In the last few posts, we've studied various forms of firearm malfunctions. In this post, we will study some procedures for fixing them.
So what should a person do when they encounter a firearm malfunction?
Step 1: This is the most important part. Identify the type of malfunction and decide if it can be fixed immediately or not. Some firearm malfunctions can be handled by the user immediately, others may need a trip to a qualified gunsmith to fix it. For example, if a stovepipe malfunction should occur, then the user can easily clear it right away and continue shooting. If a misfire occurs, then the user should keep pointing the gun in a safe direction for a little while, in case it is a hangfire and not a dud cartridge, before attempting to fix the problem. If the previous cartridge shot was a squib, the user should stop firing immediately and unload the gun and make it safe for transport to a location where the stuck bullet may be removed.
Step 2: If the malfunction can be fixed immediately, the user should perform the appropriate procedure for clearing the firearm. For instance, with a pistol, a stovepipe malfunction or a failure to feed may easily be handled by a standard tap-rack-bang drill (we'll discuss this shortly). In case of a double-feed issue, a more thorough clearance drill should be used (we'll discuss this as well in just a few moments). For some failure to extract issues, it may be necessary to take it to a gunsmith rather than try to fix it in the field.
Step 3: If the malfunction continues to reappear, there may be some problem with the firearm. In this case, it would be a good idea to stop using the firearm in question. The firearm may require a thorough cleaning to fix the problem or it may be necessary to take it to a gunsmith.
We talked about the tap-rack-bang drill and the clearance drill just a couple of paragraphs above. So how does one perform these drills? Here's a video from Clint Smith, director of Thunder Ranch, demonstrating both drills:
Viewers may note that the first malfunction he clears was actually two malfunctions in one, where it was a failure to feed due to a loose magazine as well as a stovepipe malfunction :).
In today's post, we will look into another type of firearm malfunction called the slamfire.
When a new cartridge is being loaded into the firing chamber of the firearm, sometimes the bolt slams the cartridge into the chamber with such force that the weapon fires without the user having pulled the trigger. This is known as a "slamfire".
A slamfire is particularly dangerous because it happens when the user is usually not expecting it to happen. In some firearms, it can happen even with the user's finger off the trigger and the safety enabled. In the case of semi-automatic and fully-automatic weapons, it may cause them to keep shooting until the magazine is empty. Since a slamfire comes as a surprise to the user, it may cause the user to lose control of the firearm and point it in an unsafe direction.
Slamfires are more common in weapons which have a free-floating firing pin, than in weapons which have a spring-loaded firing pin. When a semi-automatic or an automatic firearm is fired, the hammer strikes the first cartridge loaded and causes it to explode and push the bullet of the barrel. Some of the recoil force is harnessed to reload the firearm automatically. The recoil force pushes the bolt backwards and as it moves back, an extractor claw pulls out the cartridge that was just fired. The bolt continues to move backwards and compresses a return spring. Meanwhile the extractor claw pulls the empty cartridge case backwards until it can be pushed out via the ejection port. Meanwhile the bolt moves to its backward most point and is then pushed forward again by the compressed return spring. On the way forward, it picks up a new cartridge from the magazine and pushes it into the chamber. As the bolt reaches the chamber, the firing pin continues to move forward due to inertia, until it is stopped by the cartridge's primer. Now if the firing pin is spring loaded, the spring slows down the firing pin so that it doesn't slam against the cartridge's primer so hard. However, if the firing pin is free-floating, then there is nothing to slow it down as it slams into the cartridge's primer. In either case (but especially for free-floating pins), there is a chance that the firing pin slams into the cartridge primer a little harder than expected and could cause it to detonate prematurely. This causes the firearm to discharge without the user pulling the trigger and then the cycle repeats.
Free-floating firing pins are more common with military firearms, so there is a greater chance of slamfires occurring with them. Of course, this is not to say that firearms with spring-loaded firing pins are immune to slamfires, because it can happen with them as well, but not as often as those with free-floating pins.
As you can see on the above video, the Tavor accidentally slamfires at 0:24 after the user switches magazines.
Slamfires can also happen on some bolt action firearms, when the user is manually cycling the bolt and pushes it forward a little too hard.
In the above video, a slam fire happens as the user chambers the 3rd cartridge on a Stevens bolt-action rifle.
The main causes for slamfires to happen are:
Dirt and corrosion: If enough dirt gets in the bolt's firing pin channel, then it could cause the firing pin to stick to the bolt wall and protrude out of the bolt, which could cause the slamfire to happen. The same thing could happen if corrosion causes the firing pin to protrude out of the bolt.
Ammunition: Some ammunition is manufactured with more sensitive primers than others and require less force to detonate. This could cause slamfires.
The solutions to fix this are fairly simple:
The first solution is to keep the firearm clean to prevent dirt from jamming the firing pin.
The second solution is to use cartridges with less sensitive primers so that more force is needed to detonate them. This is why military cartridges usually have harder primer caps so that they need an actual hammer strike on the firing pin, rather than inertia, to detonate them.
The third solution is to design the firearm to minimize slamfires. For instance, the firing pin could have a spring around it, so that it slows down the firing pin as the bolt slams forward. The spring provides enough resistance that the pin will not hit the primer hard enough due to inertia, but will detonate the cartridge when the back of the firing pin is struck by the hammer.
A fourth solution is to make the firing pin as light as possible, so that it doesn't transfer enough force to detonate the primer due to inertia.
Some models of firearms are more susceptible to this problem than others. For instance, the Russian SKS rifle is notorious for this behavior (as is the Chinese-made Norinco SKS clone). The main reason is because dirt tends to build up near the firing pin channel and jams the pin stuck. Good regular cleaning around the firing pin keeps the problem down. The problem can also be remedied by replacing its free-floating pin with a relatively cheap spring-loaded firing pin replacement, but it is impossible to see if this modification was done or not by merely looking at the rifle. This is why some firing ranges don't allow shooters to bring SKS rifles in for this reason.
The above video shows a SKS slam firing, the reason why it slamfires and a replacement firing pin that fixes this problem, demonstrated by Ben Murray, the inventor of the replacement firing pin himself. Note that due to slamfire, the SKS fires multiple rounds one after another continuously like a fully-automatic rifle, even though it is actually designed as a semi-automatic rifle and it manages to do this despite the facts that the user's finger is off the trigger AND the safety is enabled! This shows how dangerous slamfires can be, especially when the user is not expecting it.
The Tavor TAR-21 reportedly had a slamfire problem when using some brands of commercial ammunition available in the US, until Israel Arms replaced the free-floating firing pins with spring loaded pins free of charge. The reason this happened was that the TAR-21 was originally designed with military ammunition in mind, which have harder primer caps. The Fabrique Nationale FS2000 semi-automatic carbine also had this same problem with certain brands of commercial ammunition available in the US, causing FN Herstal to recall this model in 2006. The FS2000 came with a firing pin that was originally designed for the military FN F2000 carbine and was therefore heavier, so that it could work with the heavier primer caps of military ammunition. With certain brands of commercial US ammunition with more sensitive primers, the firing pin was heavy enough to detonate them via inertia alone.
There are some pump-action shotguns that are deliberately designed so that they can slamfire if the trigger is held down and the pump is operated. Examples of this include the Winchester model 1897 and Ithaca model 37 shotguns.
This feature is useful for a soldier to rapidly fire into an area (such as a trench or a tunnel), which is why SEAL units in the Vietnam era carried the Ithaca 37 into action.
In our last post, we looked at a particular mechanical malfunction called Failure to Extract. In this post, we will look at a related malfunction called Failure to Eject.
In a Failure to Eject type malfunction, the old cartridge shell is properly extracted from the chamber after it is fired, but due to some reason, it doesn't get ejected out of the ejection port and stays in the gun partly. Because of this, the slide cannot close and the gun gets jammed. We've actually already studied one type of Failure to Eject last month: The Stovepipe Jam.
A pistol jammed by a stove pipe jam (A Failure to Eject type malfunction).
Click on the image to enlarge.
As can be seen in the picture above, the empty cartridge case was not fully ejected out of the firearm and got caught in the slide, thus preventing it from closing fully and therefore leaving the pistol jammed.
As far as the reasons why this happens, the big reasons are:
Dirt: Buildup of dirt or corrosion near the magazine spring, return spring or extractor can cause it to fail to eject.
Limp wristing of weapon: We already studied the subject of limp wristing a couple of months ago. By not holding the firearm strongly enough and not offering enough resistance and rigidity to the recoil forces of the firearm, the firing action may not complete its cycle properly and hence a jam occurs. This is more commonly seen when using pistols and is usually the #1 cause of failure to eject.
