AR-15 .223 not cycling.

cig

cig

Copenhagen & Conservation.
Joined
Jan 1, 2021
Messages
147
Location
North Carolina
Rating - 100%
12   0   0
Here goes nothing. So I’ve finished a budget build .223 Wylde PSA stainless upper, PSA lower/magpul furniture. I have not weighed buffer weight but I would make the assumption it is a carbine buffer considering PSA kits ship with Carbine buffer springs. I have tried different mags, .223/5.56 different factory rounds. Nothing seems to make a difference. To me hun seems under gassed it will most of the time eject the spent casing but not pick up the next round and will not lock back on last round of mag. I took upper apart, confirmed alignment of gas block and port (judging by dimple in factory barrel.) I don’t have the little alignment pins. Made sure port was clean and gas key on BCG was tight. Still same thing. Will not cycle for anything. No apparent drag in bolt or funny wear. Gas rings are good and staggered (the whole gun is brand new factory stuff.)

Would I be on the right tract if thinking the only two options here are a lighter buffer spring, or having gas port in barrel drilled bigger? Any thoughts appreciated.
 
Last edited:
I have come across 4 causes of the problem you are seeing:
1. Misalignment of gas block
2. Wrong buffer/recoil spring
3. Misaligned/out of spec BCG dragging on the inside of the upper (usually the gas key riding on the inside of the charging handle)
4. Out of spec receiver causing the BCG to bind going into the receiver extension tube
First two seem unlikely as they are a PSA kit.
You can check for any unusual wear marks on the inside of the upper for possibly 3.
If you have another lower see if the upper will run with that to check possibly 4.
 
Try another bcg if you have one. I had a bad one once and it acted just like it was under gassed.
 
@cigro
Have you checked the length of the recoil spring?
I had a rifle spring in a carbine that did exactly what you describe.
 
ronn47 said:
@cigro
Have you checked the length of the recoil spring?
I had a rifle spring in a carbine that did exactly what you describe.
Click to expand...
I pulled it out of tube and made sure there wasn’t anything in the tube keeping it from receding like it should, just to make myself feel better but honestly I didn’t measure it. I’ve ordered a 2.7 ounce spring when it gets here I’ll confirm that it is correct length, and shoot it and see what happens. I know that it could maybe not feed great then but I’m hoping it will cure it before I look at new BCG or drilling gas port. I’m gonna swap around some lowers/BCG’s and see if anything makes a difference.
 
Are gas rings ok? try another BCG before deciding the problem is the upper. Fire one round at a time to evaluate for bolt hold open and ejection.
 
I'd be willing to bet it's a misaligned gas block. If you're comfortable taking the gas block off and realigning I'd start here.

Other common culprit could be an out of spec bolt carrier group. I've seen a few very poorly built PSA bcgs. Quick test of course is to see if the carrier friction can hold its own weight, and make sure you can flick the bolt into the forward position by swinging it. Definitely check the gas rings while your at it.
 
Cole_McD said:
I'd be willing to bet it's a misaligned gas block. If you're comfortable taking the gas block off and realigning I'd start here.

Other common culprit could be an out of spec bolt carrier group. I've seen a few very poorly built PSA bcgs. Quick test of course is to see if the carrier friction can hold its own weight, and make sure you can flick the bolt into the forward position by swinging it. Definitely check the gas rings while you’re at
Click to expand...
ontheroad said:
PSA

Lifetime warranty.

Bring it in / get a return label & they will fix it.
Click to expand...
It’s painted
 
easiest things first… if you have another known good 5.56/.223 bolt, drop it in and shoot it. Cost nothing and takes 30 seconds. If it won’t shoot, you know it isn’t the bcg. I had one I fought for weeks and a simple bolt swap fixed it.
 
Last edited:
What type of factory ammo?

And the factory gas block dimple could’ve been slightly misplaced throwing off the gas block. Easiest way to confirm gas flow without taking anything apart is to put a drinking straw (the bendy straws work well) against it in the upper and blow air through it. You’ll hear it in the barrel if gas is passing through and you’ll know if it’s obstructed.

If you extend the bolt to the locked position, and then place the entire BCG on a table face down, do the gas rings support the carrier or does it collapse? And the rings can be aligned, that’s a myth
 
11B CIB said:
What type of factory ammo?

And the factory gas block dimple could’ve been slightly misplaced throwing off the gas block. Easiest way to confirm gas flow without taking anything apart is to put a drinking straw (the bendy straws work well) against it in the upper and blow air through it. You’ll hear it in the barrel if gas is passing through and you’ll know if it’s obstructed.

