I'm a newbie to the AR scene. I've been VERY slowly acquiring the parts to an AR (over years!), and am finally getting to the finish line of my Frankenstein build. USGI contractor upper. Boise Tactical milspec M16 BCG. Wyndham Weaponry 16" 5.56 barrel w/ carbine length gas tube. My father-in-law helped me out with part of the build (yes I did launch and lose a takedown detent), and we finished the upper, but head spacing was odd.
He used a pair of Clymer .223 gauges, but didn't bother removing the ejector and extractor. It closed on both the go and no go gauges, but he figured it was fine to test.
We took it to the range and on one of his rifle length lowers we tried the upper and fired individual rounds. The cases looked fine - didn't show any signs of cracking or strange wear patterns. However, with a full mag, the rounds weren't cycling properly, requiring a manual cycle to load the next round.
I took it home and decided to redo the headspacing test, so picked up a pair of Clymer 5.56 gauges, a bolt vise, and a set of punches, because I figured I should remove the ejector and extractor and re-test. Nope - still closes on both the go and no-go gauges.
So now I feel like I have a problem of too much headspace on a new build, and am not sure where to go from here. Find a local gunsmith? Take apart the upper and redo everything?
He used a pair of Clymer .223 gauges, but didn't bother removing the ejector and extractor. It closed on both the go and no go gauges, but he figured it was fine to test.
We took it to the range and on one of his rifle length lowers we tried the upper and fired individual rounds. The cases looked fine - didn't show any signs of cracking or strange wear patterns. However, with a full mag, the rounds weren't cycling properly, requiring a manual cycle to load the next round.
I took it home and decided to redo the headspacing test, so picked up a pair of Clymer 5.56 gauges, a bolt vise, and a set of punches, because I figured I should remove the ejector and extractor and re-test. Nope - still closes on both the go and no-go gauges.
So now I feel like I have a problem of too much headspace on a new build, and am not sure where to go from here. Find a local gunsmith? Take apart the upper and redo everything?