Henry Big Boy .44 Carbine Action Concerns

[CS2-6]

I have a Henry Big Boy Carbine in .44 Rem Mag and am a little worried about the action. Often when I push the magazine plunger into the magazine tube when there is a round(s) in the magazine, the action will open a little and the lever will pop away from the stock an inch to two inches. Sometimes, this action will also open slightly and the lever will pop away from the stock a little when I am dropping rounds into the magazine. Less often (1/50 rounds) the action will open and the lever will pop away from the stock when the round discharges. This happened with three different brands of ammunition (all 240gr, JSP, 1180fps). Is this normal? Is it just a result of having a particularly smooth action? Anybody else have this happen to them?

[GFK]

I had something similar happened with my 30-30 using one brand of ammo. I smoothed the rim of the inner tube using 600 grit paper. Mistered has posted a detailed process on addressing inner tube concerns. I will see if I can locate it.

Link is below:

http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=3689

[JEBar]

first, welcome to our forum, delighted to have you join us .... with it happening under a few different circumstances, I'd recommend you call Henry's customer support and give them a detailed description of what's going on .... I have no doubt that they will provide you with outstanding assistance .... please take a look at our How Many ? thread (link below) and add your 44 to our community's total



http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.p ... 699#p59699

[Mistered]

Often when I push the magazine plunger into the magazine tube when there is a round(s) in the magazine, the action will open a little and the lever will pop away from the stock an inch to two inches.

Welcome to the forum from Central Oregon.
I too had the same problem with my BBB .357 and after studying it I discovered the cause and fixed it myself in about 5 minutes.
I have posted the procedure and if you are moderately 'mechanically inclined' and have some experience with gun maintenance and/or repairs read my post on it and if you have any questions PM me and I will fill you in on the details.
If not then by all means contact Henry.
Good luck with this.

[PT7]

Welcome from the Show-Me-State, CS2-6.

I also had the similar problem as you described with a Henry .30-30 I had. Unlike GFK's instance, this was a regular problem happening at every magazine load, with all ammo brands. The lever action kept on popping open no matter how many rounds were loaded into the magazine. Back then it was an across-the-board problem Henry had with the model rifle. Then listened to the many customer voices about the problem, and got it fixed.

You also stated this happens "often" with your BB .44 rifle. My advice to you is the same as JEBar's. Whatever problems you have, I'd get with Henry Customer Service. Henry will get it right one way or another....that's a guarantee from the Henry president.

Best on getting your rifle in perfect working order.
PT7

[DAVIDF]

Less often (1/50 rounds) the action will open and the lever will pop away from the stock when the round discharges.

I have this happen with my Big Boy but only when shooting off the bench. The action does not open, but the lever moves enough for the locking block to lower enough to disengage from the bolt. I believe in my case that it is due to holding the gun as lightly as possible, putting as little input into the the rifle as possible. Under recoil, I believe the rifle is moving and knocking against my hand just enough to start moving the lever. This never happens shooting offhand where I have to put more input into holding the rifle steady.

As others have said, Henry Repeating Arms will take care of any issues.

[CT_Shooter]

I ... am a little worried about the action.

Welcome to the forum from CT, CS2-6. As already noted, Mistered resolved his similar issue and shared his experience. However, a call to Henry CS would be helpful, both to Henry and yourself. At least, you'll have documented the issue and express your concern about the action on your carbine. Good luck. Keep us posted.

[CS2-6]

Wow!! Yall are awesome. I'm happy to be a member of a forum with so many knowledgeable, helpful, and friendly people.

That's an interesting point, DavidF. When it happened to me, it was always off a bench too. And, like you, I was taught to bench rest shoot with as little pressure on the rifle as possible. It hasn't happened offhand, but it happens somewhat rarely anyway, so I can't be confident that it's just coincidence in my case.

I've read through the Mistered fix, and I think I could handle this. But, I've also got the somewhat more concerning problem of the lever kicking out when a round is discharged. So, I took yalls advice, contacted Henry, and am going to send it back to them to look it over.

I couldn't be prouder to be a Henry owner, and have recorded my pride in your poll JEBar. Looking forward to getting it back and in perfect shape.