Failure to Fire and Stuck Charging Handle

[CTGunner]

Scenario - AR-15 Rifle. Remington .223 Ammo. Trigger is pulled on 5th round in mag and 'click' nothing happens. The magazine is removed and gun is put on safe. The charging handle will not pull back under 'normal' force. Repeated extremely hard pulling on the handle forces the round to extract. The round is unfired, the primer is not dimpled (I don't understand how this is possible), and the area where the case meets the bullet is 'peeled' back a few centimeters. Reloaded and the gun fired without issue.


Is this more likely a gun or ammo issue? Is there a better way to handle this?

 

[AR-15 Rep]

Sounds like you had some kind of debri that jammd the round in the chamber. The reason it didn't dimple the round was the bolt and carrier did not close all the way. There may be something floating around the bolt lugs, so I would check that before firing again. When that round jammed in there, the extractor on the bolt was keeping you from pulling it back easy to eject the round. Check your extractor for wear or damage as well.

 

[rcmodel]

the area where the case meets the bullet is 'peeled' back a few centimeters.

That right there prevented the bolt from going into battery fully and locking.

On an AR-15, if the bolt isn't locked and the bolt carrier all the way foreward, the firing pin can't reach the primer to set it off.

rc

 

[Bobarino]

sounds like you had a round that had the neck damaged during manufacture and it may have been exacerbated buy being loaded from the mag into the chamber. i'd definitely call it an ammo problem. if it happens again, i'd look at things like the top front edge of the magazine or damage to the feed ramps that might be snagging the mouth of the case.

Bobby

 

[CTGunner]

I learn something here every day. Good info. Thanks guys.