M1A Problem

[Dirty_Harry]

Ok, so I go to the range the other day to shoot my brand new (again I say brand new!) M1A, the rifle I have been wanting forever. I was using Winchester .308 150 and 180 grain. I would shoot a round then go to shoot another......click. I would look down and nothing seemed wrong, so I manually ejected the round, then the next fired alright, but the next.....click. I took aside the rouds that had not fired and they had very light primer strikes on them, but when I put them in to shoot again, they fired...so nothing was wrong with the ammo. I did notice once that the bolt did not close all the way however. Does anybody know the problem I am going through right now? I am getting ready to bring it back to the gun store.
Help!

Thanks in advance!
Dirty

 

[nbkky71]

The dimples on the primer are normal as the M1A uses a floating firing pin. When the bolt slams shut the firing pin moves forward and lightly dimples the primer.

Regarding the bolt not closing...
Was this Winchester factory ammo, or was it reloaded ammo? I've never seen a problem chambering factory ammo, but with reloaded ammo you can run into cases that have not been sized correctly.

Dumb question, but have you properly cleaned and lubricated the rifle? The M1A requires grease is specific areas in order to function reliably.

If you do have a problem with the gun, your best bet would be to contact Springfield directly since they warranty the rifle, not the store.

 

[hps1]

If bolt is not fully in battery, the firing pin is blocked so the rifle cannot fire out of battery.

As nbkky stated, a new rifle need to be lubricated at various friction points. If this has been done, how are you closing the bolt? The M1A is designed to load one or more rounds in the magazine and then press bolt release to allow bolt to slam home. If you are easing the bolt down, it will not close completely and you must hit the op rod handle with the heel of your hand to fully close the bolt.

Single rounds should be run through the magazine (rather than dropped into chamber and letting bolt slam home) so that the follower friction acts as a damper to slow bolt down a bit and lessen the danger of slam-fires, especially when shooting commercial ammo which may have a slightly softer primer than GI ammo.

Regards,
hm

 

[wayne in boca]

Also,it is not recommended to fire bullets heavier than 175 grain from an M1A.

 

[30Cal]

1. Is the hammer falling or is it following the bolt forward? Cycle the action a bunch of times with the trigger held back and make sure the hammer doesn't follow the bolt forward.

2. Bullets over 175grs is not a good idea. Stick to surplus (commercial equivalent 150gr FMJ) or match ammo.

 

[Dirty_Harry]

I didn't know that you had to lubricate it right out of the box?

I didn't mean to pick up 180 grain ammo either, I told the guy at Gander Mountain to give me all the 150 grain stuf he had....well he gave me 2 boxes of 180 grain, and 1 box of 150 grain!

Also, it was brand new factory ammo, not reloaded.

 

[tINY]

Did you clean the gas piston and cylinder and then leave them dry?

Did you get the packing grease out of the action?




-tINY

 

[snolden]

Ok, I just read thru the M1A manual HERE

It says for new rifles: "make sure all packing grease and oil is cleaned from the bore and external parts of the mechanism"

It goes on to state the gas system and chamber are designed to operate dry.

It also says to minimize the amount of field stripping you do.

You may simply have some packing grease inside your floating firing pin. Take the bolt out and squirt some brake cleaner or beechwood casey solvent thru the firing pin hole to get all the grease out. I am not an expert nor do I own an M1A, but I did link you to the owner's manual above which you should probably read.

A pictorial of how to dis and re assemble an M1A:
http://www.surplusrifle.com/m14m1a/rifledisassembly/index.asp

 

[Dirty_Harry]

I hate reading manuals

But I appreciate all the input guys, I am gonna go home, pop in a movie (something with Mr. Eastwood in it) and disassemble my gun and clean the snot out of it!

 

[Dave P]

Harry, if your bolt does not fully close on the ammo - DO NOT SHOOT it! If you fire with the bolt not fully closed, you can destroy the rifle and your face and hand.

Call springfield.

 

[Tomas]

Dirty:

Don't disassemble your gun, disassemble your rifle!!!!!!!

Semper Fi.

Tom

 

[The Guy]

When I first got mine, I had to pull out the firing pin as it had that sticky crap on it, slowing the pin in the bolt enough to cause a light hit on the primer. I had already dissasembled and cleaned the rest of the rifle, but the firing pin needed more than a bit of Gun Scrubber down the hole to get it 100% free.

The M1a/M-14 needs grease on certain areas for proper function and reduced wear. I use Valvoline Synthetic C.V. grease on mine. You can get away with Lubriplate (white lithium) but the synthetic stuff lasts quite well. (I ran a Valvoline Express Care for a while, so I might be a bit influenced.)

The back of the bolt, the op-rod track and guide, and the roller and ear on the bolt all need to be greased, and that @$#%@ roller needs a special tool to grease it. I also put a little on the hammer at the impact point and on the trigger group pins, but only once in a while.

Eddited to add, I also think that you are using to heavy of a bullet. May work great for bolt actions, but not for semi-auto. 168 gr. is the most I use in mine, with no ftfs.

Remember, a lil' dab 'll do ya!

 

[azredhawk44]

As an M1A owner/reloader who has written springfield on the 180gr issue:

They do not officially condone reloading ammunition, nor do they officially condone shooting ammunition in excess of 175gr Lake City M118LR ammunition.

That being said, the guy was extremely helpful with discussing a quality 180gr handload for elk season. He suggested that I not shoot said load as a routine practice... but I could shoot my pet 165 plinker and 168gr match loads forever and ever in this rifle. The 180's he suggested that I sight in, remember my adjustments, and re-verify with half a dozen shots per year right before hunt season. 10-20 rounds a year of 180's specifically for hunting aren't going to hurt an M1A. This from Springfield Armory.

I wouldn't do 200's or heavier without first bypassing the gas system, however.

Congrats on the new rifle, please don't fire from a partially closed bolt.