AR15 extraction/ejection problem

Gatehouse

Gatehouse

CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
147   0   0
Location
Pemberton BC
Shoot one round, it partially extracts but before it is clear the next round starts to feed causing a jam. It would seem to me that it's not ejecting properly but when I poke the ejector it goes in and out ...

Maybe it just needs a good cleaning or is something else wrong? It was cleaned not long ago but it does see some fast shooting use and gets heated up often.
 
Load a spent case into the chamber and close the bolt. Pull the charging handle and see if the spent case is extracted and tossed out. If so, your ejector is working.

A few reasons I can think of that's causing the extraction problem...

1. Broken, damaged or fouled extractor hook. Disassemble your BCG and remove the extractor from the bolt and examine it. If it is worn/broken, then just replace it.

2. System over-gassed and not enough tension on the extractor. If your extractor only has the rubber plug and spring then pick up an upgrade kit for your extractor or just the o-ring. I believe it's a #60 Viton o-ring if you can find them.

brp042.jpg
 
Or it is short stroking and the casing is not clearing the ejection port. Easy way to eliminate this as a possibility is to make sure the bolt locks back on an empty mag.
 
The firing pin retaining pin was sticking out when I dissassmble it. Could that be dragging along the bolt sleeve, causing drag?

No O ring on the extractor, it's just a bare spring. What's the purpose of the o ring?

Rifle is a Norinco, btw. It sometimes sees strings of 50-100 or more rounds with little pause. For the price it's been very good but any upgrade tips for better extraction/ejection are great.
 
get the bcm improved extrator spring kit, its like less than 10 bucks.
get an RRA extractor, they are pretty heavy duty

if you have problems finding them let me know, I can send you both for you to try it.

if that doesnt fix your issue, you have a gas issue.
 
Last edited:
If you have a source for those parts please let me know! Kinda new to ARs :)

More information: when shooting brass case ammo, the spent case gets partway out. Steel cases just stick in the chamber.
 
http://ctcsupplies.ca/products/buffer-technologies-extractor-upgrade-kit
http://www.saskatoongunworks.com/buffer-technologies-ar15-extractor-upgrade-kit/dp/1325

I'd probably just order from brownells, super cheap. If you are looking for several parts just max out your 100$ limit without any paperwork.

As stated above, if that doesn't fix your issue then you probably have a gas problem. Your gas block is pinned on from the manufacturer so the chances of it being misaligned are slim, but a pain in the a$$ if it is.

Get an extractor "upgrade" (o-ring) and make sure everything's clean and assembled properly and try again.
(aslo, try to pin down if its only one type or lot of ammo, or anything else thats common when it happens)

[edit] Those products above aren't the BCM brand upgrade. They probably work but personally i've only used the BCM upgrade. If you don't want to order out of the US but want the BCM one, then talk to any of the BCM distributors in Canada. Even if its not listed on their site, a lot of them will have the parts floating around. A number of the site sponsors sell BCM.
 
Last edited:
Gatehouse said:
If you have a source for those parts please let me know! Kinda new to ARs :)

More information: when shooting brass case ammo, the spent case gets partway out. Steel cases just stick in the chamber.
Click to expand...

just give me your addy via a pm and I'll ship them to you freebie this week.
be carefull with the RRA extractor and the bcm upgrade spring kit, if you shoot cheap low quality ammo, it has a chance to rip the casing rim and then you have a bigger serious problem, shoot good ammo.
 
you'll need a vice grip with soft covers or a table vice with a set of wood shims to get the upgraded BCM spring installed, yes, it is that hard of a spring with the o ring.
I'll try to mail it out to you tomorrow or tuesday so you should have it in a few days.
 
Gatehouse said:
And is there some way I can check out the gas system?
Is something plugged up?
Click to expand...

Without removing the gas system (don't do that) its hard to tell. You can check with compressed air by plugging one end of the barrel and seeing what the flow out the gas tube is like, and if there are any leaks.
Honestly, i doubt that is the issue. you could take the tube out and check it out but there's really not much that can go wrong with a gas system other than the hole being too small or the block being misaligned. and these are very rare events on a factory rifle.

The extractor is the known failure point and is your best bet. Second to that i would say is the ammo, but if it goes bang and a bullet comes out the right end... it should extract.

Just to be thorough, make sure your chamber is clean.
Without any ammunition and with the upper separate from the lower, insert the BCG and push it until it locks, pull it out, do that a few times and just make sure everything runs smooth.
Put the lower back on and just cycle it with the charging handle. It shouldn't be too hard to operate and there should be no noticeable snags or tough areas.



Also, as an after though, you said when you poke the ejector it goes in and out. how much force does it take you to compress your ejector? All my ejectors have required quite a bit of force to depress. Not impossible to do, but not easy by any means. If you can easily just push the ejector in like its nothing, it might not be putting enough force on the case to eject it properly.

Borrowed from google, an image on how to test the ejector spring
ejectorcleaning_zps8c23a79b.jpg
 
Last edited:
looking at the pic,I think Gunnerlove has the right idea here, the rifle is short stroking. it may be due to a dirty chamber, loose gas key, worn gas tube, or a few other things. first you must determine if in fact it is short stroking. fire one round with an empty magazine in the rifle, if the bolt is caught properly, on the face of the bolt and not on the bolt carrier, then you have eliminated the possibility of short stroking.
 
If the bolt can cycle far enough back in order to feed the next round from the mag, it would have more than enough clearance to eject a spent case. I'm not saying it's not short stroking, it could very well be. As others pointed out, load a single round in a mag and see if the bolt locks back on empty and not locked back with the bolt sitting against the back of the follower.

If you replaced the BCG and it worked fine after, at least that narrows down the problem.

Check that firing pin retaining pin you mentioned earlier that you say is seating a little proud of the carrier. Are there any odd wear marks indicating that that pin is scraping against the upper receiver walls?

Check the gas key on the carrier and see if it isn't loose.

With the original BCG installed, is it easy to work the charging handle compared to when you use the borrowed one?

I'm still sticking with a faulty extractor. Take up Mike's offer to borrow his spare set and give it a go again. :p
 
it might not be short stroking but instead cycling too fast for the casing to properly extract before the bolt grabs a new one and tries to chamber a fresh cartridge before the casing has exited the rifle.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom