Winchester 94 problem?

ArtG

Inactive
I have a 30-30 Winchester 94AE Legacy, serial # 627xxxx. The action is grabby when you begin the downward cocking motion with the finger lever to open the breech. The hammer has a really heavy feel and is hard to push back using the finger lever during the cocking procedure. The breech is hard to close (same as it is hard to open) when you bring the lever back up to close it. I would like it much better if the action was more fluid.
My question being is this natural or should I take the rifle to a gunsmith to find out what is wrong. The rifle has only been fired 4 times
 
thuddy-thuddy

Is this a new #94?

If so, it could merely require some breaking in.

If this is a "new" problem you may have a broken part.

If this is a new gun, return it and another or contact Winchester.

It could simply need a bit of honing to smooth out these parts. There are only a few parts that function with the lever/hammer movements and fairly simple to disassemble/reassemble.

Good luck.
 
It is going to be a little stiff for the first few hundred cycles of the action. Oil the parts that move and rub against each other. It won't take much, a small drop in the side rails and work the action a few times. If that helps oil more moving parts. If it is old and has not been used it will be bone dry. A little TLC will go a long way.
 
94's are like that. The breech is hard to close is another thing though. Sounds like burrs, possibly out of place pins or bent parts. Has the thing ever been smooth?
Like sandman31774 says, give it a really good bath before you do anything else. Manual is here. http://stevespages.com/page7b.htm
Winchester AE's date from 1982/3. A 6 million plus S/N appears to be post 1991.
 
"The rifle has only been fired 4 times"
Clean out the gunk, lube moving parts, and cycle the action a couple of hundred times.
 
How are you working the lever?If you stop the lever just as the bolt starts to cock the hammer they can seem hard to work. You don't need to slam it open just smoothly and keep it moving.Do you have any other levers?A Marlin and Winchester have a totally different feel.
 
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