So my dads got this old BAR sitting in the gun safe and hopefully in a few weeks I will be taking it out to the range, I cant seem to find much info on them though, how do they shoot? I believe its one that was made in belgium. Just curious cuz I would like to take it on an elk hunt this fall.
Browning BAR 30-06
- Thread starter matts318
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I have a Belgium-made BAR in 243Win (from early in the second year of production, I believe), and it shoots very well. I am able to get between 1.25-1.75" groups out of factory ammo, and will be taking on handloading for it now that I have a feed failure problem diagnosed and fixed.
I believe these rifles are capable of 1" groups, if you are able to shoot consistently. If it doesn't shoot well, you should check the torque on the forearm nut. It should be something like 65 inch-pounds, according to my 'smith. If overtightened, the harmonics get wierd, or so I am told, and things open up pretty quickly on the target.
I suggest you could make a dandy elk gun out of the BAR, although it might be a bit heavy for the trek up and down, if you're mountain hunting, or if you're walking a very long way. I think mine is about 9lbs or so, but I haven't really weighed it to check. I compared it to a rifle of known weight, to get to the 9lb figure. I guess I should weigh them all, huh?
Anyway, good luck with the rifle, and keep us posted on how it shoots.
I believe these rifles are capable of 1" groups, if you are able to shoot consistently. If it doesn't shoot well, you should check the torque on the forearm nut. It should be something like 65 inch-pounds, according to my 'smith. If overtightened, the harmonics get wierd, or so I am told, and things open up pretty quickly on the target.
I suggest you could make a dandy elk gun out of the BAR, although it might be a bit heavy for the trek up and down, if you're mountain hunting, or if you're walking a very long way. I think mine is about 9lbs or so, but I haven't really weighed it to check. I compared it to a rifle of known weight, to get to the 9lb figure. I guess I should weigh them all, huh?
Anyway, good luck with the rifle, and keep us posted on how it shoots.
remingtonman_25_06
Handloader
- Nov 17, 2005
- 2,806
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THey shoot good enough to kill some animals!!
My dad has onwed 2 of them over the years, .270 and .338, they were both 3/4" inch shooters at 100 yards w/factory ammo. No need to reload with that kinda accuracy, plus loading for semi auto's is a PITA, IMO...
My uncle has one in a 30-06 that my cousin used to take his first spike bull elk last year at a little over 100 yards with 150g factory core lokts. Performance was less then ideal with his shot placement, but it worked..Its also 3/4" shooter w/factory ammo
There very well made rifles. Take care of them and they'll take care of you by not jamming every other shot like those POS Remington semi autos.
My dad has onwed 2 of them over the years, .270 and .338, they were both 3/4" inch shooters at 100 yards w/factory ammo. No need to reload with that kinda accuracy, plus loading for semi auto's is a PITA, IMO...
My uncle has one in a 30-06 that my cousin used to take his first spike bull elk last year at a little over 100 yards with 150g factory core lokts. Performance was less then ideal with his shot placement, but it worked..Its also 3/4" shooter w/factory ammo
There very well made rifles. Take care of them and they'll take care of you by not jamming every other shot like those POS Remington semi autos.
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- #4
Thanks guys, Im glad to see some good things being said about them, most of what I found online about them wasnt good. My dad said that when he was using it that it was a pretty good shooter, cant wait to see what it will do with some handloads, its only had about 50 rounds put threw the barrel so its got plenty of life left. Im just waiting for my dad to put a new scope on his 270 so I can put his old one on the BAR, Ive got a stock pile of brass for it so Im ready to reload, I can wait, I feel like a kid in a candy store!
remingtonman_25_06
Handloader
- Nov 17, 2005
- 2,806
- 403
Good deal. I dont see how any bad could be written on the BAR, its simply the best made hunting semi auto out there, period! Guys who were talking crap, obviously dont know anything about them. There 10 times better then the Remington semi auto's...
