A different take on reliability - Guns you've personally seen fail

[davebee456]

Sig P226R Brand New To Me...Within 100 Rounds Extractor fell out at range causing Double feed jam rendering the gun useless traded it at a loss for a Glock 26OD.

XD45 Had at least 4 Failure to Feed's in the first 100 rounds..Sold It.

Kel Tec P3AT Jammed every other shot..Paper Weight.

Dan Wesson CBOB 1911 would fail at least once every 100 rounds a FTF a FTE etc even after trips to factory.

Glock 30SF had several FTRB fails for me brand new in 200 rounds traded it in on a M&P45 I am testing now at my local range.

thats about it.

[steve]

Gun: P239 9mm
Setting: Qualification
How did it fail: Continuous Feed Problems
What was the remedy: Swap out bad magazine (Magazine was new)
Was it your pistol or someone else's: Mine

Gun: P226 .40
Setting: Qualification
How did it fail: Failure to Extract
What was the remedy: Worked itself out
Was it your pistol or someone else's: Mine

Gun: Gen417 non-counter-bore
Setting: Plinking
How did it fail: Stovepipe
What was the remedy: Read the internet and see it wasn't my limp wrists
Was it your pistol or someone else's: Mine

Gun: Colt 1991 .45
Setting: Plinking
How did it fail: Feed issues after I monkeyed with the gun to make it better
What was the remedy: Took off aftermarket parts and ran stock
Was it your pistol or someone else's: Mine

[MikeO]

Gun: issued M15 (S&W .38)
Setting: USAF range
Failure: Cylinder would not rotate
Remedy: pistol replaced


Gun: various issued M1911A1s (USAF GI and Match Pistols)
Setting: USAF ranges
Failure: Minor parts breakage (bushings, firing pin stops, links)
Remedy: parts replaced

Gun: issued M9
Setting: USAF range
Failure: extractor chipped
Remedy: part replaced
Note: Pistol was fired about 200 rounds a day for 5 days. On day 3 noticed rounds were not ejecting normally, just kinda dropping to right, but continued to function for >600 rounds.

Gun: new HK P30
Setting: private range
Failure: numerous FTF w variety of ammo
Remedy: traded away w full disclosure

Gun: oooold S&W Sigma 380
Setting: private range
Failure: frame cracked
Remedy: S&W replaced free under warranty w new M908 9mm

There are waaay more, but my fingers are tired...

[orionz06]

Gun: S&W M&P fullsize 9mm with Apex DCAEK and competition striker spring. Polished internals.
Setting: Long distance shooting
How did it fail: Failure to reset, over 10 of them. 2 instances in the prior weeks. To be objective, let's call it 15.
What was the remedy: The dog leg on the trigger bar had closed up, the solution was to open it.
Was it your pistol or someone else's: Mine.

Notes:

One of the things that I had been monitoring was the little ear/dog leg on the trigger bar. For some reason I neglected checking it long enough for it to close up and cause failures. The end solution was opening the gap up to a known good dimension from the past. Based on the frequency of failures compared to now after fixing it I am certain that it is resolved. I am seeking a spare trigger bar to modify permanently so it will not close.

[SecondsCount]

.....

One of the things that I had been monitoring was the little ear/dog leg on the trigger bar. For some reason I neglected checking it long enough for it to close up and cause failures. The end solution was opening the gap up to a known good dimension from the past. Based on the frequency of failures compared to now after fixing it I am certain that it is resolved. I am seeking a spare trigger bar to modify permanently so it will not close.

Those trigger bars are typically pretty tough. If yours moved at all during use then it either came from the factory soft or it has gotten soft from being previously bent. A replacement bar would definitely be in order.

[orionz06]

Not sure, but I am gonna try to get one and weld the loop closed.

[ranburr]

Gun: Ruger Redhawk 357 mag
Setting: Casual range shooting
Failure: blew up in my hand on round number six
Fix: sent it back to Ruger
My pistol, have talked to three other people over the yrs that had this happen with this model. All had flawed castings.

Gun: M&P 9mm
Setting: Numerous ranges
Failure: Numerous strikers broken and extraction issues.
Fix: Replaced parts and worked over by Dan Burwell
My personal pistol, still have no confidence in the gun.

Gun: Custom 1911
Setting: Range
Failure: Swinging link worked it's self apart.
Fix: Took a punch and hammered a divot into it
My personal pistol

Gun: M16A2
Setting: Deployment Range
Failure: Double Feed
Fix: Immediate action drill followed by a trip o armorer
Issued weapon.


I don't know of any brand or model that I have not seen go down at some point. Most guns today seem to work pretty well out of the box. I am bad about customizing everything I own. But, I try to send my stuff to the better gunsmiths that specialize in a particular platform. Eddie Jimemea does my 1911 work, Jim Miossi does my CZ work, and Scott Springer does my XD work. I don't have issues with any guns these guys work over.

[Mitchell, Esq.]

Gun: S&W M-49 J frame
Setting: Range
Failure: Broken hand spring
Fix: gunsmith - revolvers go down HARD
Mine

[orionz06]

Gun: S&W M&P fullsize 9mm with Apex DCAEK and competition striker spring. Polished internals.
Setting: Long distance shooting
How did it fail: Failure to reset, over 10 of them. 2 instances in the prior weeks. To be objective, let's call it 15.
What was the remedy: The dog leg on the trigger bar had closed up, the solution was to open it.
Was it your pistol or someone else's: Mine.

Notes:

One of the things that I had been monitoring was the little ear/dog leg on the trigger bar. For some reason I neglected checking it long enough for it to close up and cause failures. The end solution was opening the gap up to a known good dimension from the past. Based on the frequency of failures compared to now after fixing it I am certain that it is resolved. I am seeking a spare trigger bar to modify permanently so it will not close.

It now fails most every time, even dry fire. When I hold the trigger to the rear it will not reset, when I let it go forward it will reset. This indicates to me that the trigger bar geometry might be way outta whack. I will order a replacement and take the chance to respring the trigger anyway.

I did manage to get 300-500 trouble free rounds out since the trigger bar adjustment. I then experienced what I can only conclude to be light strikes as I do not recall a dead trigger or a failure to fire, just that I tap-racked. Later in the day I accounted for every unfired round that came out of the gun. The same ammo had a FTF in another gun, in addition another user of this forum experienced a FTF from recent production ammo of the same make.

This caused me to tweak the bar a bit and I think I may have overdone it a little. Update this evening when I dismantle it and compare it to my working M&P's.

[1986s4]

Gun: Steyr M9
Setting: Everywhere I used it
How did it fail: FTE
What was the remedy: sent to Steyr twice with no joy, sold with full disclosure
Was it your pistol or someone else's: Mine

Gun: Armalite AR-24 9mm
Setting: Range break in
How did it fail: FTE
What was the remedy: sent to Armalite twice, came back first time looking like a used gun, finished polished off all over. Still didn't work so back it went. Armalite admitted they knew nothing about pistols. Sent me a new one which I sold immediately w/o firing
Was it your pistol or someone else's: Mine

Gun: HK USPc .45
Setting: Range training, IDPA matches
How did it fail: FTE and refusal to accept full 8 round mag with slide closed/down
What was the remedy: Sent to HK twice. They replaced the extractor which did not cure FTE. Mags still refused to be seated full. Sold with full disclosure.
Was it your pistol or someone else's:Mine

Gun: These were Khan G17 mags
Setting: IDPA match
How did it fail: Competitor had three of these mags fail in the same way during same stage; base plate failed, ammo, springs etc, all over ground.
What was the remedy: Use real Glock mags!
Was it your pistol or someone else's: Someone else