Marlin Mdl 60 Feed/Eject issue

H

Hessian

Inactive
Hey guys, new gun owner/shooter/poster.

I had looked and looked for an economic .22 to learn on and I settled on a Marlin Mdl 60 - I was lucky enough to find one at a gun show in Alabama for $75 with some stock damage but I figured for $75 if nothing else I can learn what NOT to do with the next rifle.

I took it home, cleaned it top to bottom, oiled it and put it up for the night. Next day went out and sighted it in. out of about 50 rounds 5 were either misfed or did not eject completely. I shelved it and wrote a few emails to more knowledgeable relatives to no avail.

The mis-ejection is the empty shell not fully escaping the chamber BEFORE the slide closes. The slide catches the shell remains open. Depending on where the shell is caught a misfeed might occur at the same time.

The misfeed is the incoming round does not fully enter the chamber BEFORE the slide closes. This results in the slide scraping the brass shell and gouging the lead leaving a burr and preventing the slide from fully closing (Thankfully). I manually eject the damaged round and chamber the next in line.

I took it out again today and shot another 50 or so. At first it was misfeed/eject on EVERYSHOT! I was getting frustrated. It was about 30 today and the cold didn't help my attitude. I went in and cleaned the feed-fire system (obviously cleared and safetied the rifle first) oiled it up and went back out into the cold. 15 rounds flew through without issue. Reload, misfeed/eject on every 3 shots or so. I put it up again.

My thinking is that the issue has to do with the slide. Possibly the cold is changing the viscosity of the oil and not allowing the slide to move as freely as it should? then I remember the first day it was only 10-15 degrees warmer. Perhaps the recoil spring is worn down?

Any other ideas? When I disassembled it I only broke the rifle down into 4 parts: sock, barrel assembly, slide, and hammer assembly. Beyond that the Marlin manual does not recommend going. I don't have a problem going farther, but I want to know what I am looking for or have a specific reason for going there (I don't want to take it apart just to take it apart).

Any questions or suggestions would be helpful as this is really an annoying and growing cost problem. (Nearly paid double for the ammunition today because of the mid-feeds)
 
Hey there Hessian,Don't give up yet, stay away from Remington Thunder Bolts and trydifferent brands and styles of shells, you'll find a BIG difference inother brands. I have good luck with all Winchester, Federal andAmerican Eagle but the last are only 400 count to a brick. Good luck.
 
Yep might be an ammo issue with any kind of semiauto rimfire gun. I would not invest alot of money in ammo till I tried several small boxes of several brands and see what it likes. Your problem almost sounds like under powered ammo, but it could be the rifle too. Still, some .22's eat any ammo you stuff in, some will shoot all but one type and some are just finiky and like one or two types. And some ammo leaves more lube and crud than others, thus leading to a crud buildup that can bugger things up without regular cleaning. Most people don't tear the gun all apart to clean them except at first with a used gun, you ought to be able to keep one running with a good bore wipe and maybe a rag or Q tips to clean off the bolt face and ejectors. Your gun being used, might have some wear and tear issues too. If rimfires are dry fired too much, the firing pin may peen the edge of the chamber and make cartridges stick. More so, some guns than others. That can be fixed with a small round needle file if in fact is a problem.
 
Change ammo. Like Tom2 says, you really need to try a box of as many brands as you can to find the ammo your rifle will both shoot well and cycle the action. The price of said ammo means nothing either. It's just the way .22's are.
Take out most of the oil too. In cold weather, regular oils will thicken and cause the rifle to not function properly. In some cases, it'll stop the rifle working altogether. Regular grease is even worse. Powdered graphite will work just fine though. There are cold weather greases and oils too. Not exactly cheap stuff though.
 
Thanks guys. I will certainly try that. A buddy of mine mentioned "Tuf Cloth" as a possible solution. Any thoughts/experiences? After a web search I found this as a description/explanation of it.

"A long-lasting lint-free replacement for oil and silicone rags. Instead of using oil, Sentry uses a mixture of dry film corrosion inhibitors and lubricants to provide a fast-drying, water-displacing MICRO-BONDING CRYSTAL BARRIER against rust, friction and wear. The water-proof shield will not attract dirt and it won't leave a slippery film like silicone. TUF-CLOTH protects more than 14 times longer than the competition."

