need help on how to fix a feed problem

Steve

Steve

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First, sorry if I get any of the terminology wrong, not a very experienced shooter, lol.

Went shooting today and it appears my gun had issues feeding cci blazer brass 45 acp ammo. It would get hung up in the mag and not feed locking the slide partly open 2-3 times / 15 rounds. Last time I went to the range I thought it was the mags or the way I was holding the gun but after switching ammo, all the issues went away. It was the last of it and I had switched to Federal aluminum 45 acp.

I went 30 rounds cci with feed problems, 60 rounds federal no issues, 30 rounds cce with feed problems, then finished off the federal I had brought. Because of this rotation, I don't think it's me or the mags as I used the same 2 mags over and over.

The brass casing definitely felt more pronounced when I rubbed my thumbs over it but then it could just be that aluminum is softer than brass.

I'm about to buy more ammo and am wondering if there is something I can do or get a gunsmith to do to resolve this since I'd prefer to buy brass on the off chance one day I want to reload.
 
Yes, my Kahr was super sensitive. Some are like that but not all brass is the same either. I ended up selling my kahr 45 because my reloads didn't work well in it. I'm assuming because the bullets I was using were .001 too large or something. Cheap store bought seemed to be fine.
 
It is sort of atypical for ball ammo not to feed, but also not terribly uncommon for guns to have a ammo length and/or profile preference, not all FMJs are the same. If you have a "picky" gun you may have to figure out what it likes. If it's a 1911 it may still be mags with that ammo. There's a whole lot of things it could be.

Composition of the case is not the likely culprit.
 
fnx 45 (not tactical)

was hoping the 15 rounds would give it away, lol
 
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@DremelDan?

Paging the feed ramp wizard...
 
I doubt it's a feed ramp issue. It seldom is. The cci problem sounds like out-of-spec ammo. Too long?

You might want to check the FNX area of the FN Forum, here: http://fnforum.net/forums/fn-handguns-forum/

Somebody there can probably help.

If you don't already have one, you might want to pick up an inexpensive micrometer. (I got a digital one a year or two ago for about $25. It's helped with a lot of issues.)
 
Walt Sherrill said:
I doubt it's a feed ramp issue. It seldom is. The cci problem sounds like out-of-spec ammo. Too long?

You might want to check the FNX area of the FN Forum, here: http://fnforum.net/forums/fn-handguns-forum/

Somebody there can probably help.

If you don't already have one, you might want to pick up an inexpensive micrometer. (I got a digital one a year or two ago for about $25. It's helped with a lot of issues.)
Click to expand...

If you don't have a micrometer I would take the barrel out of the gun and plunk test the CCI Blazer rounds. Do they drop into the barrel and can you spin them? If the ammo is out of spec with and OAL that is too long or a bad crimp it will not plunk.

http://www.shootingtimes.com/editorial/reloading-tips-the-plunk-test/99389
 
I think the plunk test will tell you the ammo is short enough to fit the chamber and barrel, and not oversize (it can spin) but that won't necessarily tell you whether that round will fit the magazine. The original poster wrote:

Steve said:
... It would get hung up in the mag and not feed locking the slide partly open 2-3 times / 15 rounds.
Click to expand...

HOW the round got hung up in the mag probably needs better description.

If the free bore area between the barrel and chamber is great enough (with CZs that is usually too short, not too long) there MIGHT be enough space to let a cartridge that's a bit too long fit in the chamber and spin without hitting the rifling, but that same cartridge could still be too long for the magazine. And it may be that not all cartridges from a given box of ammo are out of spec. (I've gotten a box or two of cheap factory stuff, over the years, that had rounds that were not well crimped, and they had all sorts of different OALs. Some of that ammo would feed and some wouldn't, but I never had problems with rounds hanging up in the magazine. (I quit buying that ammo.)

The magazine might be a little out of spec, as well, and coupled with a round that's a hair too long you could have a problem -- like a round that won't move UP.

(I was going to suggest that maybe the follower in the mag wasn't tracking properly, but that should have caused problems with other ammo, and it didn't seem to do so.)
 
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Yeah I was being snarky it’s extremely unlikely to be your feed ramps. And just to be clear *DO NOT* even think about allowing a dremel into the same room with your pistol.

