Home Forums Lever Action Central Marlin Talk Model 39-A misfires

I've got a recent Model 39-A and I get 1 or 2 misfires per magazine.

This is the model with the rebounding hammer and button safety.

It's clean and seems to be good repair. I got rid of the hammer extension to lighten the hammer and this helped but did not solve the problem.

Federal cartridges work better than Remington or Winchester. I use the inexpensive cartides sold by the brick.

The firing pin mark on the rim is not very deep.

I suspect that the hammer is not hitting hard enough or that the firing pin may be short.

Rifle magazine had similar problems which they ascribed to not having the action closed completly when bench rest shooting. This is not the problem - I've checked.

Anybody else had similar problems? Can anybody suggest a possible cure? Stronger hammer spring? Longer firing pin? I really like the rifle otherwise.

I wish Marlin hadn't changed the design. I know the old models didn't have the button safety and I suspect they didn't have the rebounding hammer.

Check the firing pin and how it slides in the bolt slot. Sometimes a very slight bend, burr, or gummed up oil can add resistance. The pin should move freely.

Bruce

Cock the hammer and point the muzzle up, and the fp should slide out towards the hammer. If it doesn't, clean the bolt and make sure the fp has no burrs or crud.

Might also look at the safety. If the hammer hits it before the firing pin, it's an issue

I have seen this problem many times and it is always firing pin related. I always check around the chamber end to make sure the barrel has not been penned by a kid dry firing. If that is the problem you will need a chamber iron. Not hard to make if you have a lathe.

I have over the years seen a lot of broken firing pins in the M-39's. I only have two 39's but keep a spare pin on hand.

I have had this exact problem with my brand new out of the box Marlin 39A. I had to grind down the lower spur of the rebounding hammer strut. It is found when you remove the stock from the rifle. The rebounding hammer strut is connected to the main firing spring. Just remove the spring pull out the strut and grind er down. Replace and your rifle should and will fire every time with any brand of bullets you care to load er up with.
Now: you also may have problems with failure to extract and failure to eject. Order a extractor from Brownells, it will be a drop in part and does not require any filing, fitting, or bending. After this modification your Marlin should fire with only a few miss cycles every thousand rounds or so

I've had the problem a couple of times with my M39A. It's always been the firing pin. The last one lasted for many thousands of rounds and was broken in two places (the ends were actually rounded)

Easy fix. Break down the receiver, pull the bolt and the firing pin is in plain view laying in a groove along the top of the bolt.

Remove the old broken firing pin, clean the groove and put in a bit of lube. Then, lay in a new firing pin and reassemble.

And go shooting!!!!

Marlin M39s are a fabulous .22 rifle. In my opinion, the best and highest quality .22 rifle ever made.

Steve