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Marlin Jam


Waimea

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New shooter having a problem with the dreaded Marlin Jam.

Longer OAL ammo seems to help some but what is the real fix for this issue?

The rifle is JM stamped, not a Remlin.

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Howdy Waimea.

 

The BEST fix is to send the carrier (carrier only) to Gunner Gatlin in Michigan and have the timing ramp

set with his carbon steel insert.   

 

If the shooter is using shorter ammo (depending on caliber), he needs to ask Gunner to give him approx .005 height increase on the carrier.

If he wants to shoot longer ammo, then basically keep the ramp height the same.

 

I'm not at liberty to post Gunners number but if the owner wants to call me, I will give him Gunners number.

 

If the owner prefers not to send the carrier to Gunner, another option is to TIG weld the ramp slightly higher (a few .000).

 

I would not recommend bending the carrier ...... period.

 

I can be reached at 865 / 696-1996

 

And I can explain to the shooter why the rifle works a little better with longer ammo under its present timing setup, etc.....

 

 

..........Widder

 

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You didn't mention what caliber you have. I have two Marlin's in .357 Mag. that I shoot 38 Special in. Both are very picky with bullet style and OAL. After a lot of trial & error I found that using a 125 grain round nose flat point bullet at an OAL of 1.380" cured my jam problem in both rifles. I haven't had a jam in years.

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I had the same jam in my 336 shooting 38-55, but slightly shorter OAL solved my problem.  It likes the 2.5-inch OAL or just a hair under 2.5-inch.

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6 hours ago, Widder, SASS #59054 said:

Howdy Waimea.

 

The BEST fix is to send the carrier (carrier only) to Gunner Gatlin in Michigan and have the timing ramp

set with his carbon steel insert.   

 

If the shooter is using shorter ammo (depending on caliber), he needs to ask Gunner to give him approx .005 height increase on the carrier.

If he wants to shoot longer ammo, then basically keep the ramp height the same.

 

I'm not at liberty to post Gunners number but if the owner wants to call me, I will give him Gunners number.

 

If the owner prefers not to send the carrier to Gunner, another option is to TIG weld the ramp slightly higher (a few .000).

 

I would not recommend bending the carrier ...... period.

 

I can be reached at 865 / 696-1996

 

And I can explain to the shooter why the rifle works a little better with longer ammo under its present timing setup, etc.....

 

 

..........Widder

 

Howdy Widder
Thanks for the info. I wasn't aware Gunner did this kind of work.

I will get in touch with him.

 

Will you be coming to Black Gold? If so the owner will be there.

 

Waimea

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High Spade

The owners gun seems to prefer factory ammo and not my bullets. How insulting!

Anyhow it is a .357.

But he's running .38s.

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38 minutes ago, Waimea said:

High Spade

The owners gun seems to prefer factory ammo and not my bullets. How insulting!

Anyhow it is a .357.

 

 

Have the Widdermatic done to it.

Then he can run those 100gr rnfp bullets in it like butter.

 

I know you have that mold.  

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Waimea,

 

I doubt I will be at BG this year.   I'm just now getting some of my energy back and really don't want to push myself in such hot weather

for 2-3 days.   

I'm starting to shoot again at monthly matches and enjoying it again.   For nearly 2 years since heart surgery, I just couldn't get the energy

to push myself but things are getting better again.

 

Normally, a Widdermatic type mod can allow just about ANY bullet style and weight to function good in the Marlin.

And Over All Length of the ammo can be established with Gunner's method of embedding the timing ramp with a piece of hard

carbon steel.   It takes a diamond file to cut it.    Its the best fix for timing issues (which cause the Marlin jam).

 

The Marlin jam can occur with any caliber and any bullet style because it is caused by the OAL being out of sync with the timing ramp

on the bottom of the carrier.   I wish I could state it better but that is basically what causes it.

Shorter OAL ammo work better when the timing is on the faster side.

Longer OAL ammo work better when the timing is on the slower side..... although most ammo on the long side of OAL specs will also

feed well with fast timing, but not too fast.

 

Setting timing up normally requires only approx .002 - to .005 increase in carrier ramp height, depending on the preferred OAL ammo used

in the rifle.

I'm constantly working with Marlin owners that seek info on how much height increase is needed to cure the Marlin jam in relation to the

OAL of the ammo being used.    Again, bullet style and weight have nothing to do that cause the Marlin jam...... its the OAL of the ammo

being used in relation to the timing.

 

Gunner and I frequently talk and he is VERY professional in his work on carriers and setting the timing correctly.

 

..........Widder

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 7/7/2022 at 8:09 PM, Waimea said:

High Spade

The owners gun seems to prefer factory ammo and not my bullets. How insulting!

Anyhow it is a .357.

But he's running .38s.

I Think he should buy a different Gun.  One that likes your Bullets  !! since i am sure he has sold your bullets for you

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