Slide coating is gone and recoil rod is bent after one ultrasonic cleaning. Please advise.

3398 Views 74 Replies 27 Participants Last post by yohan72, 9 d ago

curiouspanning

Discussion Starter · 18 d ago

10

Hi folks, asking your help/suggestions here. Thanks in advance.

I got my PDP F series new but dirty, so I used CLP for a basic cleaning first. However that helped very little (My Initial Post). Fellow forum viewers suggested an ultrasonic cleaner. I tried that first with my other pistols and it worked fine (no damages to coating or rods). I then used it with the PDP F series (same method, half water & half simple green, for 5 minutes under 60 degree Celsius). The outlook is horrendous (pictures attached) when it was done!

The slide coating is deteriorated badly and the recoil rod is bent (two most obvious defects I can tell immediately). I contacted the Walther for the issues and they only suggested me to purchase a new rod/spring and re-coat the cerakote with an outside shop myself, no warranty replacement was offered.

I am disappointed with the quality of pistol and Walther's warranty. Am I expecting too much? What else can I do to improve my situation while saving additional expenses? I have not yet shot the gun ever since I got it from the FFL. Is it safe to use this pistol as its current condition (especially the bent recoil rod)?

Again, thanks in advance.
/CP

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P88

· #21 · 18 d ago

After looking at your initial posts again, I went and looked at my PDP-F. I only have a few hundred rounds through it, but the spring looks the same as yours. I think the bowing is just a biproduct of the dual spring design. I've seen other pistols with this spring design look the same. As for the initial wearing marks, I do think your pistol was shot before it was sold to you. And it was shot a lot! My PDP-F is showing signs of the same wear, but will take a lot more rounds to get to the point of where yours was looking. It may be possible that someone shot some corrosive ammo through it also. My trigger bar is very black compared to what yours looks like.

I initially asked about the Simply Green, because there are different "strengths" of it out there. But, like you said, the Canik did just fine. So I guess I really don't know what happened. When you pull the barrel out, is there a "DE" laser etched on the slide with a number? It's my understanding that the slides were being made in Germany, but the barrels are made in the U.S. My barrels coating looks slightly different than the slide and is different from other PDP's that have German Proof markings on them.

Just random thoughts. Not that any of this helps you any.

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curiouspanning

Discussion Starter · #22 · 18 d ago

Yup! I now learned that in a hard way. I originally cleaned it with CLP and non-chlorinated brake cleaner first but I guess the OCD (if I have one

) led me to this expensive and frustrated lesson. Lucky my other non-cerakoted firearms and parts survived. Likely will go back to CLP and brake cleaner in future. Why the coating and the rod are so low quality anyway?

curiouspanning

Discussion Starter · #23 · 18 d ago

P88 said:
After looking at your initial posts again, I went and looked at my PDP-F. I only have a few hundred rounds through it, but the spring looks the same as yours. I think the bowing is just a biproduct of the dual spring design. I've seen other pistols with this spring design look the same. As for the initial wearing marks, I do think your pistol was shot before it was sold to you. And it was shot a lot! My PDP-F is showing signs of the same wear, but will take a lot more rounds to get to the point of where yours was looking. It may be possible that someone shot some corrosive ammo through it also. My trigger bar is very black compared to what yours looks like.

I initially asked about the Simply Green, because there are different "strengths" of it out there. But, like you said, the Canik did just fine. So I guess I really don't know what happened. When you pull the barrel out, is there a "DE" laser etched on the slide with a number? It's my understanding that the slides were being made in Germany, but the barrels are made in the U.S. My barrels coating looks slightly different than the slide and is different from other PDP's that have German Proof markings on them.

Just random thoughts. Not that any of this helps you any.

No problem, and thanks for your participations! Since your PDP F series' rod is "bent" too, may I ask whether your slide "tilts up" from the frame when you put gun back together after a field strip? I have a picture posted in this thread showing the "gap" between the slide and the frame. Do you have the same "gap" ? Do you have any coating (if yours not black slide) missing after normal usage ?

