Bonehead Assembly Mistakes

[WayneConrad]

I took my SKS to the range this weekend. I got 3 rounds out of it before I had to put it away. I made this remarkable, amazing discovery:

When a gas operated rifle is assembled without the gas tube extension and gas tube extension spring, it becomes a bolt operated rifle with a whole lot of extra parts.

What is your remarkable, amazing discovery caused by a bonehead assembly mistake? Fess up! You'll ease your burden, and best of all, you'll make me feel like I'm not the only bonehead in the bunch.

 

[280PLUS]

If they glue the two piece guide rod in your 1911 together with Loctite it makes it VERY difficult to take apart.

 

[Devonai]

It wasn't my fault, but I have seen first-hand the results of installing an M16A2's firing pin retaining pin from the right side of the bolt instead of the left. The soldier got one shot out of it before it jammed up solid. Fortunately it was a blank round and the firing pin retaining pin still did it's job. We couldn't fix the rifle in the field, so it had to be pulled off the line. I still wonder how the armorer dealt with it.

 

[hso]

Cartridge lifter upside down in a Garand.

 

[Dave R]

We'd probably need another forum just for Century Arms. Or maybe they don't qualify as bonehead. Just incompetent. 2 rifles, 4 issues.

-SAR-3, trigger opening in the receiver not cut right. Had to file out the opening to get the trigger to operate.

-SAR-3, canted sight block. (fortunately not too bad. But how hard is it to assemble a rifle STRAIGHT?)

-CETME: Burr on the receiver in the mag well, preventing the mag catch from seating fully. Caused some mags (particularly the supplied 5-rounders) to eject at every shot. Fortunately, it was a 3-minute dremel fix (after time spent diagnosing the problem) and now the mags work perfectly.

-CETME: canted triple frame. Required a new front sight with more travel to zero the sights. How hard is it to assemble a rifle STRAIGHT?

Have to confess, both rifles are among my favorites now that the bugs are worked out. Too bad Century can't build them properly to begin with.

 

[Azrael256]

I still wonder how the armorer dealt with it.

I just asked my brother (45B). His reply was "big f-in' screwdriver."

 

[heypete]

1) When cleaning my Ruger 10/22, I accidentally tapped out the wrong pin in the trigger assembly. Springs, parts, etc. decided to launch themselves in all directions. I gathered what I could, put them in a baggie, and took them to the gunsmith. Most stuff I'll put back together, but the trigger group is just too important for me to be mucking around with yet. I wanted to ensure it would be safe.

2) Put an SKS together, but forgot the fixed magazine. The bolt was already locked back (I reached in the receiver and actuated the latch, so I should have known!), but I put a stripper clip of ammo in the top, pushed down, and watched the rounds hit the floor. Embarassment ensued.

3) Put a Glock back together without a barrel. Duuuurrrrrr....

4) Put a Glock back together without a mainspring. Durrrrrr....

 

[Ky Larry]

IIRC, the Ross rifle carried by Canadian troops in WWI was a bolt action. If the bolt was assembled incorrectly., when fired part of the bolt would be blown backward into the shooters eye with enough force to kill the shooter. Anyone else ever heard of this or am I completely wrong?

 

[Standing Wolf]

It took me awhile to realize Smith & Wesson side plate screws aren't alike.

 

[cracked butt]

IIRC, the Ross rifle carried by Canadian troops in WWI was a bolt action. If the bolt was assembled incorrectly., when fired part of the bolt would be blown backward into the shooters eye with enough force to kill the shooter. Anyone else ever heard of this or am I completely wrong?

That happened to some gun collector a year or two ago.

 

[Jim K]

I think the accident mentioned was with a Winchester-Lee straight pull, not a Ross.

The Ross M10 bolt can indeed be assembled wrong, but it is not easy to do and it is not easy to force it home when it is. Nonetheless, I have no doubt that at least one such accident happened in WWI.

Jim

 

[WayneConrad]

Ok, I feel a little better now. Don't you?

At least I haven't done anything dumb enough to win me the Darwin award.

 

[entropy]

I did not do this one, but had to fix it. An incompetent armorer for one of my BN's companys inserted 5 M60 gas pistons in backwards, in effect creating some 23 lb. straight-pull rifles. I had gone to the range with this unit hoping to get some trigger time, and ended up reinstalling the gas assemblies the correct way. (This includes using a wire twister to lock the cap nut down.) I did still get to fire the 60's that day, plus got an 'atta boy' letter from thier CO, and his insistance that I go to the range with them as much as possible.

 

[YammyMonkey]

The buffer on my AR was falling apart, apparently missing the roll pin that keeps everything together so I pulled it out, went to the local smith to get the pin then went shooting intending to check the buffer every few mags as it usually took about 3 full mags before the thing would fall apart.

Guess who forgot to reinstall his buffer and fired about 10 rounds with just the spring in the buffer tube?

Worked fine but the springy-stock sound was a little different.

 

[Commissar Gribb]

tried to strip my AK's bolt and through use of incompetance and a sledge hammer, managed to shear the firing pin retaining pin in half.

luckily I found a replacement pin, but for a while I was lacking a functional bolt.

 

[nico]

I've put my SX2 back together without the bolt and gas piston on two separate occasions. But, I realized the extra parts I had before I put it back in the case.

The SKS that I bought today (that came from Century Arms by way of a local dealer) had the recoil spring installed backwards. Anybody know if anything bad would have happened if I fired it that way?

