Brand New Rifle Jams after first shot!!

[Retired Army Guy]

I did a ton of research on the Henry A/W 30-30 before purchasing. It seemed all the bugs with loading the magazine and jams had been corrected the last few years. So I broke down and purchased a BRAND NEW 2019 with a tag date & initial of April 2019. I loaded and un-loaded it several times before going to the Range and everything worked flawlessly. At the range with several people watching the slick new Henry I fired the first shot ever and when I cycled it the round coming from the magazine tube JAMMED IN THE CHAMBER like nothing I have ever seen! It took two full grown men pulling and hammering and prying for over an hour to get the now mutilated live round out of the chamber. I noticed immediately after it jammed that the magazine tube had popped out-obviously I didn't have it closed all the way or the recoil popped it loose? Is this what caused such a horrific jam or is it something else? It seems to be working fine now with un-fired ammo. Federal Fusion 170 grain. Im scared to go to the Range again, does anyone know what caused this and will it happen again??

[Mags]

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I have the brass .30-30. I haven't experienced what you describe, so sorry not much help. Someone else may come along with something useful. You can always contact Henry Customer service. http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=5127

By the way, welcome to the forum from the TV, Oregon.

I did a ton of research on the Henry A/W 30-30 before purchasing. It seemed all the bugs with loading the magazine and jams had been corrected the last few years. So I broke down and purchased a BRAND NEW 2019 with a tag date & initial of April 2019. I loaded and un-loaded it several times before going to the Range and everything worked flawlessly. At the range with several people watching the slick new Henry I fired the first shot ever and when I cycled it the round coming from the magazine tube JAMMED IN THE CHAMBER like nothing I have ever seen! It took two full grown men pulling and hammering and prying for over an hour to get the now mutilated live round out of the chamber. I noticed immediately after it jammed that the magazine tube had popped out-obviously I didn't have it closed all the way or the recoil popped it loose? Is this what caused such a horrific jam or is it something else? It seems to be working fine now with un-fired ammo. Federal Fusion 170 grain. Im scared to go to the Range again, does anyone know what caused this and will it happen again??

[ESquared]

First, Welcome to the Forum! Glad to have you here, but sorry to hear of your first outing experience.

Based on your explanation of what happened and what you wrote about the mag tube being dislodged and partially out, my guess is that it wasn't fully seated and therefore wasn't putting the proper amount of pressure on all the rounds to allow them to chamber properly.

In the process of loading and unloading it a few times, did you also successfully cycle rounds through the chamber and eject them okay before the range visit? If so, that would tend to confirm that it wasn't all put back together completely before that horrible jam.

Others will chime in, I'm sure, but I've never had this happen to me on any of my Henry lever actions, and I've never read of this particular issue here, either. It seems unlikely that recoil could have popped that mag tube out of its closed position, but anything is possible, I guess.

Like a lot of these things, all you can do is "try it again," making sure the mag tube is fully seated with the pin in the notch and go from there. Cycling rounds through the chamber should tell you something, which you don't need to go to the range to do.

Hope that helps, keep us posted and WELCOME again!

[BigAl52]

No reason to be scared to go to the range again. Take it to the range and shoot it again. If it does it again then contact Henry. They will fix it for you no questions asked. Welcome to the forum .

[Mistered]

First, welcome to the forum from Wickiup Junction, Oregon!
Ok - SO the SECOND round is the one that jammed correct?
You mention shooting the first and I am assuming it ejected and the next is the one that jammed.
Can you describe what you mean by JAMMED? I mean did it not chamber completely and jammed partway into the chamber?
Please describe in detail!

[The Wiz]

WELCOME!!!

[Ojaileveraction]

We're you working the lever with athourity, or kind of watching yourself lever the rifle?

[Retired Army Guy]

Thanks Guys for the warm welcome. I have a few lever guns and was a regular on the Marlin site 10 years ago LOL. The Jam was the second in coming round. I think it was the magazine popping out -probably operator error but wanted some opinions. It was wedged tight beyond imagination. Heres a pic.

