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Shadow feeding problem


cpa5oh

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I'm having feeding issues with my Shadow - at least once per stage I get a round angled upwards and I have to pull the slide back to get the case/bullet to straighten itself so that it'll slide into the chamber. It's like the nose of the bullet gets hung up at the top of the chamber up about halfway. I've loaded at 1.130", 1.120", and 1.080" - same issue, though it seems to be a little less frequent at the shorter length. Bullets are 124 grain Ibejihead conical nose with no lube ring (others local to me with Shadows shoot the same bullets in their Shadows with no problems.) Every round is chamber checked with a Stoeger Pro Shop chamber checker and none even fit snugly in the gauge (I use a Lee U die.) Mags are the nickel plated Mec-Gar's from CZ Custom.

Anybody have any thoughts? When I rack the slide to get a round in the chamber, I can feel the bullet wanting to get hungup in the chamber...bullets/cases don't enter the chamber smoothly at all.

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Couple of things I would check.

Breechface and extractor for burrs.

Also check the feedramp transitions to chamber.

Also brass? You checked in chamber gauge, but us new or used? Check case rims for burrs, damage

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Could a dirty, filthy extractor be a culprit? I cleaned it and I *seem* to get better feeding just racking the slide to get a bullet in the chamber...I'll shoot it Tuesday or Thursday. I don't know that I've ever popped the extractor out and cleaned it before...

I will check the breechface for burrs.

Brass is all used...don't see any damage to case rims. But I might try more crimp - I use the Lee U die in the sizing/decapping station, and then, in the crimping station, I usually crimp as little as possible and still get the rounds to chamber check. Then again, with regard to ammo, a local CZ shooter gave me one of his rounds and it had the same issue, so it probably isn't the ammo/brass (his gun feeds just fine.)

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I just played with it and I'm pretty convinced it's related to the extractor - with the extractor and its channel clean, if I rip the slide and let it go the gun goes into battery and chambers a round (though you can hear and feel it get slowed down at the point it was getting stuck before.) If I pull the slide and then gently try to let it go into battery the round doesn't chamber - it gets stuck out of battery as I've described...but then if I push on the rear of the extractor from the outside (basically pushing against the extractor spring) the gun pops right into battery and chambers the round on its own.

I don't see any burrs on the extractor...maybe I'll try polishing it and I'll buy one and just try both and see what removes that problem.

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yeah a lot of use use the +10 mags springs

Mag springs could improve this feeding issue? I'm happy to get them if they'll help

i would first load shorter. then maybe buy a couple +10 mag springs (they are about $5 each from CZC) try to chamber a round but hold the slide and see if the bullet heat is getting hung up or nose diving. also find out what the other guys running the same bullet profile and see what they are loading.

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I had the same problem with my shadow and fixed it by increasing the crimp. I could feel the edge of the brass grind the top of the chamber. Once I increased the crimp by 1/8 of a turn the round fed smoothly. Hope that helps.

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I had the same problem with my shadow and fixed it by increasing the crimp. I could feel the edge of the brass grind the top of the chamber. Once I increased the crimp by 1/8 of a turn the round fed smoothly. Hope that helps.

do you know what that measures now?

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I had the same problem with my shadow and fixed it by increasing the crimp. I could feel the edge of the brass grind the top of the chamber. Once I increased the crimp by 1/8 of a turn the round fed smoothly. Hope that helps.

do you know what that measures now?

.372

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  • 1 year later...

I have the same problem with one Shadow custom from CZC, but another one feeds the same rounds without a problem. Both are the same age and usage within reason.

They feed MG FN 147's at any reasonable AOL but the one gun will not feed any round nose bullet of any weight either jacketed or plated. I have not tried coated because I don't care about them.

I have loaded these rounds from 1.10 to 1.40 AOL without any effect on the problem. Factory rounds in the 1.15 range also fail. This has to be a problem with the top surface of the chamber hanging up the bullet.

I would love to have an answer if someone finds it. BTW, I also tried recoil springs from 10 to 14 lb without any effect. These guns are less than a month old so I don't thing extractor springs are an issue. I don't see how they could cause it anyway.

My fear is that the 147's will eventually fail also. I plan to contact CZC and ask about this so if they know the answer I'll let you know. Right now I am pretty disappointed I switched to CZ.

Edited by Brooke
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My bet is extractor. I keep seeing this malfunction over and over with with everyone getting CZ's lately. Always turning out to be extractor.

Make 10 dummy rounds and slow cycle them through your gun. I mean really slow. Ride the slide. Now tune up that extractor until they don't get hung up.

I'll wager a guess that you have about 1k-2k rounds on the gun?

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I started to have angled up feed issues in my shadow so I pulled the extractor out and it was caked. Cleaned it up and the gun started running fine again.

Thanks. I am going to try that. If it works it seems to mean that the extractor would require excessively frequent cleaning, but first things first.

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Thanks. I am going to try that. If it works it seems to mean that the extractor would require excessively frequent cleaning, but first things first.

Yes, pull the extractor every few thousand rounds and clean out all the gunk that accumulates. How often depends on the ammo you're shooting. I learned to do this the hard way.

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