At long last joined the m305 crew, Update, Pics and issues.

Craig0ry

Craig0ry

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Location
Southen Alberta
Been wanting to pick up an m305 shorty for years!!! At one time really wanted the Socom 18 from can am, But the last little bit the flash hider has really grown on it. Luckily I knew someone locally who was selling theirs.
I Made a deal for it last night.
I read ALL 44 pages of the MIM thread before I picked it up today, I was sure nervous because I didn't want to back out on the deal. and I felt like I was already getting a steal even if it was a MIM gun, While talking at the door with him(social distancing) I was eyeing the heel of the receiver pretty hard and didn't see any cast lines, got it home, and looked in the mag well and its not a MIM bolt either, boy was I relieved. Iam brand new to the m14 platform, Iam very well versed in a ton of other platforms, but boy do I feel like a noob right now when it comes to this! an unusual feeling for me Iam not quite used to.
I'll be reading through all the DIY threads as well, Iam sure I'll have to replace some parts, I want a reliable rifle first, Accuracy second will be nice but I'll be putting the Irons back on and using them, And hopefully a wood stock as well.
I can see a dent on a section the barrel where the op rod had been hitting it, Iam sure this means its out of spec or the barrel isn't indexed correctly not sure which yet until I do some reading, Like I said Iam still super fresh at this platform and will learn as quick as I can.
Just wanted to share and say Iam part of the crowd now!
I can finally start blasting off some of my 7.62 stash that I've been collecting for years!(only had precision rifles in 308 before this that I didn't want to blast a bunch of 7.62 through)

Any suggestions or advice will be greatly appreciated!

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Odd Shot said:
Ah. I like your vision for a classic look.
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Thank you! I think I made a deal on a wood stock earlier today, The upper wood might be tricky.

On a side note, Tinkering I found how to remove the Trigger group and separate the upper and lower, Putting it back together took me a minute, Noticed the trigger guard seems to #### the hammer when pulled up, putting it back into the stock I must have released the hammer and the trigger guard came flying down into my thumb nail at Mach 20, Already turning black and blue. I think I'll do some reading now haha. I did end up getting it back together though.
 
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You can purchase a walnut handguard from Brownells or Boyds

The hammer has to be cocked when removing and inserting the trigger guard.

Watch Tony Ben's very informative M14 videos on YouTube
 
Well got to tear into the rifle today, Some nice surprises and some not so nice.

Nice surprise was an upgraded op rod spring guide, I knew the spring itself had already been upgraded.
With my naked eye I cant notice the barrel being improperly indexed.
Forged bolt and receiver

issues were and are:
Misaligned gas system where the op rod meets the gas cylinder.
Loose op rod guide(I fixed this right after finding it by peening the metal on the barrel in a few spots since I don't have a knurling tool. Rock solid now.
Part where op rod had been hitting the barrel. Iam guessing from a misaligned gas system or just poor quality parts. I filed down and smoothed the rough edges where it was catching.
gas cylinder lock tightens past the gas cylinder.

I don't have the proper tools to remove the flash hider.
Function test went good.(not sighted in yet)

I have a wood stock and an M1 Garand rear sight on the way.

My main issue would be gas system alignment, Not sure if this is something I can do? Don't really want to send the rifle away.

I know a very good welder who could tig the front band to the gas cylinder if I can get the flash hider off.

Admittedly I was a little nervous taking this gun apart since i'd never held one before Wednesday, But its not to bad at all.

Any help is greatly appreciated

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with the gas system out of alignment..... first verify that the barrel is actually indexed.
Didn't see too many gas systems machined with the splines off axis but could be...…
did see loads of these rifles with canted flash hider sight bases though so my guess with the misaligned gas system is an out of index barrel..... slightly.
In the end it's no big deal but I usually ditch the norinco flash hider for a usgi and then check the barrel index again.
 
If you are having any issues with disassembly or reassembly deffinitly check out Tony Ben on youtube as Odd Shot recommended above. Can't tell you how many times he has helped step by step from trigger group disassembly to total lube of your m14, the guy does it all.
 
45ACPKING said:
with the gas system out of alignment..... first verify that the barrel is actually indexed.
Didn't see too many gas systems machined with the splines off axis but could be...…
did see loads of these rifles with canted flash hider sight bases though so my guess with the misaligned gas system is an out of index barrel..... slightly.
In the end it's no big deal but I usually ditch the norinco flash hider for a usgi and then check the barrel index again.
Click to expand...

I’ll check it out a some more it’s so hard to tell, it could definitely not be indexed right but it’s not noticeable with the naked eye. I’ll make a castle nut wrench out of some vise clamps too so I can remove the flash hider, if I see a USGI one pop up on the EE or
somewhere else I’ll probably scoop it up.
Iam also wondering if the op rod hitting the barrel is a result of that or was a result of the loose guide, time will tell.
 
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+1 on Tony Ben. Best videos on youtube on DIY M14 work. Also 45acpking above is a wealth of info and was very helpful to me a few years ago when I was getting my feet wet with the m14 .

If you can remove the flash hider (if its not still welded) you can flip your gas lock to see if you get it timed a little better. (Flip that picture around and thats pretty much what you want for finger tight before you snug her down to 6:00. Make sure the gas port holes are aligned with a small punch/ pin/ allan key.

