Browning Maxus Shotgun Troubleshooting

Discussion in 'Browning Maxus Shotgun' started by Billythekid, Mar 20, 2011.

  1. I'm sure that you are experiencing the same trigger issue that myself and countless other Browning Maxus owe ers for years have had ! Unfortunately !!!
  2. Cleaning will not resolve the issue of the Browning Maxus !!
  3. Marsh Hound

    Marsh Hound Copper BB

    Was doing some internet searching for a part and came across this forum. I got a Browning Maxus bout 2 years ago and had problems from the get go with it. Cleaning it only seemed to make slight improvements so it ended up going back to Browning. They made a repair although they didn't say what was replaced and I got about 5 weeks out of it during this past hunting season till the problems came back. Same as posted above. Gun would cycle next shell but would not shoot the second round. After playing with the gun a bit I came to the conclusion that the bolt was not cycling quickly enough or fully to reset the hammer and let the bolt fully seat forward.

    Tore the gun down again and noticed a metal spur sticking out from between the Action spring plunger and the action spring tube. I pulled the spur out and cleaned the area around the plunger with action cleaner really well to get any reamaining fouling out , oiled the action spring with a few drops of oil and two drops around the plunger, and put the gun back together. Went to pull the bolt back and it wouldn't budge. Disassembled the gun 2 times and put it back together and the bolt wouldn't budge as the action spring plunger was completely seized up. Took it to one of our more reputable local gun shops and he said he had another gun in for the same problem. He's waiting on a new action spring plunger for those two guns and they have been on back-order since the beginning of the year.
    Bryan F Jones likes this.
  4. Response to Marsh Hound ! Unfortunately the more people I talk to about the Maxus the more problems regarding the same issues they have had for years ! COME ON BROWNING !!!
  5. Springers4dux

    Springers4dux Copper BB

    I've read several of these posts regarding problems with the Maxus. I bought my Maxus in 2011 and never had a problem until last duck season. My gun was intermittently failing to feed and failing to release a shell from the mag tube. I sent my gun to Browning in Arnold, MO for repair. They had the gun for over 4 months before they returned the gun supposedly repaired at a cost of $122.00. I took the gun out this duck season and after less than two boxes of shells experienced the same problem I had prior to sending the gun in the first time. I cleaned the gun per Browning's instructions after each shoot and experienced the same problems. One time it failed to release a shell from the mag tube after the first shot after a cleaning. I contacted Browning again and they said send it back and they didn't know when I would get it back. I did some research on this forum and others and found out several Maxus owners have had good luck with Sure Cycle products. I spoke with Jeff at SRM (surecycle.com) and he was very knowledgeable about the Maxus and problems associated with them.

    I sent the Maxus to Jeff on a Monday and got it back on Saturday completely repaired and functioning properly on duck loads. I haven't tried low base loads yet. Jeff put in a recoil spring assembly, magazine spring kit, and sealed my gas piston as well as a shotgun tune up. I am very happy with what Jeff did with my gun and haven't had a problem with it since.

    I contacted Browning again to see about a refund for the supposed work they did on my Maxus. They told me I had to send the gun back to them so they could go over it again. I told them they had it for 4 months the first time to repair it and they obviously didn't repair it. I did not have confidence they could fix it correctly the second time. Long story short, they refused to refund any money without sending the gun back. There was no point in sending the gun back after the work done by SRM. Browning requires the gun to be in factory condition.

    My point to this long post is consider taking your Maxus to a local gunsmith or better yet send it to Jeff at SRM if you are having problems that are not specifically warranty related. You will be much happier and you won't waste your money on Browning service repair.

    Don't get me wrong I love my Maxus. The gun fits great and points well. I'm just not a fan of Browning customer service. They are not helpful at all.
  6. deltawaterfowler

    deltawaterfowler Copper BB

    Hi folks!

    I have an issue with my Maxus that my gunsmith can't figure out. For some reason my magazine is no longer holding it's shells in place. If I load the first round in, it auto loads into the chamber per normal, but when I go to add a 2nd or 3rd round, the shell stop doesn't work and it immediately pushes the shell out into the carrier for the next round.

