This will be a relatively short post.
I have both a Canik TP9DA and a Canik TP40V2. Never seemed to be able to find spare mags for the Canik TP40. Even appealed to the folks at Century International Arms and Mec-Gar (maker of the mags) for assistance.
Century told me they imported just a few hundred, all the mags they had were distributed. End of story. They couldn’t help me.
Mec-Gar told me they’d made them special order for Canik, sent them all to Canik, and they could not recommend even a compatible model.
I had a couple of extra TP9DA mags I’d picked up from GrabAGun, so I decided to compare them to the TP40V2 mags. They were like twins. The only differences were the indicator holes on the back (to show how many rounds were in it) and the top on the TP9DA mag seemed a bit narrower.
So I loaded a TP9DA mag full of .40 cartridges. It fit 13 of them, as expected. It inserted into the TP40V2 without issue. But the rounds wouldn’t feed reliably. It would jam with the slide back and I’d have to tap and rack it a couple of times to adjust things so a round would feed.
Suspecting the issue was the difference was the narrower top, I risked a TP9DA mag and took a pair of pliers to the feed lips. I tried to be firm, yet gentle, and not mangle them. Next try, it fed a bit smoother, but still had issues. Applied the pliers again. Fed a full mag without a hiccup.
Took the mag with the widened lips to the range and ran two loads through it, one with just 5 rounds, and one full load of 13 rounds. Fed like a champ. Loaded it full of 9, put it in the TP9DA, and it still fed well there too.
Now, obviously, even if Century or Mec-Gar knew this, they couldn’t tell you. Why? Because if they gave you official guidance to mod a mag with a pair of pliers, then your gun blew up…
So, with that in mind, I’m not going to tell you you should do this. All I can say is that it worked for me. There are only a few hundred of you TP40V2 owners out there. If you have the need for an additional mag and you are willing to try this at your own risk only you might just be able to add a couple of mags to your collection to support your TP40V2.
Greg, thank you so very much for your help. I’m an owner of one of the TP40V2 and having been searching for extra mags for months. I read your article and you, sir, are absolutely correct about the mags being “twins”. I also have a TP9DA and the magazines from that gun fit the TP40V2 like they were made for it. Tomorrow I will be at the workbench bright and early to rework the feed lips and then to the range in the afternoon. Oh, and of course, I’m TRYING THIS AT MY OWN RISK ONLY!!!
How do you like the TP40 compared to the TP9DA? I want the 40 but cannot find any reviews about shooting it.
The round is naturally going to have more kick than the 9, but it’s manageable. Aside from that it is pretty much the same frame and same feel, and a nice gun to shoot.
We just Picked up (2) TP40’s and we will have to try this as we also have a TP9SA and a TP9SF we luv these guns. my wife will put the 9 in the safe and the 40 will now be her EDC…