So I'm now the proud owner of my very first AR-15.
LMT M-4 16" upper (cb, 1/7), Bushmaster lower, KAC RAS-II, LMT BUIS, ACE ARFX stock.
The stock was purchased from Model 1 Sales and came with the receiver extension, buffer spring, and buffer - which I suspect might be part of my problem.
Q3131A ammo. I know, I'll get better groups with heavier stuff in my 1/7 barrel.
I picked up an older GI 30-round mag and 3 "in the bag" SA-80 mags at the gunshow today.
Went home, gave the Beren Sunset Rifle a cleaning, made sure it was oiled as per the book, and hit the range.
Right away, I started to have problems with the mags. The first round simply was not feeding - the bolt wasn't stripping the round from the magazine. After fiddling with the magazine and reinserting it, I did get it to feed.
I only experience this malfunction after inserting a magazine, and it doesn't happen regularly. In every case, the magazine appears to be properly inserted and locked in place.
When the rifle cycles upon firing, it functions flawlessly.
The frequency of the "initial round feeding problem" declined as time went on.
Q1: How "snappy" should the bolt return to battery? Mine seems to return a little "soft", which might be due to a cheapo M1S buffer spring.
Q2: Is there something I should be doing to break in the magazines themselves? (As far as breaking in the rifle, the general consensus I received was "clean it, oil it, and shoot the darn thing for a couple hundred rounds. Then take it home, clean it, and do the same tomorrow.")
Q3: Inserting a mag with the bolt closed is difficult. I'm strong enough to force it in easily enough, but is that going to damage my AR? Or do I just slap it home?
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Around round 80, I either had a light primer strike or a hard primer. In either case, the round didn't fire. Which brings me to another question:
From the book I was reading, it states that if you experience a misfire you have ten seconds to clear the round before you're in danger of a cook-off. However, general firearms safety states you must always wait at least 30 seconds in case of a hangfire.
Q4: Which rule takes precedence? Do I worry more about a cook-off or a hangfire?
Today, I followed the 10 second rule and made sure the ejected round went someplace safe for a few minutes. I finished the rest of that magazine without incident. After a few minutes passed, I inspected the "misfire" round. It looked like it had a proper primer strike, but the round hadn't fired. I put it back in a mag, charged, aimed, and squeezed the trigger. This time it fired.
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General observations:
- My eyesight sucks. I need new glasses.
- I need to get back in shape!
- At first I was getting, ah, embarrassing groups at 50 yards, but I improved with time. Once I can achieve acceptable groups (4cm?), I'll worry about setting a proper zero. I'm reasonably sure it's me and not the rifle.
- That barrel gets hot!
- Aluminum mags are noticably lighter than steel. I bet that adds up if you're carrying 20 of them.
- I need to wear plugs under my muffs. At least, until I purchase that suppressor.
- I want a collapsing buttstock. It'd make transport that much more convenient. In a couple weeks I'll probably put down the cash for an LMT Crane or a Vltor.
LMT M-4 16" upper (cb, 1/7), Bushmaster lower, KAC RAS-II, LMT BUIS, ACE ARFX stock.
The stock was purchased from Model 1 Sales and came with the receiver extension, buffer spring, and buffer - which I suspect might be part of my problem.
Q3131A ammo. I know, I'll get better groups with heavier stuff in my 1/7 barrel.
I picked up an older GI 30-round mag and 3 "in the bag" SA-80 mags at the gunshow today.
Went home, gave the Beren Sunset Rifle a cleaning, made sure it was oiled as per the book, and hit the range.
Right away, I started to have problems with the mags. The first round simply was not feeding - the bolt wasn't stripping the round from the magazine. After fiddling with the magazine and reinserting it, I did get it to feed.
I only experience this malfunction after inserting a magazine, and it doesn't happen regularly. In every case, the magazine appears to be properly inserted and locked in place.
When the rifle cycles upon firing, it functions flawlessly.
The frequency of the "initial round feeding problem" declined as time went on.
Q1: How "snappy" should the bolt return to battery? Mine seems to return a little "soft", which might be due to a cheapo M1S buffer spring.
Q2: Is there something I should be doing to break in the magazines themselves? (As far as breaking in the rifle, the general consensus I received was "clean it, oil it, and shoot the darn thing for a couple hundred rounds. Then take it home, clean it, and do the same tomorrow.")
Q3: Inserting a mag with the bolt closed is difficult. I'm strong enough to force it in easily enough, but is that going to damage my AR? Or do I just slap it home?
========
Around round 80, I either had a light primer strike or a hard primer. In either case, the round didn't fire. Which brings me to another question:
From the book I was reading, it states that if you experience a misfire you have ten seconds to clear the round before you're in danger of a cook-off. However, general firearms safety states you must always wait at least 30 seconds in case of a hangfire.
Q4: Which rule takes precedence? Do I worry more about a cook-off or a hangfire?
Today, I followed the 10 second rule and made sure the ejected round went someplace safe for a few minutes. I finished the rest of that magazine without incident. After a few minutes passed, I inspected the "misfire" round. It looked like it had a proper primer strike, but the round hadn't fired. I put it back in a mag, charged, aimed, and squeezed the trigger. This time it fired.
=========
General observations:
- My eyesight sucks. I need new glasses.
- I need to get back in shape!
- At first I was getting, ah, embarrassing groups at 50 yards, but I improved with time. Once I can achieve acceptable groups (4cm?), I'll worry about setting a proper zero. I'm reasonably sure it's me and not the rifle.
- That barrel gets hot!
- Aluminum mags are noticably lighter than steel. I bet that adds up if you're carrying 20 of them.
- I need to wear plugs under my muffs. At least, until I purchase that suppressor.
- I want a collapsing buttstock. It'd make transport that much more convenient. In a couple weeks I'll probably put down the cash for an LMT Crane or a Vltor.