AR Not Cycling

[JCV]

It worked OK with my ammo.

yes it did, it worked ok sunday with federal as well as herter's steel cased as well.

I had a failure to feed issue with my newly assembled AR because I didn't "Lubricate" the rifle well enough. That may be the culprit as it solved my problem.

mine was all lubed up and ready to go.

Hey JCV, Was it the Herters that wasn't cycling? I bought a couple of boxes of that from Cabellas and it was short stroking my AR. Everything else worked fine.

i'm not sure if i can say 100% if it was the ammo. When I shot sunday it was half federal, half herters and only had a couple FTF's. Tuesday was all Herter's and we got maybe 50-75 rounds off before it started acting up.

I had this exact issue shortly after buying my AR. Turns out it was a loose front gas block that began to inch forward after a few shots, causing misalignment between the hole in the barrel and gas block, hence restricted/no gas flow, short cycle, would eject but not feed.

I too have an A2 front sight held in place with two measly set screws,......
Sorry to hijack, but I had the same issue and it vexed me to understand why the front sight was installed so poorly. To be fair the rifle builder did offer to help fix it.

I don't have an A2 FSB. I have an a2 rifle buffer.

A mid length gas system, 14.5" barrel, a2 rifle buffer and underpowered ammo is probably where it's going wrong. I would say either use hotter ammo or if u are willing, switch to a M4 style buffer extension and use a CAR buffer for underpowered ammo.

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Can I use my same stock if I do this?

A progressive failure is usually caused by something that came loose and is out of alignment. There aren't many parts that can do this, Gas Key, gas block are a good place to start

I have yet to take the handguard off to check, I will most likely do it later tonight after work.

Get an ak74 and forget about ANY problems

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I want one.

 

[warwickben]

Build one ...

 

[Artifact]

My BCM 14.5" carbine w/ H2 buffer does not like Tula. Funny how this stuff works.

Mine shoots everything even underpowered, loves Tula

 

[JCV]

Looked like the gas block shifted a little so I put it back and threw some loc-tite on that bitch.
Went to the range and shot some brass and it was fine. Switched over to some Herter's and it sucked, wouldn't cycle. Tried some wolf and it was fine.
Looks like I've got some ammo to dump because my AE is a finnicky bitch.

thanks for the help and suggestions everyone.

 

[Da_lucche]

My BCM 14.5" carbine w/ H2 buffer does not like Tula. Funny how this stuff works.

Tell me about it. My DD MK18 10.3 barreled sbr with FA BCG and any buffer (CAR, H, H2, H3) eats everything and bolt locks back everytime.

My Carbine length 14.5 barreled upper with FA BCG will eat everything but the bolt will not lock back for Tula or Wolf using a H or H2 buffer.

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[Supermoto]

Looked like the gas block shifted a little so I put it back and threw some loc-tite on that bitch.
Went to the range and shot some brass and it was fine. Switched over to some Herter's and it sucked, wouldn't cycle. Tried some wolf and it was fine.
Looks like I've got some ammo to dump because my AE is a finnicky bitch.

thanks for the help and suggestions everyone.

How did you line up the block? Are you using a delta ring?

 

[kc6623]

buy an ak problem solved

 

[Supermoto]

buy an ak problem solved

I can only assume by the OP avatar that he is a boobie loving American, not a communist or camel F'er, so he probably is not interested in a AK

So back to the bread line for you

 

[JohnMarston]

buy an ak problem solved

no soup for you!

 

[JCV]

How did you line up the block? Are you using a delta ring?

no delta ring, it's a free float hand guard.

 

[Supermoto]

Some gas blocks are positioned tight against the barrel shoulder, other need to be back off the shoulder to line up the holes. It may be why it is still short stroking on weak ammo

 

[warwickben]

When I helped mock it up(didnt have lock tight etc)figure out his hand guard etc.I checked to see if I was blocking the hole before I tighten it up .


He did seem to like the psl build I've been in limbo waiting for a barrel ..
But that's Romanian not Russian lol.

 

[exo]

Every gas block I've seen has an oversized hole. You'd have to have it pretty far out of whack to not work, no?

 

[JCV]

Not sure if these help

 

[71montess]

One thing I do is line up the gas block tighten one set screw and remove the other. Then center punch the one set screw hole then replace and do the other, then remove the gb and using a drill bit , just barely drill into the barrel. Dimple it , then replace , lock tight and tighten Allen screws, it will never move.

 

[ntomsw]

You figure it out yet?

 

[xtry51]

If your rifle won't cycle steel ammo, fix it. There's no reason it shouldn't.

I have a BCM mid and it cycles everything.

 

[JCV]

You figure it out yet?

nope, still doesn't like the herter's ammo

 

[Mr. Brownstone]

nope, still doesn't like the herter's ammo

PM Sent

Not to start a whole steel cased ammo thing, but this may help. I have found that Herters, and Tula (same thing maybe) don't cycle reliably. Wolf has been no problem. Anyway, check out this article from Windham Weaponry's newsletter:

FROM THE GUNSMITH'S BENCH


Erik Winter, Gunsmith


TOPIC: Our Thoughts on Steel Cased Ammunition



Pretty much daily I get the question "Is it okay to shoot steel cased ammo in my Windham Weaponry AR15?"



