Raven Arms P25 MP25

Jersey Small Arms Gunsmithing - John Torelli
Established 1982
501 Ireland Ave. Millville NJ 08332
856-825-5766
JTorelli3@comcast.net

FIRING THE PISTOL
After loading your Magazine, insert it into the bottom of the pistol handle and push it into the pistol as far as possible. Point your pistol in a safe direction and with your other hand firmly grasp the serrated portion of the Slide and pull it as far rearward as it will go. Release the Slide from it's rearmost position, allowing it to go forward of it's own accord. This procedure places the first cartridge into the chamber and the gun is ready for firing. Subsequent feeding and ejection operations are performed automatically until the pistol is empty. NOTE: Unless the pistol is already cocked, the safety must be in the "FIRE" (F) position before the pistol can be cocked or loaded from the magazine supply.

The pistol must be in unloaded, uncocked condition before take down can be performed. To remove the slide, use a blunt object (such as a lead pencil eraser) to push the Retainer, located in the back end of the Slide, forward until it stops (about 1/4"). While holding the Retainer depressed, gently lift the rearward portion of the Slide away from the Frame until it stops. Release the Retainer gently as it is spring loaded. Hold the rearward portion of the Slide up and push the Slide forward, off of the end of the gun. This procedure removes the entire Slide Assembly and is sufficient for normal cleaning and oiling. Clean the Barrel within a reasonable period of time after shooting. After the powder residue has been removed, give the Barrel bore a protective coat of oil.

ASSEMBLY
Make sure the Recoil Spring is in the Frame. Place the Slide Assembly over the Barrel and pull rearward until it can be dropped down onto the Frame. Depress the Retainer into the Slide far enough to allow it to drop into its slot. Release the Retainer after Slide is pushed down onto the Frame. You should not be able to lift the rear of the Slide away from the Frame if properly assembled. After the Assembly is completed, but before loading, manually operate the pistol to see that everything functions properly.

EASIER DISASSEMBLY
Presuming your right handed, hold the pistol in your right hand. Grab the Slide with your left hand. Put your pointer finger on the Retainer and push it in. Keeping your finger on the Retainer lift the Slide up and pull it off the front. You won't lose the Retainer and Firing Pin Spring this way. You can literally field strip the Raven pistol in two seconds.

The P-25, made in Baldwin Park CA USA, was introduced in 1971 and discontinued in 1984.

The MP-25, made in Industry CA USA, replaced the P-25 in 1984 and continued until 1991.

The Phoenix Arms Raven, made in Ontario CA USA, replaced the MP-25 in 1991 until about 1993.

    The First Model P-25 had a partially enclosed Breech Face and different cutouts for the Cam
    and a large sliding button type Safety.   My research seems to indicate that this First Model
    was only produced until about 1973. This was replaced by the Old Model P-25 which had a
    fully enclosed Breech Face, a different Cam, a thin sliding Safety button and a different slide.
The grip serations on the Slides remained the same, but they were completely different inside
and will not interchange between the two versions. There is a picture here on my parts page
pointing out the differences. This can cause some confusion as the pistol was continued to be
marked P25 despite being an almost entirely different gun with very few parts in common.

The Old Model MP-25 was virtually identical to the P25 with the exception of the grip serrations
on the Slide, which were much closer together. The New Model MP-25 introduced a new Safety
which was a dime size rotating switch with a cutout in the Slide to lock the Slide closed when
engaged. The Phoenix Arms Model Raven is a replica of the New Model Raven MP-25 and was
produced in Ontario CA USA after Raven Arms closed in 1991. It continued production until
about 1993. All of the parts are interchangeable with the Raven MP25. Later Phoenix Arms
Ravens incorporated a Magazine Disconnect Safety in about thier last year of production

NOTE: The terms First Model, Old Model & New Model are NOT
official names by Raven Arms.   They have been attached to the various
models over the years strictly for identification purposes.

      The serial number on all Raven pistols is located on
      the backstrap as indicated by the yellow box in the
        picture below. The First Model Raven P-25's had a
        six digit serial number as did the Old Model P-25's
        and early Old Model MP-25's. This carried on into
        a seven digit serial number range right on through
        the New Model MP-25's until production ceased at
        somewhere near the 2 million mark in 1991.

        When Phoenix Arms took over production they offset
        the serial numbers to the right and their numbers all
        appear to be seven digits in the 3 million range.