Aarrggh! Need AK Help.

[jesse485]

Apparently, I have the world's rarest problem: an unreliable AKM. Firearm in question is a Century (of course) built Yugo underfolder. Due to financial issues (ammo costs and college budget) I have not fired the gun since the day I bought it.

My issue is that the gun does not like to feed from the left side of ANY of my mags. It jams about 1/2 the time with FMJ and almost all the time with HP ammo. I just got finished cleaning the chamber, which seems to have made NO difference. It seems to especially have this issue when it is cold, but still has issues once it warms up. This is especially unnerving since this is my truck gun. Here are some (crappy) pics of the problem taken with a cell phone.

This is a shot of the chamber from the top of the rifle:


Here is a shot from the magwell:


Another shot of the bolt and cartridge:


Can anybody help me out? The bolt seems to be riding over the top of the cartridge for some reason. I cannot replicate this (of course) by slowly hand chambering, but pulling the bolt back and letting it slam forward does this. Again, this is only happens with the left side of my mags, the right side feeds properly EVERY time. Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[halfacop]

Okay - I'll start with the obvious question........

Have you tried another type of mag other than the type you own. Or are they all different manufactures?

 

[Glock Holiday]

+1 on the mag question.I assume you're shooting it with the stock extended.Also believe it or not you can limp wrist a underfolder.Are you consistently holding it the same since you say it works half the time? Does it jam with the stock stowed?If you rule out the mags and ammo as problematic then send it back to Century,they will fix it for you.I have several Yugo AK's and they are worth sending back to get fixed.

 

[JWarren]

Just to play the options (I'd check the magazines first), how does the magazines lock up? Does it look crooked? How about the rails? Does the bolt seem to be higher on one side or the other?

If it isn't simply a magazine issue, there is a chance that the magazine isn't set high enough on one side to allow for the bolt to strip a round from that side. Or the Bolt may be riding too high on that side on the rails.

Just brainstorming...


-- John

 

[AndyC]

Century managed to bugger-up an AK? Whoa...

Hope you get it fixed, mate

 

[jesse485]

Well, to clarify, this is only during hand-chambering, as I don't have the money or time for the range. I cleaned the chamber a little more, but it seems the cold has the most to do with it. Mags consist of three promags (color me unimpressed), a Yugo BHO, and what looks like a Romanian. The steel mags seem to run a little smoother. Now that the rifle is warm, no issues go figure. I realize that none of this matters as long as the rifle doesn't choke while being fired (one of these days), but still disconcerting to see on something that needs to be reliable. Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[jpwilly]

Promags Suck!!!

 

[blackhawk2000]

This means nothing until you actually shoot the gun. Slow hand cycling my WASR will cause the bullet tip to hit the chamber wall, and not feed. FMJ, or HP doesn't matter. However by not riding the bolt, and actually shooting the gun, feed is 100% with FMJ, and 80% with HP.

 

[SecuritySixShooter]

How did you chamber it? You gotta let that bolt do its thing. Pull all the way back and release. Don't try and ride it in with your hand. I wouldnt do it anywhere but the range though. Wouldnt be pretty to have a slamfire. Plus there will be a lot questions to answer.

 

[jesse485]

How did you chamber it? You gotta let that bolt do its thing. Pull all the way back and release. Don't try and ride it in with your hand. I wouldnt do it anywhere but the range though. Wouldnt be pretty to have a slamfire. Plus there will be a lot questions to answer.

Here's the odd thing: it seems to choke more the harder I let it go back. I'm just gonna chalk it up to slightly gummed chamber, old ammo, and not liking the cold. I REALLY need to get out and shoot the thing.

 

[jpwilly]

Yes you really should go shoot it before posting about a problem that may or may not exists...don't you think?? But to be fair this proably alarmed you and posting here is for better or worse a good idea. Now go shoot the thing! BTW it's suppost to work whether is cold or not!

 

[JWarren]

BTW it's suppost to work whether is cold or not!

Bingo.


-- John

 

[fchavis]

I agree that you need to put some rounds down range. The other thing to do is get another make of mag. You may have faulty mags or it may be the receiver, but either way, another spare is always a good thing to have once you get the rifle running.

It looks like the mag isn't sitting high enough in the reciever to reliably feed. The fact that the frequency of the jams increases the faster the bolt travels supports this theory. The faster the bolt movement, the greater the downward force on the round - it slips under the bolt and jams. When it moves slow, friction wins over the downward push.

wasr 10s don't have anything resembling a feed ramp so the HPs deform on the breach face during chambering. This makes it more likely the round will stop moving forward and jam under the bolt.

 

[tallpaul]

well the obvious thing that jumps out at me is that you are already carrying that in your truck as a truck gun and you have not shot it yet? The time ya need it is not the best time to shoot it for the first time....

 

[Glock Holiday]

Shoot it. If it doesn't work then come post your problems and we'll try to help.
Hand cycling problems aren't really a problem.You bought it to shoot.
Shoot it.I bet it cycles fine.

 

[walking arsenal]

Promags Suck!!!

Well, theres your problem!

I agree, promags are awful stuff.

I'd check those first.

 

[LiquidTension]

Yes, Promags are awful. That Romanian should run fine though. Being hot or cold shouldn't have any effect on function unless it's so cold that the lube is freezing, and AKs will run on practically no lube anyway.

This wouldn't be the first time that the receiver on an AK is seating the mag too low, either.

 

[deth502]

if its a wasr 10, i would guess it might be the mag shifting too far to the side due to having no stabilizers. try putting light force on the side of the mag to keep it to the other side of the mag well and see how that works. you may need to epoxy some shims in there.

other than that, id agree the mag might be sitting too low. a magh sitting too far back would do this too, but thats nearly impossible in an ak since the mag locks into the front trunnion.