AR seized up, any guesses?

NIGHTLORD40K

NIGHTLORD40K

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My work buddy asked me to take a look at his bog standard Radical Firearms 16" AR 15. The story is he and his girl were shooting it, she didnt pull the charging handle back all the way on a new magazine, but then the gun seized up tight. He doesn't know if there is a live round in the chamber, nor is he sure if the last fired case actually ejected.

Sure enough, I just took it out of the case, and the CH will only move about 1/2", but the carrier movement is barely perceptible. Bolt is fully in battery, no obvious signs of anything amiss, though the gun is bone dry.

I'm about to tear into it, anybody want to guess what I will find?
 
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So, after a generous application of penetrating lube and gentle tapping on the BCG with a rubber mallet, I was able to get the bolt open and found this-



IMG_20230731_200416_3.jpg
IMG_0023.jpg
A big chunk of brass pounded into the chamber mouth.

I'm pretty sure my buddy has never cleaned the gun since he got it, and it was used when he bought it.
The ejected live round that was stuck in the chamber was covered in heavy carbon and actual verdigris, yikes!
IMG_0029.jpg
So, my working hypothesis is that the chamber was badly fouled, resulting in difficult extraction and a seperated case, a portion of which was then smashed into the barrel extension, jamming up the bolt.

After a good clean and lube job, the gun now cycles perfectly with snap caps.

The morale is "Take care of your gun and it will take care of you."
 
...pretty sure my buddy has never cleaned the gun since he got it, and it was used when he bought it.
The ejected live round that was stuck in the chamber was covered in heavy carbon and actual verdigris,
Click to expand...
Yikes is right... I ASSume that chunk of brass also prevented full lug engagement even when the bolt did rotate (mostly) closed.
Do I also presume that particular friend has been advised as to the error of his ways ?
:alien:
 
LOL.. He probably learned about firearms online where people say things like cleaning is unnecessary or overdone.

Old days we had to learn to clean firearm's before we were allowed to shoot a whole lot. Most of the "defective" or "troublesome" firearms I've fixed were done with a thorough cleaning because the owner was lazy and didnt respect the firearm or preventative maintenance. So many new people to firearms these days and a never ending stream of bad info floating around. Fundamentals still apply.. keep your firearms clean and lubed... wipe down after handling... do not dry fire. Thats basically step one besides always treat them like they are loaded and point in a safe direction.

Your friend is the typical idiot with firearms. Lucky he didnt blow up that rifle. All sorts of tactical gadetry and "operator" dork stuff and he doesnt even know to clean and maintain his rifle.... so you are doing it for him.
 
starling said:
LOL.. He probably learned about firearms online where people say things like cleaning is unnecessary or overdone.

Old days we had to learn to clean firearm's before we were allowed to shoot a whole lot. Most of the "defective" or "troublesome" firearms I've fixed were done with a thorough cleaning because the owner was lazy and didnt respect the firearm or preventative maintenance. So many new people to firearms these days and a never ending stream of bad info floating around. Fundamentals still apply.. keep your firearms clean and lubed... wipe down after handling... do not dry fire. Thats basically step one besides always treat them like they are loaded and point in a safe direction.

Your friend is the typical idiot with firearms. Lucky he didnt blow up that rifle. All sorts of tactical gadetry and "operator" dork stuff and he doesnt even know to clean and maintain his rifle.... so you are doing it for him.
Click to expand...
He's a young fella and this is his first rifle. For all I know he never had a male relative around to teach these things. He is far from an idiot, and we should be glad he is interested in excersizing his 2nd Amendment rights and not an "activist" for the other side like so many of today's youth.

This will be a teachable moment. I have no doubt the lesson will be absorbed.
 
Don't get too judgemental, sometimes stuff happens. Lacking X Ray vision, I could not see the material deterioration going on inside the case due to deteriorating gunpowder. Luckily the bolt lugs had not started to cam down, and it just took a jerk on the operating rod to eject this round.

1GYBWdC.jpg




and then there are things that are peculiar but inherent to designs with shrouds. I personally prefer open top designs, like the Garand/M1a where you can look at the action and see if the bird of paradise had flown up the chamber.

