Webster

The Constitution was made to guard the people against the dangers of good intentions." --American Statesman Daniel Webster (1782-1852)


Saturday, May 26, 2012

Went to the range with the Garand




Well I went to the range on Friday, it is a new location closer to my house.  I took my 9 year old son who was excited to go to the range.  He had done real well, he had the highest score in his 3rd grade class for the year so as a reward, I took him to the range, along with 4 rifles.  I took my AR 15, my M1 Garand, my sons .22 bolt action Marlin and my Remington Nylon 66 .22 rifle.  Well all of the rifles did well, I even let my son fire my Ar-15 and that was a treat for him.  I havn't fired it in a long time. ammo ain't exactly cheap but I have a .22 adapter on the way so I can fire it more.   I bought it back in 1991 when I came back from the Gulf.   The Garand didn't do well, I had the correct ammo for it and I kept having what is called "Short Recoil"

   Here is what my Google search found:  See Below

        I don't know where to start....I don't want to buy parts and trouble shoot it that way.  That will get expensive in a hurry.   I am thinking about trying to find a gunsmith to diagnose the problem for me but that also will add up to a lot of coins.   Yes I am trying to be cheap.

    Does anybody have any ideas to try first?

Short recoil — the bolt is not retracted far enough to complete the cycle. Ammunition does not develop adequate gas port pressure to cycle the action. Gas port pressure should be 6000±2000 p.s.i. Faster-burning powder may not develop adequate port pressure without developing dangerously high chamber pressure.
Always use appropriate ammunition!
Carbon built up in gas port or gas cylinder. Clean the gas port and gas cylinder.
Undersized or out of round operating rod piston. Replace the operating rod.
Oversized gas cylinder. Replace the gas cylinder.
Barrel external diameter too small at gas port, leaking gas. Replace the barrel.
Operating rod is binding, possibly against the stock. Replace the operating rod if it is misshapen, or remove wood from the stock as needed.
Gas cylinder lock screw leaking gas. Clean and tighten gas cylinder lock. If it has a leaking valve, replace it.
Weak or broken operating rod spring. Replace the faulty part.
Burs on bolt binding in the receiver. Remove the burs from the bolt.
Damaged or deformed receiver. Replace the receiver    

5 comments:

  1. Sounds like a dirty, partially closed gas port. Check and clean it, then make sure the gas port is fully open and try it again.

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  2. I'd start with replacing the operating rod spring. That's a frequent culprit and cheap (and you should have a spare or two around anyway). It'd also make sure that the gas cylinder is properly lined up with the barrel gas port. This can be adjusted by tapping the cylinder further back onto the barrel splines or swapping out the cylinder lock and screw or by just replacing the gas cylinder. Again, not an expensive part and spares are good to have.

    I have gauges to check piston and cylinder sizes, so any time you want to stop by or meet up...

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  3. Thanks Guys, I will start looking for both. I remembered seeing some on Ebay and I will surf around on Amazon. I kinda wish I could shoot it off the back of the house once I have worked the problem but the neighbors will not appreciate it I am sure. Murphy, if memory serves, you live in the Old Dominion so that would be a haul from Georgia..unless we are talking about a blogshoot in the future?

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  4. There are two things I would do in addition to what has already been advised.

    To check the OPROD perform a "tilt test" which will diagnose that part. You can even put the stock back on with the spring out to see if it is binding against the wood at any point.

    Next up is to hit the lube points on the receiver (including under the heel) to make sure that isn't binding/galling.

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  5. Thanks AM, I am presently in the Fort Rucker area visiting my brother. When I am back at home I will do as y'all suggested. As soon as I figure out what it is, I will post the results.

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I had to change the comment format on this blog due to spammers, I will open it back up again in a bit.