Slicking up my 1894 Marlin in .44 Mag for Cowboy Action Shooting

Getting into Cowboy Action. A lot of people use Winchester 1873 in .357 Mag to match their revolvers but I already had an 1894 Marlin in .44 Mag, so I decided to use it together with a brace of Ruger .357 New Vaquero Bisleys and a Stoeger 12-ga Coach Gun. (That's another story. How fun is a classic break-open double barrel 20"?!)

They say the Winchester 1873 has perhaps the ideal action. And watching them in action is a thing of beauty. They lever fast, smooth, reliably and easily.

My Marlin, on the other hand, has a resistance to it. Hard to unlock the lever and takes real effort to cock the hammer easily. Slows you down.

The guys said to reduce the hammer spring strength and polish the parts that exhibited any wear in the bluing due to rubbing.

From Brownell's I ordered Part Number 969000114 MARLIN REDUCED POWER HAMMER & FINGER LEVER SPRING KIT ($8). (Wolff 969-000-114WB Reduced Power Spring Kit Mfr Part: 33110)

Attachment 235457

https://www.brownells.com/rifle-part...?sku=969000114

When the kit arrived I took the rifle apart and polished as many surfaces as I could using Flitz polishing compound and uxcell Mandrel Mounted White Conical Felt Point Polishing Tool. This combo doesn't remove metal. It just polishes.

Attachment 235465

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 $3.29 for 12.

I chuck the polishing tips in my $28 Harbor Freight 1/8" miniature air powered die grinder, which works great. It's smaller than a Dremel, quiet and is very maneuverable.

Attachment 235466

I installed the reduced power hammer spring easily.

Installing the finger lever spring looked much harder as it involved driving out a tiny pin (part #16 below) that didn't want to move, so I didn't do it, at first.

Attachment 235458

After reassembly, the rifle still exhibited resistance to moving the finger lever. It didn't want to "unlock" without effort.

So I removed the lever via its single screw, drove the pin out with a 1/16" drift, pulled the latch and its spring, reinstalled the new lighter spring and put the pin back in.

The secret to pin removal was to lay the lever directly onto my thin rubber cleaning mat, then pound the drift onto the pin. I had tried laying the lever on an armorer's block, but everything moved all over the place, making it really difficult to aim the drift. Laying the lever on a thin mat allowed me to start the pin moving out of its secured place.

Reassembled the lever into the rifle. What a difference. The rifle cycles much easier now. That lighter finger lever spring really makes it easier to get the lever moving.

Best part is that I still have the old springs should I want to restore the rifle to factory. No snipping of coils.

The buffing of surfaces helped too. Very easy to cycle the rifle now.

One final thing:
I got tired of jamming those giant .44 Mag cases into the loading gate and cutting my fingernail. Those edges on the factory gate are sharp!

I looked around and found an aftermarket gate that's made of aircraft grade aluminum from Ranger Point Precision. https://www.rangerpointstore.com/cat...rms-parts.html

They make a great low-pressure, smooth-edged gate that drops right in. For $42 (cough). But my wife, who's also into Cowboy Action, didn't like how difficult it was to load the Marlin. Especially that last round. So I put in this Ranger Point Gate. Much easier to load now. I chose the gold-anodized version, to match the trigger color.

Attachment 235463

One note of warning:

Very heavy loads may cause the lever to pop down. If it does, the gun won't fire. That spring is strong for a reason. This is for light Cowboy Action loads (like 6 grains of Trail Boss pushing a 200 grain cast bullet) not hunting.

UPDATE:
I found that installing a light hammer spring and using the factory 2 or 3-piece firing pin caused a lot of light strikes and failures to fire. There simply was not enough hammer energy to make the multi-part firing pin strike the primer hard enough.

I installed a one-piece firing pin and have not had a misfire since.

https://onlineoutpost.net/product/18...wboys-indians/

On the ejector side of the bolt, polish that groove good. Also look at how much the hammer hits the bolt when cocking. Some folks file down the hammer a bit. NOT recommended for a hunting gun..

