General Troubleshooting Striker Fired Pistol Problems.

[arakboss]

I am having major problems with a Glock Clone "build" and would like some direction on how to go about getting this pistol running well. How would you recommend I go about identifying the problems and what might be causing them?

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[AMT]

I'd start by mentioning what problem(s) you are having. Then folks would know where to start.

There are also youtube videos of hints/tips/tricks that may answer a lot of questions too.

 

[arakboss]

I'd start by mentioning what problem(s) you are having. Then folks would know where to start.

There are also youtube videos of hints/tips/tricks that may answer a lot of questions too.

I fired 15 factory rounds total and the first round would feed and fire most of time by manually racking and releasing the slide.
Twice it did not feed when manually racking the slide, in those cases the bullet hung up in the feed ramp area. When it did feed and fire the first round, the fired case would eject and the slide would pick up and load the next round but it would not fire. It appears as though the slide was not going into battery and that resulted in a off centered strike on the primer which did not fire. This happened numerous times. I waited for a few seconds to make sure I didn't have a hang fire, then I dropped the magazine and ejected the unfired round on to the ground. I picked up the unfired round, manually dropped it into the chamber, released the slide on that round and it fired each time. Then I inserted the magazine back into the pistol and racked the slide to load another round. Rinse and repeat same thing happened each time. I was never able to get two consecutive rounds to load and fire.

The frame and slide are unknown pieces to me in that I have not used them in any other configuration. If I owned a working factory G19, I could swap slides and frames to help isolate the part that is likely causing the problems. The maker of the slide says they will charge me $90 if I send slide back to them and they don't find anything wrong with it, so I am financially motivated to figure this out at home. I doubt it is the frame but you never know. The only 9mm Glock compatible magazines I have are aftermarket ETS mags. They have worked great in my G22 so I doubt they are the problem. I am leaning towards a slide issue but rounds pass the plunk test so the chamber seems OK.

The barrel does have sharp edges compared to my Storm Lake 9mm conversion barrel I am running in the G22 so maybe it could be the cause of the rounds that hung up but that doesn't seem like it would prevent the slide from going into battery?

I watched one youtube video of a guy who said the safety plunger could be causing a drag with Poly80 frames but my slide doesn't exhibt the same problem he was having.

 

[Member 53328]

Buy an OEM Glock….

 

[arakboss]

Buy an OEM Glock….

I am probably going to wish I did if I have to send any component back.

 

[arakboss]

I fired 15 factory rounds total and the first round would feed and fire most of time by manually racking and releasing the slide.
Twice it did not feed when manually racking the slide, in those cases the bullet hung up in the feed ramp area. When it did feed and fire the first round, the fired case would eject and the slide would pick up and load the next round but it would not fire. It appears as though the slide was not going into battery and that resulted in a off centered strike on the primer which did not fire. This happened numerous times. I waited for a few seconds to make sure I didn't have a hang fire, then I dropped the magazine and ejected the unfired round on to the ground. I picked up the unfired round, manually dropped it into the chamber, released the slide on that round and it fired each time. Then I inserted the magazine back into the pistol and racked the slide to load another round. Rinse and repeat same thing happened each time. I was never able to get two consecutive rounds to load and fire.

The frame and slide are unknown pieces to me in that I have not used them in any other configuration. If I owned a working factory G19, I could swap slides and frames to help isolate the part that is likely causing the problems. The maker of the slide says they will charge me $90 if I send slide back to them and they don't find anything wrong with it, so I am financially motivated to figure this out at home. I doubt it is the frame but you never know. The only 9mm Glock compatible magazines I have are aftermarket ETS mags. They have worked great in my G22 so I doubt they are the problem. I am leaning towards a slide issue but rounds pass the plunk test so the chamber seems OK.

The barrel does have sharp edges compared to my Storm Lake 9mm conversion barrel I am running in the G22 so maybe it could be the cause of the rounds that hung up but that doesn't seem like it would prevent the slide from going into battery?

I watched one youtube video of a guy who said the safety plunger could be causing a drag with Poly80 frames but my slide doesn't exhibt the same problem he was having.

Firing pin moves freely in it's channel and it has plenty of protrusion beyond breech face.

 

[Member 53328]

I am probably going to wish I did if I have to send any component back.

Or if you gotta dump any kind of money into it to get it to run correctly. Depending on the cost of the barrel and slide you got you're probably already over the cost of an OEM Glock. It just sucks that Glock frames are around $250.00 + FFL fees. Blue label is where it's at!

 

[arakboss]

Or if you gotta dump any kind of money into it to get it to run correctly. Depending on the cost of the barrel and slide you got you're probably already over the cost of an OEM Glock. It just sucks that Glock frames are around $250.00 + FFL fees. Blue label is where it's at!

I picked up the complete slide for $310 and the complete frame for $100. The slide maker is telling me to try a factory Glock mag and that they said there have been reported issues with ETS mags. If the reported issues are with their slides and ETS mags it might be helpful if they mentioned that in their product description. Hopefully a factory mag resolves the issue but I have numerous ETS mags and no factory 9mm mags so it looks like I will have to buy at least one. A magazine issue might explain why a couple of the rounds didn't feed when I manually racked the slide. It doesn't seem like the magazine would prevent the slide from going in to battery but who knows.

