stupid newbie question on ar15

nmntz

Sergeant
Full Member
Minuteman
Dec 4, 2009
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terrebonne, or
hey guys, new to the forum but love it so far, i picked up an ar 15 last night with 2 uppers, i pull the badger latch back to open the bolt but it will not stay open. i have no idea where to start with it, and yes i am making sure the mag button is held in by my finger when letting the bolt go to catch. it feelsd like it might be worn out but supposedly the round count was only approx 100 rounds on the lower. its a bushmaster lower. any help would be great.
 
Re: stupid newbie question on ar15

take out the bolt and make sure nothing is over worn.
take the upper off and inspect the edge of your bolt catch. it should have a nice crisp edge.
 
Re: stupid newbie question on ar15

the bolt catch has kind of a rocker action to it...the top half will release the bolt when it is held open.
The bottom half of the button will lift the bolt catch while the bolt is held back.

if you are trying to get the bolt to catch by pushing the top half of that button, it wont work.
 
Re: stupid newbie question on ar15

ok am looking at it right now, the bolt seems fairly new, no worn edges on the ear things. the catch on the lower looks a little worn or atleast rubbed the black off in a couple spots.
 
Re: stupid newbie question on ar15

damnit, i think i found out what it is, the bottom of the bolt where it catches is a little worn out, so im looking at needing a new bolt now right?
 
Re: stupid newbie question on ar15

Is there a lot of slop forward and back in the slot that the bolt catch sits in? Its a possibility that the hammer was dropped one time to many on the bolt catch with the upper receiver removed and it peened the metal in the slot enough to make the tolerances too sloppy to properly engage the surface of the bolt...could be why the lower was sold off.
 
Re: stupid newbie question on ar15

regardless...rather than buy any new parts just yet...take it to either someone that knows a bit more than you about AR's or better yet, take it to your local gun smith and just have them take a look. they will give you the best advice. I just double checked mine, and it has an EASY 1/4" of over lap. A bit of wear should not be preventing it from catching. Hold your bolt back with the charge handle, and push in the bolt catch button while you look inside and see if you can SEE the problem. You should be able to see how much of your bolt is in contact with the release.
 
Re: stupid newbie question on ar15

regardless...rather than buy any new parts just yet...take it to either someone that knows a bit more than you about AR's or better yet, take it to your local gun smith and just have them take a look. they will give you the best advice. I just double checked mine, and it has an EASY 1/4" of over lap. A bit of wear should not be preventing it from catching. Hold your bolt back with the charge handle, and push in the bolt catch button while you look inside and see if you can SEE the problem. You should be able to see how much of your bolt is in contact with the release.