Questions:
- when it stopped, would it feed and return to battery if you bumped the back of the slide?
- was the bullet nose up? Nose down? Level?
- were the projectiles or brass cases marked or deformed by the stoppage?
- was the projectile pushed deeper into the case?

Without pics or a more informed description it could be:
- out of spec ammo
- magazine feed lip design incompatible with bullet profile
- pistol needs to be broken in
- pistol is worn out and needs a new recoil/RTB spring
- your gun just doesn’t like that brand. It happens, and often it’s easier to buy stuff it likes than to diagnose the problem.
 
I tried the plunk test and they all fit when I dropped them in. Not all were willing to fall back out out without a little shake but nothing seemed to badly stuck.

Best I can recall...
Bullets nose were level.
They were still down in the mag so maybe spring? I know I could see the whole bullet but not sure how far up they had been pushed
Brass is long gone so can't help there.
I just racked the slide again by pulling back and helped it to close, didnt try just bumping.

More than willing to break the gun in more but I did buy it used and have no idea how much it was shot before I got it. How do you tell if a recoil/RTB spring needs to be replaced or do I just replace it and see what happens?
 
If some would drop out after the test and some wouldn't, then the round aren't all the same. (If it wouldn't drop out, it probably wasn't loose in the chamber and able to easily rotate, either.)

That hints at an ammo issue and maybe not a gun issue -- especially if other ammo doesn't have problems in the gun or in the "problem" magazine.

If the problem happens in every mag, then it's clearly a ammo issue. If it happens in only one mag, it may just be a quirky ammo and mag issue with THAT ammo and THAT magazine.​

You tried other brands of ammo in that "problem" mag, but it wasn't clear whether you made sure to test the ammo in all magazines. It's likely not the spring as a spring issue shouldn't care what brand ammo is being run. May be bad ammo (you've already got a hint on that point)

I suspect that the lowest price ammo that so many of us buy a lot of still gets quality checks, but the tests aren't as stringent as the higher price ammo (i.e., production isn't as closely monitored when the rounds are flying down the production line.) The cheap stuff may even include some QC-rejected ammo from the pricier stuff, too, if its the same weight and bullet type.
 
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Back when I had a S&W 52-2, a very well-made and well-designed semi-auto which shot .38 special wadcutter ammo, I had a similar problem.

One of the quirks of the design was that it shoots a rimmed revolver cartridge in a small 5-round magazine. (One gunsmith would modify the mags to hold a 6th round.)

I frequently had rounds that wouldn't feed in the magazine tube but would chamber and fire properly if you placed them as the top round. I didn't hand load and had to hunt long and hard for wadcutter ammo that was absolutely flush on top and had brass that was not even a hair longer than it should be. It got to be more trouble than it was worth for someone who didn't handload.

The later S&W 952 was an improved version of the 52-2 that was well-regarded, and I would have loved to have one, but I never had the money to get one when I found one for sale.
 
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Still partially in the mag?

So they're not even making it to the chamber? If so then whether or not they plunk is irrelevant.

Used gun, unknown round count. Clean it, including extractor removal, inspect breech face and ramp for burrs. Replace recoil spring, suggest mag springs also, inspect mag bodies and mag catch for excess/obvious wear.

Lube it, put it back together and attempt to duplicate the malfunction. Instead of immediate action drills observe the malfunction and try one specific remedy at a time. Accept it could be the ammo, bullet profile or power, some guns just won't run on some ammo, some will with tuning, some never will 100%.
 
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BatteryOaksBilly said:
Perhaps why it was sold?
Click to expand...

Perhaps, but since it shoots well with non-CCI ammo, perhaps not.

And asking that question of the seller may or may not get you a true answer -- as dealers probably don't know, and some private sellers just want to get ride of a gun -- and in some cases that means just getting rid of a problem they don't have a solution for.
 
I would disassemble and clean the mags. If the follower is plastic look for bent over edges that maybe impeding the travel of the follower. Check for correct spring placement on follower, it may be out of sorts allowing that follower to tilt and not getting the proper angle for correct feed of bullets.
 
All I got for you is quit shooting American junk. Remington, Winchester, CCI. Walmart specials.
 
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