Old Blue needs work... again

[Rob112o]

Ok since I know you got Tim's kit with the white Teflon check valve. Did you remember to have the "X" up? Secondly, when you dropped the check valve in did you get something long to put on the top of check valve, then proceed to give it a decent tap with a hammer?

[Weiand]

I do remember doing that. Grant'd, it was Order date: 03/18/2015  so ya know, the memory don't always 'member it all.
but I do know after puttin' it in, it work'd quite well 'till this happened.

[Hoosier Daddy]

The kit I got was from Mac1

I'm guessing it couldn't hurt to get a new cup as well as clean her up real good prior to installing the new one.

I mean, new parts can't "hurt" since the cup was the orig an wasn't replaced with the kit.

I am sorry... but... WHAT?

[Rob112o]

 I just read right past that. Good eye Scott! I've had pump cups still soft and looking great and tried reusing because of this. All those soft old pump cups look good, but when you remove from tube it will easily slide out. Same if you try putting back in, it will go in effortlessly. A new cup you will need to work in the edge to get it inside the tube. Though you are getting the forearm to opening up quickly on its own. I bet if you wait a minute that air, between the cup and valve face, will escape pass the cup and it will open up as it should.

[Weiand]

Took the front end apart today. I had a dish with the old parts from when I got the Mac1 kit, not sure why I had them.... but they were there. The cup in the dish was torn, so the cup did get replaced. The cup doesn't slide out / in super easy, but really doesn't need much "help" to do so. I didn't have anything to inject alcohol in to pump up that way an not much really went in the hole. Still doing the same basic thing, after one pump, forearm kicks out then no resistance on a pump. Dry fire does produce a small puff of air.
I should have the tool I ordered from um, Baker or sumtin' arrive soon.
I'm guessing a new kit and good cleaning once taken apart should bring her back to life.
I'm kinda looking at the adjustable pump as mine is the non-adjustable.

[eeler1]

New to this thread.  But when it doesn't pump up, and you get no resistance when pumping, that says 'pump cup' to me.  Maybe if the check valve AND the exhaust valve are shot and not resisting air flow to the barrel, then you have to deal with the valve internals.  But pump cup is my first guess, particularly since yours is original from the last century.

 If you have the press in kind of pump cup, sometimes even a new one won't push air into the compression chamber.  But you can put a thin washer behind the cup and it 'poofs' it out enough to push air.

Oh, and the adjustable pump cup can only make a small difference in stroke, may 1/8"-1/4", but that small difference can make a big difference in how much air you push into the compression chamber.  Fewer pumps to get the same output.

My $0.002

[Weiand]

When I had the front end apart & looked in the dish with the old parts, it was a new cup. Did not off a lot of resistance to get it in or out.

The front end is a lot faster than the guts.
Startin' with a front end rebuild with a nice blued plug an adjustable piston seems a good start.