SG-542 ERE Elite Rifle Issues

A

aerobeast

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Good Evening,

Just picked up a SG-542 yesterday and brought it to the range today.

I shot 40 rounds of 308 PMC bronze 147gr fmj and 20 rounds of Barnaul steel case 145gr fmj.

I had 5 failures to eject. Also, it looks like one of the magazines that came with the rifle fails to hold the bolt open when empty, and the other failed to do so once.

Do you guys think this is an issue with the rifle? Or is it too much cheap ammo perhaps? Anyone else have these issues with the standard magazines?

I bought the rifle from a fairly reputable dealer.

Thanks!
 
Did you lubricate the rifle before use ? Also the PMC ammo is top notch & /shouldn't be any concern for you, regarding the magazine did you try to see if the magazine inserted empty will lock the action & compare the followers in your magazines also.

gadget
 
gadget said:
Did you lubricate the rifle before use ? Also the PMC ammo is top notch & /shouldn't be any concern for you, regarding the magazine did you try to see if the magazine inserted empty will lock the action & compare the followers in your magazines also.

gadget
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No, I didn't lubricate the rifle before my first use. I did a quick field strip last night and inspected it, and it looked like it was very well lubricated... the bolt was very clean, and even dripping in some places. I took it apart again today and it was still very lubricated and clean.

Yes I tried inserting the magazines empty, and they really don't like to hold the action open. It's hit and miss for both magazines. The one magazine in particular really won't hold the action open at all. When shooting they had about the same failure rate. I did compare the magazines side by side, and if there are any differences in measurements, it would be too small for me to see. What would I be looking for exactly?
 
The issue with hold open is common in Gen 1. Gen 2 has it fixed, or at least so they say.

Extraction issue. Didn't have any, it was weak for some reason first 200 rounds or around that, then it started throwing brass vigorously, while damaging the casings and scratching the paint on the receiver.

So tape it over behind the ejection port.
 
First couple times I took mine out the mags would pop out of place while shooting. I filed a bit of the mags where the latch holds them in place and they hold now. Mine also doesn't hold open 100% of the time but it is better now then the beginning.
 
Over lubing should not cause a Military rifle to jam...

If it's short stroking, then it's most likely a gas or ammo pressure issue.
 
Thanks All for your input so far.

I got in contact with the gun store that I purchased the rifle from, and they got me in touch with the distributor. I'll be dropping it off with them today. It's kind of sh**ty that I'm sending in a newly purchased firearm with 60 shots fired (actually only 55 if you minus out the jams) for warranty service with multiple issues, especially a new firearm that I paid 2500$ for.

But from what I read on here, this is a good distributor. Hopefully soon I'll have a rifle that functions as it should.
 
aerobeast said:
No, I didn't lubricate the rifle before my first use. I did a quick field strip last night and inspected it, and it looked like it was very well lubricated... the bolt was very clean, and even dripping in some places. I took it apart again today and it was still very lubricated and clean.

Yes I tried inserting the magazines empty, and they really don't like to hold the action open. It's hit and miss for both magazines. The one magazine in particular really won't hold the action open at all. When shooting they had about the same failure rate. I did compare the magazines side by side, and if there are any differences in measurements, it would be too small for me to see. What would I be looking for exactly?
Click to expand...

Preservative oil is generally #### for lube....gun needs to be stripped down, cleaned, lubed properly.
 
BlackVoid said:
Please keep us updated.

Would love to know what was actually wrong with it.
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Yes I will keep everyone posted.

Dropped off the rifle at the distributor today. They politely told me that I probably won't hear anything for 4 weeks. So much for enjoying my brand new purchase over the holliday season.

They also mentioned that only 2 SG542s have been been sent back so far. Hopefully these are small issues that can be addressed by a simple part change etc...

If not, it wouldn't be unreasonable to request a replacement rifle, would it?
 
aerobeast said:
If not, it wouldn't be unreasonable to request a replacement rifle, would it?
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You are consumer with rights and it would not be unreasonable. I would have insisted already if I was not happy after that kinda outlay for a rifle that probably cost $500 (if that) to build.
 
Yes.

I received the rifle two days ago, two weeks ahead of schedule! :)

The distributor's gunsmith made the following notes:

- adjusted magazine shell to release follower and actuate last round hold open device.
- 20 rounds fired using owner mags
-last mag round hold open device worked every time
-all functions OK, no issues found
-firearm preformed as designed.

Not quite sure what the first line means exactly...

I can confirm that the magazines hold open the action every time when cycling the rifle manually. Also the hold open control on the side of the rifle is actually working as it should (it didn't really actuate before, but I wasn't familiar with the model, so I wasn't sure if that was normal).

The 20 rounds fired by the gunsmith seems promising. I have not fired the rifle yet. I'm going to clean, lube and bring it to the range on Friday and film everything. I am going to buy 100 rounds of PMC. If it fails to eject more than once, I am going to ask for a replacement.

Do you guys think that sounds reasonable? Do you think the issues with the release follower and hold open device could have caused the failure to eject/double feed issues?

I appreciate everyone's input so far.
 
300Spartans said:
Was the issue occurring with the PMC or the Barnaul? Or with both ammo? It could be an ammo issue.
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Sorry I didn't specify in my OP. The issues happened with both. First with the PMC, so then I used up my Barnaul ammo I had sitting in my range bag. I was reluctant to shoot the steel case out of my new rifle, but I wanted to see if it was just happening with the PMC.

I could have just been really unlucky with both brands of ammo...
 
300Spartans said:
OK. Another stupid question, but did you disassemble and clean the rifle before you started to shoot? Possibility of packing grease in the wrong places?
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No I didn't. I disassembled it and it seemed sufficiently lubed. That was my bad I know better now. I didn't realize that the manufacturer would use different greases for shipping. I'm going to do a complete field strip, clean and lube before I bring it for my 100 round test this Friday.
 
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