Browning S-A .22 failure to feed issue

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I have a Browning semi-auto .22 which is, as most of you are aware, tube fed.

I've been having a problem with the last 1 or 2 rounds in the tube magazine (i.e., the 10th &/or 11th round) not wanting to feed properly: Sometimes the bolt closes and, in so doing, will fail to feed the last 1 or 2 cartridges in the tube----other times the bolt will "stick the rear" and, in so doing, fail to feed the cartridge(s)----in either case, when this happens, the bolt has to be worked manually in order to feed the cartridge(s) into the chamber.

Is it worth trying to "stretch" the spring in the magazine tube in order to resolve this issue? Or could it be that something else is the cause?

I've tried different types of ammunition----it seems to happen most frequently with CCI Mini-Mags vs., for example, Federal Auto-Match---which is a bit surprising to me, as I usually think of Mini-Mags as a "gold standard" when it comes to .22s.

I've repeatedly cleaned the internals, including the cartridge guide area. Should I try adding oil to the various slide surfaces? Are there certain parts that I should be looking at/consider replacing/upgrading?

Thanks for your thoughts and help!
 
Not sure a mag spring would help the bolt close.

What exactly do you mean by “stick to the rear”?

How many different brands of ammunition have you tried and do they all act the same?

^ this is to confirm a rifle problem vs an ammunition one.
 
Thanks Rudolph31. An ancillary question----if the magazine tube spring is either too long or too short, can it be adjusted? Or just leave it as is?
 
jmorris.....sometimes when the "fail to feed" occurs, the bolt will close on an empty chamber, not picking up the cartridge-----yet at other times, I've had the bolt not close----it is held back to the rear and doesn't close on the chamber and, of course, since the bolt isn't closing, it is not picking-up or loading a cartridge. Again, this only happens on the last or last two rounds in the tubular magazine.

This happens on CCI mini-mags, somewhat less frequently on Federal Auto-Match-----thinking that this weekend I might try some CCI Standard Velocity rounds that I have and see if that makes a difference.
 
I would lube first and see if that fixes it, particularly the bolt. I had a worn out part on mine, so I did a good inspection and replaced several parts. But my gun was made in 61 and has seen a lot of rounds.
 
Stretching a worn out spring is a temporary solution. I don’t know how difficult it’d be to replace the spring, or if they’re available. But the whole mag for 19 bucks is too good of a deal to pass up.

jmorris — the OP’s Gun may have other problems, but the fact that it only happens on the last couple of rounds makes the spring the most likely source. Also, he said he did try different ammo.
 
Is it worth trying to "stretch" the spring in the magazine tube in order to resolve this issue? Or could it be that something else is the cause?

You might think of replacing the recoil spring and the magazine spring. Springs take a set and the timing of the mechanism gets out of whack. This is my M46, yes it is a pistol not a rifle, I replaced the 1968 vintage recoil spring because the thing was stovepiping or failing to eject.

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Luckily the magazine springs were not heavily compressed and they function fine. But I am 100% certain that if the magazine spring does not have enough force to push the cartridge fast enough, you will experience such things as a failure to feed. If one spring is worn out, so probably are the others.

Stretching a spring never works long term. You have exceeded its yield and it will lose tension quickly afterward.
 
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