Ammo for S&W AR-15

[FutureButterBar]

I recently bought an AR-15. It is a S&W. I have shot winchester through it with a fair amount of jams. I have shot remington through it with just 2 jams per 50. I was wondering if anyone could suggest some ammo that S&W's like. I know sometimes AR's are picky about what they will shoot out of them.

 

[edsinger]

Mine has had no issues with any including Wolf.

 

[esrice]

I know sometimes AR's are picky about what they will shoot out of them.

They shouldn't be. Might want to carefully diagnose your issues, as you shouldn't be experiencing ANY malfs with ANY ammo. With some good pics and a detailed description of the problems I'm sure there are INGOers who could make some recommendations.

 

[sloughfoot]

Zero malfunctions are the norm, especially for your rifle.

What are you running for magazines? Mags are the most common reason why a AR malfunctions, but you didn't say what type of malfunction you experienced.

AR's are NOT picky about what they shoot out of them, with good mags.

 

[jblomenberg16]

Exactly. I have an M&P15 that's eaten everything I've thrown at it, and only chocked on some of my own reloads that turned out to have issues (my fault). Sounds like you might need to do some diagnosis of the failures.

 

[9mmfan]

My S & W M4 will shoot anything I put in it. Never had a stovepipe or misfire.

 

[crocket]

i have owned a smith ar15 since it came out an i have never had any problems.did you clean the rifle be for you shot it ? it could be dirty from the fouling an packing grease.our it could be the mag,i shoot what ever i can reload or find out of mine and it loves it.......

 

[FutureButterBar]

mostly ejection probelms. i checked my gas rings and made sure they weren't lined up. oiled it. and ran on with life. i have never heard that before, but i was told AR's were by an ingo guy we were talking to the other day. im using a PMAG.
i have had quiet a few jams in a AR before; however, ive gone swimming through muddy water with mine.

 

[jblomenberg16]

mostly ejection probelms. i checked my gas rings and made sure they weren't lined up. oiled it. and ran on with life. i have never heard that before, but i was told AR's were by an ingo guy we were talking to the other day. im using a PMAG.
i have had quiet a few jams in a AR before; however, ive gone swimming through muddy water with mine.

Maybe as a control test to rule out the ammo, you should by some Federal XM193 or similar "mil-spec" ammo to see if it functions better in your rifle.

Also, any accessories on the rifle, or is it bone stock? I've run mine with an H2 buffer without issues, but maybe there is something throwing off the timing just enough to cause the extraction issues.

 

[crocket]

i use some colt mags in mine that my father inlaw brought back from vietnam the more i shoot it the more it likes it. thats strange.

 

[FutureButterBar]

Maybe as a control test to rule out the ammo, you should by some Federal XM193 or similar "mil-spec" ammo to see if it functions better in your rifle.

Also, any accessories on the rifle, or is it bone stock? I've run mine with an H2 buffer without issues, but maybe there is something throwing off the timing just enough to cause the extraction issues.

Ill double check my ammo. i bought it new with a 4 point stock. i bought it, oiled it, and shot it. i've already cleaned it. ill take it out this weekend and if anything messes up, ill take it to a local gun shop.
sadly my knowledge of AR-15, is being able to clean, maintain, and basic field strip. ill have someone check it out if i have issues.

 

[03A3]

An ejection problem.....
You're saying that the empty casing remains partly or completely inside of the receiver as the action tries to feed a fresh round?
Can you post some pics and/or a better description?
All of the S&W that I've seen have a semi bolt carrier and a CAR buffer. Also they have a relatively large gas port. I don't have the dimension right now.
That's not an ideal combination, but it should work with a dirty gun or weak ammo.
I would clean the chamber very well and look at the extractor and spring/insert real well. Also make sure that the ejector is lubed and moves freely but with strong spring pressure.
I don't have much to go on but it may be that 1) The extractor is losing control of the spent cartridge before it can be ejected. 2) The ejector is weak or sticking.

 

[esrice]

There was another INGOer recently who was having some extraction issues that folks narrowed down to a mis-aligned gas block. What kind of gas block are you running?

 

[Yukon227]

I have an M&P Sport. Ive had a couple of fail-to-feeds but that was after firing 30 or 40 blanks so the gun was nasty dirty and it was an old junky mag given to me by a friend. I dont blame the gun.

 

[03A3]

I guess the first test would be to load only one round per mag, fire the gun and see that the bolt locks back on an empty mag. Do this several times.

 

[45fan]

My Armalite was finicky through the first hundred or so rounds when it was new, but it has settled down and eats everything I feed it now without issues. Try shooting some mil-spec ammo through it to get things broke in.

 

[jimbo-indy]

My M&P-15T is a very early version but runs most all ammo well. I use P-Mags.
It really likes S&B ammo for accuracy but never has a feed problem. Even feeds Wolf well.

 

[MtnBiker6510]

Can't hurt to check the BCG (bolt carrier group) if your tests turn up a gas pressure problem.

 

[oucme69]

i have owned my m&p 15 for 2 years and havent had any problems with it it shoots anything i give it

 

[adam]

There was another INGOer recently who was having some extraction issues that folks narrowed down to a mis-aligned gas block. What kind of gas block are you running?

+1 on this. Buddy had a carbine length AR that would single shot after about 20 rounds. Turned out to be a loose gas block that would wiggle and mis-align itself.