BBS, .357 Has Landed!

[ESquared]

Hum. That doesn't seem good to me. If you are loading to Henry's stated limit (10 is max I think), I would contact Henry. You have already cleaned and inspected it. So, all should be clear; I suspect. I guess you could double check your work. But, I would still consider contacting Henry.

Good point of distinction, as all my issues this morning were after loading just 5 rounds, as that was the set of groupings I was tracking. If I'd loaded all 10, I'd have lost track for sure!

So, maybe I'll go back to square one and load up all 10 and see what happens...

I assume the answer is yes. But, I will mention it. My Marlin seemed to jam when I first got it. It was my first lever action. Since then, I have learned that lever actions like to be cycled with purpose. No babying allowed. So, no more jamming after I started to cycle the lever fully and like I meant it (firmly). Just a thought.

And it's a great thought. I'm going to load it up again tomorrow AM first thing (before I call Henry) and see if I can be more manly about this whole thing. No babying allowed.
Here's hoping it's just the usual "operator error."
Wouldn't be the first time.

[MadCityJack]

I put a Skinner Peep sight with a tall front blade sight. I did a blow by blow of my experience doing it. My last post was today. If interested start at beginning of post:

http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.p ... 711#p64711

[Mistered]

Mine appears to be caused by the inner mag tube getting stuck on the rim of shell casings that then forces the first round part way into the receiver and kicking the lever open.

Read my post on how to fix this easily, quickly with no further problems experienced.

[Mags]

Mine appears to be caused by the inner mag tube getting stuck on the rim of shell casings that then forces the first round part way into the receiver and kicking the lever open.

Read my post on how to fix this easily, quickly with no further problems experienced.

That the same discussion we had back in April?
http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.p ... =20#p60061

For me wasn't a permanent fix. I'm annoyed with the problem, but not yet to the point of sending it to Henry for service.
It may be my imagination, but the cant over of the follower seems like it has gotten worse. Feels like it might be getting to the point it might pop out past the crimp stop. Did you further your idea of machining your own follower design?

[Mistered]

That the same discussion we had back in April?

It appears it was - I discussed this with many!

It may be my imagination, but the cant over of the follower seems like it has gotten worse.

This is the perplexing part. As long as the follower is free and when the tube is removed for cleaning and you are careful not to 'bend' the follower over it should for the most part stay in place. While there is movement back and forth as long as it is free and retracts smoothly the movement shouldn't be much of an issue.
I am wondering however IF Henry was trying to keep the size and weight down they 'scrimped' in this area and made the load tube too thin and they are not holding up? Just a guess though - I wonder if anybody else is having this problem?

[GFK]

Interesting observation.

[Mistered]

Another thought I had was Henry MAY have designed the EXTERIOR load tube a few thou too small and when the INTERIOR tube is inserted and meets the rim of the cases the clearance between the rim of the case and the wall of the tube possibly being too tight is further reduced by the now inserted inner tube and and the result being there is simply not enough space for the cases to move enough for the inner tube to clear them adequately. My suggestion of beveling the inner tube mouth provides a slight taper to align the case to allow it to get it over rim. I think we are dealing with tolerances that are a bit too tight. But hey this is just my 2c worth.....

[Mags]

Ya, I don't know maybe. When the Henry was still new the first three 5-round reloads I didn't have any trouble with. The mag tube hang up on case rims became progressively worse (more frequent) with each reload after that. I got some reprieve for a while when I did the slight taper you suggested. But problem came back. I have to work the inner mag tub in and out while twisting back and forth and most of the time when it finally goes all the way in the lever kicks open and I find that the first round in the tube has been pushed part or all the way into the receiver. When it happens part way, attempting to close the lever the elevator jams on the round. I've used 3 different ammo brands and snap caps. I'm wondering more if the outer mag tube has actually expanded slightly with use due to heat, allowing the rounds to stack up in the tube catty whom-pus, in a slight zig/zag arrangement, that allows the case rims to be more exposed to catching on the inner mag tube rim during insertion. Then, additionally, maybe the cant wobble in the follower exasperates how the rounds might not be lining up straight enough. I've considered putting a dimple in the end of the follower about the size of a bullet tip. That way when the follower engages the bullet tip the follower is held centered and straight and not canted over to one side as the mag tube spring compresses. Anyway, my nickels worth of musing.

We should move this to another topic. We've (or I've) hijacked Esquared's topic with this mess.

[Mistered]

Try this - remove your inner load tube and Push the follower in with a round of ammo then with a cleaning rod carefully push in The round slowly up the tube until it compresses the spring and bottoms out. Make sure it is smooth on its way to the top with no hang ups or rough spots. If there ARE any rough spots or hesitation the tube will need to be cleaned until smooth. When I beveled my tube and cleaned it the cleaning may have been the bigger part of the problem as I got a lot if junk out of it - but had already beveled the mouth of the tube first (which was also a part of it's improvement) In an extreme case the spring and plug may have to be removed so the interior of the tube can be exposed for inspection but mine cleaned up ok without removing the spring - but I still plan to when I give my Henry a complete tear down for cleaning & tuning.
And PLEASE - nobody jump on the 'Call Henry and they will send you a new tube' or 'Send it back and they will fix it' bandwagon - because even if they DID send a new tube it would most likely need a good cleaning also.
This I believe is a little design 'glitch' that needs to be 'lived' with - but with ensuring the tube is clean and smooth (inside and out) it can be negated - as I did with mine to essentially 100% , problem free loading.

