www.MG42.us

I just bought an Wise Lite Arms. MG42/ M53, and sadly, it cannot chamber a round. The ammo is Yugo surplus, so I'm pretty damn sure its not the ammo, lol. The bolt jut doesn't seem to go back far enough to chamber a round. What's the deal? I've never heard bad things about the M53, so I'm rather perplexed. Suggestions? Thanks ahead of time guys.

......you just bought it........contact the "Manufacturer" as it is still under "warrantee"......let them fix it.

Until the manufacturers of these guns are made to be "accountable" for the quality-control during the manufacturing process......"and" required to "TEST-FIRE" their weapons.........this wil continue to be a question (issue brought up) posted here.

Regards, RichardS in MI.

A friend of mine just bought one of these a few months ago & had same issue. Turned out one side of the receiver (the "low" area that the feed tray sets on) wasn't machined deep enough. They told him there was a batch of them that were made that way. He had to send it back for the fix.

A test fire before selling it to him would have caught the goof.
Mike Sa

Hell! The book that came with it said they test-fired it! That pisses me off, cause I emailed them too and asked, and never got a response. Thanks though guys

Make sure your bolt slide freely with the recoil spring out. If it is ok then check your spring length. It should be around 14 inches for the wiselite. I had my spring stretch like a 1/4 inch and it would not chamber a round.

Go figure, another quality product! Not only one, but two that wouldn't even chamber a round. Glad to see they had their 50 rnds put threw it! Pretty soon you guys will get sick of buying junk and step up to the plate for a quality MG-42 not a sorry M-53

" What's the deal? I've never heard bad things about the M53, so I'm rather perplexed. " there are plenty of bad items said about them here on this forum, just need to research it a little.

I knew this was comming...
I'm guessing the last 3 polls didn't come to the "right" conclusion for oak
Maybe a BRP poll will be next

That's almost a knee slapper! Nobody voted, I guess nobody on this board owns one. Question 1 only had 6 votes!
Anyways, how could I let such an easy one by, I gave in to that voice in my head.

All the good advise was already given out so there wasn't much left for me to do besides rub the salt in the wound!

You must buy that salt wholesale!! Call em as you see em! Wiselite has always stood behind their work,and fixed any problems.I just wish there weren't the problems to start out with,not doing their reputation any good.Do a good test before they go out the door! ---bil

oakrodent wrote:That's almost a knee slapper! Nobody voted, I guess nobody on this board owns one. Question 1 only had 6 votes!
Anyways, how could I let such an easy one by, I gave in to that voice in my head.

All the good advise was already given out so there wasn't much left for me to do besides rub the salt in the wound!

Ha ha...I couldn't resist the comments oak All in good fun of course.

But yeah I do agree with ya oak that it seems WLA is starting to let some of these M53's out the door in a bit of a haste lately. They have a lot going on right now and perhaps too many irons in the fire so to speak.

I've got an early (2007) that has been damn near perfect , but the latest WLA M53 I looked at a couple of weeks ago at my favorite gun store did look kinda ruff .

I'm not saying this so much as to slam WLA (cause they are good folks to deal with) as I am hoping they take notice and tighten these things up a bit. Maybe a few cracks of the whip are in order.

Live and learn I suppose. WLA got back to me after a second email and now their senior M53 tech is going to get ahold of me.

WLA's quality control is the only reason John (owner of Marstar) won't import any ... Thus forcing me to build my own ! When the owner of a major firearms dealer won't touch those guns, that is a sign. I was quite disappointed when i was told that , i even asked him myself!

Michael J wrote:WLA's quality control is the only reason John (owner of Marstar) won't import any ... Thus forcing me to build my own ! When the owner of a major firearms dealer won't touch those guns, that is a sign. I was quite disappointed when i was told that , i even asked him myself!

I highly doubt you would be disappointed with mine.

I could be wrong though.

oakrodent wrote:That's almost a knee slapper! Nobody voted, I guess nobody on this board owns one. Question 1 only had 6 votes!
Anyways, how could I let such an easy one by, I gave in to that voice in my head.

All the good adviCe was already given out so there wasn't much left for me to do besides rub the salt in the wound!

Check your pm's. Still haven't heard back from you.

12thWaffenSS wrote:

Michael J wrote:WLA's quality control is the only reason John (owner of Marstar) won't import any ... Thus forcing me to build my own ! When the owner of a major firearms dealer won't touch those guns, that is a sign. I was quite disappointed when i was told that , i even asked him myself!

I highly doubt you would be disappointed with mine.

I could be wrong though.

I'm sure they have excellent guns, i -would- buy one if they were made available here in canada. But because of their % ratio of working to non-working guns coming out of there, dealers wont touch them here. It is not simple for people in canada to simply mail their gun to wiselite for warranty work, that is not an option. If they are going to sell a product, it has to be darn near 100% working out of the box everytime , not 80% of the time or even 90% of the time. I'm not bashing their product, or your gun, but i am ticked off that their quality control is so inefficient.

