I have had my G19 for about 8 years now and have shot thousands of rounds through it.  I was out shooting a few days ago and the gun jammed up and I couldn't get it unjammed.  The slide was stuck open about .25".  Just far enough to be able to see a round part way in the chamber.  The slide was frozen, I couldn't move it forward or backward and I didn't know if the partially chambered round was live or not.  I monkeyed with it for a bit and even resorting to banging it on the ground (of course still pointed in a safe direction).  Finally, the slide became unstuck and closed all the way.  I stripped the gun and didn't see any indication of a problem.

Has anyone else had this problem or heard of anyone having this problem?  Any idea of what to look for?  It was the first time using some new mags that I just bought.  Could this be caused by the mags?  

This is a defense gun so I am obviously quite concerned because not only did it jam but it was rendered completely useless.

Facts:
Glock 19 - bone stock, about 10k rounds through it.
UMC 115gr 9mm ammo
Brand new high-cap drop free Glock mags

TIA!

Armin

My guess without seeing it...bad round. Remington has an inordinate number of such and has for years. I have seen such poor QC with their stuff that I personally will not use it for anything other than range use...and yes, that includes their "premier" rounds like the GS.

Sounds like dirty burning ammo or a dirty gun.  Have you ever changed any of the springs in your gun ? How often do you clean it ?  I need more details  without having the gun in my hand. Thanks

J

Thanks for the replies fellas.

Bad ammo was my first thought.  I initially thought that a case had ruptured and gotten stuck.  That wasn't the case (no pun intended) because the partially chambered round was live.  

The gun was clean.  I thoroughly clean it after each outing so it was clean when I started shooting that day and had only put about 50 through it when the problem happened.  Like I said, this is a gun that I rely on for the defense of my family so I try to keep it as clean and reliable as possible.

I have never changed any of the springs.  Do you think worn springs could be the culprit?  How many rounds do you think would be the recommended interval to replace the springs?  Are there any particular springs in the gun that wear out more commonly than others?

Armin

every 2 years we tune  ours . 8 years 10k plus rounds with the same springs.  That's a lot of wear on springs. i would drop that off at a local Glock armorer for a tune up. If this is the pistol you protect your family with  it's worth $50  once every two years or so, don't you think? JMO

J

The only time this has ever happened to me was a steel-cased round in a KKM match barrel.  Were you using the factory bbl?

UMC ammo?  I'd blame the ammo.  That stuff aint exactly good stuff.  Thats remington's bottom of the line.

Aint nothing wrong with your glock.  No matter how weak your recoil spring is getting, it wont stick a case like that.  Thats a swelled brass cartridge.

If you are serious, and have that same round, look for marks on the outside where it stuck, and get calipers and measure the brass all around..... I bet money its just a bad round.  It happens.  Thats why you practice failures.

Ive put UMC through my early model G19, but not enough to find that one bad cartridge.  I find myself shooting winchester more often than UMC, maybe that is better stuff.  Any opinions?

Disassemble look for fresh peenin on the rails of slide Under front of ejection port. also inspect barrel lug for bulging on edges where it rides into locking block of frame. I have seen barrel lugs bend, give some, Crack, and all together shear off. They bulge and crack first usually.

I had this happen with a Beretta 96 once.  The case had been slightly bulged when it was being loaded.  Not enough that I noticed it.  Gun locked up and wasn't opening for no one.  Was able to get the extractor off of the round and then had to have a gunsmith get the round out.  
Shitty day at the range to say the least.
Chris

Make sure you look closely at the barrel for bulges.  In my department we recently had two G22's bulge barrels because of squib loads (Blazer ammo).  The squib round did not leave the barrel and then when the second round was fired it pushed both out but the barrel also bulged.  The bulge in the barrel would not pass through the hole in the front of the slide and it wedged there.  I had to use a rubber hammer to remove the slide from the barrel.

I will say "cheap ammo" ?  try some good stuff and see if there is a difference.

O.T. Inch besek?

I've shoot through about 4000 rounds of UMC since June (G17 & G19) and haven't had any issues.  I'd be looking at worn springs since she's going on 8 years old and 10K rounds.  Also, try switching back to your old magazines first to see if you can isolate the problems to your new mags.  