You are correct. I can see very uneven wear on the hammer. As if it's not hitting the firing pin squarely. Further study is required before I start grinding, however.

I've heard tell that there's a solid firing pin assembly available out there, that replaces the factory two-part firing pin. More research is needed.

Regarding the loading gate, that's easy to polish. But also check the front of the loading gate opening gate on the receiver. Usually nothing more than an rectangular hole that does indeed to be stoned and polished to remove any burrs or sharp edges. Used some old tool and die makers stones to remove any burrs or sharp edges then filed and stoned a rounded bevel so basically no sharp edges would catch the rim of the cartridge case. Does tend to make the loading somewhat easier. That and stone or polish the groove that the ejector rides in as one member mentioned. I've about 8 lever actions in a few calibers. When looking at the part where the bolt pushes back the hammer these surfaces are not the same all across the hammer. The bolt may only touch one area rather than the whole area. Some do not even look like they were machined but just ground as on a large grinder. Evening up that section will make the cocking easier as you are spreading the force over a wider section rather than just one spot. Frank

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Originally Posted by samari46

When looking at the part where the bolt pushes back the hammer these surfaces are not the same all across the hammer. The bolt may only touch one area rather than the whole area. Some do not even look like they were machined but just ground as on a large grinder. Evening up that section will make the cocking easier as you are spreading the force over a wider section rather than just one spot. Frank

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Astute observation. Instead of wear on the hammer from hitting the firing pin, the wear is likely from the bolt as it cocks the hammer.

So you recommend adjusting the bolt's surface so it addresses the hammer evenly?

On Marlins, the hammer is pushed down further than needed after it catches the sear. The hammer nose can reshaped to be more rounded, and that in itself makes it smoother to work the action. Just go slow, and don't remove to much material. I still leave enough to were the bolt cocks the hammer a little more than needed, about .020! And you can remove half a coil at a time on the mainspring to make it lightweight, but not to much it still need enough to make solid primer strikes.

You don’t mention a one piece firing pin. They work great. They eliminate the huge Marlin stock mainspring thats needed to drive the hammer in order to move the 2 piece pin with a much smaller, easier to cock spring. That and some tinkering [polishing and spring lightening] on the lever lock will make a big difference.

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Originally Posted by Baltimoreed

You don’t mention a one piece firing pin. They work great. They eliminate the huge Marlin stock mainspring thats needed to drive the hammer in order to move the 2 piece pin with a much smaller, easier to cock spring. That and some tinkering [polishing and spring lightening] on the lever lock will make a big difference.

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Interesting. I guess I need to find a one-piece firing pin. I wonder why Marlin went with a two-piece pin in the first place?

Liberty - how many Belt Buckles do you figure you'll be winning after the Marlin action re-works?:-)

The two piece firing pin is a 'safety'...

When the gun is out of battery, a following hammer can not force the pin to ride on the primer...

One piece pin does indeed lighten cycling, but you also lose the 'safety' of the two piece pin...

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Originally Posted by Liberty1776

They say the Winchester 1873 has perhaps the ideal action. And watching them in action is a thing of beauty. They lever fast, smooth, reliably and easily..

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Your probably observing a short stroke 73. In my group, it appears about as many Marlin 94s as 73s. A slick Marlin feels good also.

The hammer suggestion is a good idea, I ground the top of the hammer down and radiused it on mine, as the bolt overcocks the hammer by a considerably amount. Extra drag on the bolt when cocking and closing the action. It makes a big difference in smoothing the action up. Go slowly and measure often, or you may have a single action Marlin.

I also had trouble with the reduced tension lever spring, allowing the lever to pop open whenever I attempted to load. It became a real PITA. I took the factory spring and cut a coil off it, and now it is still pretty light, and the lever will now stay closed.

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Originally Posted by Salmoneye

The two piece firing pin is a 'safety'...

When the gun is out of battery, a following hammer can not force the pin to ride on the primer...

