NRA Firearm Training Tip: Malfunction: Failure to Fire

In this week’s NRA Firearm training tip we cover the simplest of malfunctions you may encounter while shooting your AR-15, Failure to Fire (Type 1).

When shooting, you may encounter a situation when you pull the trigger and then you hear the audible “click” and the round does not fire. The gun appears to be functioning normally, but no BANG! A few things may be the cause of this:

1. The shooter may have forgotten to rack the bolt prior to shooting.
2. The magazine may not be properly seated in the magazine-well when the rifle was loaded.
3. The ammunition that is chambered may be a dud round.

The drill for clearing the malfunction when you get a “click” with no “bang” is:

1. Visually indicate by looking at the ejection port that there is no visible stoppage.
2. With the gun sill aimed towards the target, tap the base of the magazine to insure it is properly seated in the rifle. This should be a FORCEFUL smack using the palm/heel of the support hand, to insure the proper amount of force is used to lock the magazine in place.
3. Pull the charging handle back to eject the bad round if present, and release the handle to use the force of the bolt going forward to chamber a new round.
4. Regain your sight picture and assess if the need for additional shots are still required.

Some instructors call this the “Tap-Rack-Bang” drill but it is always necessary, after clearing the malfunction, to assess the situation and make the determination as to whether or not more shots are required.