[ESquared]

Looks to me like it wasn't pushed all the way rearward, which is because the mag tube popped out (for whatever reason).

It got all "cattywhompus", which is never good.

All these guys above are right. Go try it again. If you end up being sure that the recoil is dislodging the mag tube, call Henry. They'll take care of you, to be sure!

[Mags]

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I go along with what E2 said. With no tension from the mag tube, looks like the nose of the cartridge was still in the tube when the lever/lifter shoved the butt of the bullet into the roof of the receiver with the lever/lifter ratcheted tight up against it.

Thanks Guys for the warm welcome. I have a few lever guns and was a regular on the Marlin site 10 years ago LOL. The Jam was the second in coming round. I think it was the magazine popping out -probably operator error but wanted some opinions. It was wedged tight beyond imagination. Heres a pic.

Looks to me like it wasn't pushed all the way rearward, which is because the mag tube popped out (for whatever reason).

It got all "cattywhompus", which is never good.

All these guys above are right. Go try it again. If you end up being sure that the recoil is dislodging the mag tube, call Henry. They'll take care of you, to be sure!

[Ojaileveraction]

Defiantly the mag tube.

[JEBar]

first, welcome to our forum, delighted to have you join us .... sorry to hear about the jam .... the recommendations you have been given are good ones .... since your rifle is operating smoothly I agree with giving it another try .... I would suggest that to begin with you load one round and fire it .... if the tube remains locked, I'd suggest loading 2 and firing .... if that goes smoothly, fully load the magazine and see what happens .... is yours a carbine or rifle .. .. if it should jam again, you might consider removing the screw that holds the lever in place .... with the bolt back as shown in your picture, the lever may well slide right our .... that will allow you to remove the bolt from the rear .... hopefully with the bolt and magazine tube both remove, it might be easier to remove the jammed cartridge .... again, welcome .... please take a look at our How Many ? thread (link below) and add your Henry to our community's total

http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.p ... 265#p97265

[markiver54]

We're you working the lever with athourity, or kind of watching yourself lever the rifle?

First off, welcome from Westrern North Carolina RAG!
I must say, aside from the mag tube possibly popping loose from recoil, ( unlikely IMO ), When I first shot my BBS, I realized quickly that the lever has to be completely cycled with authority as Ojai suggested.

[Shakey Jake]

Like above, my Henry needs a "firm handsake" with the lever in order to cycle properly. If you're reloading and trying to catch the spent brass as you fire, you may not be.

[Mags]

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I think lack of authority or handshake on the lever unlikely. From the description and picture there appears to be plenty of authority for it to be jammed up so tight.

[CT_Shooter]

Welcome to the forum. As you can read, there are lots of knowledgeable members who are more than willing to help with issues like this; nonetheless, you own a rifle made by a company with extraordinary customer service and you will NOT be disappointed in your selection of a Henry. It will become your favorite rifle/company soon enough.

[Mistered]

probably operator error but wanted some opinions.

It appears the round never cleared the tube and got jammed under the cartridge lift.
Either due to a short lever cycle or because the tube popped out and relieved the spring pressure and it didn't get pushed back all the way.
Regardless it never made it to the chamber so if it is cycling OK now all is well and I'd say back to the range without delay!

[GFK]

First, welcome! Sorry for your situation. My thinking is similar to Mistered's. The cartridge should have ejected. What brand of rounds are you using? I had a similar situation happened when using Magtech ammo in my Marlin 1894C. It failed to eject three consecutive rounds.

I removed to magazine tube spring initially, to clear the jam. Then, I fired two more rounds with the same results (loaded one at a time). Next, I shot Federals and Remingtons without any issues. I concluded that Magtech rounds are not for my lever. I will probably shoot the rest through my revolver.

[Mags]

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The OP's issue was with feed, not ejection.

... The cartridge should have ejected. ...

[GFK]

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The OP's issue was with feed, not ejection.

... The cartridge should have ejected. ...

Thanks for pointing that out. I noticed the brand also.