Modern Marlin info - loading gate change

[86er]

PREFACE - I don't have a modern Marlin and don't know that much about them. I am passing on what someone from Marlin told me yesterday. Bare with me:

In order to save money, the new loading gates on the '94 models do not have the concave cut out on the back. That one process take time and cost as much as $3 to perform. As a result, wide metplat bullets sometimes grab that spot and hang up - and won't feed. An example of this was 41 Magnum bullets over 220 grains tend to be wide and won't feed.

A simple fix is to press the gate in and hit the back of it with a round file until it is slightly contoured.

We had the problem with my friend Corey's rifle - that's how I found out about all this. He couldn't cylcle 255 grain cast bullets. A few strokes of the file fixed it, like stated.

Please provide more input and specifics if you know them - like I said this is the tidbit of information I have and my best understanding of it.

[J Miller]

I'll bet Marlin didn't lower the price of the 94s by $3.00 when they cheapened up the loading gate.

Did the person at Marlin tell you when this quality reduction step was initiated?

Yo! Wild West guns, here's another aftermarket part for you make.

Sorry for my attitude, manufacturers rarely make existing designs better, they always seem to make them worse. Just bugs me.

Joe

[Old Savage]

Gotta watch for that.

[Andrew]

Sorry for my attitude, manufacturers rarely make existing designs better, they always seem to make them worse. Just bugs me.

Joe

Kind of like car manufacturers do.

[cjm135]

I'm not aware of this. Are you talking about filing the inside of the receiver at the loading gate slot or the loading gate spring?

[86er]

I just found out it is the outside edge of the frame - just in front of the loading gate - when you push it down there is a sharp edge. It is no longer a round radius. This is on all models. The result is that wide metplat cartridges won't feed into the magazine at all. It can be fixed by using a round chainsaw file to bevel the edge slightly so the bullet won't grab on it. It is predominant on the 444's because a heavy bullet is wider and slightly longer 2.62 will feed but a hair longer and you can't feed them into the mag. Makes the consumer buy factory ammo, maybe from Marlin's partner Hornday. For us handloaders, the chainsaw file will be a necessity.

[chadbr]

Anyone have a picture handy of the differences?

[Borregos]

Ah yes, pictures are worth a thousand words!!!

[Modoc ED]

For what it's worth:

I have a .444 Marlin made in 2005 and I just checked it and the area that "86er" just described has a broken edge. Soooooooo, perhaps it's a post-2005 modification. Of course I've run probably 1500 rounds through that loading gate so that may have contributed to the broken edge somewhat.

Anyway, thanks for the tip "86er". I'll write it down on my touble shooting list for future use.

[J Miller]

I just found out it is the outside edge of the frame - just in front of the loading gate - when you push it down there is a sharp edge. It is no longer a round radius. This is on all models. The result is that wide metplat cartridges won't feed into the magazine at all. It can be fixed by using a round chainsaw file to bevel the edge slightly so the bullet won't grab on it. It is predominant on the 444's because a heavy bullet is wider and slightly longer 2.62 will feed but a hair longer and you can't feed them into the mag. Makes the consumer buy factory ammo, maybe from Marlin's partner Hornday. For us handloaders, the chainsaw file will be a necessity.

OK, no digital camera, my batteries are dead so I can't take pics, but I believe I see what 86er is talking about. I looked at my 2005 vintage 1894 Cowboy and here is what I see.

On the outside of the loading port the flat side of the receiver leads to a 45° bevel that leads to a small 90° surface perpendicular to the outside of the receiver. At the very front of the loading port, inside the receiver, there is an oval relief cut. This facilitates loading by making insertion of the cartridges easier. Were it not there you have a sharp 90° edge that the cartridge scrapes against. This oval relief also gives the cartridge more room to maneuver into the magazine.

As I said in my previous post, they never make things better.

At least when we file our own relief cut, it won't be visible from the outside.

Joe