EFK fire dragon Barrel not feeding ammo

[TigerBight]

I purchased a EFK fire dragon barrel for my HK p30 40. I'm having problems with it feeding ammo into the chamber. Any ideas how to fix the problem. I purchased it so I could shoot 180 gr missiouri lead bullets in it as I do the same with my 10mm. The chamber seems a bit tighter than the factory HK barrel.

 

[LiveLife]

I do not have experience with EFK barrel so I can't comment on the barrel but do you have any problem feeding factory ammo? If you are having problem feeding factory ammo, you need to contact EFK Fire Dragon.

If it feeds factory ammo without problem, then you may have a different issue for shooting lead reloads. I use tight chambered Lone Wolf barrels in Glocks and factory ammo will feed/chamber without issues but if lead reloads are not loaded to proper dimensions, it will not feed/chamber fully.

First, make sure you are full length sizing the spent case. Drop a resized case only (no bullet) in the barrel out of the pistol - it should fall in freely. If it doesn't, you will need to adjust the resizing die down so it will full-length size the case further down.

Most lead 40S&W bullets are sized to .401" diameter (instead of .400" for jacketed) and you need to use no larger than .421" taper crimp at the case neck. Do a barrel drop test to determine if you have the right taper crimp and OAL. For MBC 180 gr TCFP (IDP #5), initially try 1.125" OAL and see if the loaded round falls in the chamber freely. If the round falls in freely and spin without hitting the rifling, next do a function check by manually feeding the round from the magazine and releasing the slide lock (do not ride the slide with your hand). If you have reliable feeding/chambering from magazine with this combination, then you are good to go for powder charge work up. Begining at the start charge, incrementally work up until you have reliable slide cycling/extraction with consistent accurate shot groups.

If the loaded round don't fall in freely into the chamber, color the outside of the case with a marker and push into the chamber to see what part of the case is rubbing the chamber. If it requires a lot of effort to fully chamber the finished round, the chamber will need to be enlarged to reliably feed/chamber larger diameter lead reloads. You can contact EFK fire dragon to have this work done (Lone Wolf will do this work if you send along your dummy rounds with the barrel). If it only require a slight push to fully chamber the loaded round, you can do this yourself. I outlined the work on this thread - http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=561116

 

[TigerBight]

Ty bds very good info. the efk barrel is well put together and I did get most of my berrys plated reloads to cycle. I pulled the barrel and placed a lead reload in the chamber. It was snug and I did have to give it a little push to seat. The same lead sliped into the factory barrel with no pushing. I'm at work for the next couple of weeks as I work out of town on the north slope. I will play more with it when I return home i'm sure your info shale fix the problem. I do enjoy a good project. thanks again.

 

[Apocalypse-Now]

if you google EFK barrels, they have an absolutely terrible reputation for QC. their customer service is known to be equally as bad. a couple seconds of googling can save you a lot of headaches.

 

[LiveLife]

Apocalypse, the OP already purchased an EFK barrel. When reloaders post their problems with a certain product they already purchased, posting "such and such product has poor QC and CS sucks" won't do anything to help the poster. OP posted that he got the EFK barrel so he can shoot lead reloads out of his polygonal rifled HK pistol. BTW, most aftermarket barrels have tighter than factory chambers and were meant to feed/chamber jacketed diameter reloads. Just because one experiences feeding/chambering issues with larger diameter lead reloads doesn't mean the barrel has poor QC.

I can only speak for Lone Wolf but one would also think their CS sucked when they are told LWD barrels are also meant for jacketed diameter reloads and lead reloads should not be used in their barrels without paying extra money to have the chamber enlarged. Well, some of us want to shoot lead reloads out of our pistols that have polygonal rifling and that often means we'll have to have the tighter chambers enlarged. Simple.

TigerBight, you are very welcome. Keep us posted on your progress.

 

[powwowell]

Warning! Warning! I will never, ever buy a EFK product again. Dealing with their customer service was one of the worse experiences of my life.

 

[shootinxd]

I also had quality issue with EFK barrel for my XD.Broke(yes BROKE) 2 barrels at the locking lug.Finally got a refund.Good luck,let us know how it works out.

 

[jackpinesavages]

Shoot, I have an EFK 7" for one of my Glocks and it rocks.

Is it your reloads?

 

[TigerBight]

Just returned home from work. I seated the lead bullets a bit deeper. Most chambered with no problem. and the couple that hung up I was able to reload as a single and they chambered fine. the chamber is tighter than the hk barrel so I think I will work the chamber a bit as bds has done. I'm sure the .401 lead is a factor' all and all I'm happy with the barrel and pretty much shot out the middle of the target at 25 yds. Thank you all for the help.

 

[shootinxd]

Jack,
Nope ,165grn Berry's with 7grns AA5.Shot thousands in stock barrel with no problems.

 

[LiveLife]

the couple that hung up I was able to reload as a single and they chambered fine.

If they pass the barrel drop test, you may not need to modify the chamber.

I would try adjusting the OAL to see if they feed/chamber from the magazine when the slide is released.

 

[Striker Fired]

I have issues with my Kart barrel and lead bullets.Does that mean Kart is crap? No,they are optimized for accuracy and one of the prices to pay for that is issues with lead because they tend to be bigger od,add to that the different wall thicknesses in brass (I can only run a certain H/S brass with lead in my Kart because of it)and you wiil have hicups.

 

[Rodentman]

I have EFK barrels for my G17, G20, and G29 and have not had any issues with them at all. They have tighter chambers than the stock Glock barrels but I daresay any aftermarket bbl is tighter than a Glock.

 

[jackpinesavages]

Yup, my KKM and EFK Dragon barrels have been the sh*t with properly reloaded ammo and factory stuff.