Marlin 94c Hanging up?

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LeontheProfessional

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I have a Remington 94c in .357 that I bought a year ago. All and all I am very happy with this rifle but it has one issue that is more annoying than anything. When I work the lever slow the round hangs up every single time. If I work it fast, like I own it, it doesnt give me a problem and it chambers the next round just as smooth as can be, but If i work it casually it almost bound to "jam" up if you will. Has anyone else had this same experience with these rifles? Is this normal?

IMG_1201.gif

Please excuse how filthy it is. I took this picture right after I finished shooting it.
 
You should not have to work it hard to cycle the gun. I suspect yours needs adjustment, or a part changed.

Either the cartridge lifter is not bringing the shell up as far as it should, or something is interfering with the shell coming up, such as the extractor.

To check the extraxctor take the bolt out of the gun and hand slide an empty cartrigde case under the hook to check tension. It should slide with little effort onto the bolt face.
 
I agree with MN River Rat that you should not have to work it 'hard'. But my experience is that one is more likely to run into a snag if one works it 'slow'. Working the action in a reasonably brisk manner is better. And this is not the only type of action that applies to. Many years ago on first handling an M1A I discovered that one had to simply let the bolt slam home to chamber the first round. Any attempt to 'ease' it in failed.
 
I am away from home, but I think you are supposed to work it with some speed. You shouldn't have to slam it back and forth, but it is supposed to be a dynamic action that feeds it. Going 100% from memory, when you cycle the lever all the way forward, it kicks the nose of the bullet upward. If you ease it forward, the bullet will just fall down again. You are relying on it being pushed into the chamber before it falls back down. This is just from memory, but I reload all my ammo, and I recall sometimes having to double-stroke it so to speak because I like to go slow to ease the brass out rather than throw it, and I have to give it a little pump-fake almost to tip that next round up and cycle again. Who knows, maybe mine is messed up too, but it doesn't give me problems when cycled at normal speeds.
 
The only time I noticed something like this with my Marlin 94c is with .38s. If I run it briskly (not slamming) I don't seem to have the problem.

I never dug into it to be able to explain it.
 
I have done a little further testing and have concluded that the speed doesnt matter with 38s only 357s. It is like the bolt is too far forward before the carrier is all the way up hence seeing what you get in the picture. If you work the action fast this doesnt seem to happen either because the round kind of jumps. However it is still shaving some of the lead off each round. I am guessing this is a timing issue? should I send it back? thanks,
 
I have a 20 year old Marlin 1894C in .357 so I just ran a few rounds through it slowly while watching the carrier and bolt interaction. It fed perfectly no matter how slowly I operated the lever so I think you have a problem. My guess would be the carrier is not bringing the new cartridge up far enough to have the situation shown in your photo. The carrier is down until the bolt starts its forward motion. Cycle you action and observe the motion of the carrier paying attention to where the carrier is in relation to the chamber opening after the bolt has moved about a quarter of an inch forward. It should be at or just below the chamber opening. Has the gun been this way since purchase? I would guess that it is a byproduct of the "Remlin" situation. Maybe a competent gunsmith could remedy the problem.
 
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