Over the weekend I was working on making up .40-50SS brass for my Schoyen barreled Ballard project I recently finished. The .30-40 Krag brass is a few thousandths larger above the rim than the usual .303 British brass, so it requires turning the bras down maybe 3/8" above the rim. I was test fitting a case to see if it chambered, and closed the lever to discover the lever wouldn't lower the block after closing!
Of course I was puzzled, but since the brass had no primer I thought maybe the firing pin was caught in the primer hole of the case. So I cocked the hammer and removed the firing pin. It dropped right out, so it wasn't the problem. But that's when things really went south! I set the triggers to lower the hammer and the hammer didn't drop! So now I was stuck with a lever that only dropped maybe an inch and the hammer back, so the breech block wouldn't open even if I figured out why it was stuck!
I decided to remove the set trigger plate and trip the sear with a screwdriver, but once it was removed the hammer still wouldn't drop! I figured something about the modified case had locked up the block, so I put some pressure on the lever, and used a cleaning rod down the barrel to jar the case. It finally popped loose, but the hammer was still stuck. I tried once more to trip the hammer and took my small brass hammer and tapped on the screwdriver to trip it. 
I got the breech block lowered and disassembled the block halves to inspect things. Hammer spring felt odd and thought it might be broken, but it was fine. Everything else looked fine until I looked closer at the hammer! The inside 90 degree corner where the mainspring tip sits had cracked through to the hammer pivot screw! And it had opened up slightly which I think created the issue of the hammer not dropping and the mainspring feeling weak. The crack also went into the hole for the fly post, which might have affected the fly too.
I put the hammer in my bench vise and carefully squeezed the crack closed and it worked. I'll call my tig welder guy and have him tig the crack up and then I'll dress it down and it should be fine.
I've seen single trigger Ballards with a crack in this same spot, and was told decades ago by the fellas at Ballard Rifle Co. not to even worry about it as they never get worse. But the set trigger hammers are a different animal and it can't stay cracked or it could open up again over time and recreate this horrible situation. Never have had this happen before!

Good thing it wasn't a 40-85 and you had just shot a grizz and it was coming after you for a second kill shot!  Hmmmm, maybe I should figure how to attach a bayonet to the muzzle of my Pacific in case that ever happens to me.    Thanks for sharing the problem and diagnosis.  Tom

This morning, I went to my local range (the wind was blowing) and shot my Ballard 22 for a while. I notice that the action seemed a bit stiffer than it usually is, and so I headed home. When I got home, I took the breech out and found that the forward screw that holds the top of the link was backing out and jamming the action. So, I'm gonna put a teeny-tiny bit of Loctite on the threads.   

Is it broken like this one?
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cheatin_charlie wrote on Mar 3^rd, 2026 at 5:49pm:


Of course that's a single trigger hammer, but the crack is close to where mine cracked. 
The single trigger hammers can crack like that and never become an issue. I've shot a very early #4 Perfection in .45-70 for over 30 years with a crack and never an issue.

I was told it was ready to install when I got the hammer it was not harden after a number phone calls and sending the hammer back they harden it and sent it back and it did fix it Ken

My young friend tig welded the crack up and I had to dress the hole a bit as he got good penetration into the pivot hole. While it was apart I thinned down the mainspring as it was much too heavy. Looked old and original, so not sure why it was so heavy?
Reassembled the breech blocks and it's all together and working perfectly again. Saved the new hammer for some future Ballard if needed.

Yes, remove thickness lengthwise, but also use a very smooth finish to avoid breakage. I have a 1" wide table top belt sander I use for this and the top roller wheel makes it easy to gradually remove metal and leaves a nice polished surface.
Set trigger mainsprings can be heavier than single trigger mainsprings, but this set trigger spring made it too heavy when just cocking the hammer, and primer strikes were very hard also. It's still plenty heavy, but easier to cock the hammer now.