First Impression - very cool.
My
ArmaLaser arrived on schedule and the packaging was more than adequate.
I was excited to open the package and see a very nice hard plastic case
with ArmaLaser Tactical stamped on the box. When you open it up the
parts are neatly tucked into the individual foam cutouts - which seem to
be die-cut for the Glock version. And the Varta batteries are
individually wrapped and ready to go. There was nothing missing from my
box so it was time to install this baby.
What's in the box?
-
Polymer box with die-cut foam padding
-
Owners manual
-
4 Varta V357 button cell batteries
-
2 identical 1/16’’ hex keys
-
3 Black Oxide tempered steel pins with hex screws
-
Special Frame Pin brace
-
Laser adjustment set screw
-
2 FDA Class 3R Laser Warning Stickers
Putting it all together
The
laser actually comes pre-assembled. Then you unscrew it - to install it.
The assembly
process of the laser is very simple and straightforward. The
documentation is good, but you will notice that it seems to have been written for the Glock
version. The main difference seems to be the Frame Pin bracket. When you
come to that part in the docs, the pictures do not match the KelTec
laser model. ArmaLaser should have a specific version of the docs
that goes into more detail about the Frame Pin and Bracket for the
KelTec model. This brings me to the first step in the assembly
process...
Frame Pin removal
This was the hardest part of the assembly
process. Or at least it was for me. Maybe this will make me sound
inexperienced, but, I've taken down my P32 countless times for cleaning
- but I've never tried to remove the Frame Pin. The documentation
states:
"Drive the original
plastic frame pin out. You can either use a small hammer and punch/nail
or use the new steel pin that you will replace it with."
Sounds simple enough. I was a little leery of removing my Frame Pin, so
I referred to my P32 manual to see what's connected to the pin - making
sure that I wasn't going to loose any springs or parts from the trigger
mechanism. That looked ok, but just to be safe, I called KelTec
and they assured me that it was ok to replace the frame pin. They
recommended using the same method described in the ArmaLaser
documentation, but if that didn't work... KelTec's recommendation was
to use a very small bit to drill through the frame pin - thus
collapsing the walls and making it easier to come out. Of course this
will ruin your old polymer pin...
Opting
for the least force necessary - I tried a precision screwdriver to
push on the pin - but to no avail. I'm not sure exactly how ArmaLaser or
KelTec expects you to use a hammer and punch to remove the pin... seems
like there are a few problems with that. For instance; do they expect
you to put the pistol in a vise while your tapping out the frame pin? It
just seems to be allot more complicated than the brief documentation
alludes to. It mentions some hints about installing the new pin - but I
never got that far.
Needless to say, I didn't want to drill out my only frame pin - until I
had a replacement. I'm sure that the new one fits - although it
does look too big - but in either case I would recommend having a spare
before ruining your only one. Sadly that left me with the cold
hard fact that I was never able to successfully install the Brace
that connects to the Frame Pin.
Since ArmaLaser specifically states not to fire the pistol without the Brace attached, I was not able to complete this review with some test firing. Once I get my extra frame pin from KelTec I hope to remedy that with my next purchase and post my range results to this review!
UPDATE! - When I got my GenII laser I finally did drill out the pin & test fire. Click here and check out the "At home on the range" paragraph on this page...
Snap
into place and install batteries...
From here the docs are very clear and easy to understand, you snap the non-laser side into place and put the batteries in as stated. I found it helpful to slide in the assembly bolts to make lining up the other side easier.
The three main assembly bolts really need to have a shallow flathead groove for precision screwdrivers to fit into. You just can't hold them in place very well during assembly and dis-assembly. The documentation makes mention of this issue on Page 5 of the booklet:
"You
may have to keep a finger on the barrel nut end while screwing in the
screw on the opposite end to stop the barrel nut from turning."Adding the flathead slot would avoid this completely. Once you clamshell the other side on and snug up the screws your done! The fit is very good - and really feels solid once its in place. On to the brace assembly.
Frame Pin Brace installation
If
you successfully removed the Frame Pin then you need to decide where the
laser Brace goes. The Brace piece has a large round end that makes
contact with your trigger finger if you install it on the wrong side. In
my case - I'm right handed - so I installed the Brace on the Left side
of the pistol.
When
my finger slides across the trigger and with the trigger pull itself I
don't feel the Brace. However, if I take the pistol in my left hand the
large round end of the Brace rubs against my finger and it's more
pronounced when you pull the trigger. The contact is very slight - but
was noticeably annoying, and I'm sure would be more so when firing. Keep
in mind that this laser was designed for the second gen model not the
first like my pistol, so this could just be a generation conflict issue.
ArmaLaser
might want to look into this. Maybe square off the end of the large part
to be even with the frame of the pistol? Also, they might possibly make
the brace and new frame pin as one piece? This is not a big issue,
long as you just put the brace on the opposite side of your strong hand.
