Off Face

[calvin humburg]

Got my lifter put back together the release block and lever gave me a little trouble but it gave in after I figured out what was going on. Has anybody had a lifter put back on face. I would like to talk to someone who does it. I can't make a shim work when I get the barrel tight on the frame the for end won't go on. It seems to me that you would need to bulid up the lug a little and also the relese lug a little to, looked to me like a lot of wear was in the release lug not much surface there to take the hammering. Should you get your gun on face before you get it restocked so the forarm could be made to fit just in case it didn't turn out just like it did when it was new. best ch

[Austin W Hogan]

Before you try anything else, remove the barrel, turn it on its rib and remove the little 4 40 headless screw that retains the extractor. Take the extractor out, clean out the passage with a Q tip, clean the extractor and the recess in the barrel. Then clean the notch where the bolt engages, and the end of the bolt. Check the bolt for freedom of movement. The bolt and bite in the earliest lifters are not self compensating for wear.
Reassemble the gun and check for looseness. If there is movement, lay a half inch wide piece of newspaper or other thin paper on the water table and try to close the gun. If it closes you may need some upward pressure on the barrel from the fore end. This isn't easy; Lawrence DelGrego is probably the best answer if this adjustment is needed.
Along the way, you may want to check the frame for warpage with a small square and a good straight edge. The only loose lifter I have appears to be because of a warped frame.

Best, Austin

[David Holes]

I have used a small piece of blue painters tape, blue masking tape with great results. It stays in place and leaves no residue when removed. I have left it on the hinge area and applied grease over it and shot a 8 week trap leaque. Is a cheap fix and worked for me.

[Mark Landskov]

Calvin, as Austin said, your extractor may be an issue. My 1877 lifter did not have a serialized extractor, which may or may not indicate a replacement. I used Dykem Blue and checked the interference between the breech face and extractor. Needless to say, I had to carefully file many thousandths off the extractor before I could get the action to close properly. THEN, I worked with shims. I bought a little $5.00 feeler gage from my local hardware store and cut a piece from the .004" gage to bring the barrels back 'on face'. I know you want something more permanent, but the shim does work for me. Good luck!

[David Hamilton]

Austin, we talked about this problem before. I had trouble with my lifter sticking closed. It was hard to start the lifter lever moving. The cure was removing barely visible rust from under the extractor face. A bit of brushing with a stiff metal brush and cleaning with oil and Voila! Opens smooth as silk! David