Recently I purchased an Adams Arms .308 Carbine complete rifle and when I got it to the range it would not cycle and yes it was on the correct setting. Once in a while it would fire two rounds before it would malfunction but then it started single firing again. Fairly deflating all in all being it was a brand new rifle. Any ideas on where to start to get if shooting properly? Thanks for any info.

Since it's new, I'd start with the manufacturer.  Malfunction should also be stated as what kind if you are looking for online help.  Does it cycle at all, does it fail to eject or is it short stroking?  If you hand cycle, does it feel like its binding and that kind of stuff.  They will make it right if it's their fault, and bad ones make it out the door on any brand.

failure to feed?
failure to eject?

double feed?


how is it stopping?

It was like a single shot. fire, hand eject, ect.......

Single shot failure to extract sounds like the op rod isn't acting on the carrier. If it is on the correct setting and you are using good ammo I would check to see if all parts can move smoothly, i.e op rod, carrier, buffer, etc.

It was Winchester and PMC brass ammo. I would not call it smooth or rough.

Thanks Cody. I sent you an email.

So Adams Arms is paying shipping both ways so good customer service I would say.

Cody and AA have great customer service. Actually helped me out recently for a user created issue, free of charge.

Hey if you can find out from Cody post what the issue was!   That can assist others trouble shooting similar issues in the future!!!

I am currently out of country but as soon as I hear from Adams Arms as to the issue I will pass it along for sure.

This is what I got back. My son is going to test my rifle for me this weekend. I have to wait 4 more months. LOL


"I just wanted to let you know that we have completed your RMA.  We found the bolt to be out of spec and the gas port slightly undersized. We have replaced the bolt assembly with a new one and have increased your gas port .010”. We also replaced your buffer spring and replaced your gas block as there was a broken off Allen key stuck in it and the screws were stripped out. We then tested the rifle with PMC 147 grain and Federal ammo 168 grain and had cycling and lock back using both types of ammunition. "

so who broke the allen bolt in the gas block?

Dont know. It was not me. I didnt take it apart.

I do have to say though so far the customer service has been great. They paid for shipping both ways. Looking fwd to hearing a report from my son on Sat on how it functions.

I was having the same problem. I sent mine in on march 11th. I've been in contact with Cody and mine was supposed to be done 2 weeks ago but I was told they had to wait on ammo to test it. I waited all last week to see how the gun test went. Still no answer.... 6 weeks and counting...

Once mine does come in I will also give a range review.

Regards,
David

It is still not fixed. My son was having failure to feeds constantly with PMC ammo.

The gas system is in the 12 oclock pos.

I hate to say it but once you go AA you always go back.

I say this from my own experance.  Good luck.

I am not sure what the problem is but I still have hopes they will fix it and get it running. Not going to lie though part of me wishes I went DPMS. I would like an up and running piston system though.

So I was told to hand cycle it a bit then lube it liberally and take it to the range again. The malfunction was a failure to feed all the way. The round that fired ejected all the way (it did not before I sent it back) but the next round would just not feed all the way in. It was PMC ammo and a PMAG that was seated all the way.

Please keep in touch regarding any existing issues. We will lend support and do whatever is necessary to get this rifle running properly. Keep comms with [email protected]

Cody
Adams Arms
Customer Service

Had my Adams Arms .308 out the other day, it ran flawlessly through about 50 rounds, I am taking it out again today, I will update when I'm home from the range. When I got it I was having failure to feed issues with my handloads and also Winchester factory loads. The issue with the handloads was 100% me, I had a die set up incorrectly in the press. As far as the factory load issue I am not sure what was causing it. Before I called CS or sent it in I took it apart and cleaned and lubed everything up real nice and it functioned perfectly last range trip (hopefully not an aberration).

I really hope that all it needed was a cleaning and lube job because man it is a really nice rifle and loads of fun. Like I said earlier I will provide an update when I get home later today.

