Where to clean a new 930?

[greg11]

Hey All!

I have a mossberg 930 that has FTE's with Winchester lowbase steel bulk pack loads. These are the loads I have readily accessible to me through Walmart. As such, these would be my preferred trap/skeet load as they're cheap and easy to get.

My gun seems to do fine with my reloads ("full power" slugs and buck in scavenged Winchester AA hulls). It does well with game loads as well. It did well with the cheapo stuff until about 100 rounds were through the shotgun, and then it stopped ejecting reliably.

Admittedly, I didn't do a thorough cleaning to get all the factory grease off the internals, which I understand can eventually get pretty gummy... However, on cursory disassembly, I can't spot a lot of this grease, so I'm wondering if there are any nooks or crannys that might be the most likely culprits...

Also, just wondering if anyone greases their 930? I grease my M1A and it runs smooth as silk. I don't see why a similar application in the internals of my 930 wouldn't slicken the action up significantly?

Thanks guys...

 

[SeaScout]

Howdy and welcome,
Nothing wrong with grease on high friction areas such as the bolt carrier group. I do that my self. Just don't get carried away to the point of gumming things up. It is good to really clean the bolt, flushing it out as it comes from the factory.
Best...

 

[MikeD]

When I cleaned mine I removed the barrel, bolt and trigger group from the receiver. I scrubbed every part and the inside of the receiver with a toothbrush.

I did not disassemble the trigger group (and I don't recommend dissassembling it unless you really know what you are doing.) but I did degrease it.

I then relubed everything and reassembled it.

 

[Big_G]

The problem you are having is a "failure to eject" or "failure to extract" ?? It sounds like a failure to eject. In this case it is most likely a fouled gas system; but unless you used solvent to clean the receiver and the bolt, there could be grease and carbon slowing down the bolt as well.

Use solvent to clean the entire working parts of the gun. Lubricate with a quality product of your choice. I like Slip 2000. The 930 will run perfectly even when completely filthy if you do two things - keep it generously lubricated with a good product intended for that purpose and fire high brass full power ammunition.

 

[va3gunner]

I use FrogLube on all my firearms. I shoot a lot of 3 gun matches and practice very frequently and have not had any malfunctions on any of them using FrogLube. It is simple to apply and is biodegradable (sic). Great stuff.

 

[raven01750]

Hi va3gunner, Understanding your 930 is the key to troubleshooting the causes of failures. Failure to eject or extract is usually caused by a problem with the Gas System. It may not necessarily be a failure though. Get out your owners manual and follow along here with me.

The Gas System comprises the barrel and the two small holes leading into the "Gas Cylinder" welded to the barrel, the "Gas Piston" which slides inside the Gas Cylinder, the "Gas System Spacer Tube" which must slide smoothly to force the "Pusher Assembly" back with enough force to cause the "Bolt Assembly" back far enough for the shell to hit the "Ejector Pin" inside the barrel to force the shell casing out the side of the Receiver. For the purpose of this thread, I won't get into the finish of the barrels chamber or Gas Cylinder which could also have an affect.

The bolt assembly is fighting the opposit force of the "Return Spring" located inside the Butt Stock to cause a new shell to be chambered and the Receiver set for your next shot.

If any of these parts are causing a problem, then low brass, low velocity ammunition may not work properly.

You need to start with removing the barrel. Ensure the two holes that allow gas from the shot to enter into the Piston Cylinder are clean and unobstructed. Take a flashlight and make sure there isn't any metal tailings still attached.

Secondly, inspect the gas piston. Do the two rings cut into the sealing ring that goes around the top look like they are making 100% contact all the way around? You can easily tell by the wear. If the wear isn't even and completely 360 degrees around the Gas Cylinder Piston, gas from the shot is escaping by but will get better as the parts wear in together. Disassemble the Gas Piston and clean it but don't lube it if 100% wear hasn't yet been achieved or lube it on the outside only lightly if you are satisfied with the wear indications because lube traps carbon and gunk. LIGHTLY lube the Gas Cylinder where the Gas Cylinder Piston slides in and out remembering that lube is going to be exposed to extremely hot gasses capturing Carbon and gunk. When you reassemble, make sure that the expansion cut on the two rings are opposit each other to ensure the least amount of gas is allowed to leak by the piston.

Then manually slide the Gas Piston into the Gas Piston Cylinder on the barrel and manually work it in and out until you do not feel any significant resistance from the walls of the Gas Cylinder part of the barrel. This is one of those break in points and will affect what kind of load you are using. You CAN expect some resistance about 3/4 of the way out of the Gas Cylinder because the Gas Piston does not slide out 100% during normal operation. But work it until your satisfied.

Third, make sure that the Pusher Assembly slides into the Receiver and out with no resistance.

Fourth, lightly lube the Slide and Bolt Assembly where it makes contact with the Receiver.

Lastly, remove and inspect the "Return Spring" and "Return Spring Plunger" in the Butt Stock for burrs, rough spots, dents etc. Make sure the slot in the Return Spring Retainer is correctly aligned on the Return Spring Retainer Pin. Reassemble the entire gun except for the Forearm.

Using just your hands, grab the "Gas Piston" and manually push the entire assembly down and up verifying that everything is working smoothly. Keep doing so until you are satisfied with the ease of the piston and return assembly. This is a step that must be done if you put a new or different barrel on because the new barrel Gas Piston Cylinder will need to be "broken in" so to speak just like a brand new weapon. If you have to do this 100 times until your satisfied with smooth operation so be it.

If you still have problems with low velocity loads, then you are likely dealing with the combination of idividual springs i.e. Gas System Return Spring and the Return Spring which should loosen up after a few hundered rounds of some higher velocity loads. And if that doesn't work? Polish the Chamber and Gas Cylinder Piston. There is nothing else that will help after this point besides replacing or modifying parts like the return spring. Good Luck, Have a great day.

Paul