Why does my .22 Marlin Youth jam?

Question

i have oiled and cleaned thouroughly. It would be a great gun other than that, its dead on.

Answer 1

1) Unload and disassemble, then clean thoroughly, paying particular attention to the action and also brush and solvent out the barrel while you are at it.
Then lubricate. I like Break-Free CLP in the aerosol can as it's thin and gets into the small action parts well. Wipe up any excess.

2) Change ammo. Get a selection of small boxes of different brands and try them, keeping note of how they work and shoot. Two different .22s of the same brand and model will "like" different ammo.

These two step usually solve 90% of problems with .22 issues. If they do not work, find a competent gunsmith who can make adjustments for you.

I have many Marlin semi-autos and can shoot thousands of rounds between complete break down cleanings, just use a blast can solvent followed by some light spray lube in the action.

Answer 2

It’s been my experience with Marlin 22 semi autos that I owned, that I had to do a 100% disassembly and solvent clean after every 100 rounds or so depending on ammo to prevent jamming.
One of the inherent problems with the Marlin 22 semi auto is in the blow back design as used commonly for 22 rim fire, Marlin utilized a weaker bolt spring that allows the bolt to cycle much too early and causes the gun powder burnt and unburnt to build up inside the action gumming up the works.
You may be able to up grade the bolt spring and prevent this problem.
This is the reason I no longer use marlin 22 semi auto rifles and went to the Remington model 552.
I selected this model because I prefer tube feed so as to in able me to use 22 shorts for squirrel hunting and still give me the option to use the cheaper 22 LR for target practice.
If you can use a Ruger 10/22 it is a fine weapon that will not give you this problem.
Marlin really needs to correct this problem for in practice I will shoot 200 to 400 rounds in my 22 and don’t wont to deal with this at the range and I am using premium ammo for its better constancy, not the cheap ammo.
Hope this was of some help.

D58

Answer 3

Ummmm, the rest of the posters must know something I don't....me, without the model, I can't give any specific answer.

Few general suggestions, though....

If it's a tube magazine and it seems to happen when fewer rounds are left in the tube, it's most likely your magazine spring is about shot. In that case, jerk it out and try stretching it before putting it back in. See if the added length fixes your prob. If it does, buy a new spring. The stretched one will only last so long.

If it's a box magazine and has the same prob....jams with only one or two shells left, it's the same fix.

If your prob is double feeding, chances are it's the magazine lips. Tube fed can be disconnectors, lifters etc.

If it's feeding from the mag but then won't chamber the round, check your feed ramp/throat. A polish job will almost always fix that. Some types of ammo just won't feed for crap in some weapons....you might need to switch to a solid, copper coated or pre-lubed round. If you've polished and switched ammo but still get failure to feed/chamber, chances are your recoil spring is shot. This is all semi-auto of course.

If you're feeding/chambering and firing fine but the spent shell fails to extract, first thing to check is your extractor/s and spring/s. Take your bolt out, stick a spent casing into the boltface and wiggle it to see if you can get it out of the extractors too easily. If those are ok, you might have a burr in your chamber. Take a SPENT casing from that rifle, shove a small screwdriver through the primer end and then polish the casing. Insert that polished casing into your chamber and twist the screwdriver once. Any scratches on the casing means you got burrs, dude! Inspect it well, swab it good and polish/hone if need be.

Extracting fine but not ejecting before trying to chamber the next round....ejector.

If it tends to feed and fire well when newly cleaned but gets progressively worse as it dirties, it's most likely your ammo fouling and lube buildup in the chamber.

Did I miss anything?

Again, if you'll give the model and the exact type of prob, we can be a bit more exact.

Answer 4

22's rifles, even another youth model Marlin, are not always going to function properly with any brand of ammunition. Test with as many different types of 22 ammo as you can find. When you find one that functions reliably and is accurate enough to suit your needs, then buy a lot of it. The batch number of the ammo is stamped on the package, for larger quantities, and even a different batch can change way they function in your rifle. In addition, find a gunsmith with experience with your firearm and have it checked for wear or damage that may be affecting the functionality. An occasional complete disassembly, inspection, and cleaning should be performed to maintain the firearm properly.

Answer 5

We learned to swab the barrel with oil, then a dry wad until it came out clean. Oil is THE cause on most jams unless and often it was reloaded cartridges that bulged or split.

Answer 6

As others have suggested, it is likely too much oil. Swab out the excess oil and try it. Also, it might be the rounds that you are using. Switch brands and shoot a different .22LR ammo and see what happens.

Answer 7

The oil is probably gunking it up. You could be using crappy ammo also. I'd try different brands of ammo and break it down and clean it really well but don't oil it. I don't use oil on any of my firearms.

Answer 8

Trying using another brand of .22 ammo. Sometimes that helps.

Answer 9

Clean it and oil it