Mayday: AR15 broke

[dukeboy_318]

went shooting with my ar15, got home, took it apart to clean and found that one of the gas rings on the bolt had busted a piece about an 1/8 of inch off of it. this gun maybe has 250 rds through it and has been cleaned once a week since i bought it new. Ive been shooting ARs for the better part of 15 yrs but ive never seen this happen(and ive had weird crap happen). Any thoughs as to what caused this to happen? I didnt notice any problems while shooting and never jamed or misfired so i have no idea what could have happened. I was shooting quality hornaday and winchester 5.56 brass cased ammo. yes the gun is rated for the hotter 5.56. im kinda confused.

 

[printcraft]

Defective ring or it got hung up on a piece of carbon and snapped????
Got 3 so there is some redundancy there anyhow, they don't last forever and are a replaceable part.
Clean the bolt and get a new set of rings. Cheap and easy.

 

[shooter521]

Gas rings are a lowest-bidder part; I've seen brand new guns from the factory with jacked-up gas rings that caused the bolt to lock in the forward position, preventing the gun from functioning.

I wouldn't sweat it unless you replace them and it happens again in short order.

BTW - if you've only got 250 rounds through the gun and you're cleaning it "once a week," you're probably cleaning too much.

 

[jblomenberg16]

Gas rings are a lowest-bidder part; I've seen brand new guns from the factory with jacked-up gas rings that caused the bolt to lock in the forward position, preventing the gun from functioning.

I wouldn't sweat it unless you replace them and it happens again in short order.

BTW - if you've only got 250 rounds through the gun and you're cleaning it "once a week," you're [STRIKE]probably cleaning too much[/STRIKE] not shooting it enough.

FIFY

 

[jd4320t]

I think you are required to post pics and specs of the rifle

 

[dukeboy_318]

Gas rings are a lowest-bidder part; I've seen brand new guns from the factory with jacked-up gas rings that caused the bolt to lock in the forward position, preventing the gun from functioning.

I wouldn't sweat it unless you replace them and it happens again in short order.

BTW - if you've only got 250 rounds through the gun and you're cleaning it "once a week," you're probably cleaning too much.

yeah, i can be a little overboard with cleaning my AR. I do a having cleaning after shooting it and a light rub down once a week. I hated having a weapon that would jam like crazy when i was on active duty so i got into the habit and now its hard to break. anyway, ill get pics of the rifle later. as for specs, its just a plain jane flat top, heavy bull barrel DPMS AR15 with a Hogue pistol grip and a konus rifle scope. everything else is factory. I will be installing a rock river 2 stage trigger, got this afternoon at the 1500, just havent gotten around to putting it in yet. ive also ordered a free floating quad rail from YHM, not sure when itll be in.

 

[Sweetums]

You should have bought an AK.


Sorry, couldn't resist.

 

[loony1]

they also make a solid ring to replace the three if you are looking for another solution. I would check World's Largest Supplier of Firearm Accessories, Gun Parts and Gunsmithing Tools - BROWNELLS

 

[IndyBeerman]

they also make a solid ring to replace the three if you are looking for another solution. I would check World's Largest Supplier of Firearm Accessories, Gun Parts and Gunsmithing Tools - BROWNELLS

Leave a link to a site, you might as well leave the link to the product because it does not come up on the site search for gas rings.

FULTON ARMORY : AR-15 MCFARLAND™ BOLT GAS RING - World's Largest Supplier of Firearm Accessories, Gun Parts and Gunsmithing Tools

 

[linkpimp]

I think you are required to post pics and specs of the rifle

Correct...

 

[dukeboy_318]

You should have bought an AK.


Sorry, couldn't resist.

Already have an AK.

 

[Sweetums]

Already have an AK.

Sweet! It's best to have both!

 

[grizman]

Sweet! It's best to have both!

I decline to own the AK, could be due to the fact I have had them fired in anger at me. Could be that it is the weapon of choice by the enemies of the USA! Personal choice here not judging or slamming anyones choice.

 

[dukeboy_318]

Yeah I could agree with you but I look at it this way, whenever china decides to invade us, ill be able to use their own ammo against them, hehe

 

[grizman]

Yeah I could agree with you but I look at it this way, whenever china decides to invade us, ill be able to use their own ammo against them, hehe

China's current issue battle rifle is reported to be the QZB-95 chambering a 5.8 mm round. Not AK's in 7.62 or 5.45.
The 7.62 x 39 is now the favorite round of terrorists and dirt poor nations, because the Russians and Chinese gave them away like candy during the cold war, not any nation with the resources or nads to invade US soil.
Sorry but IMHO anyone following the old notion that the 7.62x39 will be the ammo our enemies are using will be in for a deadly surprise.
Even the Soviet states are primarily 5.45mm in the an-94 now with some 47's here and there.
Betting your survival on the continued availability of 7.62x39 is very very risky! This is not the cold war world anymore! Even Russia builds the new AN-94 main battle rifle in 5.56x45mm! Because there is more of it stock piled and being produced now than 7.62x39.
Most of the left over stocks of Combloc AK47's and ammo is scattered around the world, not here on the north American Continent. I.E. no access once it all fails!
The biggest problem invaders with ak47's will have here in the states is accuracy range. Beyond 2/300 meters with and AK is iffy! A good AR can do 600 meters repeatedly. That leaves an invader with a 300 meter distance to traverse before they get into a usable range for the AK. A small group of folks with AR's on high ground could eliminate a lot of enemies in that 300 meters! Plus we will be fighting from defensive positions with home field advantage!
The threat of invasion is actually miniumal at this time. China wouldn't need to invade, just foreclose on the money the gov has borrowed!

The main SHTF scenario is total economic collapse/ world wide depression. Secondary SHTF here is collapse of the Fed Gov. Either way guys the good ole USA will be on our own for the most part. Canada and England might assist some maybe.

No offense to anyones opinions or preps just pointing out what I see coming.

 

[Sailor]

The biggest problem invaders with ak47's will have here in the states is accuracy range. Beyond 2/300 meters with and AK is iffy! A good AR can do 600 meters repeatedly. That leaves an invader with a 300 meter distance to traverse before they get into a usable range for the AK. A small group of folks with AR's on high ground could eliminate a lot of enemies in that 300 meters! Plus we will be fighting from defensive positions with home field advantage!
The threat of invasion is actually miniumal at this time. China wouldn't need to invade, just foreclose on the money the gov has borrowed!

Range is not that important. If I do my part with my .22 I will be fine. You are not likely to engage targets at that distance.

 

[Sweetums]

WOW. This thread went off on a tangent.

 

[dukeboy_318]

WOW. This thread went off on a tangent.

Yes it did, that's what I get for being a smart a** and making a joke. Anyways, I ordered new rings today, ill be taking it out this weekend and ill post a report on it

 

[Sweetums]

Yes it did, that's what I get for being a smart a** and making a joke. Anyways, I ordered new rings today, ill be taking it out this weekend and ill post a report on it

Yeah...but I started it! (sorry!)

Let us know how it works out.

 

[jsn_mooney]

I've never had any issue with the 3pc rings, but switched to the gap-less ones a few years ago to eliminate that possibility, IMHO I'd try that and see what happens.