[El Gato Loco]

Some of you might have read my posts about the Remington R-15 and the failure to fires while using Hornady 40 grain VMAX factory loads. Well i've done some research, and I decided to break the gun down fully... bolt from bolt carrier, firing pin and all. I'm sure some might say this is common sense, and something I should have done when I bought it, but to be honest I didn't. I figured a standard cleaning / lube was good enough to get good performance from a brand new rifle.

I was wrong though. Since the full break down and a good soaking / cleaning, I now have a gun that performs. I have yet to have a failure to fire out of it, with any load I put through it.

I'll be going to the range this week with a box each of 4 different factory loads, along with a hand load. I'm going to watch how each perform, and i'll let you all know what I find.

I was starting to have doubts about the R-15 but i'm hoping I just jumped to conclusions. As long as the gun goes BANG instead of CLICK when I have a dog in the crosshairs, then I will be a happy man.

We'll see what happens...

More later....

 

[dtech]

There are only a couple of things that will cause what happened to your AR, and a good cleaning will take care of one of them.

The firing-pin runs through the long, close-fitting hole through the bolt. Typically, the bolt is lubricated from the factory, and that lube makes its way throughout the entire bolt. When that lubrication either starts to dry or if you are in a little colder climate, that small amount of lube between the bolt and firing-pin can and does absorb enough of the impact from the hammer to cause a failure to fire.

If you disassemble the bolt, then slide the firing-pin back into the bolt, you will be able to feel how much drag there is between the two pieces. Keep the inside of the bolt and firing-pin dry, and you should be good to go.

When you start shooting hand-loads, you may witness one of the other situations with an AR that will cause failure to fire. The bolt on an AR collapses into the carrier when the bolt locks behind the lugs. A cam-pin that goes through the bolt, and rides in a diagonal slot in the carrier is what makes the bolt rotate as it collapses into the carrier. As the bolt collapses into the carrier, and locks behind the lugs, it also becomes shorter. If you try and close the bolt on a loaded round that is not correctly sized, the bolt will not be able to rotate behind the lugs, and the bolt will not be able to collapse into the carrier. When you pull the trigger, all you will get is a "CLICK" as the bolt/carrier are still too long for proper firing-pin protrusion. Normally, if you do have a case that has been improperly sized, it will be difficult to extract as the case gets deformed and stuck in the chamber by the heavy bolt trying to close behind it.

The AR-15 is incredibly reliable. Yes, there are things you can do to make them "stop", but they are the longest running service rifle in US history for a reason.

 

[El Gato Loco]

Good information, and good point about it's ongoing use as a service rifle. That certainly does say something about em.

As for "keeping it dry", would you recommend any sort of lube on the firing pin at all?

Thanks for sharing!

 

[dtech]

No lube at all on the firing-pin. It should, in my opinion, just float in the bolt. After cleaning the bolt and firing pin, I reassemble the bolt and use a needle-oiler to put a small amount of lube on the cam-pin itself. I use Mobile-1 in 5-20 weight. It's a synthetic and has never given me a problem in our brutal winters.

 

[wyocaller]

I have 2 R15s and they have preformed flawlessly even after hundreds of rounds between cleanings .I have started using HORNADAY ONE SHOT when cleaning it has a dry lube in it and is oderless when it drys i live in wyoming and hunt a lot of 20-30 below days in snow had no problems

 

[knapper]

There is a difference in the pressures they will work well in and it has to do with barrel length of the barrels and the size of the gas port. The short barrels need to use higher pressure loads and have a smaller hole in the barrel for the gas part of the action to operate. Going click and not having fired a round it is lubed too much. In years gone by up here they used soak there bolt gun bolts in gas and leave the rifle outside all winter to keep them shooting as they should. I put them in a gun boot or case and when I go out I let them get cold slowly and same thing when bringing them in from outside. Proper lube type is also just as important. I use a food grade silicone spray that drys and leaves on residue for dust and dirt to collect dirt.

 

[headhunter25]

If your looking for a good lube use MPRO-7. No smell and it does not collect dirt and dust. I'm pretty rough on my stuff and so far it has worked like a champ.

M-Pro 7 Gun Oil - Gun Cleaning Products

Chris C.

 

[RODNUT]

My r 15 was so caked up with some kind of junk that the factory put init that it would not fire at all, after a intense cleaning and lube with amsoil 0-40 atv oil, ihave had no problems. I have fired several hundred rounds through it, with regular cleanings ofcourse. I hunt in all temp. And weather cond. Here in utah, and have no cycling malfuntions, a great coyote gun, love it.