 

[chopinbloc]

funny how a disproportionate number of these stories are military. i have been advised that if one tries to remove the backplate on an m2 with the bolt cocked, one is likely to get the guide rod and spring through the chest with enough force to kill. i have discovered, through personal experience that if you try to assemble an m-16 without installing the spring and buffer, as soon as you attempt a function check you'll find the bolt lodged in the buttstock. only remedy i know of is to smack the rifle muzzle first on a solid object. guess that's why we do function checks. well a wise man learns from other's mistakes, and average man learns from his own mistakes and a fool just doesn't learn. i'm a fool. made the same mistake a couple times with an m-16 and several times with an ar. don't even ask me how many times tiny springs and pins have launched themselves across the room due to a failure on my part to control them when i knew darn well the pressure the part was under.
step 1. launch spring and/or pin
step 2. sit with stupid expression on face
step 3. spend at least three hours looking for said part before giving up and ordering at least three spares. (if it can happen once...)
i swear i'm gonna buy a metal detector.

 

[HSMITH]

One of my guys forgot the lock pin for the firing pin retainer on an M60. It came apart about halfway through the first belt, with ME shooting it.

I put the slide on my Glock one time without a recoil spring, it takes some contortions but it comes apart fairly easily. I also put the gas rings on my 1100 upside down once, made for a nice single shot.

 

[jefnvk]

The SKS that I bought today (that came from Century Arms by way of a local dealer) had the recoil spring installed backwards.

While Century usually has drunken monkey quality on rifles they assemble, that one rests square on the Yugos (or the guy that took it apart in the store before you got it).

I do know that if you try and remove the reciever cover on an SKS when the bolt is back, parts fly.

Also, the magazine goes in BEFORE the trigger assembly on an SKS.

 

[cslinger]

I reassembled a HS2000 without the recoil guide and spring once. I have done the upside down Garand lifter too.

My worst really wasn't a mistake so to speak. I was disassembling a Mauser bolt and doing so properly. Well I really didn't realize just how much spring pressure was on the firing pin, not to metion the fact that it is as long as a spear, and one thing led to another and I managed to launch it into the side of a fire safe...........where it stuck. I am lucky I didn't fire that thing through my leg.

Ohhh yeah and I actually disassembled one of those Kimber captive recoil springs once.................ONCE. :banghead:

Chris

 

[foghornl]

Lessons learned as a teen-ager...{not exactly assembly mistakes, but close}

Do not dissassemble your Rem Nylon 66 any farther than able to remove barrel & bolt. If you do so, be prepared to "brown bag" it down to your local Remington Guru for reassembly.

Do not look into the open port of a Rem 1100 shotty, then reach way back into the lower part of the receiver, with the question "What does this shiny button thingy do?" You will find out in about a micro-second as the bolt slams shut, driving the extractor into your hand.

 

[Rabid Rabbit]

1. Prep shotgun for deer season by removing mag plug and losing the retaining cap when the spring pops out.
2. After unsessful deer season forget I don't have a retaining cap in my shotgun.
3. Take shotgun apart on front porch to install mag plug for second part of goose season.
4. Watch with amazement as the mag spring travels over 120 feet and gets lost in a patch of brush.

 

[dleong]

step 1. launch spring and/or pin
step 2. sit with stupid expression on face
step 3. spend at least three hours looking for said part before giving up and ordering at least three spares. (if it can happen once...)

Whoaaa... this is scary. You just described exactly what happened last week, when I took apart the hammer/sear assembly of my 9mm FN HP-DA for the first time ever, and the tiny sear tensioning spring launched itself into some random part of my living room. And yes, I did order three replacement sear springs.

However, in my case, there was an additional step:

Step 4: Several days later, while lounging on favourite comfy sofa, experience sharp, jabbing pain under right thigh as it slides across missing sear spring lodged in stitching at corner of sofa seat.



DL

 

[Zach S]

The buffer on my AR was falling apart, apparently missing the roll pin that keeps everything together so I pulled it out, went to the local smith to get the pin then went shooting intending to check the buffer every few mags as it usually took about 3 full mags before the thing would fall apart.

Guess who forgot to reinstall his buffer and fired about 10 rounds with just the spring in the buffer tube?

That reminds me of an officer that came into the store with his M4gery that was having problems. I cant remember what the problems were, but I do remember that a missing buffer and spring was the cause...

After cleaning a Para C7.45 LDA, I forgot to install the guide rod. I didnt notice this at the range, when I noticed it was missing after 50 rounds (after 50 rounds, I normally had to tighten the guide rod). While its "well known" that any 1911 shorter than a commander is more likely to be unreliable, mine functioned fine.

Glocks have to be dry-fired before dissassembly.

Ruger P95DCs need the extractor folded down before dissassembly. Fold it back up after reassembly.

Be carefull of the slide stop when folding the above extractor down

The series 80 parts in the top of Colt and Para frames dont hold up to well when a slide hits them during reassembly.

mainspring cap = required part.

 

[Carl N. Brown]

miss steaks

Ok, I took the side plate off my AR7 at the range; the magazine catch
spring launched itself into the grass. Duh.

Before removing the receiver cover of a Remington 66, cock the gun and
put the safety ON and leave it there. If that striker follows the bolt out
of the receiver, it takes three hands to return the striker to cocked position
absolutely necessary for reassembly.