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Old November 26, 2012, 10:02 AM   #1
SPEMack618
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.22 Lever feeding issues

My roomate has a very nice Marlin lever action .22 and has complained of feeding issues with the Remington bulk pack ammo he normally shoots. For Christmas, I am contemplating getting him some decent ammo to shoot through the thing, and was wondering if anyone had any experience with lever .22s and a preferred load, an more importantly, preferred bullet type.
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Old November 26, 2012, 02:10 PM   #2
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My experience with 22's and bulk pack ammo has steered me away from anything with the Remington name on the package. It has been by far the worst ammo I have ever had the misfortune to fire.
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Old November 26, 2012, 02:53 PM   #3
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What is the feeding issue?

I had an issue with mine not wanting to extract and it was because the cartridge guide had slipped down a little bit and was preventing the empty case from extracting.

It was just a matter of turning the screw back the other way and adding a little loctite.
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Old November 26, 2012, 02:58 PM   #4
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No, it wasn't the extractor, from what he was telling me, and from what the rounds he showed me, it was the bullet were getting marred from feeding and then not properly stting in the chamber.
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Old November 26, 2012, 08:34 PM   #5
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First steps are to make sure his rifle is clean and properly lubricated, AND that the take down screw is snug but not overly tight, with both halves of the receiver fully seated.

If you can see a "step" where the receivers join, the rifle isn't properly assembled and will often mis-feed. This usually means the screw isn't properly tightened.

If it is the ammo, just try a box of several better brands before buying a lot of it.
What works in my Marlin may not work in his and vise versa, so it's impossible to really recommend a brand or type of ammo.
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Old November 27, 2012, 08:03 PM   #6
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I never met a .22 that didn't like CCI Mini Mags.
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Old November 27, 2012, 08:10 PM   #7
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Drat. Thinks for all the input. I will see if I can badger him into letting me disassemble it.

And I will be sure to look into CCI Mini-Mags.
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Old November 28, 2012, 05:10 PM   #8
jmstr
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Quote:
My roomate has a very nice Marlin lever action .22 and has complained of feeding issues with the Remington bulk pack ammo he normally shoots. For Christmas, I am contemplating getting him some decent ammo to shoot through the thing, and was wondering if anyone had any experience with lever .22s and a preferred load, an more importantly, preferred bullet type.
The thorough cleaning is a good tip.

My first thought is to ask if he has shot this bulk pack ammo in this Marlin [it is a model 39a?] before with success? Or is this just bulk pack ammo he has successfully used in other .22lr guns, but is failing in this lever action?

I ask as there are some profiles of .22lr bullets I won't use in my 39a or my Model 60 [both marlin .22lr rifles], as they tend to jam. They tend to be the truncated nose .22lr ammo, as the 'lip'/'edge'/'shelf' seems to give me problems. I prefer traditional round nose or hollow point, but not truncated cone [solid or hollow] .22lr ammo.

In bolt rifles, in my ruger 22/45 handgun or my .22lr revolvers they are fine, but I've had some issues with my Marlin rifles and them.

If it is a traditional round nose bullet, or a rounded ogelvie [spelling?] hollow point I usually have no problems.

Just some thoughts.

Mini-mags are great, by the way. I've also had good luck with some other brands/makes, but don't remember the sub groups, as I have them in boxes in the garage for the next trip.
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Old November 28, 2012, 10:37 PM   #9
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Get him a brick of honest to pete Winchester Super X solids. He'll thank you from now on.
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Old November 29, 2012, 09:13 AM   #10
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Winchester and CCI's work great in all my rifles and handguns.

Cheaper Winchester bulk packs work better than the cheaper Federal bulk, but the Federals made for semi-auto use seem to work great.
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Old November 29, 2012, 10:35 AM   #11
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My old Marlin Golden 39A (before I sold it, why on earth did I do that!), shot the cheap Remington Thunderbolts and Golden bullets VERY well, the ammo was filthy, nasty, and sometimes had duds but for whatever reason it liked them. It also liked Federal bulk packs but the extractor didn't it would often slip right over the rim, like it was a little more rounded than the others or something. Other rifles loved the Federal bulk packs.
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Old November 29, 2012, 10:50 PM   #12
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I had TWO case head separations with Remington bulk pack. Only 100 rounds into the box, handed it back to the shop owner and asked to dispose of it. Really unnerving to have powder blasted on your hand in my otherwise reliable Henry.
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Old November 30, 2012, 12:21 AM   #13
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Clean it and try anything else. CCI Mini Mag is universally accepted as being good. Winchester Power Point are typically really accurate. CCI Blazer is probably the best 'bulk' ammo out there. I would buy a couple boxes of each. A lever should not be that ammo sensitive.
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Old December 1, 2012, 08:35 AM   #14
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If the bullets are marring along the top when feeding, check the little flat piece of steel inside the top of the receiver just behind the chamber -- it's held in by a screw that at first glance appears to be a scope mount screw.

I had a problem that sounds similar, and I had to bend that piece of steel downward so it guided the bullet into the chamber instead of allowing it to jam into where the top of the chamber meets the receiver.

All I did was take the little flat metal piece out, hold (with pliers) the half of it without the screw hole in it, and bend it.
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