Defective ammunition: The propellant in the cartridge case may have degraded sufficiently due to age, or the cartridge may not have been filled with enough propellant. Either way, the burning propellant doesn't generate enough power to cycle the action properly and so the cartridge doesn't get fully ejected by the time the slide returns back.
Faulty ejection mechanism: Either the return spring of the slide may be too strong or the magazine spring that ejects the old cartridge is too weak. In either case, the slide moves back and then gets pushed forward and starts to close before the old case is ejected. Therefore, the old case gets caught before it has a chance to fully leave the firearm. The ejector may also be damaged (this is the piece that is near the back of the empty cartridge's movement, which pushes the empty cartridge out towards the ejection port), which may cause it to fail to push the shell out.
Spin back The old cartridge case does get ejected, but it hits something on the way out (e.g. the ammunition belt, or the drum, or the side of the ejection port) that causes it to spin back into the ejection port instead of going out of the weapon. Some rifles are more susceptible to this than others: e.g. the Stoner 63A, which was used by SEALs in Vietnam, occasionally suffered this when configured with a snail-drum magazine which fed from the left hand side. It did not exhibit this issue when configured with a box magazine fed from the right hand side.
Remedying this problem in the field is fairly easy as the stuck empty cartridge is usually easy to remove without using any tools. The primary cause of this problem in handguns is because of limp-wristing. However, if the problem continues to happen, then the extractor, ejection spring or return spring (or more than one of the above) may need to be replaced.
In our last post, we looked at one of the mechanical malfunctions that can happen to a firearm, namely Failure to Feed. In this post, we will look at another type of mechanical malfunction, namely Failure to Extract, otherwise known as FTE.
A "Failure to Extract" occurs when the slide or bolt move backwards, but the empty cartridge case remains behind in the chamber. In this situation, a new live cartridge may sometimes be forced into the base of the old case and the slide stays open and the firearm becomes jammed. This is called a "double feed". When this happens, the firearm can be difficult to clear.
Failure to Extract. Click on image to enlarge.
In the above image, we see a failure to extract, which causes a second cartridge to "double feed" into the chamber and leave the slide opened. The magazine may get stuck and refuse to drop out of the weapon. This type of jam sometimes requires some tools to clear the problem.
There are a few reasons why this can happen:
Dirt and corrosion: This is the #1 reason for failure to extract. Dirt or corrosion in the extractor claw or firing chamber can cause the empty cartridge to not be picked up correctly.
Damaged extractor: A damaged or bent extraction claw may not pick up empty cartridges correctly. A weak extractor spring could also cause this malfunction to happen.
Defective cartridge: Due to damage around the cartridge rim, the cartridge may slip off the extraction claw and remain behind in the chamber. Bulges in the cartridge could cause excess friction on the sides, which causes the cartridge to slip off the extraction claw.
A failure to extract will cause the weapon to not fire any more, until the problem is cleared. The cost of fixing this is usually not that much, as cleaning dirt is a standard procedure that should be carried out with any firearm. Damaged extraction claws and extractor springs can also be replaced fairly cheaply, as these parts are not that expensive for most firearms. Defective cartridges can be disposed off and cartridges of better quality can be purchased instead.
In our last post, we looked at firearm malfunction due to squib loads. In the article previous to that, we looked at malfunctions due to hang fires and dud cartridges. All these are classified as problems caused by faulty ammunition. In the next few posts, we will look at malfunctions due to mechanical problems. The first of these malfunctions we will look at is Failure to Feed, otherwise known as FTF.
Briefly, "Failure to Feed" is defined as when the weapon fails to feed a cartridge into the firing chamber for some reason. In a semi-automatic or an automatic weapon, this means that the cartridge does not properly travel from the magazine to the chamber and the slide remains partially open. When this happens, the weapon is said to be "out of battery".
There are several reasons why a firearm could fail to feed a cartridge:
Dirt: Accumulation of dirt in the firing chamber, bolt or bolt carrier can cause the cartridge not to sit properly inside the firing chamber.
Damaged magazine: If the magazine has dents, bulges or damaged lips, these may cause the cartridge to be misaligned as it is being fed into the chamber. A weak magazine spring may also cause failures to feed.
Improperly loaded magazine: The magazine could be in good shape, but it may not be pushed all the way into the firearm, which may cause the cartridges to not enter the chamber correctly.