One piece pin does indeed lighten cycling, but you also lose the 'safety' of the two piece pin...

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This is true. I had a misfire once a long time ago, on a big buck. After that, I removed the little spring that forces the two piece firing pin (rear section) out of position, and have been very happy since. The firing pin is still 2 piece, will probably drop out of line when the lever is not in battery, but I am not counting on that. I wanted "bang" when I pull the trigger, every time. The hammer stays on half cock while hunting, I have never missed that little spring. Dan

When I was still shooting a lot of the Lady Shooters used "Cartridge Pushers". I made them for my Youngsters using a .30-30 case with a piece of hardwood dowel inserted into the case, sticking out about 1 1/2" . It fits into a .38cal cartridge loop. Works great for Ladies with LONG fingernails.

I stopped Cowboy Action Shooting 10yrs ago. After more then 20yrs things had changed so much, as far as I am concerned the whole thing became a joke, a Ghost of what it started as.

Antler tips work great for cartridge pushers. You need a piece about 3" long to allow enough to hold onto. Just drill a hole in the large end and run a leather thong through it. Mine hangs on the loop of my cartridge strip that I take to the loading table with the correct number of rounds for the stage.

Long Hunter used to make the one piece firing pins. I've got them in several of my Marlins and I really like them.

Hope this helps.

Fred

I have one of the older marlins in 444 and looking at the hammer where the bolt pushes it back showed only one spot that was making contact. I took my time and slowley stoned just the high spot and as I did you could literally see the difference in the top of the hammer. Suspect that - that part may just have been profiled with a large grinder or maybe a large wheel mounted sanding belt machine. So using a magic marker as sort of layout marker. Kept stoning and watching how the hammer was being contacted by the bolt (done with the hammer in the action) stone, magic marker and see where the bolt was contacting the hammer over and over. Go slow and check frequently. And yes did make a huge difference. Haven't heard of this being done but don't take credit as I'm sure I'm not the only one who has done it. For what it is worth I have about 8 lever actions. 30-30 (of course) 357,44 magnum,444,375 win of all of these my two favorites are the Canadian Centennials one with a 20" octagon bbl and the other with the 26" octagon bbl. I put a williams on and took off the barrel mounted rear site and used a steel dovetail blank and a Lyman globe front site. I called it my lever action match rifle. Plan to do the same with the longer bbled one. Frank

Cartridge strips, for those mathematically challenged.

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Originally Posted by John Boy

Liberty - how many Belt Buckles do you figure you'll be winning after the Marlin action re-works?:-)

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Zero. Some of our shooter are really quick. I doubt I'll get that fast. My wife and I just enjoy hanging out with these people.

I bought the Marlin in .44 from a local, long before I considered CAS. It's what I have and it's factory. I don't think it was fired all that much. It's much easier to work now, especially for my wife.

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Originally Posted by Walks

When I was still shooting a lot of the Lady Shooters used "Cartridge Pushers". I made them for my Youngsters using a .30-30 case with a piece of hardwood dowel inserted into the case, sticking out about 1 1/2" . It fits into a .38cal cartridge loop. Works great for Ladies with LONG fingernails.

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Sounds like a plan. I made a PVC thimble from some water pipe but it isn't comfortable to use. This seems a better design. I like the antler tip idea too. Goes with the leather.

For that .30-30 case;

You can also drill out the primer pocket, making it a full diameter hole. Then thread a leather thong through it to make a extended handle or hanger. Just trim points on the thong, pull it all the way through until it stops on the ten penny nail you stuck through it across the case head. The tie a Hard Knot in the ends and pull it back up through the primer pocket. Glue in your dowel, radius the tip a bit and add some shellac and you are ready to go. Great for .32-20 & .357 kid guns.

For larger calibers, use a .40-65 dummy round with a RNFP cast of Linotype and epoxied into the case.

I don't think "water pipe" is very period.

