ok i have a 60 year old .22 LR it jams sometime (alot) how do i stop is from jamming the action looks clean???

Question

I need help!!!

Answer 1

Make, model and type would be good to know to be more specific.

The first thing I think of is a complete tear-down and thorough cleaning.

You say the "action LOOKS clean"....to me that means you probably haven't torn it down to it's components and cleand each one......be careful though....22 semis have a lot of little parts and they are not designed to be 'user-friendly' like a lot of centerfire military rifles, so you need to know what you are doing or you will never get it back together.

Also, jams during ejection (ater firing) usually point to worn or bent parts like the 'extractor' and 'ejector'...it's also possible a spring is worn out. Again, these are small and not always obvious. If you are unsure of your small mechanical skills, don't do it. Bring it to a gunsmith.

I advise you join www.rimfirecentral.com and go to the specific forum for your brand. Try to explain the jamming problem in detail and I'll bet some of those guys there can tell you exactly what it is....that place is full of old .22 collectors and shooters and I'm amazed at how much they know sometimes...

I assumed it's a semi-auto. Bolt-actions can jam too, but it's not common.

Also, have you tried a different brand ammo? .22s universally "like" some ammo and don't work well with others.

Answer 2

I would be willing to bet a weeks paycheck that one of the most common problems with a gun, especially a .22lr jamming or misfiring, since it is 60 years old, needs a complete strip cleaning. I have performed this on many guns where the person was ready to throw it away because of malfunctions. The detailed cleaning solved those problems. .22 LR can leave a lot of residue inside and after 60 years, it will take it's toll. Find someone that can completely disassemble the gun and clean every, pin, spring and screw, then lightly oil same.

I'll bet it works fine. people used to never clean .22 rifles because they believed the wax coating on the bullets kept the bore fine and that's all they worried about at that time. They'd just dump more more oil in the receiver.

Answer 3

I have two Marlin Model 60's. One is an old Model 60 that I got when I was 11 years old. It still shoots great. It's now 34 years old. I bought a new Model 60 in 1985, they changed the feed ramp in the new one for safety reasons? they both are accurate and reliable but they need to be oiled well in the action area or they will jam or fail to eject the spent shell. They also need to be cleaned more often than the Ruger 10/22 for reliability. I've never had a problem with good ammo. Federal is crap, neither of my marlins like it.

Answer 4

Few general suggestions....

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....broken/worn 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 5

You need to take it down to a gun smith to have it checked out, if it jams a lot then there may be a problem with the ejector arm. Possibly there is an issue with wear on the ejector arm or the spring is worn.
Some time older rifles look fine but are just old.

Answer 6

You really should take the weapon to a professional gun dealer in your area and have them take a look at it because without actually seeing it there is no way anybody can help you with your problem. It sounds as if you might have some ''worn out'' part, its a precision ''instrument'' and needs to be SEEN by a professional.Good Luck.

Answer 7

Check the with a gunsmith frist befor do any thing with but it the Extractor (part which pulls the case out) or the Ejector ( the part kicks the case off the Extractor) if they are a litte off few .01of inch it might not work.

Answer 8

Try different ammo, my gun jams with the Blazer ammo, but not with .22 Lighting, so that might be the cause.

Answer 9

Maybe the .22 is so old it is made for .22 long only. I would try some .22 longs.

Answer 10

I would speak with a local gunsmith and see what he has to say sometimes parts in the action get warn overtime.