Live round stuck in AR-15 chamber

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HOOfan_1

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Hey,

I was shooting my Ar at the range today...I shot about 130 rounds at the 50 and moved over to the 100. I was up to about 900 rounds trouble free until today.

On my first mag at the 100 I dropped the bolt on a full 30 pmag M2. When I squeezed the trigger I heard the hammer drop, but no boom.
I dropped the mag and pulled back on the charging handle, but it was plain stuck.

I was able to take the upper off and saw that the bolt was not in battery. I could push it into battery with some force, and I can pull it back about a quarter inch before it won't go any further.


Edit: I know there is a round in there because exactly 1 is missing from my box. I was shooting my reloads. R-P brass 1 time fired, 24 grains H335 55 grain Hornady FMJBT

Gun is assembled by me....Daniel defense upper with DPMS forward assist. Daniel Defense full auto carrier and DD bolt. Daniel Defense M4 profile 16" CHF chrome lined barrel.

I was thinking about spraying Ballistol down the muzzle and taking a wooden dowel and rubber mallet to tap the back portion of the bolt carrier....does this sound like a bad idea?
 
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Yes. Don't use a wooden dowel. If the cartridge is stuck good the bullet tip can splinter the dowel causing it to wedge around it making a biggere jam. Use a cleaning rod or something similar that fills the bore diameter.. As far as how to knock it loose I'll let someone more familiar with a AR to answer. You don't want to knock the cartridge back hard against the bolt face and have it go off. Good luck.
 
I was using the dowel on the back of the bolt carrier, not on the tip of the bullet...that might have nocked the primer into the firing pin snd...boom, no more hand.

I went ahead and tapped a dowel on the underside of the back of the bolt carrier and extracted the round....everything looks fine.......maybe a very dirty chamber:confused:
 
You're gonna need to keep the rifle pointed in a safe direction while you pull back on the charging handle and smartly smack the butt of the rifle on the ground. Best to do this kneeling with your head away from the muzzle.

Nvm, you got it out. Glad you're in one piece.
 
I was using the dowel on the back of the bolt carrier, not on the tip of the bullet...that might have nocked the primer into the firing pin snd...boom, no more hand.

I went ahead and tapped a dowel on the underside of the back of the bolt carrier and extracted the round....everything looks fine.......maybe a very dirty chamber:confused:
Either that or maybe a round did not get resized properly/enough.
 
that might have nocked the primer into the firing pin
Can't happen.

The AR-15/M16 firing pin is shorter then the bolt & carrier extended.
The only time the firing pin is there is when the carrier is fully telescoped over the bolt and rotated it into the barrel extension and locked it shut.

At all other times, it is retracted by the cam pin key and cannot possibly reach the primer of a round in the chamber.

rc
 
Did you FL resize that round? Maybe you missed it or something. But if you did'nt the bullet would have fell in the shell while reloading so IDK. Just asking as I have missed one or two in my year's of doing it I'm sure.
 
there are two common problems like this. they are very different and you should think about them before you start with the remedial actions.

1. problem with the round in the chamber, usually the brass has not been trimmed properly or sized enough. the correct remedial action is "pogo-ing" the gun as described by clp above (in addition to keeping the muzzle in a safe direction, you also want to collapse the stock)

2. problem with popped primer on the previous round that has lodged itself somewhere it shouldn't be, usually in the cam pin hole, or the lugs, but occasionally in really weird places like inside the carrier key! the more you beat on it, the more you will crush that little piece of soft metal into whatever spot it's in. so it's often best to invert the gun and sort of jiggle the CH to see if you can get the thing to fall out.
 
Taliv, I save all my brass, so before I went to work on it, I made sure no primers were popped and no necks were separated and possibly stuck in the chamber

Rcmodel...true, I could pull the bolt back a quarter inch...so the firing pin wouldn't reach....now if it were completely stuck in battery...maybe

I resize and decap at the same time, so it was resized...maybe just not good enough
 
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You could have probably extracted that stuck round by simply pulling back on the charging handle while sharply impacting the butt of the rifle on a wooden shooting bench or something similar. I have freed rounds on at least two occasions using that technique.

The inertia of the sudden stop of the rifle with the pressure on the charge handle will usually free the round.

Problem with impacting the charge handle alone with a tool of some sort is that it was not intended to withstand force in that manner and it's likely to be marred or deformed.
 
I have no problem with the above "field expedient" methods for use in the field or combat environment. However, I believe that the OP used a much smarter method for a non-emergency. His method focused the force on the steel components vs the aluminum. Any thing you can do to avoid beating on your expensive equipment is good. Why induce unnecessary wear and tear?
 
Give Mr. Stoner some credit! Although the AR platform is not as robust as the AK, it is a pretty rugged piece of equipment and has served well in the hands of trained as well as green troops for 50 years.
 
I take nothing away from Gene Stoner. Met the man and am a big fan. I've owned ARs since the early 70s and carried one version or another in uniform for over 30 years. A personally owned firearm will be repaired via your wallet, not Uncle Sam's. Therefore, I will apply the appropriate solution for the circumstances at hand.
 
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