As far as Adams Arms CS, I contacted Cody with a few unrelated questions about proprietary parts (take down pins in particular). Service was top notch and he went above and beyond to take care of me.

UPDATE: Well the range report from today is not good, between a third and 1/2 of the rounds fired (66) failed to properly cycle the rifle. It was short stroking and attempting to cram a round at a severe upward angle into the chamber (pics attached). Never once through many mag changes did the bolt hold open work after firing the last shot.

I have a feeling it is either not enough oil or the gas block is leaking (noticed a lot of smoky brown residue around gas block
(pics attached). I've now gone through aroun $100 dollars of ammo trying to diagnose this issue.

I've really come to regret buying this rifle. With all the horror stories I've seen about long wait times and rifles returned unfixed I wish I could just get my $ back.

Please feel free to contact [email protected] to discuss options regarding your rifle.

Cody
Adams Arms
Customer Service

Glad to see I'm not the only one with these problems.  Mine first had problems with a 5 year old lot of 150gr. American Eagle that short stroked so bad the bolt would close on an empty chamber and just go "click" on the next trigger squeeze.  Other types of ammo would smash the next round into the feed ramp exactly as pictured above.  

It's embarrassing to shoot the gun with my friends and co-workers because they laugh at me for buying an "AR-10" while their FALs, G3s, and M1As run like champs.

I've already been in contact with Cody and Adams Arms received my rifle last week.  Hopefully they can get it running properly.

I am a reasonably happy Sig 516 & 716 owner and I find it odd that no one suggested a Sig516. I mean I know it's not the best in world but for the price I'm quite happy with mine overall. I don't read a lot of negative posts about Sigs in here so I'm guessing that there are not that many problems with them. They sell a lot of them so I would guess that if they were problematic guns we would see a lot more negative posts.

So I'm curious. Why no Sig suggestions? Is there something I don't know or I'm missing?

I did not consider the Sig 716 because it costs $500 to $700 more (which is money I don't have) than I paid for the Adams Arms.  The Sig weighs almost two pounds more.  Here in the 21st century, fat, carbine length, cheese grater quad rails are going the way of the dodo.   I have several AR's and only have two with carbine length rails, a copy of my M4 I carried in Iraq that I built purely for nostalgia purposes and an 8.2" barreled 300 Blackout.  The Magpul MOE SL hand guard with M-Lok slots allows me to attach everything I will ever need or use while saving the weight and expense of a rail.   I looked at the DPMS G2 for a similar price but the MOE version has a carbine length gas system and a dopey pencil barrel.  The DPMS Recon costs even more and I didn't want to have 1996 calling me all the time, asking for it's rail back until I spent in excess of $200 more to get a better rail and go through the hassle of installing it.

The AA seemed to be the perfect fit for what I need and want.  Light weight, parts compatibility with AR-15, mid length gas system, Magpul MOE hand guard with M-Lok slots, and heavier profile barrel.

I also have a very early model Adams Arms .308.  While I'm not having the kinds of problems some others are, it's not running well enough for me to count on it during a 3-Gun match (which is why I purchased it).

It's having occasional failures to feed and the mag-well is so tight with PMags that it's barely usable with anything other than Lancers.

Anyone else having mag-well issues?

I haven't contacted AA to sent it back in yet, but so far I'm not impressed.  I've been running an Adams Arms EVO Ultralight in 3-gun and it's been a champ.  I'm just disappointed in the .308 so far.

Feel free to contact us at [email protected] for troubleshooting and/or an RMA for Repairs.

Cody
Adams Arms
Customer Service

Update on my AA .308, the last batch of range problems was my fault, I could not find specific instructions for their .308 build, the bushing that slides onto the piston rod is different from the 5.56 due to the extended barrel nut. I slipped the bushing on the wrong way, with the extended part into the spring instead of on top of the barrel nut. After much Google foo I was able to locate a picture of someone breaking theirs down and instantly spotted my problem. Flipped the bushing and it cycled perfectly. LRBHO is still not happening with any of my mags, hoping a few more rounds run through will remedy this.