With ammunition in short supply and good ammo priced very high, many people are buying cheaper steel cased, bi-metal jacket ammunition from Wolf, TulAmmo, Herter's, etc.



While I don't generally recommend steel cased ammo, it's not going to hurt your rifle in limited amounts. If used exclusively however it will reduce the barrel life by about 4,000-5,000 rounds. Most if not all of this ammo uses a copper coated steel jacketed "bi-metal" bullet which increases wear on the barrel. In testing done by LuckyGunner Labs, rifles using Federal brass cased ammo were still shooting decent groups up to 10,000 rounds. With steel cased ammo the groups were all over the place at 6,000 rounds with many bullets tumbling and key holing.



The other problem with steel cased ammo is that the cases don't expand the same way that brass cases do. This causes carbon build up between the case and the chamber wall. This build up can cause stuck cases. Sometimes these cases will stick so severely that it is difficult to remove them even with a cleaning rod. It is even worse if you fire a bunch of steel cased ammo then fire brass cased right behind it in a dirty chamber. Then the brass case expanding normally really sticks to the carbon left behind in the chamber.



So if you are going to use steel cased ammo I recommend breaking the rifle in with decent brass cased ammo first. Up to 100 rounds, the more the better. Another problem with steel cased ammo is a lot of it seems to be somewhat underpowered which can cause short stroking issues. If the gun is broken in first with brass cased ammo this helps seal the gas system somewhat which will make the lower powered steel cased ammo work a bit better. Also, make sure to keep your chamber clean. Keep in mind that it is going to foul pretty quickly with steel cased ammo.



Here are two excellent articles regarding the issues with steel cased ammunition that I always recommend. One of them is the excellent LuckyGunner test.



The Box O' Truth - Educational Zone #18 - Shooting Wolf steel-cased Ammo in an AR15



http://www.luckygunner.com/labs/brass-vs-steel-cased-ammo/

 

[SJan]

How about this?

Chamber looks like ass. Is that chrome lined? Soak a chamber brush in solvent and start scrubbing

 

[flintoid]

nope, still doesn't like the herter's ammo

so it's still short cycling the steel stuff? (the rifle is still behaving like it did in the OP)

what kind of barrel are you rocking on this build?

I'm wondering if the barrel port to gas block port is not clocked properly... or if the barrel gas port is undersized.

We've all heard of the Remsport barrels with gas ports the size of Jupiter.... maybe this is an undersized one so you're under-gassed?

 

[Billsail]

So, just get a dremel or chainsaw file in there and smooth things out a bit, so they line up better? Is there a point where removing too much is a problem? Do this with everything right in place? Or remove the barrel and separate all the parts first? Also, what type of bit on the dremel? One of those sandpaper barrel type ones?

Thanks.

Dremel offers a nice cone shaped stone bit, I think might do the trick.

 

[Fixxah]

Dremel offers a nice cone shaped stone bit, I think might do the trick.

Just get more than three. Steel eats them quickly.

-Stalking via S3.-

 

[Billsail]

Even for that small amount to remove? Do they come in different "grit sizes"? If so, which one? Is it 100 like sandpaper?

One grit, buy a bunch.

Ya, I guess it's probably around 100 grit.

 

[JCV]

so it's still short cycling the steel stuff? (the rifle is still behaving like it did in the OP)

what kind of barrel are you rocking on this build?

I'm wondering if the barrel port to gas block port is not clocked properly... or if the barrel gas port is undersized.

We've all heard of the Remsport barrels with gas ports the size of Jupiter.... maybe this is an undersized one so you're under-gassed?

It has stopped short cycling the steel stuff, not sure why as I didn't really do anything. I'm hoping it doesn't start back up again.
I've only put about 300 rounds down it since it started acting up, no issues recently.

I'm rocking a 14.5" Rainier Arms barrel.

 

[Sir_Gawain]

I'm wondering if the barrel port to gas block port is not clocked properly... or if the barrel gas port is undersized.

I'd put money the gas block is out of alignment.

 

[dcmdon]

Some gas blocks are positioned tight against the barrel shoulder, other need to be back off the shoulder to line up the holes. It may be why it is still short stroking on weak ammo

Exactly what I was thinking. Most barrels have the shoulder positioned assuming that the sheet metal retainer for USGI handguard is wedged between the shoulder and the block. So you have to push the block about 1/8 inch off of the shoulder for it to be correctly positioned.

Here's a trick an old guy once taught me. Don't make fun of me.

Put the gun in battery with the BCG all the way forward.
Remove your brake/FH.
put your mouth on the end of the barrel and blow.
Move the gas block around until you are getting the maximum amount of flow.

I've done this. (sorry no pics) and it always ends up between 1/8 and 1/4 ahead of the shoulder.

I'm also a big fan of JP adjustable gas blocks for just this reason. I can tune a new rifle with a bit of extra gas as its breaking in. (new spring, tight bolt to bc fit, etc)
Then after 500 rounds I readjust it.

Don