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Saiga 12 fail


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I went out shooting today and had some odd issues with Saiga. It was only my second time out with it and it seemed like the last shell in every mag I loaded would not fire. Sometimes more than the last shell but mostly the last in a 5 round factory mag. The first time I went out I didn't polish anything and had the factory puk and plug in and it ran flawless. It kicked hard so I figured it was over gassed. Today I ran it with the V-plug, twister puk, and polished bolt carrier and bolt and for some reason that last round stayed in the chamber and didn't fire. There was a small indent where the pin had hit with no ignition. I reloaded the rounds and fired them one at a time without issue. Maybe I set my plug on the wrong setting? I was using the green Remington express buck 3 3/4 when it happened. I also ran some 3" red winchester buck on the same setting and it kicked like a mule compared to the Remington's but no failures what so ever with them. Sorry for the lengthy story. If anyone has an idea please share. Thanks.

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Welcome to the forum!

 

People will probably want to know what setting your V-plug was set at. Did you screw it all the way into the gas block? Just how much polishing did you do, especially to the bolt?

 

I'm no expert, but I would double check my gas settings after switching back to the factory puck and give it another go.

 

I am sure someone that knows what they are talking about will chime in with more info. The gun obviously runs, so just be patient and methodical about diagnosing the problem area. Most of all, use google to search this forum and keywords, and read a lot. Lots of good info here and helpful people too. Your answer may be just a search away...

 

Keep us posted on how it goes!

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I was curious if maybe the firing pin wast hitting the primer hard enough. The spent shells had a distinct dent in the center of the primer cap were as the ones that didn't fire had an undefined dent but still a dent. I'm using JTE performance power hammer spring along with the G2 trigger and hammer. I read all of the posts and threads about polishing and did far less grinding than the safe amount on the bolt and carrier. Just enough to load on a closed bolt. I'll see if I can post some pictures of my V-plug setting.

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There you go!

 

Seems most problems people have with these guns stems directly from doing too much too fast. Luckily this one seems to be an easy fix!

 

 

Post back with results, and let us know how it goes, BeastMode.

 

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Some people have trouble with the recoil spring bowing downward and stopping or slowing down the hammer as it pivots at the top of its travel. You may try taking the top cover off, but leaving the recoil spring in. Cycle the gun manually (unloaded or with a spent shell in) and pull the trigger and see if it looks like the recoil spring is slowing the hammer. Do this 15-20 times and see if it looks like its making the recoil spring bow down every now and then.

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Welcome aboard. Seems like those that actually fire their weapons don't take long finding out which aftermarket parts can be problematic. I stick to the factory springs and never have problems, but I go pretty deep into things to achieve reliability. Worth the effort, IMO.

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Thanks for the advice. I'll try and check the recoil spring tomorrow. If it looks good I may switch out the hammer spring and put the original back in. I was under the impression that the JTE spring was stronger, therefore providing a more powerful snap from the hammer to the pin...

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http://forum.saiga-12.com/index.php?/topic/77122-jt-engineering-mainspring/

 

Have you seen that thread?

 

I run an OE spring as well and have no issues or need/want for the potential refinement of the JTE spring but alot of guys swear by it and alot don't. JT Engineering knows his shit tho and wouldn't sell or produce a bunk product.

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The whole point of it is a tunable spring that can be set lighter or firmer to run the smoothest possible in a gun geared towards competition. The saiga 12 is designed to run the broadest possible range of ammo from full house 3" mags to 3 dram 1 1/8 oz low brass. Competition guys tend to buy their ammo by the pallet and maybe tune to run one type of birdshot and one slug very very well, with the absolute minimum of recoil, and smoothest action. They don't need versatility.

 

A formula one car isn't intended to deal with pot holes or variances in fuel.

Edited by GunFun
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Don't ever change springs. Ever! If it's not working with factory springs it's another problem. Not the spring tension. Just for giggles I put the reduced spring in and recoil increased dramatically.

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So, you do realize that you can in fact make your spare spring stronger than the factory one by bending at the correct point?

However, increasing the amount of work it takes to reset the hammer affects how much gas impulse is needed to cycle.

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