Browning BLR. How do you like it?

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270

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Bought a new Browning BLR takedown, 20" bbl. recently. Chambered for the 308 Winchester. A very slick working action. Lightweight and can break it apart for cleaning from the chamber end.

The only negative thing is it has a long length of pull. With rubber recoil pad it tends to get caught on my clothing when bringing it to my shoulder. Shorten it and may get the bolt into my nose. It has a longer length of pull than any of my lever or bolt-action guns.

Did they really need that bolt to come back that far for the relatively short 308 Winchester cartridge?

270
 
Well I cannot help you with your LOP problem, I have a 308 as well, But to me the BLR has one of the smoothest actions around...

The Gloss Finish looks great but dings way to easy for a hunting rifle... my biggest compliant...

:)
 
I know what you mean. I'm not a small person but I like a shorter L.O.P. You can fit a thinner hard plastic butt plate to the stock. Make sure you don't loose your recoil pad to retain a higher value of the gun should you want to sell it some day.
 
I have a BLR in .300 WSM and it is a great rifle. For a lever action rifle, it handles more like a bolt action but has faster second shots.

You might change the pad to a leather coated pad such as a Kick Killer that doesn't stick like a rubber pad. I have a Limbsaver on one of my rifles and I covered that with a Kick Killer leather pad and it pops right into place. Even if the LOP is a little longer than you like, reducing the friction of the pad will allow you to slip the rifle into place without any problem.
 
I have a BLR in 308 that I've used for 30 years. Comes to my shoulder very naturally, the iron sights line up almost instinctively when shouldered. It's the early model with the dished in receiver sides, not sure that the recoil pad is the same as the later models but I've never had an issue with it.

About the finish, mine was nicked and gouged so I stripped it all off and refinished it with about a dozen or so coats of tung oil. I like that look so much better.
 
neighbor

My neighbor had one and I shot and handled it some. It was an older model and seemed to shoulder well and the lever was smooth. He brought it to me 'cause the sights had been abused and they did seem a bit delicate in their design. We cobbled some sort of fix from stuff I had on hand and he went on hunting w/ it.

Always wanted one.
 
I have two of them. The first one I got about 20 years ago chambered in 7mm mag. The second one is a lot newer and is a takedown model in 325 WSM. The thing I like about them is that if you're hunting on horseback a lot, they fit into a saddle scabbard and under you leg much better than a bolt action rifle. The stocks are just a lot thinner overall. If you don't think the difference is important, just go for a ride for 25 miles over the mountain and you'll find out in a hurry that it makes a huge difference. That's also the reason I like my 30-30 and 45-70 lever actions.

The bad thing though is the dang triggers on them. They are terrible and there are very very few gunsmiths that will even attempt to work on them. Even then, they can only improve them so much. The old 7mm has improved to a degree with use. The 325 WSM is still real heavy with a fair amount of grittiness.

As far as accuracy, they work OK for hunting. I can get a 1.5" group on a good day, a 2" group any other day. The limiting factor is the trigger. But they will never match my Win 70s or Savage bolt actions for accuracy at the bench.

So they fill a need. Great for hunting and they have a nice natural point to them. Plus they are just so dang pretty. Just don't expect them to be shooting 0.7" groups at the bench.
 
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