Henry Rifle Forums

This is disappointing, I took the lever and bolt out, cleaned it, lubed it. Tightened screws (the side gate screw was 1/2 turn from seated). Cleaned the inside of the mag inner tube. Added a Ranger Point rail, bore sighted my scope, and when I tried cycling ammo through it, it is a complete jammo-matic. I could not find the new snap caps I bought so I was using live ammo outside, carefully. The ammo was factory 240 gr JSP. I know where the problem is, I just cannot figure out if there is a fix other than sending the gun back.

The lifter drops smoothly, the round slides into place, the lifter starts to rise on the back stroke, and then the front of the lifter hangs up hard on the bottom rim of the next round in the tube. Every time.

The only way I can get it to free up is to reach in through the ejection port with a little screwdriver, and push the next round slightly forward. The lifter pops free and will then lift the round up to the chamber. The only binding occurs at that point. The round sitting on the lifter flops around, so I know it isn’t the problem.... Ammo OAL is right at 1.61.

I have owned a lever action before and know that you have to work the lever firmly and quickly. I just can’t get any of the rearward strokes to work at all, it just jams hard.

Should there be a steep bevel on the front of the lifter, so it cannot hang up? Would Henry send me a new one? Should I grind on it? I am perfectly comfortable working on the insides, I have been a (very) amateur smith for thirty years. I just need some guidance on this one....

Comments?

BTW I did verify that this gun has a 1:20 twist rate. Woohoo. Now all I need is for it is to actually function.

Thanks.

John Davies
Spokane WA

I know it isnt what you want to do but Id call Henry and let them fix it.

Should I grind on it?

NO!

BUT if you have identified the problem as the lifter then some 'judicious' oil STONING of the face/front of it is not out of the question. I CRINGE when I read the term 'grind' (or file) when referencing gun repairs. I had to do some minor stoning on the lifter of my BBB .357 to eliminate a little 'hang up' on cycling.

I too am a 'shade tree' gunsmith and have resolved many gun problems myself - including having fabricated parts for a variety along the way.

One cannot own classic, vintage firearms without being able to deal with problems or repairs as needed!

Mistered wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 11, 2020 11:34 pm

One cannot own classic, vintage firearms without being able to deal with problems or repairs as needed!

Exactly.

RP

I suggest you call Henry and give them the info you have posted here .... in some cased they will send replace parts, in others they will recommend the rifle be returned to them .... I wasn't happy about having to return ours but they solved the problem .... as a result, I'm less reluctant to send it back again if that should ever be necessary

Thanks for the comments, I said "grind" because simple stoning won't fix this.... I found my snap caps and tested them, with 6 loaded in the tube.

The first two cycled beautifully, the third jammed up so tight that I had to remove the inner tube and drive the stuck round out into the receiver with a big brass rod- it would not go back into the outer tube. It took a few minutes to free it up.


In that second pic, does the lifter look correct? Could it be bent up?

I will go ahead and file a claim. Now I have to take off the rail, so they won't lose it.... ;(

EDIT: I got a return authorization 5 hours later, and the rifle is all boxed and ready to go with a Henry prepaid UPS label.

FYI: they suggest that you use the original Henry box and add a "wrap" of fresh cardboard so no firearm labels are showing. You can't drop the package off at any old UPS Store, it has to be either a scheduled pickup with an established UPS account, or drop off at a Customer Service Center attached to a distribution center. Around here their hours are severely limited, for example M, Th, F 12:45PM to 5:15 PM, and the latest time for shipping that day is 3:00 PM. It makes it difficult if you can't get there right after lunch.... I am going by there and drop it off tomorrow so the package has a head start over the weekend.
John Davies
Spokane WA

As much as I like my 2 Henry rifles, my 30-30 lever gun does cycle rough and you can't baby it. It does not jam as yet and hopefully it will smooth out with use. Henry spends considerable time perfecting fit and finish, so I am surprised that they evidently don't cycle 5-10 dummy rounds thru the action in the qc process, prior to shipping. If they had, this problem would have surfaced and should have been corrected. Henry makes fine rifles for the most part but one would expect these problems to be caught during production. Just my opinion.

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An opinion some of us share.

PJM wrote: ↑

Thu Mar 12, 2020 9:38 pm

As much as I like my 2 Henry rifles, my 30-30 lever gun does cycle rough and you can't baby it. It does not jam as yet and hopefully it will smooth out with use. Henry spends considerable time perfecting fit and finish, so I am surprised that they evidently don't cycle 5-10 dummy rounds thru the action in the qc process, prior to shipping. If they had, this problem would have surfaced and should have been corrected. Henry makes fine rifles for the most part but one would expect these problems to be caught during production. Just my opinion.

so I am surprised that they evidently don't cycle 5-10 dummy rounds thru the action in the qc process

Most likely the only ammo run through the guns during production are those test fired and they are probably singly loaded and not cycled.

I suspect QC is limited and random with the position of taking care of problems 'after the fact'. The large numbers of them reported as being sent back are evidence of this.

Random qc sampling may work well for a single shot production line but not for a mechanism that relies on multiple moving interrelated parts. This gun would be a perfect Alaskan guide firearm of choice, but not if unreliable. Companies that take care of problems 'after the fact' will eventually seal their own fate.