I recently bought a 336 Remlin 30-30. The lever is somewhat hard to open and shut almost as if it’s jamming, per say. I planned on maybe polishing the internals and trying another lever. It doesn’t seem to have been modified and slight use. Has anyone ran into this issue or have any pointers?
Yes. Intermittently. I have had a few 336's that the lever would occasionally jam . A Remlin I currently have will do it once in a while. You have to wiggle the lever to free it up. Wish I could tell you the cure but I never bothered with figuring it out. It's so rare
Check the screw that holds the loading gate. If it is loose it will let the gate hang to the inside a little to far. Very common, especially on a rifle that has been taken apart a few times. A small dab of blue loctite or your wifes fingernail polish an degreased threads can be beneficial.
Short of that google "The dreaded Marlin jam". I don't know if it was happening with the Remlins too. Fairly easy fix.
Check the screw that holds the loading gate. If it is loose it will let the gate hang to the inside a little to far. Very common, especially on a rifle that has been taken apart a few times. A small dab of blue loctite or your wifes fingernail polish an degreased threads can be beneficial.
Short of that google "The dreaded Marlin jam". I don't know if it was happening with the Remlins too. Fairly easy fix.
What he said ^^^^^^^^^
Be sure screws are all tight...
Buffing internal parts can always help.....
Buff.....not grind
http://marauder.homestead.com/files/TUNING_M_1894.htm
I agree with the above advice. As for Remlins, They were notorious for for poor function ranging from rough/jamming actions, failing to feed to improperly clocked barrels resulting in iron sights out of line.
I came across a couple crazy cheap deals on Remlins a few years back. First was a Remlin 444 with a beautiful figured wood and perfect blue. The problem was that it wouldn't feed ammo. I bought it dirt cheap and had Ranger Point Precision smooth and time the action. When RPP was finished, the rifle performed perfectly.
Fast forward a couple years and Walmart was getting rid of all their Marlins in stock due to the poor quality. I came across one, a brand new Remlin 1895 in 45-70 for $250 plus $50 rebate. I bought it. Confirmed that the action was stiff and half the time jammed. I expected that. So, I took it to RPP and they worked their magic on that one too. The result is I got a great, smooth functioning rifle with a 3.5 lb trigger pull and ballard rifling for $500.
As far as I know, RPP no longer provides the gunsmithing services I described but I am confident that there are other gunsmiths that can.
T.S.