[longshotz]

Will be picking up a used 1895 45/70 from a long time friend. He has used magnum pistol primers forever in the rifle because with standard rifle primers there is the occasional misfire. He has never bothered to get the gun looked at as it he is satisfied with the primer substitute. He seems to think that the spring tension is to lite to detonate the rifle primers. Hard to argue otherwise as I have witnessed this; flawless firing with the pistol primers and misfires with the rifle primers. Thanks all or the help.

I imagine there is a thread somewhere but I couldn't find it so apologies if this is has already been covered.

 

[GreenMachine]

Longshotz you did not mention the brand of primer used?

But I would not use a Large Pistol Primer in a Rifle Case as they are not the same seating depth.

As to primers there is a difference between manufacturers as to how hard the cup is. So if you do have a lighter hammer spring it may cause FTF ( Failure To Fire )

The easiest to ignite is the Federal 210 Primer of which I strictly use in my 45-70.

But if you do wish to add pressure to your hammer spring you do not have to replace it. Simply remove the stock and you will see the hammer spring. Just remove the spring and add a washer that fits the shaft and still just large enough to hold the spring. Add 1 washer at a time till you no longer have ignition problems. It should not take more than 1 or 2 washers to accomplish this. If it works to your satisfaction you can leave the washers or simply order a new spring. And you will be able to use the rifle till the new spring comes in.

Or switch to the Federal primer.

 

[riflerick]

I don"t load pistol primers on any large scale, but I thought the only difference between pistol and rifle primers was the wall thickness of the cup.

riflerick

 

[longshotz]

Longshotz you did not mention the band of primer used?

But I would not use a Large Pistol Primer in a Rifle Case as they are not the same seating depth.

As to primers there is a difference between manufacturers as to how hard the cup is. So if you do have a lighter hammer spring it may cause FTF ( Failure To Fire )

The easiest to ignite is the Federal 210 Primer of which I strictly use in my 45-70.

But if you do wish to add pressure to your hammer spring you do not have to replace it. Simply remove the stock and you will see the hammer spring. Just remove the spring and add a washer that fits the shaft and still just large enough to hold the spring. Add 1 washer at a time till you no longer have ignition problems. It should not take more than 1 or 2 washers to accomplish this. If it works to your satisfaction you can leave the washers or simply order a new spring. And you will be able to use the rifle till the new spring comes in.

Or switch to the Federal primer.

Thanks for the tips.

He uses CCI Large Pistol Magnum primers so I will use my Fed. 210's that I have here already and see what happens. If no change then I will give the washer fix a go.
Thanks again.

 

[foxtrapper]

Try new factory hammer spring. I bet that someone clipped a couple coils off the one that is in your rifle trying to get a lighter trigger pull

 

[Jim the Hillbilly]

I would go with a new spring and large rifle primers.. A large pistol primer is slightly shorter than a rifle primer so fully seated would require a longer firing pin movement which in itself could lead to relibility problems.
But if it aint broke dont mess with it may apply here.

 

[trapper-xx]

You could also put a small washer on the hammer strut behind the hammer spring. This wouild give you a little stiffer spring and a stronger hammer strike.

 

[GreenMachine]

I don"t load pistol primers on any large scale, but I thought the only difference between pistol and rifle primers was the wall thickness of the cup.

riflerick

The thickness in most cases between rifle primers and pistol primers that you state is correct as they are thicker for rifle primers as there operating pressures are higher in rifle cartridges.

Also as stated above the Large Rifle Primers are longer than Large Pistol Primers.

But in the case of Small Rifle Primers VS Small Pistol Primers they are the same as far as size but not for pressure. But some will still use Small Pistol Primers in a Rifle cartridge and visa versa.

For myself I will use only primers designed for there respective cartridge.

But if things dry up again all bets are off lol.

But please remember when changing primers always work up your loads again for that primer. And please be safe.

 

[GreenMachine]

Thanks for the tips.

He uses CCI Large Pistol Magnum primers so I will use my Fed. 210's that I have here already and see what happens. If no change then I will give the washer fix a go.
Thanks again.

CCI has the Hardest Cup out there. So I think you are all set to go with the Fed 210's Happy Shooting. If you have problems feel free to give me a shout.

You will find all kinds of good info here http://marauder.homestead.com/Rifles.html to help you out as the take down of the 1895 for all purposes is the same as the 1894.

 

[dogjaw]

How much of a dent are in those failed primers? It may be your friend's primers or how they were seated. CCI primers are the hardest, and pretty much all I ever use. They're may be a little harder to seat because of this. If not seated, the firing pin can deform the primer causing it not to go off. What powder are you using? Ball powders work better with mag primers.

