problem with cva 223... any ideas

okay i got this little elite stalker 223 last year as a gift. Didnt need it but im all for a new gun, so i put a tasco scope i had laying around on it and put it in the safe without firing it. So last weekend i took it out and decided i was going to sight it in...then i ran into a problem. The hammer will not lock back in place, it will go back almost all the way and then go back down. Funny thing is if you have the barrel breached open, it will lock in place, but then you cant close the barrel because the hammer is locked back . I have tried slamming the barrel, no help. I have called cva and they told me to push the release leaver that opens the barrel as far as i could forward and pull hammer back, still didnt work. Does anyone have some ideas? I hate to pay shipping on the dam thing and a 6 week turn around on such a cheap little gun.