    This causes two problems 1) a potential jam 2) unable to load more than two rounds into the maxus.

    So thinking the issue was with the shell stop, we ordered the new part from Browning, but still had the exact same issue. My gunsmith called Browning tech for support, and they said to load more rounds in hold down the carrier close button.

    Doing this works, but it's 1) a pain in the a$$ and 2) means I can't use the magazine lock switch to change round sizes if a goose is coming into my set.

    Has anyone run into this? We spoke to two different Browning reps and they both gave the same advise (useless if you ask me!).

    Thanks in advance,

    Ben
  7. SHOOTER13

    SHOOTER13 Guest

    Sorry Ben...don't own a Maxus.

    Bump to top...
  8. Doubletrack

    Doubletrack Copper BB

    This is a REALLY helpul board. I bought a new (2105 manuf date) 3 in. Maxus in NC for duck hunting. Cleaned it and thought I'd lost the "disconnect spring" but I think it actually fell out of the gun. Went to shoot clays and trigger only worked every other cycle. Started reading up on the trigger problems, and found the spring missing. Then got the story (above) about having to send the whole gun back for just this part replacement. My nearest auth. Repair place is 3 hrs away and turkey season is almost here. So now what. Anyone know what Browning is doing on these?
    MZ5 and SHOOTER13 like this.
  9. DJDAWG

    DJDAWG .22LR

    Oh man .........Iam having second thoughts now on gettin the Maxus , dont think I,ll buy it.
    I had an New A5 and had ejection issues , so sold it back to the dealer ........I wanted a Browning so Iam thinkin Maxus.......now not so much.
  10. gifters

    gifters .22LR

    Well, update. I got a new trigger group from browning. The trigger isn't as tight in the trigger group and the disconnect spring is a tinny bit shorter. It's better but not right. So I bought some .020" music wire. Made a jig with a pop rivet and spun a new spring. It's not as pretty but when shooting with gloves it will do the job.[​IMG][​IMG] https://photos.app.goo.gl/zrcAZmHwqXgm9QwQ2
  11. Gunsnhorses

    Gunsnhorses Copper BB

    Maxus Firing Pin Retainer Bushing Failure
    Anyone have this issue? Mine fails about every 12 months. I will be sending the gun back for the 3rd time with this failure. The last failure was catastrophic causing the receiver bolt to split in half.
    I shoot from 4,000 to 5,000 rounds annually. I am getting tired of sending this gun back every December. Anyone else have experience with this problem?
    Last edited: Dec 5, 2017
    MZ5 and SHOOTER13 like this.
  12. SHOOTER13

    SHOOTER13 Guest

    Welcome Gunsnhorses...

    Don't own a Maxus...can't help with that problem you are having.

    Hang tight, some member here might be able to help...
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 5, 2017
  13. Springers4dux

    Springers4dux Copper BB

    This reply is for Riggswf. I have experienced similar problems. Six weeks into duck season this year I had another issue that required me to go to my Benelli M2. During a hunt this year I went to shoot a duck with my Maxus. The shell fired and there was no follow up shot. I examined the gun and found my bolt was partially back and I could not move it. I had to disassemble the gun including removing the trigger assembly. I found the bolt linkage was broken. I was unable to reassemble the gun and for the first time in 40 years of duck hunting I had to carry my gun out in three pieces. Further examination revealed the carrier latch pin clip some how dislodged and allowed the carrier latch pin to drop enough that allowed the carrier latch to become partially unseated. This somehow caused the bolt carrier link to break when the gun was fired. I also found a corner of the bolt carrier was broken off. The gun is at the gunsmith awaiting the new parts ($150 in parts). I may not get the gun back by the end of the season. This is the second season in the row my Maxus malfunctioned to the point it had to go to the gunsmith. I didn’t send the gun to browning because the last time I did it took 5 months for them to fix it and get it back to me only to find I had the same problem on my first duck hunt of the 2016 season. Good luck with your Maxus.
  14. Dallas_CMT

    Dallas_CMT .270 WIN

    I wonder if there's any mechanical difference in the Maxus hunting guns vs the Sporting that I have.