My dad owned his .270 for about 15 years. He harvested a buck every single year with it, as well as probly 5-8 elk, and a few antelope. It was his main hunting rifle for that time and all he used was Remington 130g core lokts...
His 338 wasn't around as long..He sold it off for a rem 700 Bolt action. There was nothing wrong with it though, he just wanted a bolt action and wanted to reload..It was 3/4" shooter with Federal 210g Partitions though. It would always put the first 2 touching at 100 yards w/usually the 3rd being out 1/2-3/4", pretty damn good for a 338 magnum semi auto if you ask me!
He only had 1 problem with his .270 in all those years and shells gone through it. It was a relatively small problem and browning was quick to fix it...
I think there great hunting rifles out to 500 yards or so. There accurate enough to kill game that far off, yet offer quick follow up shots, thats why my dad liked his BAR, ha ha. His old way of thinking was the more lead in the air, the better! I changed his way of thinking with bolt actions and precision!
Anyways, best of luck to ya! I've never reloaded for semi auto, so cant help you there. I just never wanted to put the time into it to learn how really. ALso, I dont feel like finding flung cases everywhere, I get mad when I lose them, so kinda defeats the purpose if you ask me...
I'd work up a good 165g AB load if it was me and call it good for anything you want to hunt with the 30-06...
My dad owned his .270 for about 15 years. He harvested a buck every single year with it, as well as probly 5-8 elk, and a few antelope. It was his main hunting rifle for that time and all he used was Remington 130g core lokts...
His 338 wasn't around as long..He sold it off for a rem 700 Bolt action. There was nothing wrong with it though, he just wanted a bolt action and wanted to reload..It was 3/4" shooter with Federal 210g Partitions though. It would always put the first 2 touching at 100 yards w/usually the 3rd being out 1/2-3/4", pretty damn good for a 338 magnum semi auto if you ask me!
He only had 1 problem with his .270 in all those years and shells gone through it. It was a relatively small problem and browning was quick to fix it...
I think there great hunting rifles out to 500 yards or so. There accurate enough to kill game that far off, yet offer quick follow up shots, thats why my dad liked his BAR, ha ha. His old way of thinking was the more lead in the air, the better! I changed his way of thinking with bolt actions and precision!
Anyways, best of luck to ya! I've never reloaded for semi auto, so cant help you there. I just never wanted to put the time into it to learn how really. ALso, I dont feel like finding flung cases everywhere, I get mad when I lose them, so kinda defeats the purpose if you ask me...
I'd work up a good 165g AB load if it was me and call it good for anything you want to hunt with the 30-06...
- Nov 4, 2004
- 25,595
- 9,739
The BAR is one fine hunting rifle. I knew a fellow that used his 30-06 BAR for Hi Power Matches. I don't remember what his load was, but it was a shooter!
Let us know how she shoots for you.
JD338
Let us know how she shoots for you.
JD338
- Thread starter
- #7
The only bad things I read about them had to do with accuracy, either got great accuracy or very poor. Ive always wanted to try some accubonds so I think Im going to bite the bullet and spend the money to get a box, Ive pretty much decided to go with the 165gr, seems to be a good all around weight.
Oh and whats the proper way to clean a BAR? I want to give it a good cleaning before I take it out.
Oh and whats the proper way to clean a BAR? I want to give it a good cleaning before I take it out.
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Go to the Browning website and download their .pdf copy of the manual, if you don't have one. It will detail the process. If yours is an older, Belgian model, it will likely have a screwdriver slot in the regulator (mine does) instead of 5/8 wrench flats, so be prepared to find a good screwdriver that doesn't slip. It helps, too, if you go ahead and order a couple of the new fiber washers, as you will very likely have to put some penetrating oil on the regulator to get it off the darn thing. Mine was so seized the first time that I ended up taking it to a gunsmith and having it fully cleaned. He said he keeps a homemade 'fixture' of sorts under his bench for disassembling these, which holds the mechanism still while he works on the regulator. You can try holding the gas cylinder with a wrench while you back out the regulator, that seems to make things easier. Also, once you've got it apart, use something like an old toothbrush and some disc brake cleaner to get the piston and cylinder clean. Treat the barrel as you would any barrel, and use a guard at the muzzle while you clean it. Be sure you understand the diagram as far as disassembly/reassembly when you take it apart, too. And go ahead and spend the money on an inch-pound torque wrench, to get the forearm nut properly tight. That's where most people lose their accuracy, by overtightening it. I use 65 in-lbs, but I know guys who use 45 in-lbs. Either way, it doesn't have to be very tight.
