Jammed tight S&W M&P 45 auto

[Major Tom]

After firing several rounds one jammed in the chamber somehow. The slide cannot be retracted to eject it. I tried rapping the rear of the slide and the front too. Still jammed. I need help on how to get the slide to retract and eject. 3lb sledge hammer?

[JimF]

Is it a live round jamed in the chamber . . . .or empty case?

[Art]

If you have a live round stuck in your chamber take the pistol to a gunsmith. If there is a fired case stuck in you chamber my guess is it (the case) ruptured. So if there is a fired case in the chamber and only if there is a fired case you might try putting a stout dowel or rod down the barrel and giving it a good whack it with a mallet to get the slide started back. If that doesn't work I'm afraid you may have a job for a gunsmith.

[JimF]

If you have a live round stuck in your chamber take the pistol to a gunsmith. If there is a fired case stuck in you chamber my guess is it (the case) ruptured. So if there is a fired case in the chamber and only if there is a fired case you might try putting a stout dowel or rod down the barrel and giving it a good whack it with a mallet to get the slide started back. If that doesn't work I'm afraid you may have a job for a gunsmith.

Art . . . .
That’s exactly what my suggestion would be IF it is a fired case!
You read my mind!
I would’ve said . . . .
Remove the grips . . .place frame in a PADDED vise . . .rap hard on the dowel with a heavy, dead-blow hammer.

[Art]

Art . . . .
I would’ve said . . . .
Remove the grips . . .place frame in a PADDED vise . . .rap hard on the dowel with a heavy, dead-blow hammer.

Yup, thanks for adding that.

[lyman]

if it is a new M&P 45, it is a plastic gun
no grips to remove, and striker fired,

[barretcreek]

Is this the gun/load you referred to in the Reloading thread for a low recoil load? May need to fix the pistol in a vise or take it to a machine shop which has a hydraulic press to slowly free up the slide, pushing down on a brass rod as has been described.

[Major Tom]

Is this the gun/load you referred to in the Reloading thread for a low recoil load? May need to fix the pistol in a vise or take it to a machine shop which has a hydraulic press to slowly free up the slide, pushing down on a brass rod as has been described.

Yes it was one of those low recoil loads I made up. I reloaded 10 rounds to try out. All fired OK except that ONE. It did not fire tho, so it is a loaded round in the chamber. If I use a brass rod to push the slide back, is there a chance the firing pin will detonate the primer? Can the firing pin be removed from the rear of the slide?

[k arga]

I would just hold on to the grip and wack the slide with a dead blow hammer , if the slide is not in battery it will not fire. That is what your gunsmith is going to do, there is no other way that I can see. if the gun is pointed in a safe direction there should be no problem.

[Merc]

I’m from the other school of thought. I had a live round jam part of the way into the chamber of my M1903 in 2019 (see the M1903 forum section and you will find “A Live Round Jammed” thread on page 5) and I resisted the urge to beat on the stuck round with a dowel rod and a hammer. I looked around on the Internet and found that Brownell’s sold a live round extractor. I bought one and it worked great. My point is, don’t resort to self fixes until you exhaust all other possibilities, especially if the fix includes striking your gun with a hammer. You could create alignment problems or compound the existing problem. A gunsmith may have seen your problem before and can easily clear the jam. He might find and replace a worn, bent or damaged part that caused the jam.