Indeed an early first year rifle - 2266 made in 1906! Many here take the rifle down before shooting (not a bad thing for sure). Others of us check for function, as you have done, then go out and shoot it.
The good news, rarely is the barrel spring an issue - even rusted with crud around it! (Plus it is a bit of a pain to remove!) IMHO if it functions and you can manually make it completely recoil and the exposed part of the barrel looks good, I'd shoot it - that's just me.And, there are many here that will accuse me of saying, "This thread is useless without pictures." (To that, I stand guilty as charged!)
