1895 .45-70 cowboy issues

[redneckdan]

I just aquired a marlin 1895 cowboy in .45-70 Upon inspection of receiving it I noticed that the lever does not was to stay locked. Half the time it will pop back open, this is with an empty rifle, no cartridges that could cause an OAL issue. When the lever does catch and stay locked, a very slight push on the protruding metal tab of the cartridge lifter will cause the action to unlock. I compared this to my 336 and it does none of these things. Whats going on?

[Charlie Sometimes]

Is it a new rifle? If it is new, send it back to the factory for repair.
If not, maybe it is dirty, and has something is blocking the internal workings. Clean it and see. If not, it could have a broken part- I'd have to look up the parts schematic to see what exactly ain't working. It's been a while since I took one completely down. Maybe someone tried to smooth the action and didn't do a very good job (didn't know what they were doing).

I just got one a couple of weeks ago, and I did not need to fully disassemble it- but now I wish I had done it anyway!

[Doc Highwall]

Check the spring loaded catch on the lever it might need some lube to free it up.

[redneckdan]

Catch is free. I'll take it apart and see whats up.

[rob45]

Dan,

I know you said you already checked the finger lever plunger for free movement, but is by any chance this gun used? If so, Charlie Sometimes may be on the right track.

A very popular modification during an action job is to reduce the effort to lock and unlock the lever. Reducing the effort to lock/unlock the lever allows faster action cycling, so this modification is usually part of an action job on a Marlin, and nearly a requirement to be competitive in CAS.
This is accomplished by reducing tension on the plunger. The plunger has a small spring behind it to provide the tension. The most popular method is to trim the plunger spring, and it's very easy to go "too far" when doing it. If someone really messed up, they may have even filed on the plunger itself, which is a big no-no since it is already factory set at the proper angle.

Either way, a new spring is about $3.00 and new plunger about $5.00 (if the plunger has been altered).

The parts interchange between your 336 and your 1895. If your 336 has not been altered in this area, open the lever on it and push on the plunger. Note the pressure required to depress it. Now do the same thing to your 1895 and it should feel the same. If it is considerably easier to push the plunger in, somebody has done the above modification (or it simply came with a weak spring). Also visually compare the two plungers- they should look identical.

An easy fix if you know what to look for.

Hope this helps.
Good Luck.

[August]

Every Marlin I get, the first thing I do is take some of the windings out of the lever catch spring. I suspect the fellow you purchased your's from did this modification. You can disassemble (two person job for that little, tiny pin) and stretch the spring, or buy a new spring and install it.

[redneckdan]

I tore down the 336 & 1895 and wasn't able to discern any noticeable difference in plunger geometry or the spring strength. It turns out that the trigger block on the 1895 was causing the problem, the 336 predates the trigger block. It was preloading the lever enough to disengage it. I removed the trigger block and the problem went away. I'm not sure the trigger block is entirely necessary, the 336 doesn't have it. With the trigger block removed the rifle locks up just like the 336.


PS- it is a used rifle.

[rob45]

I tore down the 336 & 1895 and wasn't able to discern any noticeable difference in plunger geometry or the spring strength. It turns out that the trigger block on the 1895 was causing the problem, the 336 predates the trigger block. It was preloading the lever enough to disengage it. I removed the trigger block and the problem went away. I'm not sure the trigger block is entirely necessary, the 336 doesn't have it. With the trigger block removed the rifle locks up just like the 336.


PS- it is a used rifle.

Ok, if that's the case then simply strip and clean the action. Might have been some minor crud in there keeping it from fully engaging.
Glad you found out what the problem is.

[Charlie Sometimes]

99% of all firearms function problems are related directly or indirectly to poor maintenance. People just do not clean them, or often enough, like they should. Once it reaches a certain point, things start malfunctioning, and/or break. Rather than fix it, they trade it off. Good deals for those that can fix them! All because of a little time and effort not spent on maintenance.

You might need to replace that part, if the cleaning don't fully cure the issue. It's there for a reason.

[Gee_Wizz01]

My brand new 1895 GG did the same thing when it was new out of the box. I sent mine back to Marlin and they turned it around in 3 weeks. I don't know what they did, but it worked when I got it back. It stays closed now, but not very tight, and not as tight as I would like as this is my brush hunting gun and I don't want it popping open at bad time, especially with an irate hog.

G

[redneckdan]

I thinking I'm going to leave the trigger block out. It essentially applies a force vector in exactly the direction we don't want it to. The rifle still has the two piece firing pin, cross bolt safety and half cock.....two more safety features than any classic styled lever gun needs....:groner:

PS- this rifle was pretty clean. I rate the fit and finish at 99% of factory. I found maybe a dozen unburned kernels of a stick powder appearing to be H4227 in the whole action area. No accumulaion of gunk or dirt. the rifle is a 24 million serial number

[Charlie Sometimes]

Something ain't right- but it's your gun. Just watch out when your shooting/firing to see if anything else falls loose, or acts up. Sometimes it takes a while to find the real issue- study it some more. Lay it down and walk away, come back a day or two later, and see........

[Lloyd Smale]

shooting loads on the ragged edge of to much power will do it too.

[Charlie Sometimes]

There is a NOS trigger block on E-bay- search Marlin parts. $5 no bids. Might replace it and see.