I agree-they have excellant customer service[Thank you,Richard] ,they gave us a good deal here when they first made the barrel bushing repair piece,and there were some real sharp guys working on a project that filled a much-needed niche-the guys that wanted to built a semi mg42 and either didn't have the skills,equipment,space,or time.And at a reasonable price.Anyone that has built one from a parts kit knows this.And the problems are not major.I remember when the BRP receivers were the big talk-cracking problems on the early ones.Once this problem was inentified,the solution was figured out,and the fix was made.Now they are considered top of the line,and rightly so.We also had the cold-steel receivers,where you never knew if you were going to get something nice,or something that looked like it was made using a hammer and a flat rock.The wise-lite guns are well built and finished.They could use a few things.A more comprehensive manual,with better instructions.A better description of the correct ammo to use.We see much confusion about that.Define 'commercially availlable' or whatever the term is.Some of the trouble arises from people using ammo that is unreliable.Finally,more time spent on making sure it works out of the box.All of the fixing won't repair your reputation.The same problem seems to come up,the fix is simple,act as if it has already been returned disgruntled customer,and fix it first.It is simple,I don't want to keep seeing the same thing arise every few weeks.I want to get one of these someday,and I want wiselite to stay in business making these for a long time to come.I am also glad there are others making this product also ,such as BRP,so we have choices. ---bil

If the bolt does not come back far enough to chamber a round, there are a few possible issues...

Does the bolt come out of the receiver without issues?
If not, check for binding around the charging handle lug and the grip/hammer area.
Also for a clean break away when the bolt and barrel come apart. (The loud kah chunk noise is normal!) Check that there is free movement of the barrel and bushing. The recuperator should push it forward every time without drag. If there is drag in the barrel bushing, it will not release the bolt quick enough and the rearward momentum will be lost.

Does the bolt move all the way to the rear (i. e. contact the buffer) with the top cover open?
If not, check the main spring. Make sure it is placed squarely in the bolt extension lip. Also check to make sure its not unwinding. This is an original modified part and may have been used to shoot 500 rounds or 500,000 rounds prior to the demilling of its firearm. There's no way to know. Springs wear out eventually.
Also check the charging handle. It may be popping out of the ratchet plate at some point causing the feeling of binding.

Does the bolt come to the rear with the top cover closed and NO belt or rounds loaded?
If not, check the moving parts of the top cover. If it has been slammed shut without aligning the track to the feed pin on the top of the bolt, it can yank the moving parts off of their pins causing binding. Also, the pin must be in the track for proper feed. You can put your ass into it and make it come back some if it's not in the track, but don't because it will damage the feed mechanism. With no ammo/belts, the hook on the charging handle should come back to the hook on the ratchet plate or very close too it.

Are you loading the belt correctly?
The fire arm was created as a bolt open weapon and (in keeping the ATF happy) modified into a bolt forward weapon. The best way I have found to load this weapon is to imitate the bolt open condition at the moment of loading.
1. Lay the belt across the feed tray with an open link over the feed slot.
2. There is a little tab that sticks out on the right side of the feed tray that (perhaps intentionally) makes a great place to hook the belt and free up your hands at this point.
3. Close the top cover making sure the feed pin is lined up with the track on the top cover. This sometimes means pulling it to the left with your left thumb and holding it there until you are about to squash your thumb. It is to the left because the bolt is forward at this time.
4. Make sure the latch is back on the top cover, securing it properly.
5. Using your right hand, pull the charging handle to the rear and hold it there.
6. Reach over the top cover with your left hand and grab the belt. (Close to the top cover works best.) Pull the belt through the feed mechanism. There is normally three clicks while you are doing this If you can't pull it straight across, try twisting your left hand counter clockwise while holding the belt. This uses the palm of your hand as a sort of pulley. This works best when you are wearing gloves, which I recommend anyway. (My knuckles don't appreciate bouncing shell casings.) The belt will usually stop moving when the round reaches the feed slot and the belt guide (the little C shaped thing on the feed tray.)
7. Let the charging handle go. DO NOT ride it. It needs all its spring to pull a round off the belt. If you treat it like a bolt action, it will act like a bolt action. Or worse.
8. The round should have chambered at this point.

Will the round will chamber manually, but not cycle in?
This is usually a gas issue. All ammo is not created equal. ALL Wise Lite S/A M53/Mg42's created in the last two years HAVE BEEN TESTED on Yugoslavian surplus ammunition generally stamped 53. They function differently on Romanian surplus (second most common) and probably on every other ammo out there. Changing the booster cone to one that is larger or smaller diameter usually clears up the problem.


I hope this is helpful.

SovRaptor,

I think you will find Seabee's post to be helpful.
In my estimation there is no person more experienced and knowledable about the Wise Lite Arms semi-auto M53.

Bil,
I appreciate the thanks, but most all of the customer service is now being handled by James.
When you send a message (or an order) thru the WLA website it is James who takes care of it.
He is more on top of things than I was, and is better positioned to track everything.
I still monitor the web forums, with the exception of "WEAPONEER".

Regards,
Richard C. Hamer
Factory Representative
Wise Lite Arms
Class II Manufacturer
07 FFL SOT
FAX: (940) 433-8096
WEBSITE: http://www.wlarms.com/

I'll have to try some of those tips when I get a chance. I would do it now, but I'm in Afghanistan lol.

Keep an eye open,the newer versions turn up there! Good luck over there! ---bil