Failures to Feed - Suggestions Requested

[OldMarine]

Got a new DB9 in December.  Tested it with Hornady, Federal, Remington and Corbon (50+ rounds).  I even tried some Winchester white box and Wolf Polymer when nothing else would work.  Only got it to fire two consecutive rounds once without jamming.  Usually the new round ended up perpendicular pointing up and jammed in the chamber.  Paid $60 bucks to send it in for repair and got it back this week.  Message from manufacturer said no problems found. Tried it again today with same results.  At this point, this is the worst firearm I have ever owned. We even held it in a vise to rule out "limp wristing", still jammed almost every round.  Before my next step, I wanted to get any suggestions I could from someone who had one.  I have handguns from Ruger, Sig Sauer, Glock, Walther, Kel-tec, Hi-Point, Browning, SCCY and several others and have never had this type of problem, this bad.  Several of my friends said this would happen with a Diamondback and I really would like to prove them wrong.  I love the size and style of the pistol and the ease in breakdown and cleaning.  Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

[Two Guns]

Is your recoil spring in correctly? Sorry to hear about your problems.

[OldMarine]

Spring looks to be in according to spec.  When I got it back from the factory, I didn't take it apart and clean/oil it until I had tried 24 rounds through it with constant jamming so it was in the same condition as it was when they (factory Techs) said they test fired it and everything was fine.  After I cleaned and oiled it, it still jammed nearly every time.  It's a shame.  I'm not too upset, because I have had excellent luck with the last seven pistols I bought so I think I probably was due for a bad one.  I still would like to fix this one.  My gunsmith buddy said he will not even look at it.  He does not like the brand.

[Chris]

Can you take some closeup pics of the feed ramp and chamber area? I guess if it were anything 'obvious' DB would have noticed, but I'd like to see it anyway. If that looks ok, it may be the magazine(s) not staging the round properly. Same with all mags? Did you send your mags to DB for the repair? Does the slide fit well on the rails without lots of up/down play? Can you slow rack a round in the chamber without it hanging? Are the jamb types various, and what's it more prone to do, such as nosedive? Catching the chamber wall, stovepipes, etc? 


Finally, is the barrel locking up? When you slide the barrel back (no springs), does it drop and lock (with just a little play) at the breech?

[OldMarine]

Chris,
Thanks a lot for taking the time to help me out.  Here are my answers to your questions.
Q:  Can you take some closeup pics of the feed ramp and chamber area?
A: – coming up.
Q:  Same with all mags?
A: Yes, both with the one that came with it and the extra one they sent back from the repair shop.   I didn’t send the mag that came with it in for repair, but I am pretty sure the one they sent back in it was the one they “tested” with.  Both have same results.
Q: Does the slide fit well on the rails without lots of up/down play?
A:  the slide seems to fit well and has almost no play at all on the rails at all.
Q: Can you slow rack a round in the chamber without it hanging?
A: I can slow rack a round in successfully about 4 out of 5 times but the rounds go in very rough and not smooth like all my other semi pistols.  When it doesn’t work, the round seems to nosedive.
Q:  Are the jamb types various, and what's it more prone to do, such as nosedive? Catching the chamber wall, stovepipes, etc? 
A: There are a variety of jams, but the most often is with the un-shot round ending up perpendicular in the chamber with the lead facing straight up.  I know this doesn’t make much sense since when I slow rack a round it seems to nose dive, but that’s the way it is.
Q:  Finally, is the barrel locking up? When you slide the barrel back (no springs), does it drop and lock (with just a little play) at the breech?
A:  The barrel seems to lock and drop at the breech fine….almost no play at all.
 
I keep thinking I’m holding the gun wrong or my ammo is bad, but I’ve put 8 types of premium ammo through it with the same results and I have never had a “limp wristing problem with any handgun.  My Ruger and Keltec 380s fire every time and all my other "off major" brand smaller 9mms never jam.....even the Hi-point and SCCY.  By "never" I mean maybe 1-2 times in 500-1000 rounds. Thanks again.

[Chris]

Interesting. Please also take some pics of the slide's breech area.
Is your slide hard to rack, like you've got a pretty stout recoil spring in there? It should be pretty stiff.
This is crazy, but some people have had luck flipping the magazine spring horizontally. I've never tried it, but I assume it places more pressure on the rear of the follower (I know, it's crazy talk!)


You can also do a visual on the function of the slide stripper to the bullet. Gut the slide of its spring and barrel and place it on the frame. Insert a loaded mag. Ease the slide backward and watch the function of the stripper bar to the bullet. The bar should ride directly on top and flat against the brass case, then drop behind it to push it forward. It should also tilt the nose up before it starts pushing forward. In this slow motion test, the nose will come back down, but in real-time it may stay up until it hits the ramp. Not sure. There's bound to be a super slow-mo of it out there!

[gunoil]

I love db9, obviously more than dbf. I could take Chris,Eric, & my gunsmith from monroe and make dbf incredible. oh well, just day dreamin.

[Gordon.l]

I was having a similar problem. I ordered a couple of PF 9 magazine springs from Kel Tec. Around 5 bucks a piece plus shipping. Cut 2 coils of of the Kel Tec spring, it still will be a lot longer. I did one magazine first & took it to the range yesterday. The one with the original Diamondback spring was still giving me some FTF. The one with the Kel Tec spring ran flawlessly. Needless to say I changed out the other spring & shot another 100 rounds with no problems.

[Chris]

I was having a similar problem. I ordered a couple of PF 9 magazine springs from Kel Tec. Around 5 bucks a piece plus shipping. Cut 2 coils of of the Kel Tec spring, it still will be a lot longer. I did one magazine first & took it to the range yesterday. The one with the original Diamondback spring was still giving me some FTF. The one with the Kel Tec spring ran flawlessly. Needless to say I changed out the other spring & shot another 100 rounds with no problems.

Good results. Sweet! Lots of problems are related to the magazine. Even the high dollar Boberg has its mags fine tuned by the owner himself to ensure proper function. I've tried to 'fix' poor functioning mags myself and they usually end up in the trash. lol

[henhunter]

OldMarine, if you go see my post (henhunter) under "my DB9" on March 27, 2014 (today), you will see what I did to fix the exact problems you are having and other issues ("...perpendicular pointing up and jammed in the chamber", double feed, live round stove-pipe, etc).

When I first got my DB9 and had issues, just like you, I was very disappointed.  But like you, I loved the size and I also loved the accuracy and everything else about the gun so I knew I had to get it right.  I finally did and I carry it daily and trust it 100% at this point.  I have almost 1000 rounds down range since the fixes I did and it is great!

BTW, I shoot all types of Wal-Mart ammo now without issue--WWWB, Remington, Blazer Brass, and anything else I can get at a good price.

The gun is very sensitive to limp wrist.  I had feeding issues shooting one-handed (never an issue with two hands) and discovered that if I put my pinky finger on the grip (full grip using mag rest), it locks my wrist and I don't have any issues.  Having the pinky gripped tight actually locks the wrist--at least for me (may be a defect in my hand construction!) 

[gunoil]

whats up hen,? glad your here, iam waiting in new improved db9. Not much longer.