Tuf-Cloth seems to be very big in blade circles. I will certainly check to make sure I am not OVER oiling the slide in the colder weather and try Federal (seems to be a popular choice). As far as .22 ammo goes, in bricks they are around 0.02-0.03 per round, which is not much of a difference and I have no problem paying an extra 0.01 per round for proper functionality.
 
mod 60

Sir;
I'd check under the extractor and make sure there is no build up of fouling there. I'd also check the wire that functions as the ejector - it can be bent in slightly so it contacts the brass.
And, for goodneww sake, stay away from Remington 22 ammo! Get some Winchester and try it.
Also, if someone has dry fired it extensively, it can have a "dimple" on the edge of the chamber fouling things up. These gens usually function fine.
Harry B.
 
mod 60

Sir;
I'd check under the extractor and make sure there is no build up of fouling there. I'd also check the wire that functions as the ejector - it can be bent in slightly so it contacts the brass.
And, for goodneww sake, stay away from Remington 22 ammo! Get some Winchester and try it.
Also, if someone has dry fired it extensively, it can have a "dimple" on the edge of the chamber fouling things up. These guns usually function fine.
Harry B.
 
Thanks Harry, I will be sure to check the eject pin.
I had heard wonderful things about Marlins which is why I bought one. :)

I opened up the assembly before I fired it and didn't notice any oil collection. I took a clean cloth and gently ran it down the inside of the slide box and it didn't pick much up. So I reassembled and went out. The first 15 rounds (one tube) resulted in no problems. Flawless would be an understatement.
The next tube resulted in 3 mis-ejections
The next tube resulted in a misfeed/ejection after every round. The round was pierced with 3 remaining in the tube.

A new symptom -- The spent round ejected properly but the next round was halfway in when the slide closed piercing the middle of the round. Needless to say I promptly safetied the rifle, emptied cleared the remaining rounds and then slowly removed the pierced round. I called it a day after that. :cool:

Attached are two images. One is three rounds that were damaged. From the left, casing that was caught on ejection, incoming round that was pierced, incoming round scared by the bottom of the slide. The other image is the rifle mocked-up with the scope and bipod. Neither are functioning yet. I want to resolve the ammo issue prior to sighting in the scope and I don't have a drill at my house to attach the swivel bracket for bipod.

As always, suggestions and advice are welcome... I am a new owner/operator and I make not bones about my inexperience--that is why I joined the forum!
 

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I think your biggest problem is that its a Model 60 :) Not raggin on your choice of firearms, just that I personally, have never had good luck with that model. I have two of their bolt action guns, and my brother has one as well, and for years they have geen geat guns, very reliable and fun to shoot. My father purchased two Model 60's a few years ago, got them for about $80 a piece, and combined, they might have 4-500 rounds thru them. Have never been able to get them to feed and eject reliably (biggest problem is ejection/extraction). He has tried all the different brands of ammo we could find, lubed the crap out of it, shot it with no lube, cleaned it between mags, shot it in warm and cold weather, had different shooters, etc. to try and narrow down a problem. But, they both now sit in the back of his gun cabinet cause is just not fun to shoot them when you are clearing jams every few shots. Wish i had some advice to help ya out......hope ya get it figured out so you can enjoy some shooting with them.
 
Cranky, does my issue sound similar to the problem he had with his?

I am wondering if it might be a defect in some of the models. For example, a production run of a certain month used a defective element. The other rifles in the model line are fine, just that run was effected.

Is there a way to check that theory--like how close the serial numbers are? Of course, that would only hold true if the barrel was never changed.

Any thoughts on Cranky's comment?
 
From looking at my dad's rifles, it seems to me to be problem with the extractor. It has a few jams while feeding, but the majority of the problems seemed to be with extraction. The extractors in both rifles dont seem to catch the rim of the shell reliably (not sliping all the way over the rim and catching it fully, slips off when trying to extract the empty case), not sure if the extractor is not shaped quite right, or maybe the spring is not quite strong enough, or something is binding or................... I had similar problems ejecting empties with a lever action Henry I have. It would feed fine, but would only eject about 4 out of ten rounds. Detail striped it and found a sliver of metal (from asssembly at the plant?) under the extractor, preventing it from seating on the case rim all the way. My dads model 60's act the same way, only ejecting about half the rounds, but we have never been able to find the cause. Its been detail striped time and again, scrubbed with cleaner, parts polished to make sure there were no burs, inspected by several people to see if parts were binding up, but still no closer to finding a problem. I know a few people locally , and have heard from several online, that the older model 60's ( prior to the early 90's it sounds like) have very few, if any problems, but the newer ones arent so lucky. Wish i could give ya some hard answers, and some specific areas/parts to check on your guns, we have just never been able to find the problem and get them to shoot reliably. When they work, they are fun, accurate guns, they just don't work right often enough to come out of the gun cabinet more than about once a year anymore. My father purchased them the same day at a local store, from what i remember, the serial numbers on his are fairly close, but i cant remember what they are, and can't remember what year he bought them in. Next time I am over that way I will try and write them down and find out when they were purchased.
 
