Stiff action on a Winchester '94

[Knarley]

Have a 30-30 that when I operate the action the cartrages seem to run into each other in the back field. Now is that normal operation for these? I've had the gun a while but have only had it to the range once and seemed to have problems with it. My Dad bought it gosh knows when, then after he died I ended up with it, so I don't know the details on this one. It had a broken firing pin, I had that repaired, and I've only fired it a few times. Being new to lever guns, I'm not sure how easily they are 'sposed to run.
Thanks,
Knarley

[Swamprat1052]

My experience with em is you have to work em pretty hard when you work the lever, up and down. Mine won't throw the shell out in time if I do it easy. They are meant to be handled pretty quick and hard.

Swamprat

[hornetguy]

also... the 94's made during the period from what, 1965? to probably the 1980's or so, were made with what I believe were alloy receivers... some of the 94 experts on here can be more precise... These guns have never cycled smoothly, to me.
My brother bought an Illinois Sesquicentennial (whew!) during that time frame... it was always rougher than a stucco bathtub when cycling the action..

Yours might be one of those.

[frank505]

If it's one of them with the stamped lifter it will almost never work. Replace the lifter with the forged part and go shooting.

[Maineboy]

When I had the firing pin replaced on my 1894, the action was stiffened up quite a bit, in fact it was quite hard to cycle. That was about 15 years ago and it has smoothed up since then, but it's still not as smooth to operate as it before.

[Knarley]

The gun was manufctured in 1920 according to a site that goes by the serial #.But why would getting a firing pin fixed make it run differently? Put back together wrong? I seem to remember it running o.k. before. It's a puzzlement:-?
Knarley

[ktw]

I have a 1955 30-30 top eject carbine and a 2002 (USRAC) 45 Colt angle eject Trapper.

The older one is 'stiffer' (takes more effort to cycle) than the newer one. I have learned to accept this as normal.

-ktw

[NickSS]

I have several 94s and all of mine operate fine except the angle eject ones generally have a smoother action than the others. I beleive this is due to the rebounding hammer more than anything else. The bolt gets actually moving before it runs into the hammer and starts compressing the hammer spring. I do have one made in 1913 that is smooth as silk but it was a special order short rifle so probably was slicked up at the factory before being shipped.

[Maineboy]

The gun was manufctured in 1920 according to a site that goes by the serial #.But why would getting a firing pin fixed make it run differently? Put back together wrong? I seem to remember it running o.k. before. It's a puzzlement:-?
Knarley

I know...mine is an 1895 manufacture. It will loosen up with use but I haven't got mine to the point where it is as smooth to cycle as it was before the repair.

[FromTheWoods]

I'd take it apart, clean it, inspect the pieces for any oddities, lubricate it, and put it back together.

I have a few old Winchesters from your rifle's time and before. These rifles are sweet to operate. They leave no questions in your mind as to how they are supposed to function--they sound and feel as a Winchester should!--SWEET!

Ask the fellows at this forum. They might be able to tell you about your firing pin causing problems. http://www.winchestercollector.org/forum/

[Trailblazer]

The end of the lever rides against the side of the firing pin inside the bolt. There is a notch milled in the side of the firing pin for the lever to fit in. The lever pushes the firing pin back a tad when the lever drops. Maybe the notch isn't deep enough in the new firing pin. That is where I would look for any interference between firing pin and lever.

The pin that holds the lever to the bolt might also be worn and causing some misalignment with the firing pin notch if it was assembled in a different way than it wore into. Anyway that is the only place the lever contacts the firing pin.