# Buckmark jams



## docjones

I have a Browning buckmark and have been having problems with jamming. Whenever the trigger is pulled and no cartridge is fired (with a dud cartridge, for example) it is very hard to rack the pistol. Usually after a few tries and with the trigger pulled the slide can be pulled back by applying lots of pull. The same thing seems to happen if the trigger is pulled without a cartridge present. I have had a gunsmith work on the gun but it still does the same thing. Does any one out there have any ideas what the trouble is? I have tried two different magazines and it jammed with both. 

Thanks. 
Docjones


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## Steve M1911A1

Is it equally difficult to rack the gun's slide with an unfired cartridge in its chamber, and also with its chamber empty?

My bet is that it's easy enough to rack the slide on an empty chamber, but difficult to do so when an unfired cartridge is present.

The Buckmark is, I believe, set up to be an accurate pistol.
Part of accomplishing that with rimfire ammunition is keeping its chamber and slide-rails tight (as in +0, -0.001).

(Of course, its barrel may be dirty, or even ringed just ahead of its chamber, but a gunsmith should've seen that and reported it to you.)

There are a couple of things that you can do about this.
• Use better-quality ammunition, probably of match quality if you can find it, so you won't experience misfires,
• Or you could have the pistol's chamber polished by a really good pistolsmith. (Don't do it yourself.)
• You might also have the gunsmith polish the pistol's rails, both of the slide and of the receiver.

If your pistol is brand new, you may merely be experiencing tightness that has not been worked out yet. Some pistols need a break-in period.


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## DJ Niner

With a single-action autoloading pistol such as your BuckMark, it will always be harder to get the slide moving if the hammer is in the down position after dry-firing on an empty chamber or after a dud, as the pressure of the hammer and it's spring is added to the recoil spring in resisting the initial rearward slide movement. I've noticed that the additional required effort is more noticeable in Browning BuckMarks than in some other makes/models, probably due to some quirk in the design, but the problem exists in basically all internal-hammer single-action autoloaders (I can feel it in my Ruger .22 pistols, too). Next time you have the pistol disassembled for a detailed cleaning, wipe the face of the hammer with a lubricated patch, and it will make initial cocking a bit easier. You could also try squirting a little bit of spray-on lubricant into the rear of the frame just below the slide, where the hammer pivots and is pushed back into a cocked position by the slide.


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## Spike12

Any problems with a quality pistol should start with a look at the ammo. I'm always amazed at how people will spend the money to buy a really gun/great gun to have something the expect to get great performance with then feed it with the absolute cheapest junk ammo they can find then wonder why their wonder weapon doesn't perform upto it's price. 

.22 ammo is the dirtiest stuff you can shoot. The worst of it is unbelievable. I have a S&W 22A that will just stop DEAD if it's not kept clean and CCI ammo is all it will run. My Ruger MKII is much better but not perfect. 

Make sure you start with a perfectly clean gun and US made ammo.


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## denner

Just a thought, but, how old is your Buckmark? Is this a new or sudden occurence or has this same issue been happening as long as you've owned the pistol? Has the pistol ever run w/o issue?

What type of ammunition are you using and how clean and lubed was the pistol when you were experiencing the problem? Are you running exposed lead 22LR's projectiles in your BuckmarK?

In my experience 22LR ammunition burns dirty and can get semi-auto bore's and chambers quite dirty and very sticky especially when exposed lead projectiles are used and/or the gun is dirty and dry. I try avoiding running exposed lead ammo in my Buckmark and prefer a little hotter than standard as well.


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## Steve M1911A1

*DJ Niner* seems to have much more experience with the Buckmark than I do.
His advice seems better than mine.

The geometry of slide-to-hammer contact may be necessary to the proper operation of the pistol.
The hammer probably retards slide movement for a while, letting chamber pressure drop before allowing the slide to move.


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## docjones

Thanks for your suggestions. As of now it is still almost impossible to purchase any kind of .22 ammo here in this part of Idaho, but whenever it becomes available, I will purchase some CCI ammo and try your suggestions.


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## Shipwreck

When I got my Buckmark years ago - it was not very reliable until I finally sent it in. When it came back, it was 100% after that. They did something to fix it - don't know what.


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## CW

Steve may have the key item. My Beretta 87T is a very accurate semi-match pistol. 
With the higher tolerances and finer machining, ammo and the dirt from them is top problem maker.

I find jacketed/plated ammo always runs best. Cleaning includes careful take down and scrubbing the crud out of all nooks and crannies. (plastic dental picks work great) 

And don't forget to clean the mags too. Be careful with the springs and wear eye protection even when cleaning as some of the grains of lead fouling can go flying.

Currently I'm running Remington Golden bullets with no problems.
I've also found some ammo, rather dry and a very light wipe of gun oil improves functioning.


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## Ronnielee

Doc, DJNiner told you about it being harder to pull the slide back it the hammer is down but in theory you shouldn't have to do this anyway since Browning advises that you should not dry fire the Buck Mark. I dry fired mine several times but could not see a problem when I looked in the chamber to see if there was any marring from the firing pin or any other damage. I didn't see any but don't dry fire it anymore simply because Browning said not to. It will scare you how easy it is to pull back after it has already been cocked, it did me :mrgreen:


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