measure…they use the same slide mechanics as the TP9 so that they wouldn’t have to develop a whole new slide just for the TP9SA.
  • I’ll visit the range tonight so that I can begin the break-in process.

Update (4/11/2015):  I got this back in Feb but I don’t think I posted about it —

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Beretta Canik FNS-9 Compact Glock G19 Grand Power Mod.2 P11 Mk12 P320C P320SC PX4 Storm TP9 V2 TP9SA XD

My List of Guns To Obtain

Here’s a listing of handguns that I plan to eventually obtain, in the following order, within 12-18 months:

  • Canik TP9SA 9mm (in Desert Tan) – Bought
  • Canik TP9 v2 9mm (in OD Green)
  • Rock Island Armory 1911A1 MS Tactical 2011 .45ACP – Bought but in 9mm (specifically, I bought model number 51698)
  • Ruger SR1911 Commander Lightweight (IF I can find it at around $600)
  • American Classic 1911 Commander 45 ACP 4.25″ – Bought
  • Sig Sauer P320C in 9mm – Bought
  • Sig Sauer P320SC in 9mm
  • Grand Power P11 Mk12 9mm – Bought or Beretta PX4 Storm Compact in 9mm (either one, not both)
  • Glock 19 Gen 4 – Bought
  • Springfield Armory XD Mod.2 SC 9mm – Bought or FNS-9 Compact 9mm (either one, not both)

The Canik TP9 has been calling out to me for awhile now, especially the SA version.  I’ve yet to see the v2 TP9 in online stores, but I’ve been eyeing a Desert Tan TP9SA the last few days, wondering if I should “pull the trigger” and buy it.

Why all the above?  There’s a good possibility that I might be moving to California (no idea when, but I’d like to say within the next 12-18 months).  I’d like to get as many guns on the above list as I can before we move, because once we’re there, I’ll be limited to CA’s notorious approved gun list — the list is a serious joke.  I can bring what I already have into California without issue…I’ve no long guns, only handguns.

** UPDATE:  I’ve decided against the Grand Power, as I do not want to have to limit any more magazines than I have to.  The PX4 Storm Compact comes with 10-round mags, so I won’t have to alter them to meet CA standards.  As well, extra mags for the GP P11 are $54!  Also, we’re moving to CA THIS year…by August.

** UPDATE 2 (2/2/2015):  I just ordered a Sig P320C in 9mm, a Metro Arms American Classic 1911 Commander 45ACP, and a RIA 1911A1 MS Tactical II in 9mm.  They should arrive by the end of the week or early next week at the latest…we’ll see.  I also revised the list again.  I’ll stick with the Sig P320C (Compact, not Carry version)…I don’t need the P320SC since I can modify the P320C to be an SC model (the P320 is modular and can be converted to any other P320 model).  That’s going to save some money and is more logical.

** UPDATE 3 (2/3/2015):  I’ve removed the FNS-9 Compact from the list.  I refuse to research further to try to find a solution to the issue.  Instead of buying the gun and hoping this model will be compatible with other FNH compact models, I’m just going to not buy it…maybe this frees up a space for a different gun?