UkZyI5E.jpg

\
I showed up at a midrange match (600 yards) with a scoped AR15 in 223. To avoid being fussed at by the line officer, I had inserted the open bolt indicator prior to closing the hard case and appearing on the firing line. This meant the bolt was back. I took the rifle out, got into position, put a round in the port and dropped the bolt. The rifle would no go bangy. I racked the bolt, ejected the cartridge, reloaded it, proceeded with the drill a number of times. No go bangy. I slapped the rifle, hit the forward release, rifle no go bangy. Finally I broke position, removed the upper from the lower, removed the bolt/carrier from the upper, and positioning the chamber so the sun would illuminate the locking recesses, found a staple in there. A tiny paper staple somehow was in the hard case and worked its way into the locking lug recess of the barrel extension. The staple caused an interference fit that prevented the lugs from fully rotating into battery. Again, as I don't have X Ray vision, I could not see that a paper staple had worked its way into the action. I have no idea how a paper stable got into the case, but paperwork is intrinsic to rifle matches.

Actions like the AR15 hide debris, and stuff happens.
 
Slamfire said:
Actions like the AR15 hide debris, and stuff happens.
Click to expand...
Not just AR’s. Several years ago, a customer brought in a Remington 742 that would not go onto battery, locked up pretty tight. Fortunately I was able to get it open without breaking the fragile bolt handle and found the live round in the chamber had a price sticker on it!
 
Kp321 said:
Not just AR’s. Several years ago, a customer brought in a Remington 742 that would not go onto battery, locked up pretty tight. Fortunately I was able to get it open without breaking the fragile bolt handle and found the live round in the chamber had a price sticker on it!
Click to expand...
Lucky it was just a sticker, those Remingtons 740/760s were known for rough chambers and tough extraction- often due to corrosion. I had to hammer one open myself once, not fun.
 
NIGHTLORD40K said:
He's a young fella and this is his first rifle. For all I know he never had a male relative around to teach these things. He is far from an idiot, and we should be glad he is interested in excersizing his 2nd Amendment rights and not an "activist" for the other side like so many of today's youth.

This will be a teachable moment. I have no doubt the lesson will be absorbed.
Click to expand...
No worries, You are doing the right thing. I was just being a little pissy yesterday. I admit I get a little irritated with people who neglect firearms. Endless amounts of videos out there on how to clean and inspect ARs so Im sure he will catch on eventually. 1st rifle is an AR15 LOL. Thats the problem right there. Ill take a wild guess that his firearms expertise has come from the world of video games. He should have started with a little Crickett or some sort of bolt action 22lrlike my kids.... who strip them down and clean after every range session and also oil/lube before before shooting. Some of this stuff is a result of learning firearms from youtube... Hardly anyone there shows pre and post shooting habits which give people a lousy impression of basic firearm practices.
 
NIGHTLORD40K said:
He's a young fella and this is his first rifle. For all I know he never had a male relative around to teach these things. He is far from an idiot, and we should be glad he is interested in excersizing his 2nd Amendment rights and not an "activist" for the other side like so many of today's youth.

This will be a teachable moment. I have no doubt the lesson will be absorbed.
Click to expand...
Excellent approach
 
starling said:
:thumbup:No worries, You are doing the right thing. I was just being a little pissy yesterday. I admit I get a little irritated with people who neglect firearms. Endless amounts of videos out there on how to clean and inspect ARs so Im sure he will catch on eventually. 1st rifle is an AR15 LOL. Thats the problem right there. Ill take a wild guess that his firearms expertise has come from the world of video games. He should have started with a little Crickett or some sort of bolt action 22lrlike my kids.... who strip them down and clean after every range session and also oil/lube before before shooting. Some of this stuff is a result of learning firearms from youtube... Hardly anyone there shows pre and post shooting habits which give people a lousy impression of basic firearm practices.
Click to expand...
:thumbup:
 
Is it possible he was shooting any old steel cased lacquered rounds? There was a big problem with the lacquer melting in the chamber as the gun heats up due to rapid fire. This was well known to cause this type of jam. The perp was old Wolf and Brown Bear rounds produced in Russia.
 
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