Damaged cartridge: Sometimes the cartridge may have dents or bulges in it which could cause a failure to feed, as the slide may not pick it up correctly, or it may not fit into the chamber tightly because of dents or bulges.
Riding the slide: This is when the user holds the slide as it is moving forward and impedes its speed. When this happens, the slide may not have enough momentum to properly seat the cartridge in the chamber. The user should pull the slide back as far as it will go and then let it go and let the recoil spring do the job of loading the next cartridge.
In most cases, a failure to feed can be easily fixed. For instance, dirt in a firearm can generally be cleaned fairly easily, an improperly loaded magazine can be pushed into place, damaged cartridges can be removed from the magazine and discarded etc. All these are easy for the average user to do and not expensive at all. In other cases (e.g.) damaged magazine or weak magazine springs, the magazine may need to be replaced, or it may need to be sent to a gunsmith for repair. The cost of replacing a magazine is usually affordable (e.g. about $20-$30 or so) in most cases.
In our last post, we looked at hang fires and dud cartridges. In this post, we will look at another firearm malfunction usually caused by bad ammunition: squib loads.
So what is a squib load exactly? A squib load is where a cartridge is too weak to push the bullet out of the barrel of the gun, so the bullet gets stuck inside the barrel.
Here's what happens when a user encounters a squib load: The user pulls the trigger of the firearm, the hammer strikes the cartridge properly, but instead of a loud bang with the usual recoil, the firearm makes a softer "poof" sound and the recoil felt is much less. Instead of smoke coming out of the end of the barrel, it comes out of the ejection port.
So what causes squibs to happen? Often, this is because of poor quality control during cartridge loading. The person may not add enough propellant into the cartridge, or even forget to put any propellant into the cartridge. Sometimes the primer may explode without igniting the propellant. Also, the ammunition may not have been stored properly and the propellant inside could have degraded. These are problems usually seen with cartridges that are reloaded by inexperienced people, but they may also happen with factory loaded ammunition (especially if the manufacturer has a poor reputation for quality control). It may also happen that the bullet is misshapen or a bit too large for the barrel, which could also cause it to get stuck inside.
When this happens, it could lead to a very dangerous situation. If the user doesn't notice the squib cartridge and fires another cartridge with the barrel blocked, then there is a very good chance that the barrel could become bulged and the firearm ruined. There is also the possibility that the barrel could explode and lead to possible injury or death to the user and bystanders.
Therefore the user should pay careful attention to his firearm when shooting. If the firearm emits a quiet "pop" sound instead of a loud noise and if there's a lot less recoil felt, then a squib load should be assumed. The user should wait for a little while to make sure this isn't a case of hang fire and then unload and disassemble the firearm and remove the bullet stuck inside.
With all that said, here's what a squib load sounds like:
As you can see, the user encounters a squib at around 1:40 in the video. He wasn't paying much attention and thought it was just a misfire and was at the point of clearing his pistol to shoot another cartridge when the range safety officer yelled "stop" at him and pointed out that the previous cartridge was a squib load. You can hear the difference in sound when the squib fires.The user notes in his video that the cartridges were personally loaded by him and that he hadn't paid as much attention when reloading them and it is a very good thing that the range safety officer noticed what had happened and stopped him from shooting any more.
In our last post, we looked at some reasons for firearm malfunctions. In the next few posts, we will discuss these reasons in more detail. In this post, we will look into the topic of hang fires and dud cartridges.
So you've just aimed at the target and pulled the trigger of your firearm and the hammer falls on the cartridge and then, nothing happens. You may have just experienced either a hang fire, or a dud cartridge. What is going on here?
First, let us examine the phenomenon known as "hang fire" (also known as "delayed discharge"). This is when the trigger is pulled and the hammer releases properly, but there is a perceptible delay between when the hammer is released and when the firearm shoots. The delay time can vary: it can be only a fraction of a second to many seconds later. This may have the effect of throwing off the shooter's sense of timing and cause him/her to miss the target. In the case of propeller driven aircraft from World War I and World War II, the result was sometimes more catastrophic. You see, in those days, fighter aircraft used to have an interrupter gear (a mechanism invented by a Dutch man, Antoine Fokker during World War I) that allowed the aircraft to shoot its guns through a rotating propeller. The mechanism ensured that the aircraft's guns would only fire when the propeller blade was not in front of them. However, with hang fire happening, this could cause the bullets to come out a fraction of a second too late and strike the rotating propeller blade.