    I've only fired about 4000 rounds through it, but it functions well. It'll jam on 1oz @1180 target loads about once per box, but never misses a beat using any ammo hotter than that. I usually shoot 1-1/8th @1145 and don't have any problems with it.

    Sent from my SM-G930U using Tapatalk
  15. Gunsnhorses

    Gunsnhorses Copper BB

    Your issue is similar to mine. After shooting it with the firing pin retainer bushing missing, I shot the gun and the bolt went back and stuck. I had to take the gun apart to get all the pieces. The bolt had sheared in half. I have had to send my Maxus back to Browning annually for replacement of the bushing. It goes back almost every December. They are good about replacing the part and/or parts and updating the gun. They usually have it back to me in 4 weeks at no charge.
  16. Springers4dux

    Springers4dux Copper BB

    Here’s an update on the cycling problems I have had with my Maxus. After having the gun to a gunsmith two prior times, most recently at the end of duck season last year, I had to have a new bolt carrier and bolt carrier link replaced. I used the gun twice this season and after three boxes of shells the gun broke again. I had to disassemble the gun again because after firing one shot, the next round fed into the receiver but was lodged under the bolt carrier. I pulled out the trigger assembly and found the carrier dog was broken and the spring and follower were missing. I ordered new parts and put everything back together. So far no feeding or cycling issues. One thing I noticed was the new carrier dog spring seemed more stiff. So I’m wondering if my feeding problem could have been caused by a weak carrier dog spring. It appears the shell carrier seems to be lifting the next shell to be fed into the chamber with more authority. You might consider checking your carrier dog assembly to make sure there are no cracks or bent parts if you are having shell feeding problems. I purchased all the parts at Midwest Gun Supply. Good luck!
  17. Vwzx7

    Vwzx7 Guest

    Read thru this thread quickly.....didnt see anything specifically about my issue.

    On my Maxus Sporting Clays, bought April ‘19, it has never auto loaded correctly. The only way for the auto loader feature to work is to manually insert the round further in than you would think necessary (like over half your thumb). At that point when you start pulling your thumb back out the carrier grabs your thumb. Its not a huge deal since I only am using two rounds at a time while shooting Sporting Clays...but it would be nice for it to work.

    Also - has anyone found the coating on the rail guides for the bolt - flaking off? Browning suggested it may be the cleaner used if it had teflon, but I use Rem Oil and it does not. Hot loads maybe???? Dunno...

    Any thoughts would be helpful, thanks.
  18. Rudolph31

    Rudolph31 .30-06

    I don’t own a Maxus, but I’ve shot one. Something is obviously wrong with the Speed Load feature and if you can’t figure it out it’ll need to go back to Browning for repair. Hope you have another shotgun to use in the meantime.

    You might give Midwest Gun Works a call. They’re an authorized Browning repair facility and the turnaround time is much quicker.

    https://www.midwestgunworks.com/gunsmithing/warranty-services.html

    Good Luck.
  19. Jon Fleming

    Jon Fleming Copper BB

    I have a Maxus that will fire and cycle perfectly, but after one or two shots, the forearm moves slightly forward, causing the latch (lever) to open slightly. The next shot, the forearm comes completely off. I have replaced the spring retainer, where the latch hooks into, but it continues. I can't find any similar complaints on my forum searches, so I'm asking has a nyone experienced this, If so, what will fix it? I've had 2 local gunsmiths look, but they can't seem to figure it out.

    IMG_0580.jpg IMG_0582.jpg IMG_0583.jpg
  20. Dallas_CMT

    Dallas_CMT .270 WIN

    It looks like that black piece has some wear. Maybe the latch is slipping out. I'm guessing you're using high velocity loads. Maybe replace that black piece?

    I called Browning once over a gas piston issue on my Maxus Sporting and they shipped me a free one with no questions or issue, got it in three days.

    Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk

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