Need a little advice/expertise on this one...it's a real head-scratcher (12131, I'm directing this at you, especially )
So a friend of mine had a P228 barrel he gifted me long ago, and I finally decided to add it to one of my extra P228 slides and go shoot it over the weekend. It is a German proofed barrel (on the lug) with serial number. Now, here's the strange part, after placing it in the slide along with the rod and recoil spring, it will not return on the P228 frame I tried assembling it on; it gets hung-up around the breach block.
I tried it on several other P228 frames and a German frame P229 SAS with the same results. I then tried the barrel in several other P228 slides (German and W German alike) with the same issue. I have never had this happen. I have several other P228 barrels that do not exhibit this behavior.
Any suggestions or explanations as to why this might happen? Dimensionally, it looks exactly the same as any other P228 barrel. I suppose I assumed it would always be a drop-in, regardless of the slide.
Any help is greatly appreciated.

Any chance it's a p6/225 barrel?

I'd have to dig mine out of the safe and check, but if memory serves, they look damm near identical. Just off a bit in some key dimensions

quote:

Originally posted by fullmann:
Any chance it's a p6/225 barrel?

I'd have to dig mine out of the safe and check, but if memory serves, they look damm near identical. Just off a bit in some key dimensions

That is a great/valid question. No, it is definitely a P228 barrel. I even placed a 1x2x3 machining block across them to see if there was anything—any discernible differences. To my eyes, I really see nothing that would cause one to function normally as opposed to the other.

It needs some fitting, which I consider to be a good thing.

quote:

Originally posted by mbacker_99:
It needs some fitting, which I consider to be a good thing.

I agree. Some fitting required. Your eyes will not be able to discern tiny differences. The barrel might have fitted its original P228, but....

I had a P228 that I sent the slide in for refinishing in nickel. It came back looking great. Only problem was, I was now unable to reassemble it exactly the way OP described. I ended up "refitting" myself. Apparently, they applied too much plating to the slide, rendering it now out of specs.

quote:

Originally posted by 12131:

quote:

Originally posted by mbacker_99:
It needs some fitting, which I consider to be a good thing.

I agree. Some fitting required. Your eyes will not be able to discern tiny differences. The barrel might have fitted its original P228, but....

I had a P228 that I sent the slide in for refinishing in nickel. It came back looking great. Only problem was, I was now unable to reassemble it exactly the way OP described. I ended up "refitting" myself. Apparently, they applied too much plating to the slide, rendering it now out of specs.

Thanks guys! I thought the same thing, but thought it odd that a lone barrel wouldn't fit at least one slide/frame configuration.
So, did you do some stoning? If so, in what area(s)? I had to do it once on a Bar-Sto and it worked out nicely, but this might be a different matter.

quote:

Originally posted by jsawyer09:

quote:

Originally posted by 12131:

quote:

Originally posted by mbacker_99:
It needs some fitting, which I consider to be a good thing.

I agree. Some fitting required. Your eyes will not be able to discern tiny differences. The barrel might have fitted its original P228, but....

I had a P228 that I sent the slide in for refinishing in nickel. It came back looking great. Only problem was, I was now unable to reassemble it exactly the way OP described. I ended up "refitting" myself. Apparently, they applied too much plating to the slide, rendering it now out of specs.

Thanks guys! I thought the same thing, but thought it odd that a lone barrel wouldn't fit at least one slide/frame configuration.
So, did you do some stoning? If so, in what area(s)? I had to do it once on a Bar-Sto and it worked out nicely, but this might be a different matter.

It was it the barrel-to-slide lock up area that I had to mess with. Wasn't pretty. Downright embarrassing, I'll say. Reminds me not to ever play gunsmith again.

quote:

Originally posted by 12131:

quote:

Originally posted by jsawyer09:

quote:

Originally posted by 12131:

quote:

Originally posted by mbacker_99:
It needs some fitting, which I consider to be a good thing.

I agree. Some fitting required. Your eyes will not be able to discern tiny differences. The barrel might have fitted its original P228, but....

I had a P228 that I sent the slide in for refinishing in nickel. It came back looking great. Only problem was, I was now unable to reassemble it exactly the way OP described. I ended up "refitting" myself. Apparently, they applied too much plating to the slide, rendering it now out of specs.

Thanks guys! I thought the same thing, but thought it odd that a lone barrel wouldn't fit at least one slide/frame configuration.
So, did you do some stoning? If so, in what area(s)? I had to do it once on a Bar-Sto and it worked out nicely, but this might be a different matter.

It was it the barrel-to-slide lock up area that I had to mess with. Wasn't pretty. Downright embarrassing, I'll say. Reminds me not to ever play gunsmith again.

Too funny. Thanks for your input Q. It is really appreciated (you as well mbacker).

UPDATE:

So, I spent the last hour or so after work laboriously stoning the bottom of the P228 barrel's feed ramp with Arkansas filing stones. I started with the course, taking quite a few passes at it and applying lots of pressure. I spent the most time here, going back-and-forth from taking the barrel out, stoning, placing it in the slide and trying to rack. After several failures to rack, and actually not budge past the beginning of the locking block, it finally moved past it by quite a margin. I then switched to a medium stone and repeated for about one-half of the effort/time as before. It finally began to move into the frame like it should. Lastly, I used the fine stone as a precaution giving it a few more passes, then—voila! It finally went on without issue.
I was amazed at how much material I had to take off in order for this to function correctly; I had no clue a factory German P228 barrel could be so 'out of spec', at least with regard to not fitting any other slide I could try.
I oiled it up and put 50 rounds down range in my back yard area without incident, and it locked back after each empty mag, too.
It took some time and extra effort on this one, but I couldn't be happier with the outcome.