I have been shooting competitively since 1965, but a few years ago it hit me that I never owned a lever action rifle. Some of my friends joked that was "un-American". I got a 30-30 that sadly has a "microgroove" barrel, and an 1895 45-70 that has Ballard rifling; which is much easier to work with.
Recently picked up two Levermatics; a model 56 and a 62 in 30 carbine. The 22 is a tack-driver and functions flawlessly. I have not fired the .30 yet, but cycling with dummies, it sometimes fails to eject. I can see that the magazine release is somehow tied to the ejector, and the magazine catch does not always engage the tab on the magazine. It seems like there may be a weak or broken spring involved ... but I can't see a spring in the fuzzy exploded view drawing that I have. It has been too cold here in the Deep South to do delicate work on the bench in the garage, so as soon as it warms up enough I'll disassemble and investigate. My "McGiver" fix is to loop an elastic behind the mag catch and the front of the mag. So arranged, the catch engages and holds the mag securely and feeding, extracting and ejection is about 100% reliable. More on this as things develop. Now to go read stuff here!
Respectfully,
Bob S.
