Henry Big Boy .44 magnum

[glockoneniner]

A friend of mine has a new Henry .44 magnum. From the day he got it it would not extract spent cartridges. So, he sent it back to Henry, they fix it and send it back. We're at his ranch yesterday shooting and all was well w/the Big Boy. Until we shot about the 10th or so round of CCI Blazer .44. Then the Henry would not extract any more casings.

Does anyone have an idea what is going on with this? Would shooting aluminum-based cartridges ruin the gun?

[Thane]

No, aluminum casings shouldn't cause extraction failures. I doubt the casings themselves have anything to do with your problem. Powder residue could be causing problems, though, and is my prime suspect. Here's a few things you can check to be sure.

Check the extractor. Is the extractor chipped? Is the spring on the extractor faulty/weak/broken? Is there dirt/debris underneath the extractor? Any one of these things can cause extraction failures.

If you can find no fault with the extractor itself, look at the chamber face. There should be a little "dimple" that the extractor fits into when the action is closed. Is there dirt, debris, or powder residue build-up in that slot? If so, this can keep the extractor from "snapping" over the cartridge head, also causing failures.

If no problem can be found through these checks, take the gun to a qualified gunsmith, or call Henry back and ask their advice.

[stevie_d_64]

I'm new to the levergun genre as well...

I would also recommend getting in touch with one of Henry's technical folks...That doesn't sound right to me...No reason that should be doing that this soon in the game...

Where exactly in the cycle does it start to "not" function???

Right when you are begining to cycle the lever???

I wonder if the extractor is losing its hold on the casing when you fire the round...And when you work the action after the shot it has nothing to grab onto to extract the case...

Just an abstract thought...The only thing I can imaging that could be happening here...

I'm curious...Let us know...

[Cosmo 9]

First let me say I hate Aluminum casings!

Question, is the casing stuck or is the extractor not grabbing on?

[stevie_d_64]

First let me say I hate Aluminum casings!

Question, is the casing stuck or is the extractor not grabbing on?

I was thinking the same thing...

Can the extractor pop off or dislodge off the rim of the case and not remain engaged after you fire off a round???

I mean I wouldn't be surprised if that occured, those are some hefty loads you shoot through these rifles...

Any defect in the manufacturing could exasperate the problem...

Stuff happens...I'm sure it can be resolved with the Henry folks...All those levergun manufacturers I took a long hard look at...They don't put out bad products...But sometines you do get a funny one out of there every now and then...

It can be aggravating, but I figure its fun and interesting to get the problem or issue resolved in my opinion...You learn a whole lot about the firearm that way...

Just call me an annoying optimist...

[sparx]

Just as an FYI, I had to pull an old .22 case out of the chamber of my M-I-L's Marlin lever-action just a few weeks ago when my wife and I dropped by their place in Rising Star. Her son had been target practicing with the .22 and wasn't able to get the case extracted, and had tried to dislodge it by tapping it with a cleaning rod sent down the muzzle but wasn't succesful. Since he knew we were coming to visit and I love tinkering with guns, he had it ready for me to take a look at when we arrived.

The problem was that the case was held in place by the cartridge stop spring (a leaf-type spring), and the area on the rim that the ejector snags was quite worn away from repeated attempts to eject the shell with the lever. Pressing the spring down with a small screwdriver to flaten it released its lock on the case, enabling the case to be pushed out with the cleaning rod.

Anyway, long story short is that he was using old ammo in which some of it had small amounts of corrosion on the brass. Apparently enough though that when fired and the case expanded, the corrosion pretty much "locked" the case in the chamber tight enough that the ejector didn't have enough strength to pull it out when hooked onto the rim.

I tested my theory and sure enough, we had another case stuck in the chamber after only the second shot, so I went through their .22 ammo and culled the shells with corrosion for disposal and bought them a few bricks of new CCI. We shot the rest of the "good" old ammo without a hitch and they were pleased to have a functional .22 placed back in action.

I mention all this since as even though you're using new ammo (and with aluminum cases, which usually doesn't corrode easily [unless it's been exposed to Midland water! ]), you might want to check the cartridge chamber for residue (especially if you've ever fired cheap or "dirty" ammo through it), or perhaps rust or even a burr or something that would prevent the cartridge, once expanded slightly after firing, from slipping back out smoothly and cleanly. If you still have any of the shells that *did* extract (or you were able to get those that don't extract removed), check them for scratches or wear marks on the surface, which might indicate higher than normal friction in that area of the chamber.

Sorry for the long wind... sometimes I just get carried away.