Win 1894 Need Repair

[ohiochuck]

My Winchester 1894 in 25-35 with a DST will not fire when the trigger is pulled and the hammer falls
Possibly needs a new firing pin?
Gunsmiths in Ohio?
Thanks!
Jim

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Sounds like a possible problem (broken pin), but also could be dirt/grease/crud in the firing pin channel inside the bolt. One long shot-- maybe the hammer spring is broken or weakened and the hammer isn't falling hard enough. There have been a lot of small design changes over the many years this rifle has been manufactured, and now by at least 3 different manufacturers. The earlier model, which judging by your chambering yours probably is, had a leaf mainspring powering the hammer, and it is held inside the lower tang by a screw. Possibly your rifle's screw is loose. The later models have a coil spring. These rifles really aren't too difficult to work on, and you can likely do the necessary work yourself if you have a mind to. For starters, get a copy of J.B. Wood's book "The Gun Digest Book of Firearms Assembly/Disassembly Part IV: Centerfire Rifles". The book covers many rifles, but the very last one in the book is the Win. 1894, covered in great detail with good photos. If you don't feel competent to do the work yourself, I can't recommend anyone in Ohio, as I live in Oregon, but it's going to turn out to be a relatively simple problem and shouldn't be that expensive to repair.

[KMac]

I agree with Der Gebirgsjager.
Have you disassembled it and cleaned everything real good?
I have a model 94 from 1913 that the lever would not cycle right and the wood looked like an old rough dried fence post. After I got it all apart I literally had to use a pick to chisel all of the carbon buildup out. I cleaned everything and polished all of the surfaces that touched and it runs really well now.
Went from a sows ear to a silk purse.
And it was fun. A lot of early mornings messing with it.

[dverna]

Cannot help with a gunsmith but glad to see your are going to get the old girl fixed. Love the old lever actions!!!

[Texas by God]

Double set triggers are quite sensitive to dirt- but you say that the hammer falls. What does the primer on the unfired round look like? If it has a light dent the problem may be a weak spring or dirt in the firing pin tunnel. I have no experience with a Winchester 94 DST; only Mausers and muzzleloaders. So I’m throwing guesses here- pics would be nice of a classic like that.

[KMac]

Double set triggers are quite sensitive to dirt- but you say that the hammer falls. What does the primer on the unfired round look like? If it has a light dent the problem may be a weak spring or dirt in the firing pin tunnel. I have no experience with a Winchester 94 DST; only Mausers and muzzleloaders. So I’m throwing guesses here- pics would be nice of a classic like that.

Ahh. DST means Double set triggers. Obviously different than what I experienced with mine. Hope you get it fixed.

[cwtebay]

I believe that Texas is onto something there. I purchased (my one and only) dst 94 as a gunsmith special. Being frugal, I disassembled and cleaned the gunk out, lubed it and it's been awesome ever since.

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[Pirate69]

Another 25-35 fan. I have two and I love to shoot them.

[curdog007]

I've never been inside a 94 with a DST, but other locks I've worked on with DSTs have a fly to stop the sear engaging in the half cock notch while the hammer is dropping. Is the hammer stopping at half cock? If it has a fly, it may be missing - they get lost a lot of the time.

[Old-Win]

If a good cleaning doesn't solve your problem, try Winchester Bob. He works on set triggers.

[ohiochuck]

No primer marks left on unfired cartridge
Bob repaired the DST several months ago

[Texas by God]

With your action open, take a small rod and push forward on the rear of the firing pin. The tip should protrude from the bolt face a little. If not, it’s definitely broken. It sounds like disassembly time.

[Patrolman]

Is your Model 94 a rifle or a carbine? There is something different about the firing pins in very early ones. My 25-35 carbine was made in 1896.
I had Lassen Gunsmithing College in Susanville Ca. make one for mine.
They did a very good job on it, but they ruined for a deer hunting gun when they told me how rare it was.