Henry Rifle Forums

So, it seems to me that the spring behind the loading gate is way too strong and the inside edges of the receiver opening are way too sharp, causing skin loss on my thumb. Just curious if anyone else has encountered this issue.

I did on my Marlins. After about 100 rounds or so, it loosened some. Now, I can unload from the loading gate as well.

this brings a question to mind ===> on the new Henry rifles, is it easy to remove the slide loading gate ..

Ya and people love them because they are cool with the sidegate. This is why I use the tube.

That sounds like the Rossi 92 issue. If I remember I think when I had my Rossi torn down I added a shim between the gate and receiver to reduce the spring tension and also stoned around the opening. Loads nice now and this was the Ranch Hand .45 Colt.

I agree that a tube load makes unloading easier. So, the sidegate load with a tube load is a great combination. I have my eye out now for a 12 gauge. But, who knows. I was looking for a 12 gauge, when I purchased a S&W .357 a few weeks ago. I may come across a Henry with sidegate that catches my eye.

I am learning to be open with things. That how I got the Henry that I have now. I was looking for a Marlin, and a Henry caught my eye. Yet, I will admit; a Maple finished Marlin caught my eye last week. But, I trying to convince myself that I have enough rifles for now. I guess I will see how that goes.

This is why Oliver Winchester said to B Tyler Henry one day, "this side gate keeps ripping my thumb, can you come up with something that will help?"....and the 1860 was born!

Ok my history is flawed but it does make sense....

I liked the appearance and idea of the side gate, and after trying two inner mag tubes to try to cure loading hangups on the 3030 cartridge rims, I have come to appreciate the convenience that the side gate offers. I can't imagine the HRA would find that my issue is worthy of a trip back to the factory, so I think that I am going to try a little homegrown tweakin. Thanks for the input. Happy New Year All!

I disagree with your comment. If you have a concern, Henry will try to address it. My rifle was returned (haven't been shot yet) because of a fouling concern. I was giving it a cleaning before my first shooting, and the patches were coming out with a blueish green color. I contacted Henry with my concern, and the rifle was returned. Mind you, I still had patches with a blueish green color after shooting, less now. But, Henry did attempt to address my concern.

Now, I just clean, until carbon residue is removed. I do not concern myself with any copper that may be in pits of the grooves. I figured that it may help the bullet to travel smoother. So, shoot Henry an e-mail or give them a call. You have nothing to lose and may gain a smoother operating loading gate.

On the Rossi, at least, it’s reputed that propping the loading gate open with a pencil for a week will lessen the force required to open and load. On my Rossi, I went with hourglass grinding the spring and chamfering the edge, as recommended by Steve Gunz. Works much better!

There’s not a lot of info on disassembly of the newer sidegate Henry’s, especially my H012CX model.

Thanks for the tip, I will give a dowel rod a try. I'm not familiar with an hourglass grind, but I assume it involves material thinning on some of the center coils. I may order one or two from HRA and play around with a dremel.

The Rossi, and I believe my H012CX, use a leaf-type spring for the loading gate - a slightly-arced flat strip of spring steel. Hourglassing the sides with a belt sander along with copious water cooling to avoid “distemper”, diminishes the spring force. Some folks just bend it back, but the amount of correction needed can be difficult to judge. Hourglassing lets you ease up to the right tension.

Well, for whatever stupid reason, I seem to have had coil spring on the brain, and now, it is evident that a coil spring would not be feasible. It would appear that on my rifle, the spring is the gate, one unit held in place by a single screw. Plan B. Thanks