My slide is also marked "DE," but someone here mentioned that it is not certain that the "cerakote" is done here in US or in Germany.

Thanks.

DaveB

· #24 · 18 d ago

Have we finally found the Kryptonite for Tenifer?????

Redcat94

· #25 · 18 d ago

curiouspanning said:
Fellow forum viewers suggested an ultrasonic cleaner

You were also advised NOT to use an ultrasonic cleaner. The only thing needed for cleaning are a clean cloth, Q-tips and a nylon brush.

curiouspanning said:
I am disappointed with the quality of pistol and Walther's warranty.

You used an aggressive mechanical cleaner on your firearm and now it's Walther's fault?

Reactions: 4

Redcat94

· #26 · 18 d ago

DaveB said:
Have we finally found the Kryptonite for Tenifer?????

No. Tenifer and similar case hardening treatments are not the same as the cosmetic coating that is applied over them.

Reactions: 4

P88

· #27 · 18 d ago

curiouspanning said:
No problem, and thanks for your participations! Since your PDP F series' rod is "bent" too, may I ask whether your slide "tilts up" from the frame when you put gun back together after a field strip? I have a picture posted in this thread showing the "gap" between the slide and the frame. Do you have the same "gap" ? Do you have any coating (if yours not black slide) missing after normal usage ?

My slide is also marked "DE," but someone here mentioned that it is not certain that the "cerakote" is done here in US or in Germany.

Thanks.

I'm assuming you are referring to the picture of the muzzle. My gap is not a big as yours. I don't know if that is a big deal or not. I've seen other polymer pistols with the same inconsistency from one pistol to the next. (Glock, S.A., FN, etc.) That being said, I think it should have been caught in QAQC from Walther, as it does seem to be a little excessive in your case. Do you have a picture from the side with the slide on?

I have noticed that if I rotate the recoil spring around, the bend or bow seems to lesson. For example if I install it and there is a noticeable bow in the spring, I'll rotate it 90 to 180 degrees and the bow is not as big. Does yours do the same?

I do not have any coating missing or rubbing off on the slide. I do have the rub marks starting to show up on the barrel and the top of the hood of the barrel where the slide makes contact. But this is just normal from what I can tell. I asked about the laser engraved "DE", because I would think that means the slide was coated in Germany, especially if the "DE" is crisp looking.

I just realized something as I'm typing. Is your slide Grey cerakoted? If so, did you buy this pistol from Omaha Outdoors? As far as I know, and I could be wrong, Walther does not offer a Grey slide version of the PDP-F. All slides from the factory are black.

This may explain why they will not warranty it. And it begs the question, how well is the cerakote bonding to a surface that has been tennifer treated?

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Shepherd

· #28 · 18 d ago

Don’t think the F is Tenifer treated due to being made/ assembled in the US?

Reactions: 1

P88

· #29 · 18 d ago

Shepherd said:
Don’t think the F is Tenifer treated due to being made/ assembled in the US?

I think we've come to the conclusion that the slides are made in Germany. Hence the "DE" laser engraved inside the slide. The barrels seen to be made in the U.S. and the assembly of the PDP-F are in the U.S.

The local dealer I go to is having a customer appreciation lunch in a week or so and the Walther dealer rep. will be there. I've got a lot of questions I'll be asking him!

Reactions: 2

curiouspanning

Discussion Starter · #30 · 18 d ago

2

Redcat94 said:
You were also advised NOT to use an ultrasonic cleaner. The only thing needed for cleaning are a clean cloth, Q-tips and a nylon brush.

Indeed, there are both sides of opinions for firearms cleaning. 😂 This particular gun came in a somewhat questionable condition (read this link if you are interested). I should live with that condition in the first place. My insisting of "New should be perfectly new" in my wood head rushed myself into this "adventurous (and unfortunate)" cleaning eventually.

Redcat94 said:
You used an aggressive mechanical cleaner on your firearm and now it's Walther's fault?

Indeed, a lesson learned, I will set my expectation more realistically in future. In my original expectations, for example, at least a guide rod should not be "bent" under a 60-degree Celsius (140 Fahrenheit) heat. Oh well....

