Originally Posted by
TCinVA
I just purchased a JM stamped 1894 in .44 magnum. It was non-functional when I received it because the carrier was so buggered up. The cartridge stop sheared off and the resulting mess was sufficient to stop the carrier from moving when the action was worked.
The gun clearly had not been used heavily or fired very much. I suspect it was in the gun shop I bought it from (through Gunbroker) because the prior owner didn't know what was wrong, how to fix it, and didn't want to bother trying. I replaced it with a new style carrier from Brownells and she works like a champ now.
That, of course, isn't the "jam". What happens is that at a certain point the carrier can wear enough that the lever is no longer moving it down far enough to receive another cartridge from the magazine properly, but still up enough that it's no longer holding the cartridge in place. When this happens the cartridge backs out against the carrier and freezes it in place, locking up the action. The angle on the lever where it engages the carrier can be reworked a bit to solve this. You can also replace the carrier...which, given the rather complicated arrangement found on older style carriers is probably a good idea anyway if you want to use the gun seriously.
In a lever action the carrier performs the same function as the shell stops in a pump shotgun. Shell stops in a pump shotgun are wear items and will need to be replaced from time to time. Same is likely going to be true for the carrier in a lever gun.
Lever guns are a lot like revolvers in that people own them but don't shoot them very much and, as a result, don't understand their frailties.
The pistol caliber lever guns tend to be quite picky about what type of ammo you feed them. They need their screws checked regularly (failing to keep screws tight accelerates wear) and they need to be maintained by somebody who has an idea of how they actually work. So few people out there have met those requirements that, just like revolvers, used guns people pick up are often abused and overdue for critical maintenance and armorer-level work.