Browning BPS with 18" barrel -- good buy?

M

Mike Kilo Niner

New member
So I was browsing the used gun rack at a local gun shop today and came across a BPS in 12 gauge with a cut-down barrel. Whoever did the work did a nice job: trimmed it just in front of the vent rib support, filed edges neatly, blued exposed metal, and even threaded the bore for choke tubes! Being a lefty, and growing up in a "Stop foolin' around and get yourself a Browning" household I was quite taken with it. It was marked at $349.99 on consignment, so (being a bottom-feeder grad student on a tight budget) I put it back and kept browsing... and ended up fondling it again.

I dunno, it seems like it would make a pretty nice home defense weapon. The short barrel seems pretty useless for most hunting applications, so it'd be a one-trick pony until I could save up for a longer barrel -- though that's not a huge disadvantage. So, let me throw it out to the hive mind: whattya think? Does $350 sound about right, or should I offer less?

Thanks!
Mike
 
Seems like a nice enough shotgun. I'm not really up on the going price for Brownings so I can't help you there but $350 sounds well worth it if you really like it.
 
Check out Gunbroker.com, AuctionArms.com, GunsAmerica.com, and Gunsinternational.com and see what the average going rate for a Browning is, then deduct some for the alterations done to it
 
I think a BPS is a very good gun - I have a few of them / and I really like them for young shooters that are left handed. They eject out of the bottom and they are usually cast neutral - so for a leftie, they fit pretty well.

However, I think that particular gun is a bad buy. The BPS lists new for about $575 and I see quite a few for sale new around $475 / but they are going to come, in the hunter model, with a 28" barrel and 3 Invector Plus chokes - meaning you can really do whatever you want with the gun - hunting, sporting clays, skeet, trap etc / and use it as a "defensive weapon". At $ 475 I think the BPS is a great buy.

There is a big difference for someone that wants a "defensive shotgun" vs a "fighting shotgun" - I'm not really into Fighting Shotguns / and would tell you that a BPS with a 28" barrel is ok as a "Defensive Shotgun" / and you end up with a versatile gun. For "Defense" you can take the plug out / it will then hold 4 2 3/4" shells in the mag for "OO" or slugs or whatever you think you need in the gun.

If you buy that consignment gun, even at $ 275 it will cost you about $250 for a new 28" barrel for it - and then you would have a short barrel for "Defense" or to set it up as a "Fighting Shotgun" - and a versatile gun but if you can't get his price down to $ 275, I say its a bad buy.
 
sounds like it's worth it to you. if you really like it get it, and forget the economics.

I don't know what your living arrangements are but I know in my apartment a 28" barrel is way to long for an HD gun and I think you'd be surprised how well shorter barrels work for some kinds of hunting
 
I understand what Bighoss is saying

but while the length of the barrel may not have any balistics impact on how a gun performs - the light weight, and short barrel affect how fast the gun swings / the sight plane - and both may cause you to "whip" the barrel as opposed to "swing" the gun in a field situation / and yank the follow thru short as you execute your shot - neither of which is a good thing.

But barrel length is relative to the size of the shooter too / at 6'5" and 290 lbs - a barrel under 28" to me, feels like a toy ....and its just not an effective or versatile shotgun to me. On all of my hunting guns, I like a 30" barrel on my O/U's (even for quail, grouse, etc ), 28" or 30" on my pump and semi-auto's ... and I stay with the same 30" barrels for Skeet and Sporting Clays ( where some guys really like 26" barrels for Skeet ) .... so its really a personal thing. For Trap I move up to a 32" or 34" barrel - because there is less left to right barrel movement - and I go to a 10 lb gun / but in the field, or for Skeet or Sporting - that 32", 10 lb gun feels like I'm swinging a big sewer pipe around - so a couple of inches, and a couple of pounds makes a big difference in how the gun feels in my hands...
 
I visited a local shop in my area today / and confirmed he can get new Browning BPS Hunter models for around $500 - so I was off a little.

Prices are going up / supply is down from a lot of mfg's in the last 3 or 4 months / but the BPS Hunter model is readily available in 12 and 20ga / not so much in 28ga or .410 .
 
However, I think that particular gun is a bad buy.
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Yeah, that's kinda what I was thinking, too. Thanks for spelling out the issues so clearly -- I couldn't quite articulate why it seemed a bit steep for what it was. I think I'll pass on this one.

Cheers,
Mike
 
Its probably more fun searching all of those out of the way gun shops and pawn shops to find that perfect gun / at the right price - than it is actually buying the gun ...... But trust me, there will be another gun out there for you, when you least expect to find it.

I was in a pawn shop yesterday - and of all things, he had a Win model 42 pump gun ( .410 ) pre-war, in Deluxe Grade. To my limited understanding of Winchester pump guns - the Win model 12 pump guns were made in 12, 16, 20 and 28 ga / then they made the model 42 in .410 ... and there may be other differences, I don't know..... He wants $ 3,600 for it / and its probably worth it. I'm not a Win pump gun expert / frankly I don't like them much at all - but to see that gun - in a pawn shop was a treat. If I wanted to add a couple more pump guns for the grandkids to shoot - in 28ga or .410 , I would probably just buy the BPS Hunter models for about $ 500.

Personally, I think the BPS Hunter is such a good buy right now / for a versatile field gun / first gun for a young shooter - 28" barrel, 3 chokes, etc - that I'm actually considering ordering about a dozen of them in 12ga and putting them away for the grandkids when they each turn 16 or so .... and even if some of the kids didn't want them down the road, they'd always be easy to sell as "new in box". My biggest issue is where to store a dozen shotguns in boxes - I don't have the room in my safe .... or room in my shop for a 2nd safe ... Anyway, take care - and have fun with your search.
 
Someone probably did an 'oops' with their BPS in the field- I'd guess mud in the muzzle- and recovered it as gracefully as possible by shortening the barrel. Reinstalling choke tubes was a good touch- but the gun isn't a bargain at $350 IMHO. Nice gun, but not 'a real deal.'

A while back I ran across a BPS Upland in 12 gauge at one of my favorite dealers' establishments. Decent shape- some honest wear and dings, but no rust or evidence of mistreatment, 22" VR barrel with choke tubes, and a nice straight English style stock (see pic at http://www.rrarms.com/catalog.php?prod=G012216307 ).

$275 out the door. It came home with me- neat gun.

lpl
 
I recently bought a new Browning BPS High Capacity (20" barrel with 7-round magazine) for $390 at a gun show in Fort Lauderdale. Synthetic stocks and no fancy stuff, but shoots and handles really nice. Very smooooth action.

$350 for a used gun, especially one that has been chopped up, seems a little steep to me.
 
I just bought a brand new Browning BPS, high capacity (6+1), with a 20" barrel, black synthetic stock and golden trigger. I am a gun salesman at a large hunting retailer. I was price checking our clearance items, and came across the Browning for $265 brand new. Needless to say, I came home with a new home defense shoty.
 
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