pistols, maintenance, troubleshooting, problems, failure-to-ejectBeyond trying different ammunition, what steps should a person take in troubleshooting a pistol that “stove pipes”? Where should they look first?
The most common cause of an occasional failure to eject (also known as a stovepipe) is the shooter, rather than the pistol. If the shooter fails to grip the pistol solidly enough, the slide will not come back far or fast enough for the ejector to launch the spent case clear of the ejection port, leading to a stovepipe. This is known as limp wristing. The solution is to hold the pistol more solidly, using a proper grip.
Do not be so quick to look past the ammo you are using. If the pistol is of an older design or has seen considerable use, using high pressure ammo (or simply modern commercial loads if the pistol is really old) could cause the slide to cycle so fast that it slams down on the casing as it is extracting (“stove-piping”). If you determine it is a type of ammo causing the malfunction, simply using lower pressure factory or hand-loaded ammo will usually resolve it.
A friend of mine had a cheap Tec-9 imitation gun that stove piped all the time until I deburred and polished the inside of the receiver and bolt assembly.
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