Ruger .44 Carbine, old model. Failure to go into battery

[federali]

My friend just purchased a mint condition .44 carbine, the original or older model Deerstalker. Firing a clean gun with FACTORY ammo, the action hangs up at the beginning of its forward stroke. It ejects the casing, picks up a fresh round, elevates it, then stops. Examination discloses that the cartridge itself is not the cause of the stoppage. It's in the action somewhere.

Can anyone please assist if you've experienced this problem and know what to look for? Many thanks.

 

[RonEgg]

I am sure someone will be one to help. The only thing I ever heard about that great rifle, was to use 240 gr factory.

 

[Short Barrel]

I'm no expert on these things but don't rule out the ammo till you try another brand.

Mine shot great with hornady 240 gr XTP's.I bought a box of ammo from a smaller company,loaded with the same bullets and the gun refuses to eject or load the next round.i had to cycle it by hand.I'm guessing the new loads are lighter than the Hornadys.

 

[pete44ru]

If the front end of the lower TG housing, ahead of the loading port, can be flexed or moved even a tiny iota while the barreled action is mounted in the stock, the TG Housing's attachment lip has either cracked or broken off, allowing the front end (containing the feed machanism) to "float" - resulting in a FTF.

I check a prospective purchase (if I can't take it apart for a visual inspection) via inserting a finder into the mag to grasp the bottom metal while the barreled action is firmly held in the other hand during the wriggle test.

the other alternative is in regards to "clean" - How sure are you that there's not been a lead boolit fired, leaving a bit of lead floating around inside the gas cylinder, which can also cause a FTF.

.

 

[Pinecone]

federali, The first thing to do would be to take the gun down thoroughly, inspect all the individual parts and give the gun a thorough "good" cleaning then re-assemble and run some "dummy" cartridges through it to see how things function. If all is aok to this point, then test fire the gun. I have "fixed" more of these Ruger .44 Carbines doing just the "above" action than I can remember! A good many of them were guns that had just "changed hands"! For whatever reason, probably because of fear to take this gun apart by the owners, this seems to be one gun that doesn't get cleaned the way it should regularly when seeing a lot of use!........................Dick :wink:

 

[mohavesam]

+1 Pinecone.
Pay attention to the bolt raceway for burrs and clean the gas port thoroughly. Reduced gas flow seriously affects cycling.

These guns were designed decades ago for very specific factory loads - Remington ball powder 240 gr jacketed loads. Back when thorough stripping and periodic cleaning were expected abilities of a hunter.

Don't try to outsmart the engineers... It will run smoothly and give more decades of service with reasonable care & feeding.