No love for Browning A-BOLT rifles?

[FOTIS]

We always hear about Rem Win Sako Tikka etc etc but hardly ever about brownings.

Am I missing something? I had a few and all of them were very accurate.
Is it the design, made in Japan or what?

 

[DrMike]

I've owned a couple of Browning rifles. They were accurate and easy to handle. I have no particular objections to Browning. For the quality, they do seem somewhat expensive. For the price, I've preferred other rifles. I wouldn't hesitate to buy a Browning if I found one chambered in a cartridge that was interesting to me, and which wasn't readily available in another, more desirable rifle.

 

[Guy Miner]

Have an older Belgian built .308 Win Browning BLR here that I don't use often. Dad bought it quite a while back and used it for hog hunting in Northern California. It's a good rifle. My oldest son shoots it from time to time.

Would be kind of fun to dust it off and use it in November... Hadn't really thought of that until just now, thanks for the idea Fotis!

Guy

 

[FOTIS]

I killed an antelope with the 358 BLR and the 225 gr Sierra. Deadly!!!!


However I should have mentioned in my original post that I was talking about the
A-BOLT

 

[.280 Remington]

For me it's the design of the bolt action rifles, they are just not appealing to me in the least bit.

 

[FOTIS]

For a nanosecond there I thought I needed a 264 mag! Almost pulled the trigger on this
$659.00 shipped all in and it is a Medallion

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewIt ... =313174490

Then I came to my senses! I have a 270 WSM and a 7mm RUM.

That was close!

 

[rjm158]

I owned several A-Bolts over the years in various calibers and have three now, 7WSM, 260, and 338WM. I also have a BLR in 358, thanks to Dr Mike.

I agree with Dr Mike's assessment. While I have not had a lemon Browning firearm, I think you will pay extra for anything Browning to get that B-word stamped on it. In all fairness, though, I think the same can be said for Colt guns as well.

Ron

 

[HTDUCK]

I've had two of them.
1 in '06 the other a 300 Win.
Like the short bolt throw and the magazine.
For what they were though they kicked like a damn mule and neither one shot particulairly well.
Gave them both to my brother, he doesn't shoot them either......

 

[Ridgerunner665]

I have 2 older BLR's....243 and 358...I just never saw the need to own one of their bolt actions.

 

[.280 Remington]

I have owned one and it may have been more of a caliber choice than a rifle choice that makes me dislike them but it was a POS almost from the get go......223wssm(that was probably my problem)

 

[DrMike]

I had a Eurobolt chambered in 7 RM. It shot wonderfully small groups. The stock didn't fit me (LOP was fourteen inches, which is about a half-inch too long for me) and I considered having the stock redesigned. Ultimately, it would have cost more to reshape the stock and to buy a new rifle. Consequently, I sold it and bought another Featherweight chambered in 300WSM. I do miss that rifle on occasion. I've also owned a couple of BLRs chambered in .358. Either shot far better than they should have. I've certainly handled quite a few A-Bolts that were delivered for load development, and a couple that were semi-custom jobs. Each shot well--I don't recall a single one that didn't deliver accuracy as anticipated. However, they just never excited me greatly. Was I buying a push feed, there are other rifles that interest me more.

 

[Oldtrader3]

I have owed three A-Bolts (.243, .280, .300 WSM) They were all very accurate, (2) had the BOSS Device and shot very small groups to 300 yards. They all had creepy (Japanese) triggers and hard recoil pads (mostly an issue on the .300 WSM which did not have the BOSS). The .300 WSM is too light weight for a .300 mag, it kicked worse than my .338 Winchester.

The Composite .280 had a decently crafted stock on it. The stock was better than either the Model 70 Composite or the Weatherby Mark V, Fibermark stock. All three rifles had a hard and thin recoil pad which I replaced with a Simms on both the .280 and .300 WSM.

 

[SJB358]

My old man had a Stainless Stalker in 300WSM I almost bought from him. It was a very nice rifle, but OH MAN! It kicked like a rented mule. It seemed to be plenty accurate, but Winchester won out again.. Yeah, I know, your all surprised huh....

 

[DrMike]

Winchester won out again.. Yeah, I know, your all surprised huh....

I cannot believe it! :mrgreen:

 

[FOTIS]

.............. Yeah, I know, your all surprised huh....

WOW I am shocked! :mrgreen:

 

[RiverRider]

I am still so put off by the hideous glossy polyurethane finishes I saw on A-Bolts back in the 90s that I cannot think of owning a Browning without revulsion. It just seems so wrong to do that to a perfectly good piece of walnut. I do think they do a first-class job on the metal though.

 

[bbearhntr]

My dad helped me purchase my first cenerfire rifle back in 1997. It was a Browning A Bolt 30-06. I loved that gun. Sadly a few years ago I found a new love, Browning X Bolt .270 WSM but I still dust off that 30-06 every year at least once....

 

[cloverleaf]

I had one on lay-away for a while 'cause the price was right. In the end I couldnt make the payment but I would have shot it. Always liked the way they handled and I'm a sucker for a glossy paint job. I have seen several come out of the closet for th public sight in at the club. Most of them probably shot better than there owners provided they had a good scope on top. "course they are made in Japan..... CL

 

[Mountain Goat]

I've owned two, a 243 and a 280, both composite stalkers. The tang safety is my primary attraction to them. I feel that's where a safety should be. I like the magazine, quick bolt and lightweight of the rifles. The $20 trigger spring kit is very easy to install and makes a huge difference. I can't get past the gold trigger and cheap pot-metal on the bolt shroud and trigger guard. Both of my stocks oxidized after a few years and had a grayish color to them. I don't think the matte finish is as corrosion resistant as other rifle makes. They shoot with superb accuracy, feed and extract just fine, and carry very nice.

I see them like Cadillac cars: very expensive when new and can be had way cheap on the used market.

 

[RiverRider]

Here's a tidbit: one of my coworkers' grandfather designed a rifle long before the A-Bolt came along. It had three locking lugs and a 60-degree bolt lift, and even had the "A" profile receiver (I was told). The man made a few of them and sold them locally and they supposedly show up in gun shops and pawn shops in the DFW area occasionally, but I have yet to see one. My coworker says they are called "the Brandt rifle" as far as he knows.