[ILLusion]

What mag are you using that allows you to shoot CO2?

Do a shot to replicate the locking issue. Once it's locked, remove the magazine, clear your finger from the trigger, and push against the muzzle of the BARREL in towards the slide.

Does it cause the slide to rack forward the moment the barrel moves back?

If so, you just found the cause of your problem, and is a common problem with some of these metal components. It's caused by the outer barrel not being pulled back far enough during the slide blowing back, and as a result, the slide catches on the top of the chamber as the slide rides back forward. It causes a two-position lock, that essentially wedges the barrel between the slide and the frame, and the only way to clear it without causing more damage is by pushing the barrel back.

If you force the slide forward, you actually end up causing MORE damage to the slide. I'm betting the lugs on the inside of your slide are all damaged and rounded out now, if this was in fact the cause of your problem. The more you do that, the worse this problem will get.

There isn't any real fix to the problem, except replacing the barrel and/or slide, or if your barrel can be separated in to two components (outer barrel & chamber unit), then you can install a spring assist system to rear-load the assembly to help it clear the lugs in the slide.

It was just poorly built. Not much you can do about that. It's what happens with cheaper components.


If pushing the barrel back DOESN'T release the slide, then there's a different problem at play, but given the current position of your locked slide, the barrel double-wedge problem is the most likely cause.