 

[Levergunz]

Basically someone is going about this all wrong.Dont try to fix the result of the problem, but fix the problem.If the rifle doesnt fire correctly with rifle primers,first pull the firing pins out and make sure they(2 pc)are okay and not chipped or broken.Then make sure the firing pin bore is cleaned out of carbon and/or brass particals etc.When this is done and if it doesnt fire correctly then go to the hammer spring and shim or replace as needed.Choose a primer for best performance and acccuracy.Good shootin!

 

[Tom in Arizona]

Basically someone is going about this all wrong.Dont try to fix the result of the problem, but fix the problem.If the rifle doesnt fire correctly with rifle primers,first pull the firing pins out and make sure they(2 pc)are okay and not chipped or broken.Then make sure the firing pin bore is cleaned out of carbon and/or brass particals etc.When this is done and if it doesnt fire correctly then go to the hammer spring and shim or replace as needed.Choose a primer for best performance and acccuracy.Good shootin!

That's how it's done!

 

[paulo57509]

Basically someone is going about this all wrong.Dont try to fix the result of the problem, but fix the problem.If the rifle doesnt fire correctly with rifle primers,first pull the firing pins out and make sure they(2 pc)are okay and not chipped or broken.Then make sure the firing pin bore is cleaned out of carbon and/or brass particals etc.When this is done and if it doesnt fire correctly then go to the hammer spring and shim or replace as needed.Choose a primer for best performance and acccuracy.Good shootin!

This is the first thing that popped into my head. I've seen firing pin bores in bolts that were packed with crud.

 

[ADL]

http://alesandrodelima.blogspot.com/2020/05/marlin-1895-gbl-45-70-review-misfire.html

 

[Bill2311]

Check the two piece firing pin. Could well be a burr on the bolt along the edge of the firing pin channel. The rear portion has to be pressed up against the spring pressure so that it aligns with the front piece when the rifle comes into battery in order for the hammer to strike the rear piece, which in turn, strikes the front piece, detonating the primer.

 

[Magilla26]

I had this same problem on my 1895SS. I don't know if your rifle has a hammer spur but I removed the hammer spur on my rifle and problem solved.

 

[Officer29]

http://alesandrodelima.blogspot.com/2020/05/marlin-1895-gbl-45-70-review-misfire.html

Good article and welcome to the forum.

 

[Officer29]

Check the firing pin as stated above and clean. Also I have always used CCI Large Rifle Magnum primers and have never had a misfire. Be sure and let us know how you are coming along.

 

[riley]

All good suggestions! I have also had the frustration of misfires in my .35Rem and 4T carbines and was once chastised for changing from the "perfected" Marlin springs to "Wolf" springs, which did not solve the problem, although it did improve the trigger functioning. I found two problems causing my misfires: one of which has been addressed - the Lee auto prime I was using had a worn out "toggle" and was not seating all the primers fully (immediately corrected), and the COAL of my loads were a "smidgen" too long, which cushioned the firing pin enough to cause a misfire. Even though the primer on a misfire would be indented, I could recycle them a second time and usually they would fire. This cushioning effect was mentioned on another site in regards to cast bullet loading where extra wide meplat bullets had to be seated deeper in the case to function properly. I discovered that the short throat of my carbines required I pay closer attention to limiting OAL to the maximum recommended by the bullet manufactures' to insure consistent ignition every time!

I also switched to Federal 210 primers, which is also recommended for "drillings" and antique arms shooters because of their softer cups and more sensitive priming compound. My 444P's throat is about .10 shorter than the 444SS according to most sources - I now believe it to be true. The easy "breakdown" of the Marlin for cleaning sure makes troubleshooting the firing mechanism a lot easier than any other lever actions made if "crude" is part of your problem! Good luck with yours.

 

[ADL]

Test the rear pin when you are squeezing the lever tightly.

Will be picking up a used 1895 45/70 from a long time friend. He has used magnum pistol primers forever in the rifle because with standard rifle primers there is the occasional misfire. He has never bothered to get the gun looked at as it he is satisfied with the primer substitute. He seems to think that the spring tension is to lite to detonate the rifle primers. Hard to argue otherwise as I have witnessed this; flawless firing with the pistol primers and misfires with the rifle primers. Thanks all or the help.

I imagine there is a thread somewhere but I couldn't find it so apologies if this is has already been covered.

Test the rear pin when you are squeezing the lever tightly.

http://alesandrodelima.blogspot.com/2020/05/marlin-1895-gbl-45-70-review-misfire.html