Marlin 1894 .45 Colt stuck closed

C

changeagent

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When I went to the range today I shot several rounds and then I shot one and the lever would not open. The trigger was stuck, the bolt was slightly out of battery and the lever stuck solid. Any suggestions? They were reloads. 300 grain XTP with 11 gr. of Longshot. I assume the case split or something like that. How do I get it out?
 
Get a 3/8 dowel and push down hard into the (empty) case from the muzzle, while simultaneously opening the lever from the bottom.
 
Cock the hammer and dry fire it. This may jar the locking lug loose. If not, try the rod down the muzzle trick (never use wooden dowels, they will cause other issues if they break in the bore).
 
If one manages to actually break a hardwood dowel in a bore, one has disengaged
brain from hands while beating it to death using a heavy hammer.
You will find this to the case in every instance of stuck dowel.

I say again
"...push down hard into the (empty) case from the muzzle. . . . "
Click to expand...
and we're talking a cavernous .45 caliber bore here, not some puny 30 cal.
 
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Alternately, put it in the freezer for a while then see if it will open after things have contracted a bit.

Another option is to soak it in some good penetrating oil, give it a day or two to work, then try it.

or, take it to a gunsmith, and let them get it open for you.

DO save the case for examination.

please let us know how it works out.
 
Beat on it with a hammer. If that doesn't work, use a bigger hammer. No, but seriously, tap the receiver with a padded hammer. Preferably nylatron padded not dead blow.
 
"The trigger was stuck, the bolt was slightly out of battery and the lever stuck solid."

If "the bolt is slightly out of battery" for real, it sounds like you came close to wearing it as a dental implant.
 
I just looked on the Hodgdon website and they don't even show a load for the 300gr bullet using Longshot powder. In the Hodgdon burn rate chart it shows Longshot to be slower than Blue Dot and just a little faster than 2400. Eleven grains sounds way over loaded for this powder and bullet combo. Where did you get your load data from?

https://www.hodgdon.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/burn-rate-color.pdf

I found this. Post #5 says a 10.5gr load with a 250gr bullet was "stout" so I am curious where your load data came from.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?35158-LongShot-in-45-Colt
 
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"...don't even show a load for the 300gr bullet using Longshot..." No .45 Colt data for Longshot at all, except for Ruger, Freedom Arms and TC handguns. However, 11 grains is .2 below minimum(not enough to matter) for a jacketed bullet. The load should not be the issue. More likely the innards have come loose.
"...bolt was slightly out of battery..." Probably not. It would have been far more, um, exciting if the bolt wasn't completely closed. Starting with a very noticeable flash of burning powder going past your chin.
"...If one manages to actually break a..." Doable, but a 3/8" dowel, that's soft wood, isn't likely to get jammed anyway. Too small diameter. I kinda doubt a dowel or brass rod or a mallet is going to help. I think it's need a disassembly.
 
No .45 Colt data for Longshot at all, except for Ruger, Freedom Arms and TC handguns. However, 11 grains is .2 below minimum(not enough to matter) for a jacketed bullet. The load should not be the issue.
Click to expand...

T.O Heir where did you find your load data from? I didn't find it it on the Hodgdon site. I don't have the newest Hodgdon manual I used to buy on the magazine rack at WM. I haven't seen one in a while. My 2204 manual has no Longshot loads for the 45 Colt.
 
I don't own a Marlin and I seldom shoot lever guns.I might be all wet here.

Sequence of operation:

Lever pulls locking bars down clear of bolt Did we get that far? Probably.

Then the lever starts to pull the bolt to the rear.

There will likely be enough slack between the bolt face,rim,and extractors to permit the bolt to move .020 or .030 to the rear before the extractors on the rim of a stuck case stop the rearward motion of the bolt.

A lever gun have very little primary extraction power,unlike a bolt gun.

A proper hickory wood ramrod is made from a hickory split,meaning the grain integrity is essentially parallel and full length.

A lumberyard dowell has no grain integrity and very little hammer bumping can cause it to fail.When it does,two long tapers wedge the pieces stuck tight in the bore. Desperate moves such as penetrating oil help swell the wood. Better,just don't use a dowel in the bore.

If you have a 3/8 or so brass punch for drifting sights,odds are if you preload the extractors against the rim,and the rifle is vertical,butt on the floor,just dropping the punch down the bore will knock it free.

Next? Get a clean,straight length of 5/16 or 3/8 steel or brass rod and "escalate" a bit.

DO establish that it is not the hammer or other internal parts preventing the bolt from moving to the rear. Beating the bolt to the rear when the hammer/sear are at half cock,for example,would be destructive.

And I suggest you might pull the screws out of the tube mag plug ,pull the spring and follower,and clear out any ammo.

You also might use a cleaning rod to measure the muzzle to breech like an oil dipstick to verify its empty brass in the chamber.
 
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