Lone Wolf Glock barrel issue (return to battery)

[KDTS]

I have a .40 S&W barrel from Lone Wolf that occasionally has problems returning to battery. A tap on the rear of the slide usually will push it forward into battery, but my factory Glock barrel and even my 9mm Lone Wolf barrel do not seem to have this issue. I considered tossing it and just getting a factory barrel to replace it, but I do already have this one and I like to try to get things to work if it seems feasible. Anyone familiar with semi-auto handgun barrels that can tell me where I should check for proper fitment or offer any other suggestions? I do have a digital caliper and can take measurements if that would help.

[ar15barrels]

Take the barrel out of the slide.
Take 50 rounds of your ammo and drop each round into the chamber and then flip the barrel upside down for the round to drop out.
When the rounds are dropped into the chamber, listen to the sound them make.
Is it a hollow "thunk" sound?
Note if some rounds sound different.
The ones that do not go "thunk" will be your troublesome rounds...

[KDTS]

So are you saying that the chamber is so tight that it has trouble chambering factory ammo? Can it be opened up a bit to feed more reliably (even if accuracy suffers slightly)?

[kcstott]

I'd try Randell's suggestion first. and if that proves to be a positive test i.e. some rounds get stuck. I'd start measuring case diameters and if thats not the issue then it's time to buy a set of gages and measure the headspace. Might be just a touch on the tight side. Remember that all these cases headspace off the case mouth.

[Kilibreaux]

Grab a sharpie. Disassemble your slide, remove the spring and guide rod.
Mark the LWD barrel with sharpie on the bottom locking surface, the top locking surface and ledge just in front of the part that fits into the slide opening. Sharpie mark the left and right side of the barrel flat at the chamber, and last but not least, place sharpie on the tiny sides of the barrel hood. Now put it all together minus the spring and guide rod and manually cycle the action a few times. Pull out the barrel and look for wear marks in the sharpie. Your looking for where and whether the barrel is slightly oversize between the upper and lower locking lugs, whether the left or right side flat is bearing a bit too much against the slide, and last but most importantly, whether the barrel hood is fitting too tightly into the breech face slot of the slide.
Next, remove the firing pin and ejector. Repeat all the above using an unfired round (can't use dummies for this), and use more than one unfired round for variation. NOW what you're looking for is whether the chamber is ever so slightly out of alignment with the barrels' exterior contact surfaces...most often when a round is going in the chamber there will be a bit too much frictional resistance happening on one side or the other of the barrel hood because that area is often left as large as possible to ensure accuracy. BTW, we are talking dimensional differences measured in one-half of one-thousandths of an inch which is best felt by gentle manipulation of the parts.
Now, look at where the sharpie has been removed by M-to-M contact. A small piece of 600 grit emery paper placed against a flat backing such as the flat of a triangle file can be used to slightly "touch up" the areas where sharpie has been removed most.
This will eliminate your "hesitation" on slide closure.

[Gutz]

I have a .40 S&W barrel from Lone Wolf that occasionally has problems returning to battery. A tap on the rear of the slide usually will push it forward into battery, but my factory Glock barrel and even my 9mm Lone Wolf barrel do not seem to have this issue. I considered tossing it and just getting a factory barrel to replace it, but I do already have this one and I like to try to get things to work if it seems feasible. Anyone familiar with semi-auto handgun barrels that can tell me where I should check for proper fitment or offer any other suggestions? I do have a digital caliper and can take measurements if that would help.

Put your original barrel back in.

[ar15barrels]

Lone Wolf Glock barrel issue (return to battery)

I'd try Randell's suggestion first. and if that proves to be a positive test i.e. some rounds get stuck. I'd start measuring case diameters and if thats not the issue then it's time to buy a set of gages and measure the headspace. Might be just a touch on the tight side. Remember that all these cases headspace off the case mouth.

My experience has been that chamber diameters run tight in lone wolf barrels, but headspace is usually good.
I have run a Saami spec chamber reamer into many lone wolf barrels and it cuts the chamber slightly larger.
The ammo fit problems have gone away every time I have fine this...

This is all assuming that ammo fit IS the issue.

If the barrel does not fit freely as checked by the procedures above with sharpie marking and looking at clearances above, those processes should be done first before we worry about ammo fit.

[kcstott]

My experience has been that chamber diameters run tight in lone wolf barrels, but headspace is usually good.
I have run a Saami spec chamber reamer into many lone wolf barrels and it cuts the chamber slightly larger.
The ammo fit problems have gone away every time I have fine this...

This is all assuming that ammo fit IS the issue.

If the barrel does not fit freely as checked by the procedures above with sharpie marking and looking at clearances above, those processes should be done first before we worry about ammo fit.

Good to know and agreed

[KDTS]

Alright, thanks for the guidance. I'll give it a try when I have a chance.

[DzBrain]

+1 on the sharpie method and sanding. I had the same problem just trying to cycle the slide after install. My gun was a little dirty and I could see the top of the barrel in the rear (the rectangular part above the chamber) scrapping the slide, leaving some carbon on the barrel. A couple of swipes with a stone, and good to go.

[Oliver_Charles]

***

[bohoki]

are you experiencing the problem using reloads?

[KDTS]

No, it was all factory ammo. Magtech, Federal, Remington and Independence were a few brands I've tried. I think the chamber is just a little too tight. It runs better, but still not perfect, when it's immaculately clean, but then after ~50 rounds the jams become more frequent when the residue from shooting starts to build up.

[hermosabeach]

What did lone Walt say when you contacted them regarding the issue?

[RoyBatty]

Are you running a stock recoil spring or a custom one?