5 Common Firearms Malfunctions and How to Fix Them

In a high-stakes moment, the last thing you want is for your firearm to fail. Even the most reliable, well-maintained guns can experience malfunctions—and knowing how to quickly recognize and resolve them can make all the difference.

Whether you're a seasoned shooter or just getting started, understanding the most common firearm malfunctions is critical for safety, reliability, and confidence at the range or in a defensive scenario.

From failures to feed to squib loads, this guide breaks down the top five most frequent malfunctions, why they happen, and how to clear them safely and effectively.

A failure to fire occurs when you pull the trigger and the gun doesn’t go bang.

There are only a few reasons why this might happen.

The first is because there’s no round in the chamber.

If you pull the trigger and feel or hear a click but no bang, you might not have chambered a round.

The next is bad ammunition.

This one is less common nowadays because modern ammo is made to exacting standards and you can expect quality, especially if you buy it from a reputable site.

However, the ammo might have gotten wet or otherwise damaged, which could cause the primer or propellant to fail.

In those cases, it usually won’t fire.

There’s also the issue of a bad primer or a light primer strike.

In this case, either the primer itself is bad or something happened to prevent your firearm from going into battery.

Going into battery refers to the gun completing its cycle and loading a round fully into the chamber with the striker in proper position.

If that doesn’t happen, the striker isn’t positioned close enough to deliver proper force to the primer.

Without correct force, it won’t ignite the powder in the round.

There are multiple ways this issue will manifest itself, but two are most common.

Either two rounds try to load simultaneously, also called a double feed, or something hinders the round from being picked up from the magazine and properly loaded. 

When this occurs, your gun doesn't go into battery.

In most cases, it’ll either appear mostly closed or look similar to when it’s empty.

In a failure to extract, something stops your firearm from properly removing the spent shell casing from the chamber.

This can mean it doesn’t move the round at all or that the round moves only partially out of the chamber.  

A failure to eject is similar to a failure to extract.

Sometimes it's caused by a failure to extract.

In a failure to eject, the spent casing comes out of the chamber but stays in the gun.

One common version of this is called “stove piping.”

This is where the empty shell sticks in an upward position while the bolt or slide comes forward again, causing it to look like the chimney pipe on a stove.

In most cases of a failure to extract, the extractor is the issue.

However it could also be the extractor, the ejector, the ammunition or even the gas system.

Diagnosing these can be tricky, but the methods for fixing them can help narrow it down. 

A bolt override is technically a failure to feed, but it’s unique enough that it deserves its own category.

It isn’t something you’ll see very often — only with the AR platform.

Bolt override is an issue where a round is fed in such a way that it wedges in between the top of the bolt carrier and the gas tube.

It’s a unique issue and can be maddening if you don’t know how to fix it. 

The U.S. Army teaches a fundamental immediate action drill to enlistees called SPORTS, a time-tested method used to diagnose and clear basic malfunctions in semi-automatic and automatic firearms—most notably the M4 and M16 platforms.

Designed to be simple, fast, and effective under pressure, SPORTS is a mnemonic acronym that stands for: Slap, Pull, Observe, Release, Tap, and Squeeze.

Let’s break down each step to understand how and why it works.

S – Slap the Magazine
The first step is to firmly slap the bottom of the magazine to ensure it is seated correctly in the magazine well. A common cause of a malfunction is an improperly seated magazine, which can prevent a round from feeding into the chamber. This step helps eliminate that issue right away.

Why it's important: An unseated or loosely inserted magazine can result in a failure to feed. Slapping it ensures it’s locked in place and ready to function properly.

P – Pull the Charging Handle
Next, pull the charging handle all the way back. This action extracts any round that might be jammed in the chamber and prepares the bolt carrier group to strip a new round from the magazine.

Why it's important: Pulling the charging handle clears the chamber of any misfed or partially ejected round and resets the bolt carrier group for the next shot.

O – Observe the Ejection Port
While holding the charging handle back, observe the ejection port to check for any obstructions or spent casings that may be lodged inside. You’re looking to confirm that the chamber is either clear or that a round is ready to be chambered.

Why it's important: Visually inspecting the chamber helps identify stovepipes, double feeds, or other visible blockages that could indicate a more serious malfunction requiring further action.

R – Release the Charging Handle
Once you've checked and confirmed the chamber, release the charging handle to allow it to spring forward under its own tension. This action chambers a fresh round from the magazine.

Why it's important: Releasing (not riding) the charging handle ensures the bolt has the full force to lock properly and reliably chamber a round.

T – Tap the Forward Assist
After the bolt is closed, tap the forward assist (located on the right side of the upper receiver) to make sure the bolt is fully seated and locked into battery.

Why it's important: Sometimes the bolt may not fully close on its own, particularly in dirty conditions. Tapping the forward assist helps ensure the round is chambered and the bolt is locked.

S – Squeeze the Trigger
The final step is to squeeze the trigger and fire. If the malfunction was properly cleared, the firearm should now operate normally and cycle the next round.

Why it's important: This is the true test to determine if the immediate action drill was successful. If the firearm still fails to fire, further troubleshooting or remedial action may be necessary.

While SPORTS is effective for quickly clearing simple malfunctions such as a failure to feed or a failure to eject, it’s worth noting that it's not a catch-all solution.

For more complex issues like double feeds or stuck casings, further disassembly and clearing may be required. However, SPORTS remains a foundational skill taught to every Army recruit due to its efficiency and ease of execution under stress.

There are a few other methods specific to individual malfunctions that aren’t necessarily part of the processes above.

The first is mortaring, which applies to AR-15 platform weapons.

For mortaring, you take the gun, pointing the muzzle away from you but upwards, and slam the buttstock (or pistol brace) into a stationary surface.

If you have a collapsible buttstock, collapse it first to avoid breaking it.

The slam can happen onto any surface, including your leg, a table, the ground or whatever you need to use.

The point is to hold the gun like a military mortar tube and use the force of the slam to drive the bolt backwards.

This comes in handy for those really stubborn types of misfeeds, or it can help you lock the bolt back on a dirty AR that has been sitting around for awhile in need of cleaning. 

Finally, in the event of the bolt override issue, you’ll want to use your fingers.

In most cases, simply remove the magazine and stick your fingers in the chamber area from where the magazine feeds to reach the override.

Then you can move the round out of the way, and it’ll fall out through the empty magazine hole.

It sounds simple but it works, and some of the other attempts at malfunction clearing can actually make this issue worse.

So, if you observe the bolt override, go straight to your fingers.

Firearm malfunctions are an inevitable part of shooting—no matter how experienced you are or how well-maintained your weapon may be.

From misfeeds and stovepipes to the more complex bolt override, knowing how to quickly recognize and correct these issues is critical for safety, efficiency, and confidence. This article breaks down the five most common firearm malfunctions, explains what causes them, and provides practical steps to clear them safely.

It also covers essential immediate-action drills like the U.S. Army’s SPORTS method, offering shooters a fast and effective way to get their firearm back into action.

Whether you're training, defending, or just out enjoying some range time, understanding these malfunctions ensures you're always prepared for the unexpected.