one piece firing pin for marlin 1894 good or bad?

[Puma Buck]

Just getting into the sport and purchased a marlin 1894 cowboy.  I going to install a wild west trigger and spring kit.  Is it also worth installing a one piece firing pin?  From what I've read on the internet there is risks with installing it.

[Coffinmaker]

The "one piece" firing pin eliminates a "safety" feature to prevent out of battery discharge in the Marlin.  The addition of  the one piece firing pin allows the action to run a little smother and run with a somewhat lighter main spring.
Most of my Marlin customers opt for the one piece firing pin and no one has yet had a problem with an out of battery discharge.  I don't personally see the one piece as a problem.  With the lighter main spring the Marlin will run smother and quicker, and with a lighter lever latch spring, the rifle is much more user friendly.
Strictly your choice.  If you, the shooter get "out of time" with the rifle, you may run the risk of an out of batter discharge.  You may well find your quite happy with a set of reduced springs.

Coffinmaker

[Puma Buck]

Thx for the reply.  Think i'm going to look into getting one.

[Driftwood Johnson]

Howdy

As Coffinmaker says, the firng pin supplied with Marlins is a safety device. It is split, and the two parts are not lined up until the lever has been completly closed. Accidentally dropping the hammer before the lever is closed and the bolt is locked up will not cause an out of battery discharge because the front half of the firing pin will not receive the blow from the hammer. When the two piece firing pin was first developed by Marlin, it was the only safety device built into the gun. I have an old Marlin made in 1894. Unlike modern Marlins, the split firing pin is the only safety device built into the gun. It does not have the redundant trigger blocking interlock that modern Marlins have which prevents the trigger from being pulled before the lever is completely closed. And it does not have the stupid cross bolt safety that modern Marlins have either. The cross bolt safety is overkill as far as this cowboy is concerned.

I would not dream of replacing the split firing pin in my old Marlin with a modern single piece firing pin. Marlin thought it was important enough to include it in the design long before corporate lawyers started dictating these things. I also own a modern Marlin that Mrs Johnson shoots in CAS. The stupid cross bolt safety on this one has been locked in the 'fire' position, so it does not accidentally engage at the loading table. This happens a lot. I have left the trigger interlock and the split firing pin alone on this gun though.

Personally, I feel that the amount of lightening that the action gets from replacing the firing pin is so minor that it is lost on the averabe shooter. Mrs Johnson's Marlin has been tuned by one of our local smiths so that the hammer spring is very light and the action of the gun overall is very smooth, much better than when I bought it. I am more comfortable leaving the original firing pin alone in this gun, since Mrs Johnson is a relatively new shooter.