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[gt86]

....

[UberPatriot]

Is this the first time you fired it?

[UberPatriot]

Are you loading the correct caliber ammo?

[barrage]

Check the primer of a fired round vs a misfire. Is the primer on the misfire visibly lighter than the fired round? I had a similar problem with my first batch of reloads that was due to my brass not being resized all the way, i.e. the shoulder was just a little too far forward, causing the round to barely not chamber completely so the head spacing was a little out of whack.

Also, are you riding the charging handle forward when you chamber a round or are your fingers dragging on it after the first shot?

EDIT: my M1A (18" scout model) fires .308 and 7.62 indescriminately.

EDIT2: a quick and easy way to tell if your brass isn't sized correctly is to find yourself a bolt action 308 and chamber a round in it. If the bolt doesn't close with the greatest of ease, the ammo's sizing is off.

[Hoop]

You have to mortar the rifle to clear the chamber.

I bet your ammunition isn't sized properly.

[Sailormilan2]

#1. Make sure your gun is proper lubed.
#2. Are you using reloads or factory ammo. M1As tend to have tight chambers, and some reloads may not be sized properly. Reloads should be done with a small base die.
#3. If you have a case stuck in the chamber, apply the safety, and smack the op rod handle with a board, or your foot. Making sure the muzzle is pointed in a safe direction.

[c good]

You have to mortar the rifle to clear the chamber.

I bet your ammunition isn't sized properly.

I'm with Hoop on this one.

[sigstroker]

It wouldn't click if the bolt didn't close.

[barrage]

It wouldn't click if the bolt didn't close.

It would and does click if the bolt is mostly but not completely in battery due to a mis-sized case, causing a light strike.

[ivanimal]

Where are you? If in the east bay I could come look at it,otherwise., try and open the chamber with a soft rubber mallet, be sure it's on safe and pointed in a safe direction. The gun may not go into safe if the action did not reset. Brass is soft and you will be able to release the round with repeated blows with a soft object. Do not use metal to bang your bolt catch!!!

[CrippledPidgeon]

It would and does click if the bolt is mostly but not completely in battery due to a mis-sized case, causing a light strike.

If the bolt isn't completely in battery, yea, you may get a light strike, or you may not see evidence of a strike at all, and the reason is because of the safety bridge.

This physically blocks the firing pin until the bolt locks completely. If your cases are not sized right, they'll prevent the bolt from settling completely into battery, and thus prevent the gun from shooting.

[H2O MAN]

Sounds familiar... my Scout had a 'rough bore' from the factory, and I experienced the same problem & worse.

Once you get the round out of the chamber you need to break the rifle down, clean & grease it and polish the bore with a bore cleaning brush.
Inspect the extractor, replace it with GI if possible.

[jarhead714]

About a year ago I had a similar problem. I chambered a single 168gr. AE 7.62 OTM round and it failed to fire. The operating rod wouldn't budge back to extract the round. I hit the rod back with a rubber mallet (which as an M1A owner you should own) and the round ejected intact. I picked it up off the deck and noticed the bullet had become unseated and was crooked. I then pulled it out of the neck and held the projectile in my hand dumbfounded. I can't even recall there being any powder in the case at all but it may well have fallen out when the bullet was pulled as it was a little windy.

I determined that the person who loaded the magazine (my friend) didn't seat the rounds well and did a generally sloppy job of it. The bullet probably broke loose upon chambering and became lodged in the chamber. The problem may have been worsened because to the larger bullet as well. My advice is go somewhere safe and pound the hell out of that rod with a good mallet. Don't be shy, you're not going to hurt it.

[gotshotgun?]

Your chamber probably has some burrs or imperfections in it which caused the rounds to not fully seat and then to get stuck as well. Mallet to the charging handle with rifle in safe direction.

[gotshotgun?]

Perhaps pop the trigger group and stock off so you don't have the chance of a hammer fall and then point the rifle up (if safe) and hit the oprod with the mallet with the receiver butt on a table or the ground.