Help!

[NaDSoB]

Got my 15-22 MOE last month and have had a problem on two out of two trips to the range. I own six 25 round magazines and each of them "jams" or has a round mis-feed about a third of the way through the magazine. The round is usually stuck primer up when I slide the charging handle back and look inside. Removing the magazine and cycling the charging latch a couple of times (sometimes I have to turn the rifle upside down) usually clears the jammed round.
Am I doing something wrong when I load ammo in to the magazines? Looking at the magazine, the rounds are "staggered" in what appears to be the correct position. I've been using CCI Tactical and Winchester Tactical rounds exclusively.
This is my first rifle and I may be at fault here, so don't think you're going to hurt my feelings with your comments, I really need the help. What's the deal, guys?

[Juvicator]

Make sure that as you load the round that the rim of the round you are putting in is in front of the rim of the previous round. If not when the bolt is on its way back to battery, it cannot slide the round out of the mag due to the rims being overlapped. This can cause nosediving and possible flipping of the round.

[NaDSoB]

Thanks, Juvicator. I'll give that a try and see if the problem goes away.

[TacticalTom]

Originally Posted by Juvicator

Make sure that as you load the round that the rim of the round you are putting in is in front of the rim of the previous round. If not when the bolt is on its way back to battery, it cannot slide the round out of the mag due to the rims being overlapped. This can cause nosediving and possible flipping of the round.

That is an excellent explanation!!

P.S. As you load each round, be careful not to pull the loading assist tabs down more than needed...each new round loaded should almost insert fully horizontal. Hope that is all it is.

[mn_doggie]

If you look under the Notable thread index at the top of the page, you find a bunch of info about the 15-22.

Here's a good video about loading the magazines. You will get jams if the rounds are not stacked right.

Smith&Wesson M&P15-22 Instructional Series: Magazine Loading - YouTube

[NaDSoB]

Thanks, guys. I'll re-load my magazines taking extra care and see if the problem goes away. I'll bet it's a case of noob "operator error".

[Hobie1]

I've not seen the vid. but what works for me flawlessly is to make sure the mag is straight up, pull down just a bit on the load assist button(as mentioned earlier)and feed each round in from the front of the mag. I check and make sure the stagger is there. If not, you can try pulling down the load assist button a bit and let it snap up. It can straighten out the stagger problem. If not, dump the rounds back out and start over.

I've had my 15-22's for almost a year and never have a problem except for the occasional FTFire.

Hobie