need some thoughts on a late 30's 1894 30 wcf.

[nagantguy]

Had an all lever gun and revolver day at the range, great day. The one thing I noticed the lod 94 I spent last winter cleaning up and getting back into fighting trim after 30 or so years on a basement floor it has a small catch when cycling the lever to chamber a round. It takes a little jiggling and a push to chamber the round. Not force, it's just not smooth like my other levers and I know this rifle has a tight chamber, this little hiccup is with factory and home rolled. She's shooting real good and extracts the rounds fine, and the brass looks fine after firing. The 175 grain pcd WW+ tin water quenched boolits cut nice centered little holes not quite clover leaf and no leading at all after 15 rounds. Anyhow since any colecters value is gone from this rifle and she's a permanent part of the stable, already promised to kin when I'm gone should I concider reaming or throating the chamber mouth?

[pietro]

.

IME, a cycling "hitch" is usually a result of an issue with one or more of the cycling parts (lifter/carrier, cartridge guides, linkage pin wear or deformation, etc), or a crud buildup under the extractor claw.


.

[nagantguy]

I was leaning that way, I don't see anything obvious and I've had her all the way down to clean inspect and delouse but I guess I wouldn't know a weak pin or linkage by looking. Thanks for the input and thank you sir for your service

[John Taylor]

ware in the bolt guide (grooves on each side of the frame) and bolt can cause the bolt to raise up when the extractor hits the rim causing the bottom edge of the bolt to hit the cartridge rim. This will cause the lever to stop about 1/2" from closing and with enough pressure it will snap and close the rest of the way.If you close the action fast it most likely will not hang up. Got one in the shop now that has this problem.

[dikman]

I bought a '94 real cheap and noticed it was occasionally jamming open while closing the lever (it would only go so far then stop). After much messing around I found a slight burr on the inside of one of the channels that the locking bar slides in and the bar would occasionally (not every time) hit this burr and stop. It took a fair bit of smoothing down to get the bar sliding reliably.

Btw, the reason I got it cheap ($50!) is that the chap using it found the cartridge feeding to be unreliable for competition use. It's a 44-40, and I've since found out that it's a common problem when using pistol calibres in the '94 model. But if you cycle it slow it's a lovely little gun, and I love it!!

[Blackwater]

I'm with JT on this one. Hitches are usually in the feeding mechanisms.

[nagantguy]

Thank you guys, looks like I'll be tearing her down again and looking for wear burrs weak pins and lifter.

[doc1876]

Same thing happened to me years ago when I took grampa's apart. Found a burr. Honed it all down, she cycles great.

[pietro]

.

FWIW, the only real way to discover a kinked pin is to remove them - if they don't look like an unmolested drillbit shank, when removed - replace it/them (I use appropriately-sized sacrificial drill bit shanks, ground to length).

To check for burrs in hard-to-see places, often a new cotton swab (Q-tip) run lightly through the area will snag slightly, revealing where a small India stone should be used (no files).

.

[nagantguy]

Thanks to all who chimed in here, gave me a good start point and confirmed my suspicion so she's on the bench now waiting for such a time as that I have time to rear her down and go through her like a surgeon