In the early days of firearms such as matchlocks and flintlocks, this is how all firearms worked -- there was always a delay from pulling the trigger to when the firearm discharged. In fact, the inventor of the percussion lock specifically designed his firearm to solve this delay issue. However, the issue was not completely solved and still happened because the quality of the powder wasn't always good quality in those days. It is still a problem in modern times too, because even if the production methods and quality of powder have improved, it may still happen if someone stores the ammunition improperly, or if the ammunition is too old. Ammunition which has been stored in damp conditions or exposed to penetrating cleaning solvents such as WD-40 may experience hang fires or become dud cartridges. Reloaded cartridges may also experience this issue if they haven't been cleaned properly prior to reloading (for example, the primer pocket in the cartridge may be partially blocked with residue). Finally, factory manufactured cartridges may also have this issue if they are very old or if they have been manufactured using improper methods and bad quality control.
When a hang fire occurs, the primer goes off, but the main propellant in the cartridge doesn't burn right away and it burns slowly until it builds up enough pressure to push the bullet out of the crimp of the cartridge and out of the barrel. This may take a few seconds to accomplish.
A dud cartridge will not fire at all. The reasons for this happening are similar to that for hang fire (i.e.) bad ammunition or incorrect storage of the ammunition. Other reasons that could cause dud cartridges include putting in a bad primer cap or forgetting to load propellant in the cartridge.
So what should a user do after they have pulled the trigger and nothing happens? Is this because of a dud cartridge or is it hang fire and how can the user tell the difference?
The user should continue to point the firearm in a safe direction for about 30 seconds, just in case it is a hang fire. If the firearm doesn't shoot after 30 seconds, the user may then conclude that the cartridge is a dud and remove it from the firearm. It is not a good idea to start examining the firearm right after it fails to fire because it may just be delayed due to hang fire.
The video below is an example of what NOT to do:
The user is the above video is very lucky to be alive. After his gun failed to fire, he immediately decided to look down the barrel to see what was wrong, instead of waiting for 30 seconds in case it was a hang fire. He was very lucky that the bullet didn't hit him when the gun finally fired.
If the firearm hasn't fired after 30 seconds, then it may be concluded that this is not a hang fire and that the cartridge is a dud. The cartridge may then be removed, but it should be disposed off safely. Why? Because there is a dangerous possibility that the cartridge can fire later on (for example, it may not have fired because the primer cap was bad, but the propellant inside the cartridge is still good and can go off if exposed to flame or heat).
Some ammunition factories have very poor quality control and manufacturing methods, and their ammunition is sold especially cheap. For example, .303 cartridges manufactured by POF (Pakistan Ordinance Factory) have a reputation for being of very poor quality and experiencing several hang fires and dud cartridges in every box of ammunition and several Enfield users recommend not buying them from this manufacturer at all. The video below shows one user's experience with 20 cartridges made by POF:
As you can see from the video, of the 20 cartridges fired, 8 were duds and didn't shoot at all and many of the remaining experienced hang fire, which can clearly be seen in the video when the user shoots. The user does not save any money by purchasing such cheap low quality ammunition, as it is unreliable and quite dangerous to shoot with.
In our previous post, we studied about the stovepipe jam. But we got a little ahead of ourselves there. What we should have studied first is a general overview of different types of firearm malfunctions, before going into specific details. We will do that in this post.
Before we start, it should be noted that not all firearm malfunctions are equal. Some of the malfunctions are relatively minor and can be easily fixed, whereas other malfunctions are much more serious and can damage the firearm or be dangerous to people nearby. Proper cleaning and maintenance procedures can go a long way in preventing malfunctions.
There are two main categories of firearm malfunction causes, with numerous subcategories within each. The two main categories of malfunctions are:
Ammunition malfunction: The ammunition doesn't work as expected. This is also called a "misfire"
Mechanical malfunction: There is some problem with the firearm's mechanism, which causes it not to work properly.
Ammunition Malfunction
Within this category, we have some subcategories:
Hang fire: This is also called "delayed discharge". The trigger is pulled, but there is a delay from when the trigger is pulled to when the firearm shoots. This was common with old-style firearms such as matchlocks and flintlocks because of poor quality of black powder. It also sometimes happens with modern ammunition though, especially if the ammunition has been stored improperly for a while.
