What vintage is your 44? If old enough there is a screw visible below and in front of the breech block. That is the tensioning screw (loosen to tension). If you have one and you screwed it all the way in on reassembly, there is your trouble.

Bent_Ramrod wrote on Jun 26^th, 2015 at 8:04pm:

Nope, i made drawings and maps and i took 40 digital photos and 4 pages of drawings and notes while taking the thing apart. I placed each part in a labeled envelope. 

Exactly where is that screw located?

Thanks,
Allen

Only to be found on early 44s with the 7 o'clock extractor.   It's a quick fix, but not a substitute for properly setting up the barrel's breech face and tightening up the link pins.   

What's it chambered for ?

Adrian, take a look at this diagram for the placement of the various parts ... (You need to Login or Register to view media files and links)

The link #25 and link pins #26 govern the tension on the finger lever. The screw on the front face of the action is not identifiedin this diagram
Good Luck

BP wrote on Jul 4^th, 2015 at 3:04pm:


Strictly speaking, backing out the screw to "tighten" the action will increase the headspace, but by such a small amount that's it's negligible.   

(The drawing at the link shows the central-extractor action, which does not have the screw.)

Properly set up, the face of the breechblock should be an .001" to .003" interference fit to the face of the barrel when the action is closed, and that will provide tension to the lever.  At the same time, the back of the breechblock should be in contact with the small shoulders in the frame, which takes much of the thrust on firing.  You can test this using a strip cut from a thin plastic bag, (0.4 mil) as a feeler.  Early (side-extractor) 44s that have come to my attention all seem to be pretty well fitted this way, BTW.   

If there is clearance at the breech face, cock the hammer and try levering the breechblock up a little at  the back.  If that closes up the gap, you have proof positive that the link needs rework.  Worn or bent pins, and battered pin holes, will allow the breechblock to stop short of its' full-lock position.  This is so common as to be endemic in almost all well-used 44s we find in attics and at gun shows.   

The proper fix is to ream the various holes to fit slightly larger pins.  It that doesn't do enough, the barrel must be set back.