Old 25N Bolt Action

[dog gone it]

Ive had my Marlin 25N for at least 25 years. Ive put at minimum several thousands of rounds through her and Ive never cleaned the barrel because its always been dead on perfect each and every time through the years. Then a few months ago we had company over to the house and I set it in a different corner out of the way, and I dont know if it got knocked over or if it fell over on its own, and afterwards I didnt know it but apparently when it fell over it jarred the lead build up inside the rifling and later I realized it was starting to shooting erratic. After eliminating my first suspicion of the scope I knew something else was wrong. Anyway I had to clean the bore and of course there was a lot of lead build up, but I got her whistle clean, and now it doesnt group at all like she use to. I was reluctantly thinking about taking the time to shoot many many more rounds to see if my groups might tighten back up ???, and Im not sure if there is a good answer to my question here, or if anyone has had a similar experience, but considering that Ive shot soooo many rounds through this rifle in years past, then is it possible that the rifling is wore out, and it might not be worth my time or trouble ?

 

[stillquietvoice]

22 lr is a low power round that only burns small powder charges, its not likely that the barrel is shot out. How far, hard did it fall? It's possible that the barrel got bent or loosened in your receiver. Loose scope mounts allowing the optic to move during recoil. Some rifles don't like squeaky clean barrels and need more fouling yo tighten up.

 

[Howland937]

Check the crown...maybe nothing to do with optics or any kinda buildup.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

Put at least a couple hundred fouling rounds through it before resorting to more drastic measures.

 

[dog gone it]

22 lr is a low power round that only burns small powder charges, its not likely that the barrel is shot out. How far, hard did it fall? It's possible that the barrel got bent or loosened in your receiver. Loose scope mounts allowing the optic to move during recoil. Some rifles don't like squeaky clean barrels and need more fouling yo tighten up.

Well the butt was sitting directly on the concrete floor, so it slid down to the floor from an upright position. The scope mounts are not loose. I understand the squeaky clean theory as many years ago I was told not to clean it unless poi changed. Thanks for the reply.

 

[dog gone it]

Check the crown...maybe nothing to do with optics or any kinda buildup.

Crown appears to be fine. Thanks

 

[dog gone it]

Put at least a couple hundred fouling rounds through it before resorting to more drastic measures.

I might have to see if a few boxes will change poi over time. I need to get some kind of table to shoot from to determine more accurately. It took me a long time to get it that way and I miss always having it that way and didnt know if I was wasting my time. Thanks

 

[Howland937]

Crown appears to be fine. Thanks

That's good. Did you clean it with a rod and brush or bore snake? I doubt it would be the issue but I did find a rough spot in a bore one time because the bore snake tried to hang up a little on it.

 

[Robert]

I took my oldest out and we shot my 25N today. Great rifle. I hope you get it sorted out.

 

[Skylerbone]

Mine has always been cleaned, I can’t count the rounds it has seen, and it shoots better than any of my other rimfires. I’d suggest removing the action and sanding the barrel channel to prevent contact, which is likely if it took a good fall.

I would also suggest a more thorough cleaning, even if you think you got it all. This takes awhile to load but well worth the read. http://www.ssvtexel.nl/index.cfm?act=files.download&ui=C5C9D865-2200-0A21-B5F5CF897974784F

 

[dog gone it]

That's good. Did you clean it with a rod and brush or bore snake? I doubt it would be the issue but I did find a rough spot in a bore one time because the bore snake tried to hang up a little on it.

Im not sure about the correct term but I believe its called a rod and brush. Its a hard wired bristle brush and then I finished with cloth. Thanks

I took my oldest out and we shot my 25N today. Great rifle. I hope you get it sorted out.

Thanks me too. She has been extremely accurate and very dependable for so many years, and now Im not use to this, lol. Thanks

Mine has always been cleaned, I can’t count the rounds it has seen, and it shoots better than any of my other rimfires. I’d suggest removing the action and sanding the barrel channel to prevent contact, which is likely if it took a good fall.

I would also suggest a more thorough cleaning, even if you think you got it all. This takes awhile to load but well worth the read. http://www.ssvtexel.nl/index.cfm?act=files.download&ui=C5C9D865-2200-0A21-B5F5CF897974784F

I did the cleaning routing for, I believe the first couple of years, and then someone told me to stop cleaning, and watch my groups tighten, and they did. However, I will consider removing the action, and giving it another cleaning as you said. Thanks for the help, and for the link as well.

 

[fpgt72]

There was a thread a while ago (few years) on cleaning the Marlin micro grove and how hard it was to REALLY get it clean after years of not bothering. As I recall it was a real chore to do.....soaking, scrub, ordering different black powder cleaners, more soak, scrub.....as I recall this guy finally got it and it was good again.

That aside I have had scopes go stupid after getting knocked over, had the same issue with a gun falling while photoing the collection and I did not lean it up against whatever good enough and it just slowly slid over till it fell. The scope is what took the hit and would not hold zero.

Edit to add:

I also have a 25N and it is a fantastic rifle let down by a pretty horrid trigger.

 

[dog gone it]

There was a thread a while ago (few years) on cleaning the Marlin micro grove and how hard it was to REALLY get it clean after years of not bothering. As I recall it was a real chore to do.....soaking, scrub, ordering different black powder cleaners, more soak, scrub.....as I recall this guy finally got it and it was good again.

That aside I have had scopes go stupid after getting knocked over, had the same issue with a gun falling while photoing the collection and I did not lean it up against whatever good enough and it just slowly slid over till it fell. The scope is what took the hit and would not hold zero.

Edit to add:

I also have a 25N and it is a fantastic rifle let down by a pretty horrid trigger.

Well Im embarrassed to mention this but I was convinced that the problem was my scope, and so I mailed to Nikon. They sent it back and said it was fine. I was convinced they were wrong. After further troubleshooting I realized it was indeed my rifle, and so yes I screwed up.
And when I did clean..., wow at the mess ! There was enough lead to make another bullet. I never securely benched my rifle for documentation, but before my rifle fell over, I would be willing to bet that it was shooting very close to 1" (or better) groups at 50 yards or further.
I believe Im going to get a table set up for shooting accurately, make notes, shoot a couple hundred rounds, and then compare.
Thanks for all the help. My main concern was if my bore was wore out and worth the trouble after all these years.

 

[Dave DeLaurant]

BTW, how do you have your scope mounted? I ended up buying a long airgun mount that clamps to the full length of the receiver dovetail on my M25 Glenfield.



I got my Marlin in 1976 for my 16th birthday -- best present ever! Since then I've spent more for an 'economy' brick of ammo than this rifle originally cost my dad.



I dinged up the muzzle on my rifle back in the 1980s by carrying the rifle in a PVC tube scabbard on a tractor. Ended up cropping the barrel a few inches and recrowning. As you can see, I also replaced the stock with one from a recent tube magazine Marlin.