HELP : SKS Jammed and Won't Open

[newshooter.45]

At the range firing my SKS for the first time. It's unissued and I cleaned off all the cosmoline. I spent lots of time removing cosmoline and cleaned the bolt by soaking it throughly. It was easily shaking after I dried it out. (I did not disassemble the bolt however as I couldn't get the damn pin to punch out!)

I was shooting some Military Classic Wolf ammo and it seemed fine. Then after about 40 rounds I pulled the trigger and heard a CLICK. No fire. I held the gun down range for 30 seconds or so, then tried to clear the jam. I could not move the bolt back to extract the round. I then opened the mag release and dumped out the last 2 rounds. However I still cannot get the bolt to slide back. I removed the receiver cover and recoil spring assembly but cannot get the bolt to slide back.

I'm pretty sure that their is a live round in the chamber. The primer failed to ignite or something. It's closed and locked at about 1/2" to fully being engaged (if that makes sense).

Any suggestions? What might have happened? This is my first SKS so I am a bit clueless. Why won't the slide move? (Actually it will move less than an 1/8 of an inch but won't budge or extract the chambered round.)

[kf4zra]

an sks bolt will tend to stick fairly well if it isnt cycled by the gas system. if you are afraid that there is a live round in the chamber, make sure you unload the magazine first. put the gun on safety, then take a rubber hammer/plastic mallet/2x4 and whack the bolt. it will come open. sometimes it helps to bang the butt of the rifle on the ground as you hit the bolt.

i guarantee that it will open. the sks is a tough gun.

the wolf military classic uses the old lacquer. a buildup of lacquer could have caused the problem, but if i were to guess, i would say that it is something to do with the gas system.


let us know what you find when you pull and inspect the stuck round.

[newshooter.45]

Thanks, I'll give it a whack and see what happens!

[m2hmghb]

I remember with the 1919 they used to use the M1 carbine butt or their boots to shove the bolt back. I've never had it happen with an SKS but I have read about some not well cred for ak's needing the treatment. Take a 2x4 or rubber malloet and it should break loose.

[newshooter.45]

Haven't tried whacking it back yet but if this does the trick, what do I need to do to prevent it from happening again?

[kf4zra]

lots of things it could have been, squib perhaps, corroded gas switch/seal on the gas switch, ive seen case heads ripped off and the next round jams inside the ripped one, lacquer/hardened cosmo acted as glue to hold round in.

knowing what the round looked like after you open the gun will help.

[fastvfr]

Newshooter, there is a standard procedure for clearing a semiauto/auto rifle jammed in this way with a case in the chamber.

All you do is put rearward pressure on the bolt handle with your fingers and rap the buttplate smartly on the ground.

Obviously, during the arofementioned it is best to not point the rifle's muzzle at anything you'd rather not put a x39 slug through...just in case.

This is the only method that works with every type of semiauto repeater action I have tried it with--its main advantage, besides working nearly every single time you need it to, would be that damage to the rifle is slmost impossible with this technique. Trying to hammer open the action via striking the bolt handle with any object is never a good idea.

So give this a try and see how it does for you.

[newshooter.45]

Fastvfr- I took your recommendation and on the first strike it opened. Thanks. I was surprised that the round in question was actually a spent round. Which is weird because the rifle cycled a round (it must have because the trigger was reset), but the round was a spent round. I pulled the trigger and heard a click, then realized it was jammed.

The spent cartridge looks normal. There are no dents or anything. It looks like a regular spent round.

What caused this? Is this a typical experience? Or is this a ammo issue regarding the Wolf Military Classic (or the lacquer)? I thought the SKS was a reliable gun capable of a lot of abuse. I wouldn't call what I did abuse. It was squeaky clean and 40 rounds in. Is this just a break in experience? Again, this is my first rifle (carbine?).

So I dunno, whats the deal? Anyone else have an idea of what could have caused this? Clearly I'm going to have to go shoot this some more to possibly break it in, but I was surprised that it locked up like that.

In a sense I am glad to have experienced it so I can quickly clear it next time. Thanks folks.

[kf4zra]

you should pull the gas tube and look at the connection it makes with the gas switch.

if its corroded/pitted (the yugos used corrosive ammo) then enough gas could be leaking to not cause the gun to cycle completely.

if you switch the gas system off (grenade launch mode) and shoot a single round, you should see that it is about as difficult to cycle the bolt as what you had before. the gas system really saves you a ton of work with extracting. you will appreciate what it does more once you realize how much effort it takes to manually cycle.

anyways, if it is pitted, there is a solution i remember seeing with a piece of metal wire acting as a gasket to seal up the area where the gas tube and switch meet.

if you would rather do it the right way, order a new switch (the pushbutton and spring in the switch are fine and wont need replacing) and a new gas tube, and you should never have a prob again.

like i said in previous posts, i would be willing to bet the problem is in the gas system.

good luck

[Parisite]

My new Yugo SKS would do this ALL the time. It was not a gas problem as I suspected. I cured it by taking the receiver cover and bolt out then taking a drill, cleaning rod and attaching a .22 bronze cleaning brush and wrapping steel wool around the brush. I stuck the cleaning rod in my drill and reamed out the chamber with the steel wool wrapped brush for a couple of minutes. Never a problem since with stuck spent casings.

[wonderwolf]

That sounds like a good idea esp on these yugo's, I might hafta try that tonight