Also, have you considered a USGI fibreglass stock? Theyre light, look cool and very strong. You can usually find battleworn IDF ones that come with a removable cheek riser for under $150. I usually have to pretty them up a bit but the wear and tear is legit which gives them a few extra cool points.
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I was super lucky and had a member here offer to send me 4 gas locks, of which i chose the one that fit best and mail him back the others. Charged me $10. This is a great community and its wonderful of you to join.
 
Ive just watched the tony ben assembly/disassembly video so far, and read a ton of 45acpking posts as well as m14medic and m14 doctor. I do like that brown fibreglass, I am a sucker for the wood stock look, and the one I have coming looked pretty nice in the photos, it should be here Monday so I’ll know for sure.

I definitely feel like I missed the hay day of these rifles though, posts are not as frequent and tons of dead links. And with new .30 non restricted options these have probably lost a bit of their initial fan base.

I appreciate the tips guys!
Like I said it’s a fun gun to work on, not as complicated as I though it would be.
Once I get the new rear Sight and stock and fix up the remaining few issues I’ll be a happy camper! I don’t usually stop on a gun until I have it just the way I want it.

C.308 said:
+1 on Tony Ben. Best videos on youtube on DIY M14 work. Also 45acpking above is a wealth of info and was very helpful to me a few years ago when I was getting my feet wet with the m14 .

If you can remove the flash hider (if its not still welded) you can flip your gas lock to see if you get it timed a little better. (Flip that picture around and thats pretty much what you want for finger tight before you snug her down to 6:00. Make sure the gas port holes are aligned with a small punch/ pin/ allan key.

Also, have you considered a USGI fibreglass stock? Theyre light, look cool and very strong. You can usually find battleworn IDF ones that come with a removable cheek riser for under $150. I usually have to pretty them up a bit but the wear and tear is legit which gives them a few extra cool points.
View attachment 376601


I was super lucky and had a member here offer to send me 4 gas locks, of which i chose the one that fit best and mail him back the others. Charged me $10. This is a great community and its wonderful of you to join.
Click to expand...
 
On the EE, probably won’t be here until mid/late next week

Edit* also just noticed, pretty sure my flash hider is welded on :(, can see too little spot welds on the bottom of the flash hider.
 
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Craig0ry said:
I’ll check it out a some more it’s so hard to tell, it could definitely not be indexed right but it’s not noticeable with the naked eye. I’ll make a castle nut wrench out of some vise clamps too so I can remove the flash hider, if I see a USGI one pop up on the EE or
somewhere else I’ll probably scoop it up.
Iam also wondering if the op rod hitting the barrel is a result of that or was a result of the loose guide, time will tell.
Click to expand...

I looked hard at the pics of the oprod and barrel damage and spent some time thinking about that.
Too be honest I have not seen it that bad before although the picture probably amplifies it a bit.
I'd say a combination of loose oprod guide, barrel index and maybe a but of proud material on the leading edge of the oprod saddle.
Sounds like you have a good handle on your project and are making good use of the information that has been archived here in the M14 FAQ stickies.

the slight misalignment between the cylinder and oprod is nothing to worry about really. That can be all fine tuned at your leisure as time and tools permit.
 
45ACPKING said:
I looked hard at the pics of the oprod and barrel damage and spent some time thinking about that.
Too be honest I have not seen it that bad before although the picture probably amplifies it a bit.
I'd say a combination of loose oprod guide, barrel index and maybe a but of proud material on the leading edge of the oprod saddle.
Sounds like you have a good handle on your project and are making good use of the information that has been archived here in the M14 FAQ stickies.

the slight misalignment between the cylinder and oprod is nothing to worry about really. That can be all fine tuned at your leisure as time and tools permit.
Click to expand...


Your guys’s posts and stickies are a life saver, I just wish photo bucket didn’t have to eff with the world! I took it apart again today, with the stock and Handguard off i cycled the action and it takes a fair amount of pressure on the charging handle to hit the barrel(I did smooth it down really well so it doesn’t catch at all now) I then took roll pin back out of the rod guide and manipulated it a little and it didn’t take much and it was hitting again. With it properly lined up and the pin back on it appears to be good now.

If the op rod and cylinder housing not lining up doesn’t affect anything besides my OCD I can live with that, I think I’ll pick up a knurling tool for the barrel where the op rod guide sits and give it a real sturdy platform.

A little disheartened to see the weld spots on the flash hider, I wouldn’t want to take it off until I had a replacement in hand as quite a few seem to break. And the only reason I would want to is to try and flip The gas cylinder lock and weld front plate to the gas cylinder, I seen in one of your posts you strongly suggested not to do it with it on the barrel.
Iam probably getting ahead of myself anyway, I haven’t even put any round on paper yet, just dirt, once the new stock and site gets here I’ll see what I can do. If groups are acceptable for irons I’ll probably leave it as is.
 
you could also take two straight edges..... rulers, strips of straight wood.... metal bars ect… as long as they are very straight and about a foot or so long.
Place one along the oprod tube and one along the oprod arm and then compare parallelism.
I check the arm from the side and the top edge.
You want to see it nice and true.
This will rule out a bent oprod as a possible culprit of the contact between barrel and oprod saddle.
kinda came to me as an after thought but worth checking
 
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