Winchester 94 problems

Chris Pinkleton · June 7, 2004, 05:21 PM

My wife's Model 94AE in .357 has a bad habit of allowing live rounds to fall between the lever and the action during cycling, where they are very difficult to remove safely. Also, the safety seems not to work at all. My wife inherited the gun from my father-in-law who had an unfortunate tendency to take things apart for no apparent reason(His Single-Six was totally disassembled, aside from the trigger group, and none of his other handguns were wearing their grips when we cleaned up his house after his death). I am wondering if he took this rifle apart, and forgot to put in some vital parts, or reassembled it in some other defective manner.

The carbine will cycle OK, from time to time, but only if the action is worked at very high speed(say about .15 of a second), and even this doesn't ensure reliable functioning. Any ideas on what is wrong here? The Winchester is quite new, and has almost zero signs of wear, so I don't think this is the result of damage during firing. Do I need to by a shop manual for the 94 series and take it apart myself? Or is there a simple fix? (I'd like to avoid a trip to the gunsmith -- I'm too cheap, and it's a good excuse to develop my skills, anyway.)

Thanks for your time folks!
Chris

Paul B. · June 8, 2004, 01:55 PM

Sounds like the cartridge stop is messed up. Take it to a gunsmith. being cheap is OK, but when it has to do with something that has 25,000 to 35,000 PSI next to my face, I take it to the experts. I can do some of my own gunsmithing, but I know where my limitations lie. With luck, it's only an adjustment ot something like that and won't break the bank.
Paul B.

Chris Pinkleton · June 11, 2004, 03:49 PM

Thanks, Paul. It seems as if both you and the folks on THR agree on the problem here. I still think I'm gonna tackle it myself, but be assured, I'll proceed with all due caution.

Chris

June 7, 2004, 05:21 PM	#1
Chris Pinkleton Senior Member Join Date: May 3, 2001 Location: Durham, NC Posts: 123	Winchester 94 problems My wife's Model 94AE in .357 has a bad habit of allowing live rounds to fall between the lever and the action during cycling, where they are very difficult to remove safely. Also, the safety seems not to work at all. My wife inherited the gun from my father-in-law who had an unfortunate tendency to take things apart for no apparent reason(His Single-Six was totally disassembled, aside from the trigger group, and none of his other handguns were wearing their grips when we cleaned up his house after his death). I am wondering if he took this rifle apart, and forgot to put in some vital parts, or reassembled it in some other defective manner. The carbine will cycle OK, from time to time, but only if the action is worked at very high speed(say about .15 of a second), and even this doesn't ensure reliable functioning. Any ideas on what is wrong here? The Winchester is quite new, and has almost zero signs of wear, so I don't think this is the result of damage during firing. Do I need to by a shop manual for the 94 series and take it apart myself? Or is there a simple fix? (I'd like to avoid a trip to the gunsmith -- I'm too cheap, and it's a good excuse to develop my skills, anyway.) Thanks for your time folks! Chris __________________ "FINE WEAPONS/THE RIGHT TO BUY WEAPONS IS THE RIGHT/ TO BE FREE" --A.E. van Vogt, "The Weapons Shop," 1942. "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." Ben Franklin

June 8, 2004, 01:55 PM	#2
Paul B. Senior Member Join Date: March 28, 1999 Location: Tucson, AZ Posts: 3,802	Sounds like the cartridge stop is messed up. Take it to a gunsmith. being cheap is OK, but when it has to do with something that has 25,000 to 35,000 PSI next to my face, I take it to the experts. I can do some of my own gunsmithing, but I know where my limitations lie. With luck, it's only an adjustment ot something like that and won't break the bank. Paul B. __________________ COMPROMISE IS NOT AN OPTION!

June 11, 2004, 03:49 PM	#3
Chris Pinkleton Senior Member Join Date: May 3, 2001 Location: Durham, NC Posts: 123	Thanks, Paul. It seems as if both you and the folks on THR agree on the problem here. I still think I'm gonna tackle it myself, but be assured, I'll proceed with all due caution. Chris __________________ "FINE WEAPONS/THE RIGHT TO BUY WEAPONS IS THE RIGHT/ TO BE FREE" --A.E. van Vogt, "The Weapons Shop," 1942. "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." Ben Franklin