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Sundevil827

· #31 · 18 d ago

P88 said:
I just realized something as I'm typing. Is your slide Grey cerakoted? If so, did you buy this pistol from Omaha Outdoors? As far as I know, and I could be wrong, Walther does not offer a Grey slide version of the PDP-F. All slides from the factory are black.

This may explain why they will not warranty it. And it begs the question, how well is the cerakote bonding to a surface that has been tennifer treated?

I noticed that too, but I wrote it off to being just the way the light was hitting it in the picture. That would explain an awful lot.

Second note is that from the responses from Walther (whether you agree with them or not), I felt like they may have agreed it was a warranty issue until they found that you used the ultrasonic cleaner with Simple Green.

Jimmo952

· #32 · 18 d ago

P88 said:
I think we've come to the conclusion that the slides are made in Germany. Hence the "DE" laser engraved inside the slide. The barrels seen to be made in the U.S. and the assembly of the PDP-F are in the U.S.

The local dealer I go to is having a customer appreciation lunch in a week or so and the Walther dealer rep. will be there. I've got a lot of questions I'll be asking him!

If I hold my F-Series slide next to my "regular" PDP's slide, the coloration looks the same.

If the F-Series slides were shipped to the USA, "in the white" and then treated with some different coating process, I think we would see a visual difference l.

That's just a guess though. Hopefully the Walther rep knows and is willing to talk about it.

Reactions: 1

OBD2023

· #33 · 18 d ago

I picked up the 3.5" PDP F model I had ordered today.I brought it home,field stripped ,inspected and cleaned the new pistol.I inspected and compared the build quality to my PDP Pro Compact.I found no discernible difference in the fit,finish or build quality of either weapon. The difference in the triggers is a whole other story.The F Model trigger needs work. The gun feels great in my hand. Better than the PRO.

curiouspanning

Discussion Starter · #34 · 18 d ago

P88 said:
I'm assuming you are referring to the picture of the muzzle. My gap is not a big as yours. I don't know if that is a big deal or not. I've seen other polymer pistols with the same inconsistency from one pistol to the next. (Glock, S.A., FN, etc.) That being said, I think it should have been caught in QAQC from Walther, as it does seem to be a little excessive in your case. Do you have a picture from the side with the slide on?

I have noticed that if I rotate the recoil spring around, the bend or bow seems to lesson. For example if I install it and there is a noticeable bow in the spring, I'll rotate it 90 to 180 degrees and the bow is not as big. Does yours do the same?

I do not have any coating missing or rubbing off on the slide. I do have the rub marks starting to show up on the barrel and the top of the hood of the barrel where the slide makes contact. But this is just normal from what I can tell. I asked about the laser engraved "DE", because I would think that means the slide was coated in Germany, especially if the "DE" is crisp looking.

I just realized something as I'm typing. Is your slide Grey cerakoted? If so, did you buy this pistol from Omaha Outdoors? As far as I know, and I could be wrong, Walther does not offer a Grey slide version of the PDP-F. All slides from the factory are black.

This may explain why they will not warranty it. And it begs the question, how well is the cerakote bonding to a surface that has been tennifer treated?

I ordered mine from "Locked and Loaded." It is interesting if all original Walther slides are black only. My PDP-F came in with a Walther logoed sticker that shows "ITEM: 2849313GY", and the description clearly indicated "3.5in 15RD OR Gray." I hope there is a real anti-corrosion treatment under this gray cerakote no matter the cerakoe is done in US or Germany.

I attached the pictures of my "bent" rod installed (from the side view) too. Thanks.

Jimmo952

· #35 · 18 d ago

curiouspanning said:
I ordered mine from "Locked and Loaded." It is interesting if all original Walther slides are black only. My PDP-F came in with a Walther logoed sticker that shows "ITEM: 2849313GY", and the description clearly indicated "3.5in 15RD OR Gray." I hope there is a real anti-corrosion treatment under this gray cerakote no matter the cerakoe is done in US or Germany.

