Got a new M1A...what now?

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You may want to replace your extractor with a USGI extractor. Springfield Armory extractors have had MANY problems over the years. You can get a USGI M14 extractor at http://www.m1garandparts.com/M14parts.htm.

Second, are you using grease to lubricate the parts? M1As and M14s love a light application of grease in the oprod guide, the bolt lug and roller, and the oprod track.
 
Spartacus

I don't think it's the extractor. The extractor would pull a nice chunk of brass off the rim when the bolt was moved rearward. It was just that the case was sticking in the chamber. To get them out I'd have to let the bolt close and then wait for the case/chamber to cool off enough and then apply considerable constant pressure to get the bolt to come loose again. On the last one, I had to put a block of wood on the bolt handle and then tap the wood lightly with a hammer.

As far as lubrication goes, after I cleaned all the packing grease out of everything, I coated all the parts with EEZOX and then wiped it down, per the instructions on the can. Supposedly the eezox stuff keeps lubricating after it's been wiped down.
 
Take a close look @ your ammo...the symptoms sound kinda like what happened when I shot that Indian Surplus crapola, which had overlarge out of spec dimensions at the neck. (If you do a forum search on India .308, there's pix posted up that show what I'm talking about)

The main difference was that while the ammo jammed the rifle up good, the extractor didn't slip, nor did it tear the rim. It simply failed to cycle, and in order to correct the situation I had to wedge the bolt handle against a tree and lean on the rifle butt, using considerable force.

If your ammo and fired brass are in good order, I'd next suspect that the chamber was out of spec, which can be determined with a go/no go gauge.

AFAIK, the SA ammo doesn't have any funky coatings, and furthermore, I've never heard of coatings being an issue on the M14 platform.
 
contact springfield.

Their warranty is there for a reason.

If I had to venture a guess and ammo was absolutly ruled out, sounds like a rough chamber.
 
Thanks for the info, folks. I'm going to try it out next weekend with some good factory (i.e. non-surplus) ammo. If that gives the same problems, I'll be sending it back.

I've had the worst luck with guns lately. S&W M19 that first had horrible end shake, then started bulging cases. Then a S&W 686 that wouldn't put groups under 5" at 10 yards. Then the M1A issues, and to top it all off, my Sig 226 started FTFing on me this weekend too!

I think I'm going to give up shooting and become a monk!...okay, maybe not. I'll just have to switch to single shots if this doesn't stop... :scrutiny:

Hey, I just notice that with this post, I became a "member" instead of just a newbie...yeaaaaaah!!!!
 
Update

Okay, I took my SOCOM to the range today. It looks like good news this time. I took some Federal and Remington Match 165 gr to use as the "control" ammo. I fired 40 rounds (ouch...kinda stings around the wallet area) without a hitch. Perfect function. Then I loaded some of the surplus ammo that gave me problems earlier (I found out that it was Portuguese, not South African). First shot stuck in the chamber. I went on to have have 8 of 20 rounds fail to eject. Cleaning the chamber in between shots did no good. Then I went back and fired ten rounds of the match .308. Perfect funtion again. Looks like we can safely say that it's the ammo. I took the cases that had stuck to my trusted gunsmith. He pretty much said that since the primers were "flat" it looks like the headspacing on my rifle is too tight for some of the "sloppier" ammo (looks like geekwitha.45 had the right idea). Apparently this is good for accuracy and not so good for eat-any-ammo reliability.

Anyway, I'm looking to find some relatively cheap surplus that has fairly tight tolerances. Anyone have a good suggestion? I've heard really good things about Australian 7.62 nato.

Okay, since memorial day is next weekend I probably won't have another chance to go to the range until June. I'll put in another update then, if anyone is interested.

Oh, and just in case anyone cares about the performance...
I haven't yet moved to the 100 yd range. I'm still at 25 trying to work out the functioning. Still, the groups are about 3" at 25. It just seems to me that the front post is too thick for much better than that (at least in my hands). When I get some optics, I'll try figuring out the actuall accuracy. Overall, I love the way the rifle handles and shoots. Recoil is noticeably heavier than my Mini 30 of course, but not at all unmanagable since I'm used to shooting the same ammo in my Browning BLR (Belgium made...booyah!). I'd have to say I feel only slightly more recoil than with a .30-30. Blast doesn't seem any more noticable than full house defense loads in my 686.
 
Australian Ammo Does the Same thing

I have an M1A with a National Match Barrel. I started having the exact same problems of failure to extract the fired case. I sent it to Springfield. They installed a new bolt and the new headspace was slightly larger. They fired 20 rounds of Lake City, and 20 rounds of Winchester. No failures to extract.

I took it to the range and had failure to extract with the Australian Ammo again. So I bought Winchester .308 ammo and Got some Lake City 7.62 National Match Ammo. 20 Rounds Lake city- no Failures to extract. 20 Rounds Winchester- No Failures to extract. Re-tried the Australian ammo, failure to extract on 5th round. It appears that at least the years of 1983 and 1990, the brass from the shoulder up expands outward but never contracts back as the other American made ammo did. Foreign Military surplus is iffy and quality of brass and specs may depend on year and lot. :cuss:
 
Buy a GOOD shooting sling.
Learn to really shoot.
In other words, NEVER use a bench or a rest.
 
Still, the groups are about 3" at 25. It just seems to me that the front post is too thick for much better than that (at least in my hands).
Click to expand...

I think that's probably more a matter of practice than anything else, but it also sounds like you've only got a couple hundred rounds through the thing at this point, and are still sorting out some fundamental issues with the rifle and setup.

Once you do have it sorted out, even with more tolerant headspacing, @ 25, that rifle should be able to punch 1/2-3/4 inch single hole groups, especially if you're shooting from the bench. If you're shooting standing/unsupported, you're in the ballpark, with room for improvement.
 
Ammo Theory may not be right

I just came back from shooting my M1A and it had three failures to extract with Lake City Ammo!!! So The Australian Ammo may not be the problem. Looks like it may be an extractor problem or there is something wrong with the chamber itself.
 
It should function reliably with surplus ammo. We are dealing with a 16" bbl. here and a new configuration for SA. I would send it back post haste. It will cost you $20 but you need to have a reliable rifle.
 
It's Going Back to Springfield Armory

They said they would reimburse me for the shipping. I said Fix it or Give me a new Gun as this one is new and has been in repair more than I have shot it. I sent it back today. I'll keep you posted on whether Springfield makes good on its warranty for the second time. If it were me I would just replace it with a new rifle. If they keep paying for the shipment , I'll keep sending it back until they get it right and shoot my Garand while they fix it. Pretty soon they will realize that they are loosing a lot of money on shipping and damaging their reputation at the same time.
 
What comes next.

Do the same thing the NYC cop said to do when asked "How do I get to Madison Square Garden?"
"PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!!"
There is how the government says to do it, then there is what really works.
 
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