I have an original BAR from their first year of production (Belgium Browning). It was my grandpa's and is chambered in .30-06. I was having quite a few problems both with feeding and accuracy.
However, I have finally worked out all of the kinks and she seems to be shooting like a dream now.
First off, to solve the jamming issue I replaced the main action spring with an aftermarket version sold by MIDWAYUSA. That seemed to fix all of the jamming issues and I haven't had a problem since. I also took the time to meticulously clean the entire rifle.
I am a solid Leupold fan and own countless scopes for each of my rifles. However, the Leupold one-piece mounts only utilize 3 of the 4 base screws to secure the scope to the rifle. I have since replace the Leupold rings and mounts with the Burris Supreme Standard one-piece base, and am using the Burris Signature Rings. This seems to have helped a bit in my accuracy as well.
The other thing that I had done by my gunsmith was to adjust the torque on the forearm nut to 65 inch-pounds, as suggested above.
In all of my .30-06's but the BAR I use 165 grain Partitions or 165 grain Sierra Gameking BTSP's. My BAR doesn't seem to like the 165 grains, as much as, the 150 grain Sierra Gamekings (Federal Factory) or the 150 Fusion (Federal Factory) loads.
If you plan to reload for the BAR be sure to get some RCBS small base dies...you shouldn't have any issue running handloads through it, as long as you use these specific dies.
Hope this information is helpful!
-TB
However, I have finally worked out all of the kinks and she seems to be shooting like a dream now.
First off, to solve the jamming issue I replaced the main action spring with an aftermarket version sold by MIDWAYUSA. That seemed to fix all of the jamming issues and I haven't had a problem since. I also took the time to meticulously clean the entire rifle.
I am a solid Leupold fan and own countless scopes for each of my rifles. However, the Leupold one-piece mounts only utilize 3 of the 4 base screws to secure the scope to the rifle. I have since replace the Leupold rings and mounts with the Burris Supreme Standard one-piece base, and am using the Burris Signature Rings. This seems to have helped a bit in my accuracy as well.
The other thing that I had done by my gunsmith was to adjust the torque on the forearm nut to 65 inch-pounds, as suggested above.
In all of my .30-06's but the BAR I use 165 grain Partitions or 165 grain Sierra Gameking BTSP's. My BAR doesn't seem to like the 165 grains, as much as, the 150 grain Sierra Gamekings (Federal Factory) or the 150 Fusion (Federal Factory) loads.
If you plan to reload for the BAR be sure to get some RCBS small base dies...you shouldn't have any issue running handloads through it, as long as you use these specific dies.
Hope this information is helpful!
-TB
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I will be able to offer some insight into the velocity issue shortly. I am handloading for my .243 BAR right now.
As far as the small-base dies issue, I will be able to offer information on that as well. I am using Hornady dies, but I contacted them piror to purchasing dies, and they indicated their dies should be acceptable for loading for semi-autos, and gave me some advice on adjustment of the dies to ensure the entire case is resized. I don't anticipate any problems, but I should know within a week or so.
As far as the small-base dies issue, I will be able to offer information on that as well. I am using Hornady dies, but I contacted them piror to purchasing dies, and they indicated their dies should be acceptable for loading for semi-autos, and gave me some advice on adjustment of the dies to ensure the entire case is resized. I don't anticipate any problems, but I should know within a week or so.