I attached the pictures of my "bent" rod installed (from the side view) too. Thanks.

PDPs come with the metal treated and finished in black.

Cerakote is applied in the USA. These guys used to be the official Walther cerakoter:

FoxFire Finishes LLC. – Factory Trained & Certified Cerakote Applicator!!!

foxfirefinishes.com

foxfirefinishes.com

I'm not sure if they still are.

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Sundevil827

· #36 · 18 d ago

Jimmo952 said:
PDPs come with the metal treated and finished in black.

Cerakote is applied in the USA. These guys used to be the official Walther cerakoter:

grabagun.com

Walther PDP-F Grey 9mm 3.5" Barrel 15-Rounds Optics Ready

Walther's PDP a groundbreaking achievement in firearms is now tailored specifically to Female shooters with the PDP F-Series 9mm pistol. The PDP F-Series pistol features reduced trigger reach, grip circumference & slide force. Other features include a 3.5" barrel, optics cut slide, white 3 dot...

grabagun.com

That item number does pop though all over as being grey slide.

Is Walther just shipping over the black slides, and Ft. Smith sending them out for the Grey coating here before assembly and sending them off to dealers? That sounds like a fairly inefficient way of doing things, unless of course they have a specific reason for doing it that way, which I guess they would have to.

Jimmo952

· #37 · 18 d ago

Sundevil827 said:
Walther PDP-F Grey 9mm 3.5" Barrel 15-Rounds Optics Ready

Walther's PDP a groundbreaking achievement in firearms is now tailored specifically to Female shooters with the PDP F-Series 9mm pistol. The PDP F-Series pistol features reduced trigger reach, grip circumference & slide force. Other features include a 3.5" barrel, optics cut slide, white 3 dot...

grabagun.com

That item number does pop though all over as being grey slide.

Is Walther just shipping over the black slides, and Ft. Smith sending them out for the Grey coating here before assembly and sending them off to dealers? That sounds like a fairly inefficient way of doing things, unless of course they have a specific reason for doing it that way, which I guess they would have to.

I think that's the way they do it or at least did it.

A guy from Foxfire used to be a member here. Haven't seen him around recently though so I wonder if they still have the contract to do cerakoting for Walther???

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Sundevil827

· #38 · 18 d ago

Jimmo952 said:
I think that's the way they do it or at least did it.

A guy from Foxfire used to be a member here. Haven't seen him around recently though so I wonder if they still have the contract to do cerakoting for Walther???

Makes sense I suppose, hell, probably is more efficient for them to just do one thing, and send the slides out to another company to do their thing.

GeneCC

· #39 · 18 d ago

Walther 30 day money back guarantee?

balance

· #40 · 18 d ago

P88 said:
The local dealer I go to is having a customer appreciation lunch in a week or so and the Walther dealer rep. will be there. I've got a lot of questions I'll be asking him!

Just some random suggestions:

What parts of the PDP-F are made here, and what parts are just assembled here?
Are the parts that are made here, made "in house" at Walther in Fort Smith, or are they contracting them out to another outfit?
Which outfit?
Are there plans on making more current models, future models, or more parts of more models here in the future?
What is their purpose for making models and parts here rather than in Germany?
Are they test firing each and every pistol for function, sight alignment, and accuracy (not just proof loads)?
Will they stick with Mec-Gar as the magazine manufacturer in the future?
What nitrocarburizing treatment are they using on the slides or barrels that are made here?
Is Walther aware of the magazine issue on the full-size 18rd mags?
Will Walther try to compete for agency contracts in the future?

Sundevil827 said:
Is Walther just shipping over the black slides, and Ft. Smith sending them out for the Grey coating here before assembly and sending them off to dealers? That sounds like a fairly inefficient way of doing things, unless of course they have a specific reason for doing it that way, which I guess they would have to.

Was the OP's pistol one of the PDP models that had an aftermarket finish applied, before the ultrasonic cleaning? It should be pretty easy to tell since an aftermarket refinish should do a pretty good job at covering the laser engravings on the slide.

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