I have an old(er) 1894 Marlin in .44 Mag that I use for Cowboy Action shooting. It will digest anything with a j-word bullet but is very particular about cast boolets. The only cast that it will feed with 100% reliability is the Lee 240 gr. RNL. I've had this rifle apart half a dozen times, cleaning, polishing and adjusting springs, but it's still finicky about cast boolets. Interestingly, it seems to like that 240 gr. Lee in a .44 Spl. case slightly better than the same boolet in a .44 Mag case!

Best regards
Doc

Thanks for the tips.

I'm another user of a one piece firing pin from Long Hunter, make the action run amooth as silk

OK Liberty and others. you can find all the instructions for modifying the 1894 action for Cowboy use at www.leverguns.com.

You can go as deep into it as you choose, when you finally get it right you can "flick it open and closed with virtually no effort. I can do one in about 2 hours.

As far as finicky about what type of boolits? You need to chamfer the chamber mouth and I have posted this many times here and as late as last week. Put a .040-.050 chamfer on the chamber mouth and the gun will cycle any type of boolit as fast as you can run the lever. Mine will run SWC's just as fast as Round Noses.

Randy

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Originally Posted by Walks

For that .30-30 case;

You can also drill out the primer pocket, making it a full diameter hole. Then thread a leather thong through it to make a extended handle or hanger. Just trim points on the thong, pull it all the way through until it stops on the ten penny nail you stuck through it across the case head. The tie a Hard Knot in the ends and pull it back up through the primer pocket. Glue in your dowel, radius the tip a bit and add some shellac and you are ready to go. Great for .32-20 & .357 kid guns.

For larger calibers, use a .40-65 dummy round with a RNFP cast of Linotype and epoxied into the case.

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I built a pusher from the .30-30 case because I had one and put a 3/8" dowel in it. My wife likes it, but the dowel gets shaved and leaves pieces of wood in the rifle as she pushes the .44 Mag round into the gate.

So I need to try your .40-65 idea. Unfortunately, I don't have any .40-65 nor any RNFP bullets to epoxy into the case.

I'll try a .45-70 and see if that will work.

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Originally Posted by badwolf

I'm another user of a one piece firing pin from Long Hunter, make the action run amooth as silk

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I'm coming around to this line of thinking rapidly.

My light Wolff hammer spring has resulted in multiple failures to fire. Just not enough impact on the primer. The primers are dimpled, but don't fire. Pulling the hammer back manually and pulling the trigger again usually results in the bullet firing.

I put the original factory heavy spring back in, but it's really hard to cock the gun now.

I need to replace the 2-piece firing pin.

I'll also check out www.leverguns.com for other details.

Thanks for the wisdom.

Check and make sure your primers are seated all the way. My goal is to seat them .004" below flush with the base of the case. This sets the anvil into the primer pellet properly.

You can also put a small #6 thin washer under the hammer spring to give it slightly more strength, which may help with the misfires, but check the primer seating first.

Hope this helps.

Fred

About the best things I could recommend marlin wise is breaking the chamber edges, Wild West sear, polish the ejector grove, aftermarket springs or clip the factory, 1 pc firing pin, trim the hammer point to reduce massive overcocking and polish toolmarks out of the bottom of the bolt that the hammer rides on.

Question regarding the hammer spring...did you get the barrel type one or the straight type?

Anyone have opinions on the matter?

I recently purchased a newly made "Remlin" 1894CS (357). There will be a more thorough review coming in...but so far the loading gate is rough and the spring is heavy.

I can't remember what all I did to mine but the 2 piece pin is a safety in case you pull the trigger before you close the bolt all the way that being said I use the single pin in my 1895gs I also removed the cross bolt safety and a whole slew of other things that I can't remember but you have to treat it like it's always ready to go off. I don't need the safety to to hold me up in a grizzly encounter 10 mi back in the wilderness. That gun has the slickest action I've ever seen especially since it wouldn't chamber a round due to rimlins failure of q&c

W R where or how do you get to the chamber mouth to complete the champfer?

Another site is marauders site(google) for more slicking up tips.