[Mags]

Part of the problem, lever popping open with mag tube jammed loading. In reading one of the older topics on this loading issue there was mention that when one of our other members got his rifle back from Henry his repair tag indicated that a new anti-popping lever replaced the original. Given my Henry is quite a bit newer than when that post was made to the forum, I would have thought the newer rifles, mine included, would come have come with the anti-popping lever. Thoughts?

[GFK]

Part of the problem, lever popping open with mag tube jammed loading. In reading one of the older topics on this loading issue there was mention that when one of our other members got his rifle back from Henry his repair tag indicated that a new anti-popping lever replaced the original. Given my Henry is quite a bit newer than when that post was made to the forum, I would have thought the newer rifles, mine included, would come have come with the anti-popping lever. Thoughts?

I do not know how long the lever pop out issue has been around. I have a H009 with a birth date in September of 2015. I put it in lay-a-way (new) in September 2017. Picked it up for Christmas and sent it back for cleaning (copper in barrel). Can back with a new lever (copper still in the barrel). But, it still popped out during loading of a particular brand of ammo (don't recall the brand). Yet, the issue went away when I smoothed the rim of the inner tube with 600 grit of paper. I have only shot about 80 rounds through it though. So, the issue may raise its head as time goes on. Nonetheless, I hoping to get some shooting in this weekend.

[Mags]

Birth date on mine is mid August 2017. I had noticed the copper fouling on mine too. Commented on that in another topic. I had put maybe 20 rounds through when I did the first cleaning, thinking I had lousy ammo. Didn't know at the time that Henry didn't clean after their test firing. I think I remember your post where you used your index finger with the sand paper on your inner tube. I did that too and as I said above got immediate improvement that seems to have been temporary. I've also have only shot about 80 rounds. Maybe 60 since sanding the inner lip of the inner mag tube.

[Mistered]

Thoughts?

My thoughts are boys and girls, is the load tube/lever pop issue is probably going to plague some more than others and it may have to be lived with because I haven't read too much about it getting resolved by those who have sent their rifles back to the factory.
I have owned a LOT of guns, new and used, and more than a few have had some issue or problem I had to deal with.
No gun is perfect (well except maybe no or low dash pre-lock Smith & Wessons) but some are going to have inherent issues due to design or other reasons and Henry is no exception.
Get those load tubes clean (inner and outer) bevel the mouth of the inner tube and hopefully you can reduce or eliminate the problem entirely. A complete tear down of the rifle for an intensive cleaning and an inspection for any burrs or other metal issues and polishing of all internals is highly recommended also - mine will be getting it soon!

[Mags]

... it may have to be lived with because I haven't read too much about it getting resolved by those who have sent their rifles back...

it may have to be lived with... That has been my frame of mind too and why I haven't sent mine in for service so far.

[GFK]

It can be, and that is why it is a backup for now and target practice.

[ESquared]

Not to worry about highjacking, I've been following along with interest. So far, I've had none of the load tube/lever pop you guys have been writing about. I've cleaned out the magazine tube a couple of times and I Flitz the rod about every other range trip to keep things slippery.

But, on the other hand, I've also been doing mostly 5-shot groups, so I've rarely had the mag tube loaded to full capacity. Will have to do that a couple of times this coming week and make sure I don't get any "lever pop."

[Mags]

... and I Flitz the rod about every other range trip to keep things slippery.

... make sure I don't get any "lever pop."

I saw a tube of Flitz in the background of one of your pictures. Couldn't make out which Flitz product I saw there. There are many Flitz products, which are you using?

I hold the rifle upside down with my left hand fingers gripping the stock neck through the lever ring. That holds it closed while insert/twisting the inner mag tube with my right hand. The lever doesn't pop open gripping it that way, but sometimes it takes a lot of twisting and moving the inner mag tube part way in and out to get the tube past the ammo rims in the tube.

[JEBar]

Not to worry about highjacking, I've been following along with interest. So far, I've had none of the load tube/lever pop you guys have been writing about. I've cleaned out the magazine tube a couple of times and I Flitz the rod about every other range trip to keep things slippery.

But, on the other hand, I've also been doing mostly 5-shot groups, so I've rarely had the mag tube loaded to full capacity. Will have to do that a couple of times this coming week and make sure I don't get any "lever pop."

we have 3 centerfire Henry Rifles .... the only issue related to load tube/lever pop was caused by operator error .. .. once that was corrected, no other issues whatsoever

[Mags]

the only issue related to load tube/lever pop was caused by operator error .. .. once that was corrected, no other issues whatsoever

Ummm, operator error how so?

[JEBar]

failure to drop 45-70 bullets into the tube at the proper angle