Picked up a Marlin 336CS in 35 rem for my buddy to deer hunt with... it's no beauty, but bore looks good and it shoots straight.
Just one issue, it does not make a good solid firing pin dent on the primer and about 25-45% of the time the cartridge doesn't fire when this happens. Sometime it will if you try the same cartridge again.
I've taken a marlin completely apart to clean before (owner left it in the rain and it NEEDED it badly)
Should I;
A. Take it to a real gunsmith (almost none left in this area)
B. Measure some parts to determine if we need a new Main (Hammer) spring or a new set of firing pins (the 336 takes two I see). NOTE: to me, the hammer spring feels "weaker" on his 336CS than it does on my 1895SS.
Or, would you guys have any ideas on what to look for to pinpoint the likely cause of the problem???
Thanks in advance!