My son was going to clean his akm247t and he took the magazine out, went to pull the bolt back to clear the chanber and a round went off. His hand was no where near the trigger so we are wondering how this could hav happened. Any ideas?

hammer hit the firing pin causing round to fire?

Usually it's a result of the bolt operator lying about their hand being nowhere near the trigger.

If your son happened to weak hand the bolt group, and let it fly back before the hammer was retained by the trigger, then it could have been a hammer-follow slam-fire, though those are pretty darn unusual - unless that particular round had been repeatedly chambered and rechambered over and over again until it was do dimpled from the free-floating firing pin that a sneeze might have set it off.

I was sitting there and he took the magazine out and then started to pull the bolt back with his right hand while holding the rifle with his left hand well away from the trigger. The bolt got about 1/4 inch and then discharged.  The hammer did hit the round as seen on the shell casiing.

Ejector fire IMO

Rare but it happens

If true, I would replace whole bolt and trigger group before I would ever trust that thing.

Post pics of the primer.

I am new to AKs so what is ejector fire?   Thank you all for your expertise.  I sincerely mean that.

If the round was not held by the extractor claw, it is possible the base of the round could drop down as it was being extracted and the ejector hit the primer instead of the case rim.

Not common or likely, IMO - it would constitute an OOB, and the VERY LOUD explosion and ruptured case would tell you if that had happened.

the shell casing has a dimple in the middle showiing that the firing pin struck it normally.  Something caused the trigger to release.  Right now I am thinking maybe a supernatural force.  I can't think of anything else.

Probable cause is something to do with the trigger group, second possibility is the bolt or bolt carrier.

First check is to inspect the trigger group for heavy fouling or debris in the receiver around the trigger and hammer assembly.
A loose primer or a small bit of grit can cause the trigger assembly to malfunction.
In an extreme case of something in the assembly and the hammer could get hung up on the disconnector, and when the bolt is moved or the rifle is bumped the hammer can slip off the disconnector and drop on the firing pin.

Test the disconnector function by pulling the hammer all the way back, pull and hold the trigger, then release the hammer.  Then pull the trigger and catch the hammer.  Repeat a number of times.
What you're looking for is a case where the hammer fails to be caught by the disconnector, or the hammer comes off the disconnector and by-passes the trigger sear and drops.

Here's another test to try.....
Make sure the chamber is empty, remove the top cover.
Cock the hammer.
SLOWLY pull the trigger part way, then GENTLY release the trigger.

The hammer "should" completely reset and the trigger should go fully forward.
If not, the trigger could be slightly pulled and the hammer is barely being held by the trigger sear.
A slight bump and the hammer slips the rest of the way off and it fires.
Test this with the trigger pulled closer and closer to allowing the hammer to drop and release the trigger to see if the hammer and trigger fully reset.
A dirty trigger assembly can cause this.

Next remove the bolt and check the firing pin.  Look for a broken pin or a pin that's jammed forward, or is very sticky.
Look for a bent or burred firing pin.
The bolt should be cleaned well often, and it can't hurt to totally disassemble the bolt from time to time to get all the fouling and debris out.

Check the face of the bolt for built up fouling around the firing pin hole.

If the rifle is in correct working condition, the hammer should not be able to strike the firing pin unless the bolt is closed enough to be locked.
So, check the lug on the rear of the bolt carrier that pushes the hammer back when the bolt opens.

If you lower the carrier slightly and pull the trigger the hammer should drop onto the carrier lug.
Slowly allow the carrier to go forward and the lug should prevent the hammer from touching the firing pin until the bolt is mostly locked.
This can be seen with the top cover off.
If the lug is badly worn or altered, OR the hammer face has been altered the hammer might be able to contact the firing pin before the bolt is locked.

Best guess:  Something caused the hammer to slip off the trigger sear or disconnector and drop when the bolt was moved.

Thanks!!  I wil check that out.

I don't understand why the rifle was loaded if there was no threat of imminent danger. Typically when firing you use up the ammo you brought for that purpose, clear the gun anyway and bring it home to clean. Normally it would not be loaded again until at the range on the firing line. The whole escapade sounds like malarkey to me. If a round fired while partly out of the chamber the gun would blow up and be damaged. Frequently this involves injury to the shooter. Nothing about this story has the slightest credibility. I certainly don't know who did what to which but it could not have happened as reported.

No firearm should ever go off except by pulling the trigger, so we agree there.

However, given the state of AK manufacturing in the USA (everything from real factories with gauges and engineering support to 'hey, I've got a hammer and spare time, let's build AKs and sell them'), I'd be cautious about saying things are impossible. Improbable, yes, but not impossible.

OP, who made the rifle and what trigger is in it?

AJ

Could this be another one of those “person forcibly yanks bolt carrier back, which hits bottom of (engaged) safety lever, forcing safety lever up and over top cover, internal block on safety lever pushes against disconnector, which pushes trigger forward at top, firing rifle” things?

The OP said he was there. I guess  you are calling him out for fictionalizing what occured (ie, calling him a liar)?

I can come up with a couple of scenarios in which I would leave the rifle chambered without threat of imminent danger.   Hunting would be a rather common one.   A self-defense rifle would be another.

And although I appreciate that you are inserting your opinion in this thread I will add that you could do so more constructively than you are doing.    I will also add that it would be unfortunate if the incident did indeed play out exactly like the OP described, came here to develop a better understanding of what went wrong, and was turned away by a hostile attitude.

I do hope that the OP gets to the bottom of this because I have left AK’s chambered from time to time.   I would love to know what to watch out for on something like this.   If I need to make my function checks more elaborate or detailed to catch something like this then I would be happy to do it.

2Hut8

Stuck firing pin is a long shot but there.

Could be this. OP has the safety lever been modified to prevent this ?  Could also be the trigger group,maybe the disconnector is bad or broken ?  could be the trigger pin location in the frame out of spec ? I noticed its a Inter Ordnance AK so anythings possible. Basically something allowed the hammer to fall. I would have a gunsmith who is familiar with AK's check it out.

I’m glad no one was injured. I don’t have anything to add as far as troubleshooting. But do make sure to use this as a training opportunity to reinforce keeping the muzzle pointed in a safe direction ALWAYS.

Sometimes, shit just happens. Good luck

I don't own any AKs, is keeping them unloaded a thing?

I keep my rifles dangered the fuck up unless I'm traveling with them or cleaning them obviously.

Whaaat, how could that be?

What was the status of the safety at the time of the discharge and (assuming it was off to allow the bolt back) was the safety on before you started cleaning it? There was some hypothesis earlier in the thread that the hammer/sear may have only been ever so slightly engaged and the jostle of the bolt was enough to make the hammer slip off... This would seem only possible if the safety had never been engaged between the last round fired and the time you cleaned it, as setting the rifle on safe would only be possible if the trigger is fully forward (or your safety is bent/out of spec). If the safety was on, I can't see how the hammer would have fallen (barring a very obvious issue like a broken trigger pin or chipped sear or something). Additionally, if the bolt only moved back 1/4 inch (as stated) before the discharge, the bolt would not yet have unlocked so it couldn't have been the extractor or anything other than the firing pin hitting the primmer.