Dud cartridge: The trigger is pulled and the hammer strikes the cartridge firmly, but the primer cap or propellant of the cartridge doesn't ignite and so nothing happens. If a dud round is encountered, the standard procedure is to keep the firearm pointed at a safe target and wait for 30-60 seconds, to ensure that this is not a case of "hang fire" that we just studied in the previous paragraph. If it doesn't fire after this time, then it might be because of a dud cartridge. In this case, the procedure is to eject the round and dispose of it properly, as it may still be dangerous.
Squib load: This is often caused due to insufficient quantity propellant in the cartridge case or because the ammunition quality was very poor. When this happens, the ammunition does not have enough force to push the bullet out of the barrel and the bullet stays stuck inside it. This causes an extremely dangerous situation if the stuck bullet is not removed, as the next cartridge fired will cause another bullet to impact the stuck one and may cause the weapon to explode.
Mechanical Malfunction
Within this category, we have some subcategories as well. Mechanical malfunctions are usually caused by dirt and rust, damage to parts, poor maintenance procedures, bad design etc. Some of its subcategories are:
Failure to feed: Due to some mechanical problem, a cartridge could not be properly loaded into the firing chamber. Some of the reasons this happens is if the magazine isn't properly inserted into the firearm, or if the user forgot to manipulate the slide after the magazine is inserted, or there may be some damaged parts (dents or bulges) in the firearm, or there may be some dirt that causes it not to feed the cartridges properly etc.
Failure to eject: The cartridge was fired, but due to some mechanical problem, it could not be ejected out of the weapon properly. The stovepipe jam that we studied in the previous post is a case of failure to eject.
Failure to extract: The fired cartridge case could not be extracted properly and as a result, a second cartridge is loaded into the chamber without the first one being removed from it.
Slamfire: This sometimes happens when a cartridge is ejected and a new one is moved into the chamber. The force of chambering the new cartridge sometimes causes it to fire, without the user intending it to do so. This is extremely dangerous, especially if a semi-automatic weapon unexpectedly goes full-auto when the shooter is not expecting it.
Failure of safety devices: This may happen to a poorly maintained firearm, where the safety devices do not work and the firearm goes off accidentally without the user expecting it.
We will study all these malfunctions in detail in the following posts.
In the next few posts, we will study some cases of malfunctions in firearms. The first one we will study is the stovepipe jam.
A typical stovepipe jam. Click on image to enlarge.
Note that in the above image, an empty cartridge case is stuck in the ejection port at the top of the pistol. This is an example of a stovepipe jam. The reason that this is called a stovepipe jam is because the empty cartridge case resembles the chimney pipe of an old fashioned cooking stove.
A stovepipe jam usually occurs in semi-automatic or fully-automatic firearms and is a failure-to-eject malfunction (i.e.) the cartridge that was just fired did not get ejected from the firearm properly and the cartridge case is partially stuck in the ejection port. This means the weapon cannot load the next cartridge into the chamber properly and will not fire.
There are four major causes of stovepipe jams:
Limp wristing the weapon: We already studied the subject of limp wristing a month ago. By not holding the firearm strongly enough and not offering enough resistance and rigidity to the recoil forces of the firearm, the firing action may not complete its cycle properly and hence a jam occurs. This is more commonly seen when using pistols.
Old or bad ammunition: The propellant in the cartridge case may have degraded sufficiently due to age, or the case may not have been filled with enough propellant. Either way, the burning propellant doesn't generate enough power to cycle the action properly and so the cartridge doesn't get fully ejected by the time the slide returns back.
Bad ejection mechanism: Either the return spring of the slide may be too strong or the ejector spring that ejects the old cartridge is too weak. In either case, the slide moves back and then gets pushed forward and starts to close before the old case is ejected. Therefore, the old case gets caught before it has a chance to fully leave the firearm.
Spin back: The old cartridge case does get ejected, but it hits something on the way out (e.g. the ammunition belt, or the drum, or the side of the ejection port) that causes it to spin back into the ejection port instead of going out of the weapon. Some rifles are more susceptible to this than others: e.g. the Stoner 63A, which was used by SEALs in Vietnam, occasionally suffered this when configured with a snail-drum magazine which fed from the left hand side. It did not exhibit this issue when configured with a box magazine fed from the right hand side.
Stovepipe jams are relatively easy to clear. We will study how to clear firearms at the end of this series. For now, we will continue studying other types of malfunctions in the following posts.