If you extend the bolt to the locked position, and then place the entire BCG on a table face down, do the gas rings support the carrier or does it collapse? And the rings can be aligned, that’s a myth
Click to expand...
M855 green tip, pmc bronze .223 and tax-223. I certainly should try the straw trick I have not thought of doing that. Yes the BCG holds its own weight no issues the gas ring figment is pretty snug. Although it’s a myth they are staggered witch double eliminates that possibility.

I’ve been at work all weekend so I haven’t had time to mess with it but I will try all these things this week and see what works. Also have a light weight buffer spring on the way to experiment with.
 
cigro said:
What a moron right? I knew it was a risk but I like living life in the edge.
Click to expand...
I get it. If you can’t shoot it until 5 days after you get it and you have the rattlecan itch, just send it! Hope you get it sorted 🤙
 
Could be a mag catch issue. Either out of spec catch or out of spec lower or both.

As a quick test. Firmly hold the mag in and shoot a few rounds. Or set it on a bench using the mag as a rest. If no change try a different lower.

I have an old lower that the tolerances are just off enough that with the (whatever brand at the time) mag catch it would NOT feed steel case. But would feed any brass. It would leave two light scratches on the steel. I randomly decided one day to load up some steel and use the mag as a monopod. Worked fine.....
 
surgicaltool said:
Email PSA and they will take care of you. You’ll even get a return label I bet.
Click to expand...

I had a 9mm pistol that went back to Greenville, SC four times and they kept sending it back without a fix. Drove there (awful traffic on Woodruff Rd.), talked to them, and a guy beat on barrel nut with a mallet and said that should fix it. Bizarre experience, start to finish. Never did work reliably - junk parts, I assume. Last gun I'll buy from them.

They still send me 3 emails every day.
 
FarmerJohn said:
I had a 9mm pistol that went back to Greenville, SC four times and they kept sending it back without a fix. Drove there (awful traffic on Woodruff Rd.), talked to them, and a guy beat on barrel nut with a mallet and said that should fix it. Bizarre experience, start to finish. Never did work reliably - junk parts, I assume. Last gun I'll buy from them.

They still send me 3 emails every day.
Click to expand...
Do tell? What issue could it have been that they thought beating on a barrel nut would fix it? Details needed. Fascinating if it's a PCC confusing if it's a Dagger.
 
Trevillian said:
Do tell? What issue could it have been that they thought beating on a barrel nut would fix it? Details needed. Fascinating if it's a PCC confusing if it's a Dagger.
Click to expand...
AR pistol. Think he said something about the threads on the upper being not quite right. BS anyway you look at it. For the most part, mallets and firearms don't play well together (except for inexperienced reloaders and their squibs) I'm thinking, also evidenced by feedback on the PSA website, that they use junk parts put together by poorly trained monkeys. Just my take. I have a friend who loves his PSA AR10 - and it works most of the time, for under a grand.

That was the experience that led me to build my own AR's back in the Obama era. Went on a tear - 5.56, 7.62x39, 6.8SPCII, 300 (of course), 45acp, 9mm. Quickly learned how simple the whole process is. Takes me a long time, but I can do it without scratches, properly aligned gas blocks, and properly torqued barrel nuts. Took me a while to learn the trick of the bolt catch, but simple with the right tools. Unfortunately, really hard to sell these days for what parts cost back when the ban was eminent.
 
FarmerJohn said:
I had a 9mm pistol that went back to Greenville, SC four times and they kept sending it back without a fix. Drove there (awful traffic on Woodruff Rd.), talked to them, and a guy beat on barrel nut with a mallet and said that should fix it. Bizarre experience, start to finish. Never did work reliably - junk parts, I assume. Last gun I'll buy from them.

They still send me 3 emails every day.
Click to expand...
Yeah this was my first bad experience from PSA I’ve always had good stuff for their prices. BKings firearms will be my new budget shop according to my budget 😂
 
FarmerJohn said:
I had a 9mm pistol that went back to Greenville, SC four times and they kept sending it back without a fix. Drove there (awful traffic on Woodruff Rd.), talked to them, and a guy beat on barrel nut with a mallet and said that should fix it. Bizarre experience, start to finish. Never did work reliably - junk parts, I assume. Last gun I'll buy from them.

They still send me 3 emails every day.
Click to expand...
I’m sorry for your experience being different than mine and I’m honestly quite surprised to hear that. If it helps you can unsubscribe from those emails by clicking the unsubscribe link from the bottom of the email. Welcome to the forum BTW.
 
surgicaltool said:
I’m sorry for your experience being different than mine and I’m honestly quite surprised to hear that. If it helps you can unsubscribe from those emails by clicking the unsubscribe link from the bottom of the email. Welcome to the forum BTW.
Click to expand...
I know how to unsubscribe, but sometimes they have good deals on other than guns. Thanks for the welcome, looking forward to the forum
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom