Zenith Z43P Troubleshooting - Page 1

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Zenith Z43P Troubleshooting

Posted: 1/22/2018 2:55:31 PM EDT

I have a new Z43P with the SBT sidefolding brace and I finally got it to the range on Saturday.

The problem I had was I couldn't get more than 2 shots in a row without a failure to eject. The spent case would be shoved back into the chamber and mangled at the neck and a live round would be stripped from the mag.

The gun was stripped, cleaned and lubed before going to the range. I was using PMC Bronze ammo.

Right now, I'm leaning toward weak ammo or maybe the recoil spring is too heavy.

What else should I check before taking it back to the range with some different ammo?

(I'm planning on calling Zenith, if I can't get it running on my next range visit, but I figure they're probably busy at SHOT this week, so I might as well try diagnosing it on my own.)

Posted: 1/22/2018 6:30:54 PM EDT

[#1]

Sounds like a bad extractor spring, can you wiggle the extractor by hand? If it moves under finger pressure it's bad.

Posted: 1/22/2018 6:52:37 PM EDT

[#2]

One bad FTE ruins the extractor spring. Bending it to increase the force helps but it’s not going to last long.

Removal and replacement should cure it.

Posted: 1/22/2018 7:09:35 PM EDT

[#3]

Thanks guys. I'll check it when I get home.

Posted: 2/8/2018 2:10:51 PM EDT

[#4]

*Resolved*

I finally got to test fire the gun with different ammo. The issue is definitely the PMC Bronze. I was able to run some Aguila 5.56 through it and it ran just fine. There is a marked difference in how the Aguila cases left the gun vs. the PMC. The Aguila cases were tossed out with authority. The PMC just kind of fell out of the ejection port, when they came out at all.

I did get some spare extractor springs for the spare parts bin. That just seemed like a prudent acquisition after the earlier advice.

Thanks guys.

Posted: 2/9/2018 11:19:37 AM EDT

[#5]

PMC Bronze have been known to be rather weak compared to other 223 ammo.

Posted: 2/13/2018 10:23:52 AM EDT

[#6]

Does it have the proper locking piece for the barrel length and bullet weight? One of the downsides with HK9x series.

Posted: 2/13/2018 1:37:58 PM EDT

[#7]

Quote History

Quoted:
Does it have the proper locking piece for the barrel length and bullet weight? One of the downsides with HK9x series.

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Can you direct me to something that tells me what that is supposed to be? I'd like to check, and know how to tune it for various ammo.

It does seem to run great with NATO spec 62gr.

Thanks.

Posted: 2/13/2018 4:38:40 PM EDT

[#8]

A little research seems to indicate that I should be running a #15 locking piece since the barrel length is similar to a 33k. I'll check it when I get home.

Anyone see anything wrong with that?

Thanks.

Posted: 2/13/2018 11:48:27 PM EDT

[#9]

The installed locking piece is a #7. I'll order a #15.

Posted: 2/22/2018 9:02:02 PM EDT

[#10]

I installed a #15 locking piece and it ran fine with the PMC Bronze.

However, I was looking at the #7 that was installed and it didn't look right to me. Here are some pictures, is this typical of the geometry of a #7 locking piece?

Posted: 2/24/2018 1:02:07 AM EDT

[#11]

Can't help you with locking piece questions, but I can tell you that mine failed to extract with light ammo... proper ammo fixed it...but even with 'proper' ammo (M193), it ejects softly.

Posted: 2/24/2018 12:34:51 PM EDT

[#12]

Quote History

Quoted:
Can't help you with locking piece questions, but I can tell you that mine failed to extract with light ammo... proper ammo fixed it...but even with 'proper' ammo (M193), it ejects softly.

View Quote

I got it to run with Aguila 5.56, which I guess would be proper ammo. The #15 locking piece fixed the extraction problem and now the PMC Bronze extracts with authority, as does the Aguila. It also feels like it unlocks with the cocking handle much more smoothly.

In the pictures the locking piece doesn't seem to be machined smoothly, it doesn't seem symmetrical, and there seems to be a lump on one face. I'm wondering if the locking piece was just poorly made and causing the issues.

I don't really want to spend another $50 to find out if that's the fix to have the "proper" locking piece in the gun.

Posted: 2/25/2018 5:19:09 PM EDT

[#13]

I used to have an HK93 and it shot like it was on pneumatics (very soft, even though it chucked the brass into the next zip code)...I sold it because it was expensive for what it was and it was a bitch to thoroughly clean. That was before I realized you could use really big brushes and old t-shirts

I'm really tempted to pick one of these up and eventually SBR it...

Posted: 2/25/2018 5:23:42 PM EDT

[#14]

Quote History

Quoted:
I used to have an HK93 and it shot like it was on pneumatics (very soft, even though it chucked the brass into the next zip code)...I sold it because it was expensive for what it was and it was a bitch to thoroughly clean. That was before I realized you could use really big brushes and old t-shirts

I'm really tempted to pick one of these up and eventually SBR it...

View Quote

I really like the feel of the way it shoots. As soon as it warms up, I'm getting it outdoors to make sure it's properly zeroed. I like this thing with the short barrel and folding brace. All the advantages of an SBR without the tax stamp, and technically since it's a pistol, my CPL would allow me to conceal it and carry it loaded in my car.

Posted: 2/26/2018 10:54:05 AM EDT

[#15]

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That looks "off" on one side to me.

Posted: 2/26/2018 1:39:43 PM EDT

[#16]

Doing some digging, looks like a #3 might be "better"?

http://www.hkpro.com/forum/hk-nfa-talk/151897-hk-33k-locking-pieces.html

http://www.geekgunman.com/LockingPieceListAppendixB.pdf

Posted: 2/26/2018 3:24:40 PM EDT

[#17]

Quote History

Quoted:
Doing some digging, looks like a #3 might be "better"?

http://www.hkpro.com/forum/hk-nfa-talk/151897-hk-33k-locking-pieces.html

http://www.geekgunman.com/LockingPieceListAppendixB.pdf

View Quote

Thanks for the info. This is just getting murkier.

So, the factory #7 is 55*, the #3 is 58*, and I've got it running with a #15 that is 65*.

The factory #7 looks to be poorly machined to me, so that might have been causing issues with unlocking because of what looks like a bump on one side.

I think I'm going to contact Zenith and see if they'll send me another #15, so I can see if it works. If not, maybe I'll just stick with the #15.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Zenith Z43P Troubleshooting

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