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You know, now that you mention not grabbing the shells I recall that happening a few times. About once or twice per 50 rounds (my general allotment for practice.) I just assumed it was something with that round as the ammo is cheap and it was pretty rare. More rare than the dud-rate of the ammo actually, which is about 4% from my experience.

What is the legality of posting serial numbers? I mean, it is linked to my rifle but is it something that someone could really screw me over with having? I know it is not like my SSN but just how sensitive is the serial number on the rifle?:confused:
 
Perfectly legal to post s/n's, but better idea is to use an "x" for the last 2-3 digits, eg,: "s/n 3456xxx". That gives enough info for most needs, without singling out the specific gun/owner.

Good Luck with the problems and welcome to the forum.
 
Well as far as dating a Marlin I found this...
"The first two digits of the serial number designate the year of manufacture, either as the last two digits of the year (in 1969-71) or as a number code (1971 and later).."

http://armscollectors.com/sn/marlinlookup.php

There is some other information for rifles of different time periods. Time to go home and look at mine. (I really need internet at my house.)

Thanks perpster. I will keep that in mind.
 
Dirt/crud under the extractor or in the extractor cut in the barrel can stop the extractor from moving freely. If the extractor does not move out enough as the bolt closes, it can keep the bolt from fully closing and cause misfires. If the extractor does not move in enough or quickly enough, it can cause failure to extract.

Jim
 
Eh, I took it apart again. REALLY cleaned it down. I got some Q-Tips and got in every little hole I could with the cleaning agent. Examine the ejection pin, it seems correct. Visually inspected for burs and found none.

According to the marlin dating info I found my rifle was manufactured in 2002 - the first two digits in the serial number '02.' I don't know that this is accurate as the stock seems VERY beat up for being 6 years old. I have some pictures of the tear down, I will try to post them later.
 
Ejector Lifter Spring!!!

A few years ago, I received a Marlin Model 60 as a birthday gift from my Dad.
I brought it with me to Texas from Michigan on a two week vacation. I fired maybe 50 rounds out of the gun, while sighting it in and hunting rabbit down in Texas. It worked fine for 2 weeks, but after I got it back to Michigan it started jamming the next time I used it. It did what has been mentioned in this thread previously. After firing the gun once, the spent shell casing won't eject while the extractor pin tries to push the next round up.
I disassembled the gun and found that the extractor spring had a fracture in it. This weakened the spring, lacking the tension to properly eject the spent shell casing before the next round could be chambered. Marlin Model 60s are a cheap low-end rifle, that had better craftsmanship back in the day.
I believe that Marlin is now cutting corners, and using lower quality parts, including a cheap ass extractor spring made of low grade spring steel. Your spring may not be broken or fractured, but I bet it has easily weakened just after short term use. I have seen replacement springs for the Model 60 floating around the internet on gun part retailer sites. Ejector Lifter Spring
You should be able to purchase a spring for under $15 including shipping. Good Luck!


I needed a low caliber varmint rifle recently, so I thought about fixing the Marlin. I changed my mind after digging into the gun again and realizing how cheap it really is.
I went out and bought a Savage 17 HMR Model 93R17-FV bolt action. :)
newgun.jpg

It makes any Marlin rimfire rifle seem like dumpster food to me. I will never waste my time or money on a Marlin rifle ever again.
 
Possibly resolved

While visiting a friend in a slightly warmer climate and with a different ammo, Federal 40 grain .22lr

I had no issues with feed/ejection. It was an indoor range and was about 60-65F. I forgot to bring my other ammo to compare. But I am back home now and will test both kinds when I have the opportunity.
 
hahahahaha . i have two mod 60's and both are great clubbing sticks or dog chew toys or maybe even a light use pry bar or hammer but for 75.00 its a deal . i would buy any gun for 75.00 just b/c its a gun. but on a serious note my ol glennfield did great after a good cleaning but soon went to hell in a hand basket and doing the same as yours . my newer mod 60 does ok sometimes but only when it wants to. lol
 
Go to rimfirecentral.com and post your problem in the Marlin 60 forum. There are some severely informed and dedicated 60 folks there and they'll know what to do.
 
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