Posted by John Liles on September 4, 2015, 5:53 am, in reply to "Frozen Top Lever"
Hello Jerry, and welcome to the forum. Sounds to me like the top lever screw has either fallen out or loosened to the point that it has allowed the vertical leg of the top lever to rise out of the recess made for it in the trigger plate. When this happens the top lever spring pushes the vertical leg off center and can/will cause the top lever to seize. The biggest evidence of this is your observation that the top lever is proud of the receiver. If your stock-maker had ever had an Elsie out of the wood before, he would know this right away. If he doesn't know how to remedy this, then he doesn't know how to re-assemble your gun after the stock is made(food for thought). Where do you live? It's possible that we've got a member or a trusted gunsmith nearby who could help you with the problem. Good luck, John