If the jam was from weak recoil spring then a tap at the rear of slide would have completed slide lock  up, So doubtful jam was from weak spring. and tap should have chambered a dirty gun too.The pistol was unjamed and then shot OK so doubt it jammed from dirty .
 The slide locked up TIGHT OUT OF BATTERY! That is almost always from out of spec/damaged ammo.
 Ammo could have had a dent or bad nick on the case or bullet. it dosn't have to be an out of spec unsized case too big ect to cause an ammo jam.
Save the jammed Cartridge!!
 Any more if a Glock of mine jams, If I'm not shooting a competition, I stop right then an inspect the cartridge.  If I'm in competition then tap rack an bang and finish the run.  but try and keep the rund.  Then INSPECT the cartridge it's almost always the problem but this will give yu the info to help solve the problem and stop this from happening again if it's from gun problems.
 Finding the problem fast really helps keep the confidence in your equipment.
 

Quoted: If the jam was from weak recoil spring then a tap at the rear of slide would have completed slide lock  up, So doubtful jam was from weak spring. and tap should have chambered a dirty gun too.The pistol was unjamed and then shot OK so doubt it jammed from dirty .  The slide locked up TIGHT OUT OF BATTERY! That is almost always from out of spec/damaged ammo.

Ding ding ding.

Was it the last round in the mag? -Justin

Thanks for all of the replies.  It is reassuring to hear that it sounds most likely to be due to the ammo.  The first fifty rounds that I shot that day were what the gun is normally loaded with, Federal 124gr JHP +P+, and it shot perfect as usual.  I mainly wanted to test the new mags that I had just gotten (thanks Natchez!) to be sure that they worked ok.  I had half a box of the UMC stuff so I took it along.  Next thing I know the gun was stuck.  I was shocked to have the gun get stuck like that.  Jamming up is one thing, but getting completely stuck is very disconcerting.

To follow up what people suggested or asked:

Stock barrel, the gun is entirely stock.

I inspected the recommended parts and they look fine.  None of the signs of failure like described.

Though they don't sound like the cause, new springs probably would be a good idea.

It wasn't the last round in the mag.  There was probably 10 left in it.


I guess my only option now is to take it back out shooting and make sure it works.  hanks
Armin

Quoted: Thanks for all of the replies.  It is reassuring to hear that it sounds most likely to be due to the ammo.  The first fifty rounds that I shot that day were what the gun is normally loaded with, Federal 124gr JHP +P+, and it shot perfect as usual.  I mainly wanted to test the new mags that I had just gotten (thanks Natchez!) to be sure that they worked ok.  I had half a box of the UMC stuff so I took it along.  Next thing I know the gun was stuck.  I was shocked to have the gun get stuck like that.  Jamming up is one thing, but getting completely stuck is very disconcerting. To follow up what people suggested or asked: Stock barrel, the gun is entirely stock. I inspected the recommended parts and they look fine.  None of the signs of failure like described. Though they don't sound like the cause, new springs probably would be a good idea. It wasn't the last round in the mag.  There was probably 10 left in it. I guess my only option now is to take it back out shooting and make sure it works.   Thanks again! Armin

I haven't tried the UMC, but cheap ammo can do funny things.  The winchester 115 gr value pack has a "sticky" (for lack of a better word) case that will often bind up in the magazine of my Glock 19.  When the gun cycles, the stuck rounds let go under spring pressure and sometimes one will launch itself clean out of the gun.  You still get another one ready to go in the pipe, so you don't necessarily notice until you run out at number 13 or 14, and sure enough, there's 1 or 2 rounds on the ground.  That was fun during my CCW test.  

If you're locking up tight with that UMC, the cases must be way oversized.  

I had a round stuck, a reload that passed the Dillon 9mm case gauge perfectly.  Had to use the "Glock Grip" to get the slide unlocked.  Happened to have a 92FS with me at the same time and the same round that jammed the Glock 19 fired fine in the 92FS.  I was using a cheapie Fed Arms bbl in my G19.

The Glock Grip is the grip you use to dissassemble the gun, read the owner's manual.  If you're right handed,  your thumb goes underneath the slide at the rear, and rest of the fingers on top and around the slide and you squeeze, pulling the slide back a bit, use the other hand to pull down the two thingies on each side of the frame that allows the slide to slide off the frame