Sorry about the slow update.

Well my sent send it back in a week or two ago and I am still waiting on the word from Adams Arms. Hopefully it will be fixed by the time I get back to the states.

Gen3 PMAG's?  Maybe give some steel DPMS mags or the Lancer L7 mags a whirl.  Might not make any difference but it can't hurt to try.

well...sometimes you get what you pay for...cheese grater and all.

about 8 yrs ago i had an AA upper in 545 that was a mess and at that time their customer service was non-existant.

So Cody contacted me and said they are building me a new rifle. I certainly can not say their customer service is bad and if this other rifle works well I may consider buying one in 5.56.

I hate buyers remorse which is why I always buy top shelf, even if I can't afford it lol. Still ends up being cheaper then buying more than once. I am glad to hear the customer service is on point.

I'm kinda the other way around. If i buy a factory rifle, sure it comes with a warranty, but i gotta send it out to get fixed. That's an unknown amount of time to just wait and hope.

If i build, it's all on me. I'm at fault, i can't blame others because i chose those parts, i installed them. When buying factory stuff, i tend to get more bitter, i expect more from factory rifles, and am 90% not impressed.

So, I've said fuck factory rifles. My large frame choice is armalite. They now have started selling AR10A lowers. No need for factory rifles now. Just receivers and I'll roll my own. Then, i can only be mad at myself when shit doesn't work.

I don't understand these companies. Why wouldn't you build a rifle and test the piss out of it for a year or two before releasing it to the market ?

It's bull that people buy a gun and it sucks and they are stuck with it. People should be able to get their money back. Maybe if Hillary wins that is one gun law she will change. Lol

I just ordered one of these, of course before finding any "complaint threads".  I'm hoping for reliability without having to figure out the best route to Odessa :)
At least initially, I'll be putting IMI M80 through it, as that's what I have on hand.

Even with top shelf, there can be problems. I remember back in 2003, buying a H&K USP .45C and taking it to the range with a friend.  It jammed 2/3 of the time.  It went back to the factory for service, and came back with problems. It went back again, and came back with problems. Then I called and talked to a VP at H&K and he told me he'd get the problem fixed. He was good to his word, but dang, a pistol like this jamming out of the box.

I sent mine back the first part of May because it was short stroking and got it back six weeks later.  Below is the message I got from AA regarding what they did to it.

"We found the gas port slightly undersized. We have replaced the ejector spring and buffer spring with a new one and have increased your gas port .010”. We then tested the rifle with PMC 147 grain and Federal ammo 168 grain and had cycling and lock back using both types of ammunition."

After getting the rifle back, it no longer short stroked, however, it was now blowing out primers and tearing up the case heads.  I also had several rounds fire but not eject the case and hard lock the gun requiring me to mortar the gun to get them out.  One hard locked so bad I had to use a cleaning rod to jam it out.  I found pieces of primer inside the bolt which jammed the firing pin up.  There were also primers rattling loose inside the lower.

I emailed Cody again, who's customer service has been phenomenal, and he offered to send me a new bolt and firing pin because the design has changed.  I bought an early version of the rifle and the bolt has a single dimple on one of the lugs.  The new bolts have four dimples on the front of the lugs and a smaller firing pin hole because the new firing pins have a smaller tip.

I received the new bolt and firing pin today and test fired it.  The new bolt did not tear up the casings, however, the gun was now short stroking hardcore again by ejecting the fired case and not picking up the next round.  Some cases still hard locked and required mortaring to get out.

I've already emailed Cody about further options but he's apparently out of the office until after Labor Day.

I will post more as things progress...

Apparently I can't post any more than 2,000 characters with my account, so here's a little more.

I've never posted pictures on here before, but I'll attempt to post pics of the damaged cases.



I know .308 AR's can be picky with ammo, but I've been firing American Eagle, Magtech, Aguila, Perfecta, PMC, PPU, Federal Premium, and South African surplus.  I've used the included Lancer magazine and several different Magpul Pmags, 20 and 25 rounds.  The gun does not like anything.

That looks like exactly the kind of thing I'm seeing in mine.  Mimicking high pressure signs with factory ammunition.

Look at the primer rings that the firing pin pushed up. You are on the verge of having a squib round blow up in your face  Stop shooting !   Also look at the extractor marks on the brass you are having forced extraction from the brass not contracting fast enough  and or excessive cam tension front the extractor. Also check head space and look fore a tight chamber and machine marks .    

So they sent me an entire new rifle back that still does not feed properly and the trigger reset is so sensitive that if you let off to feel the click it fires the rifle.  I would attach the pics but forgot what a pain in the ass it is to post pics on here. Very Very frustrated. I have $1100 in a rifle and over six months later it still does not function.

A squib is when you have a round that doesn't have sufficient powder burn lodge a slug in the barrel.

What you're describing isn't a squib.

This is what I posted in another thread with regards to the issues I've seen with mine:





This is what I've seen:

Rifle is a base model. Only mods have been a Voodo Jet Comp brake and I've tried several triggers (I'll get back to that in a second). Originally, the rifle was purchased to be a lightweight match burner for Heavy Optics division in 3-Gun to keep time off of my PWS Mk216.

1) Accuracy has never lived up to expectations with a variety of loads, both factory and hand loads. I've ran everything from 147gr. M80 FMJ to 155, 168, & 178gr OTM. Typical groups are in the 2-3 MOA range and/or more than double what I see in my other .308 AR's. However, this may be partially due to >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

2) Even with the brake, the recoil seems to be substantially greater than other rifles in it's weight class. Yeah, being a small frame it's a little lighter than most large frame .308 AR's but it still beats the hell out of you. It just feels way, WAY over gassed. Subjectively, the recoil seems to be a at least 25% greater than my PWS. It just moves around too much to be an effective match rifle.

3) Failures to feed about 1 round in 50 with M80 ball. Not crap, either.... Radway green and Lithuanian. It's not reliable enough to count on in a match.

4) Dropping several triggers into it gives me puzzling results. First, I tried a HyperFire... Dropped it in and it was way too light (like just over 2# with the highest rate springs) and exceptionally spongey. What gives? Did I install it wrong? Rip it out and reinstall with the same results. Maybe the trigger itself is defective? Nope... Dropped it into another rifle and had the performance I expected. Then I tried a Geissle. I forget what was wrong but it was something along those lines.... Just felt WRONG. Mil-Spec trigger also had issues. Finally, I dropped in a cassette type and it was good to go. But that tells me there's something funky going on that I can't explain.

5) Magwell is very tight and definitly not drop free for MagPul SR-25 type mags. In fact, the only mags that function 100% are Lancers. Good mags, certainly.... But I'm sitting on a metric shit ton of MagPuls.

6) Everything feels way too stiff. This is subjective, of course, but it just doesn't feel "finished". It feels like a prototype to me and not a finished product. Granted, this is a very early model (it was a pre-order) so that may explain it.

I need to send it back to AA and have them give it the once over. Unfortunately, I've just been too busy. In the meantime it sits in the back of the safe because I get angry when I look at it.

That's surprising/disappointing.  They apparently had a bad batch of triggers where the coating process they apply to the parts caused interference in proper movement of the disconnector.  They're aware of the issue and should be checking for it (both as part of final inspection, and because they know they have this issue).  Your rifle should never have left their shop with a FCG in that state.  It's unsafe and probably illegal.

Heard back from Cody today and received an RMA to return the rifle again.  They should be giving me a whole new upper this time.  I sent it off today and the quoted estimated return time is 4-6 weeks.  Last time I sent it to AA it took six weeks to come back.  I'll update again when it comes back and I get a chance to fire it.

Excellent! At least it's moving through the warranty system