[dasanii19]

Today I took my brand new FN SLP 18" shotgun out to the range to try her out. The first shot let off was a stove pipe, second shot was a FTF, 3rd shot went bang, 4th went bang, 5th stove pipe, 6th FTF... I was pissesd off and very confused. I then racked the bolt back and took a quick look inside to find nothing out of the ordinary. When I pushed the bolt release button the bolt jammed half way. I tehn thoght that possibly it could be the light loads I was shooting, so I attempted to take the barrel off to chage out the gas piston. The barrel would not budge an inch. I stuck the shotgun back into the case shot my .22 cal for awhile then went home...

Confused as all hell I get home and try to take the barrel off again, that sucker would not budge. So now the bolt wont close and is jammed and the barrel wont come off.... I take out the trigger assembly to try and get a better look at whats going on internally....... Nothing................. So I start back tracking, did I put it back together right when I cleaned it? I had to of, im stuburn about this sort of thing, I read the manual front to back and back to front.. hmmmmmmmm what now..... So I take a look at the inside top of the receiver of my other brand new SLP, I can see where the picatinny rail screws come through, so I thought to myself, "could it be the picatinny rail screws jamming this sucker up?" I run and grab a allen wrench and start loosening all the rail screws..... POP!!! the bolt slams back to normal, so I loosen the next picatinny screw and POP!!! the barrel slides out with ease... PROBLEM SOLVED!!!

So do to the picatinny rail screws driven in too deep, problem after problem occured with the FN SLP. Can you believe it? Not to start bagging on FN but you would think they would have a bit better specs then this, *cough*cough*quality control?... I hope these screws didnt screw anything up inside, like the top of the bolt or the hood of the barrel...

Edit: I just inspected the barrel hood and bolt, from what I can see nothing seems to be harmed at all. So lesson learned and hopfully this might help the next guy. If your having jamming issues with your SLP of any sort, CHECK YOUR PICATINNY SCREWS!!!

 

[ShipWreck]

Well, glad U managed to figure this out. I was about to give U Bob's number to call to get that fixed. But as I kept reading, I saw U did it.

 

[dasanii19]

UPDATE!!!! GOOD NEWS!!

Upon further inspection....... Today, I completly tore down the shotgun. My goal was to figure how much I needed to file off the picatinny screws. As the shotgun sat completly field stripped, I installed only the picatinny rail and screws and took close look inside the receiver with a flashlight. I can see where the screws are coming through the receiver way too far then they should, this is when it dawned on me all the sudden.. I almost feel like a jack ass as I should have checked this from the very start. I took all four screws out and set them on the counter side by side, WHAT DO YA KNOW!! THEY ARE DIFFERENT SIZES!!! I mean ever so slightly, I really think anyone could have made this mistake. So we have two short screws and two longer screws, the two short screws install in the front of the picatinny rail and the longer screws install in the rear. :roll:

If made this mistake anyone can and could have in the past. This simple mistake could draw a very dark cloud over the SLP. If you hear of anyone having severe FTF/FTE/bolt locking problems please ask if they installed the picatinny screws correctly as THEY ARE DIFFERENT SIZES!! If you own a SLP and have uninstalled/reinstalled the picatinny rail before and didnt know about the different sized screws, go check it out and make sure they are installed correctly.

Im so happy this was my mistake rather then FN's. I would have thought very poorly about FN's quality control if all the screws were the same size.

 

[Mad_Max]

ALSO: if you install a Tac Star Sidesaddle shell holder be sure not to over tighten.. just tight enough so it is gently "thumb and finger" snug.. use Loc-Tite to ensure it won't loosen. If you over tighten it will impede bolt travel same as in the above scenario. The aluminum receiver does not like to be tweaked. I love this gun, though!