Blue label deals sound great but I would feel like I was cheating the system in a stolen valor sort of way.

 

[arakboss]

Gen 5 ten round G19 mag is on the way for $21 shipped. Hope that solves the problem.

 

[arakboss]

I really don't think the mag is the problem. After farting around with the pistol a little more I was able to find that it will hang up out of battery if I slowly release the slide on a loaded mag. First pic is with the mag still in and second pic is after I removed the mag to see if slide was hanging up on mag (it wasn't). I took out my G22 and duplicated these steps and no matter how slowly I let the slide release it would return to full battery. I am now thinking it could be an issue with the extractor. If I were to remove the extractor and try the previous steps again, I am guessing the slide would not hang up?

 

[Member 53328]

I picked up the complete slide for $310 and the complete frame for $100. The slide maker is telling me to try a factory Glock mag and that they said there have been reported issues with ETS mags. If the reported issues are with their slides and ETS mags it might be helpful if they mentioned that in their product description. Hopefully a factory mag resolves the issue but I have numerous ETS mags and no factory 9mm mags so it looks like I will have to buy at least one. A magazine issue might explain why a couple of the rounds didn't feed when I manually racked the slide. It doesn't seem like the magazine would prevent the slide from going in to battery but who knows.

Blue label deals sound great but I would feel like I was cheating the system in a stolen valor sort of way.

Do you have a stock frame or stock slide? That may also allow you to find the issue. Either stock slide on your aftermarket frame. Or your aftermarket slide on a stock frame. I'm guessing it's Gen 3.

 

[Member 53328]

I really don't think the mag is the problem. After farting around with the pistol a little more I was able to find that it will hang up out of battery if I slowly release the slide on a loaded mag. First pic is with the mag still in and second pic is after I removed the mag to see if slide was hanging up on mag (it wasn't). I took out my G22 and duplicated these steps and no matter how slowly I let the slide release it would return to full battery. I am now thinking it could be an issue with the extractor. If I were to remove the extractor and try the previous steps again, I am guessing the slide would not hang up?

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View attachment 1063287

Is the slide and stock the same brand? I have had issues where the barrel needs to be worked on for it to fit in the ejection port/notch portion of the slide. If the specs aren't right it will cause lock up/cycling issues. Do you have a stock 19 barrel? I would try that as well.

 

[arrowshooter]

Does the bare slide move freely on the rails?

You might want to check the fitment of the barrel to the slide. If it feels tight, make sure that the breach face is clear of any coating.

You could also be having a problem with the guide rod/spring dragging.

 

[arakboss]

Do you have a stock frame or stock slide? That may also allow you to find the issue. Either stock slide on your aftermarket frame. Or your aftermarket slide on a stock frame. I'm guessing it's Gen 3.

I don't. It is based on Gen 3 Model. I think I might try and remove the extractor to see if that alleviates the hang up issue. That may allow me to eliminate the chamber as a cause if the rounds feed fine without extractor installed. Assuming rounds feed straight with extractor holding them in place? I will youtube extractor removal tomorrow and see how difficult it is.

 

[arakboss]

Does the bare slide move freely on the rails?

You might want to check the fitment of the barrel to the slide. If it feels tight, make sure that the breach face is clear of any coating.

You could also be having a problem with the guide rod/spring dragging.

The slide moves freely on the frame rails with no rounds loaded in it. I worked it back and forth a couple of hundred times messing with the trigger and hoping to allow it to break in quicker. Whatever the problem is seems to only occur when it is loaded. The bubblegum slide extractor has a tighter gap between the extractor claw and the breech face compared to the same gap in my G22. The G22 extractor is made for 40cal though so that may be why it has wider gap.

 

[arrowshooter]

When the slide strips the round out of the mag, it is angled up towards the feed ramp. as the slide moves forward, the round needs to be able to slide up under the extractor. If there is too much "coating" on the breach face you will get the exact problem that you are facing.

 

[arakboss]

Is the slide and stock the same brand? I have had issues where the barrel needs to be worked on for it to fit in the ejection port/notch portion of the slide. If the specs aren't right it will cause lock up/cycling issues. Do you have a stock 19 barrel? I would try that as well.

The slide is made by Alpha Shooting Sports and the frame is from Palmetto State. The barrel fit seems fine. My only complaint with the barrel is sharp edges on and around the feed ramp and chamber compared to my Storm Lake barrel. You can tell Storm Lake did extra work to smooth sharp edges.

 

[arakboss]

When the slide strips the round out of the mag, it is angled up towards the feed ramp. as the slide moves forward, the round needs to be able to slide up under the extractor. If there is too much "coating" on the breach face you will get the exact problem that you are facing.

Maybe the gap between the extractor claw and breech face is too tight. I might have to break out some feeler gauges. I didn't notice any excessive coating on breech face. The slide is nitrided.

 

[Stomper]

I have a low round count G19.3 and can meet up with you this weekend so you can compare it to yours and also try out the slide on your PSA frame.

 

[arrowshooter]

Can you push a round under the extractor fairly easily?

Looks like Stomper has the best idea.