Heckler&Koch USP TACTICAL - Manual (Page 9)

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Administrative Loading - used to initially load the pistol before it is to be fired.
Slide rearward or forward, chamber empty
1. Make sure fingers are out side of the trig ger guard and the pis tol is point ed in a safe
direction at all times!
2. Insert magazine - insert the mag a zine firmly into the frame. Tug on the magazine to
ensure that it is fully seated and engaged.
3. Chamber a cartridge - chamber a cartridge by de press ing the slide re lease or by
pulling the slide fully to the rear and releasing it. Do not ride the slide for ward!
WArNiNG: Any attempt to lower the hammer manually (with a round in the chamber),
will allow the hammer to be lowered past the half-cock notch and by passes the passive
safeties which are built into the USP and could result in an ac ci den tal dis charge and
subsequent property damage, injury or loss of life.
On DA/SA models without the decocking func tion in the control lever, it is unsafe to lower
the hammer while there is a round in the chamber.
On Variant 9 and 10 pistols, to lower the hammer on an empty chamber, the following
steps must be followed with extreme care. Remember: low er ing the hammer manually
on the USP pistol re quires pulling the trigger. The action of pulling the trigger bypasses
the passive safeties which are built into the USP. If there is a round in the chamber when
the hammer is being lowered manually, and if the hammer slips, the gun could discharge
causing possible subsequent prop er ty damage, injury or loss of life.
1. Point the pistol in a safe direction and put the manual safety in the “on” or “safe”
position by moving the control lever fully upward.
2. Remove the magazine.
3. While keeping your finger off of the trigger and outside of the trigger guard draw the
slide to the rear and push the slide stop up to lock the slide in the open position. Inspect
the chamber vi su al ly and manually to ensure that there is no round in the chamber.
4. Release the slide by pressing down on the slide stop.
5. Disengage the manual safety by moving the control lever downward to the “fire”
position.
6. Hold the pistol firmly in one hand as if you were going to discharge the firearm. Using
the thumb of the hand which is not holding the pistol, draw the hammer slightly to the
rear. Using the index finger of the hand which is holding the pistol, pull the trigger to the
rear.
Lower the hammer SLOW LY, while at the same time releasing the trigger, removing your
finger from the trigger and placing it outside of the trigger guard. Con tin ue to lower the
hammer SLOWLY until it has come to a complete rest against the back of the slide.
Draw the hammer back slightly until it comes to rest at the half cock notch position.
FiriNG THe PiSTOL
WArNiNG
1. Be sure of your target and what’s behind it! A bullet from a pistol travels as far
as a mile. it can easily pen e trate wood or plasterboard walls or even a car door.
2. Be sure that your hands and all parts of your body are kept away from the muzzle
of your pis tol at all times!
3. Always wear eye and ear protection when fir ing the pistol.
Double-action only mode - (Hammer uncocked)
1. Aim - aim at the target.
2. Fire - fire the pistol by press ing the trigger straight to the rear with grad u al ly
increasing pres sure.
NOTe: Variant 7 and LeMs, the double-action only models of the HK USP Series do
not have control levers. The ham mer of these variants will au to mat i cal ly return to the
uncocked po si tion each time the slide returns to its forward po si tion.
The Law enforcement Modification
The Law Enforcement Modification (LEM) is a series of unique trigger mechanism parts
created specifically to improve the quality and reduce the weight of the Double-Action
Only trigger pull in the USP Pistol. With these parts installed the USP pistol can be fired
like the standard DAO USP pistol where every round is fired by simply pulling the trigger
fully rearward with the hammer starting at the forward rest position. There are no external
decocking or safety levers present or required.
Due to the design of the proprietary HK LEM system the weight of the DAO trigger
pull has been reduced to 7.5-8.5 pounds when new and is easier to use due to the
smoothness of the trigger pull.
NOTe: Optional 4.5-5.5 pound LeM trigger pull is also available for the USP series
pistol.
Parts Unique to the Law enforcement Modification
The unique LEM parts of the USP pistol are listed below. Additional information can be
found in the exploded diagram and parts list of this manual.
Hammer Spring, trigger rebound Sear, complete
Cocking piece Spring, cocking piece Spring, hammer
Law enforcement Modification Operation
USP Pistols fitted with Law Enforcement Modification parts operate like standard variants
of the USP Pistol. However, the way in which the hammer is cocked is unique. The
hammer in the LEM is a two-piece hammer comprised of a cocking piece (not visible with
the pistol assembled) and an external (visible) hammer.
In the LEM system the quality of the trigger pull is improved while at the same time a
stronger hammer spring can be employed to improve reliability by increasing the firing
pin indent on the primer. The stronger hammer spring also helps to reduce the slide
velocity when firing “hot” ammunition. The HK LEM uses the rearward movement of the
slide during loading or firing to fully compress the hammer spring.
The cocking piece and hammer are rotated rearward on the hammer axle when the slide
moves fully rearward. When fully to the rear the cocking piece is held in the cocked
position by the sear and the hammer spring has been fully compressed by the hammer
strut. As the slide travels forward the hammer is rotated back to and held in the forward
position by the hammer rebound spring.
When the trigger is pulled rearward against the combined force (7.5 – 8.5 pounds) of the
trigger, hammer rebound, firing pin block, and sear springs the internal passive safeties
are disengaged and the sear releases the cocking piece. The cocking piece is then free to
rotate the hammer forward on its axle under pressure of the compressed hammer spring
imparted through the hammer strut to strike the firing pin and fire the chambered round.
The weight of the trigger pull is adjusted by an armorer replacing or exchanging the firing
pin block spring, firing pin spring, and trigger springs.