Kahr P45 grip reduction (I did it!!!)

[DGladden]

Some of you may recall my previous thread about discovering a crack in the front strap of the frame on a used P45 that I purchased. After contacting Kahr about a replacement frame and finding out it would cost more than I was willing to invest in the gun. I decided that I would attempt to cut away the damaged portion of the frame and effectively shorten the P45 grip to that of a PM45. Well an awesome member of this very forum and an amazing person in general offered to send me a 5rd PM45 mag.

I was not planning on doing this mod right now, but after getting the mag in the mail I just couldn't wait! First thing I did was to measure the mag bodies and figure out the difference in length. Once I knew how much I needed to remove I marked the grip just a little below to give myself a small margin of error. I then broke out the Dremel and a fresh cutting wheel. I went very slow while making the initial cut. Making sure to keep it straight. After cutting the frame, I used a sanding block and 80 grit paper to rough sand it down to where I could just barely get the 5 round mag to lock in place. I then used the Dremel again, this time with a gray wheel to clean up some of the scratches. I then used 2000 grit paper to finish taking it down until the mag was easy to seat and locked in place firmly.

I unfortunately did not take any pictures of the process. But here are a few pictures of the results. The first is the PM45 mag seated. The second shows the original 6 round mag fully seated. And finally, the third shows the bottom of the grip. I still have some clean up to do but overall I'm very pleased by the results. I plan on hitting the range tomorrow and putting some lead down range. I will let you guys know how it goes.

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[Bawanna]

Looks like it worked out great. I round off that bottom edge a bit with file or wood burner, probably look a little cleaner.

Glad it worked out. Was the crack completely eliminated as we anticipated?

[DGladden]

Looks like it worked out great. I round off that bottom edge a bit with file or wood burner, probably look a little cleaner.

Glad it worked out. Was the crack completely eliminated as we anticipated?

Yes sir. It was "just" enough to completely remove the crack! I will be working on cleaning it up a little more as time permits.

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[dao]

You saw it here first folks, the very first P45 Covert. Looks like you did a good job of keeping a straight line and a 90º cut. When you're completely done it will probably look like it came from the factory that way.

[DGladden]

That's my plan. Slowly work on it until it looks like it was made that way! Thanks for the encouraging words.

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[BirdsThaWord]

Glad you had the cajones to go ahead with it, as well as to share it with us. I know you are not done, so curious to see what else you do. So far, so good!

[DGladden]

I am pleased to report that it shoots! And quite well actually. Myself and both of my sisters shot it today. They were both shocked at how little recoil it had for a 45. Next time I'll run some hollow points through it and see if it's fit for a carry gun. I sure hope so.

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[dao]

Don't see why it shouldn't. My PM45 eats them along with ball. And you have an extra 1/2" in bbl length. Good job! We need pictures when you're done though