Browning BAR Semi-automatic Rifles?
- Thread starter Scout22
- Start date
Since you said "any input is helpful" I'll say that I have no experience with the new Browning BAR's. *BUT* I will keep an eye on this post to see if Brownings long history of reliable, dependable top notch guns are criticized too much... if so I'll be surpised. Their autoloader pistols, auto-shotguns, pump shotguns & bolt rifles are excellent... I know those first hand, unsure about your inquiry though. Good luck.
I got a friend that owns one (NEW BAR)... I'll send him your way.
I got a friend that owns one (NEW BAR)... I'll send him your way.
Pruson
New member
Two guys who frequent this forum, sort of talked me into trying a Browning BAR in the 243 for coyotes. I got the 20" barrel and I am completely satisified. I have never seen an autoloader shoot with so much accuracy. I will post a picture of a target one of them(GC) shot at the range. Unbeleivable, but then mine did almost the same thing. Their names on the forum are Dough Bethe(Kansas) and GC(Missouri). Both reliable men, who know their guns.I do not regret buying the gun at all. It is way above average in my opinion
GC or Doug, if you see this, talk to this guy
GC or Doug, if you see this, talk to this guy
GC
Well-known member
Well, that's my target. The rifle will do that everytime I'm able to! I ordered the BAR Lightweight Stalker version with a 20" barrel, matte black metal finish, and black composite stocks in .243 Winchester for a calling rifle. It's fairly light at 6 3/4 pounds, is short enough for timber and brush hunting, yet retains enough barrel for decent velocities, handles well for me personally, offers good repeat shot capabilities for doubles, ect... I also have a full size steel .30-06 and both rifles have been dead nuts reliable, 100% with both factory and my various handloads. I don't coddle them, I do give them a decent cleaning at least once a year, that's it. They've worked in some mighty cold and snowy conditions. As you can see they're plenty accurate for hunting purposes. I have developed a couple of handloads for the .243 that shoot nearly as well as that factory load. My handloads use the 75 grain V-Max, the 87 grain V-Max, and a 85 grain Sierra BTHP GameKing. All these loads will shoot well under an inch at 100 yards, most crowding the 1/2" mark when I manage to do my part. My 06' will shoot around the 3/4" inch mark with a 180 grain Sierra GameKing at 2,734 fps average velocity.
The only downside is the trigger. Though pretty light in pull weight, it's typically creepy and a little mushy. That can be addressed however. Timney Triggers will work on BAR triggers, all you need to do is drift out the pins and pull the trigger mechanism out and send only that to Timney. Doug Bethe and I have e-mailed quite a bit regarding these rifles and I hope Doug will see this and pitch in. He thinks highly of his rifle as well. Pruson seems to also regard his very highly.
The only downside is the trigger. Though pretty light in pull weight, it's typically creepy and a little mushy. That can be addressed however. Timney Triggers will work on BAR triggers, all you need to do is drift out the pins and pull the trigger mechanism out and send only that to Timney. Doug Bethe and I have e-mailed quite a bit regarding these rifles and I hope Doug will see this and pitch in. He thinks highly of his rifle as well. Pruson seems to also regard his very highly.
wis_sharpshooter
New member
I would say go for it, Brownings are very accuratre and very reilable, I have one in .300 win mag for deer and I wouldn't have any other gun, 8 people in my hunting group carry the same rifle as I do and I have hunted with them for 6 years and I have never heard any of them say anything bad about them.
Doug Bethe
New member
Guys ... Just saw the post on the BAR's today. I frequent this board over my lunch hour and have been very busy lately. My BAR is just like Gary's and Pruson's. It is my favorite rifle, period. I load 75 Gr V-Max on top of Varget. I'd give you the specfics, but I need to confirm with my reloading data. I am more than satisfied with accuracy level of this rifle. I shot 18 coyotes last year with my BAR, several running shots on the second or third shot. I did send my trigger assy off to Mr. Timney for a tune up. It still has the noted "mush" but, it seems to break a bit cleaner. Do not let the trigger be a deciding factor ... it really is not that big of deal .. just something that could be improved. Also, Gary made a good comment .... I was guilty of "over maintaining" my BAR. About a once a year a thorough cleaning is all that is required. In fact, the Browning rep told me the gun is not required to be broken down as far as the manual describes to achieve a very good cleaning. Also, the overall quality of the gun is very impressive and it's built to last for many years. I can't wait for this fall .... put on the camo, grab the BAR, give the wife a peck on the cheek, and head for the pasture. All I can say is .... I like bolt guns, but, the BAR has added a new dimension to calling for me. Good to hear from GC and Pruson! I know you guys are itching for the new season too! If you want more info on the BAR, or exchange some coyote tales .... bethed@ccc-ces.com Gotta Go. Doug B
GC
Well-known member
Good to hear from ya Doug! A couple of points.
I've also settled on Varget for my handloads. I own a chronograph and my loads with Varget have given really decent velocities with modest pressure. Regarding factory loads there are several loads other than the Remington load pictured that have also given less than MOA. Federal's Premium loading of the 85 grain Sierra BTHP was a fine shooter. As was the Federal load featuring the 70 grain TNT hollowpoint. Any of these was less than MOA from my rifle, they just couldn't outshoot that particular Remington load.
Regarding maintenance, I know an old fellow who has a Belgium BAR .243 and has killed a train load of game of all sorts with it. He never cleans his rifle! A wipe down on the outside with an oily rag, once every couple of years he runs an oily patch down the bore. That's about it. Craig Boddington once wrote of a guy he knows who hunted the world with a BAR .30-06. This guy claimed to Boddington that he had never cleaned his BAR at all! I'm not that bad, but once a year I do a detail cleaning, after that I shoot the darn thing until coyote season is over here at the end of March.
The trigger isn't crisp and clean like a finely tuned bolt action. But there are plenty of bolt guns with crappy triggers too. I think it's more a matter of what you get used to shooting. Put some range time in and you'll be surprised how well you can shoot an otherwise accurate rifle, if it's a bolt, semi, pump, or lever action, it's what you get used to.
I've also settled on Varget for my handloads. I own a chronograph and my loads with Varget have given really decent velocities with modest pressure. Regarding factory loads there are several loads other than the Remington load pictured that have also given less than MOA. Federal's Premium loading of the 85 grain Sierra BTHP was a fine shooter. As was the Federal load featuring the 70 grain TNT hollowpoint. Any of these was less than MOA from my rifle, they just couldn't outshoot that particular Remington load.
Regarding maintenance, I know an old fellow who has a Belgium BAR .243 and has killed a train load of game of all sorts with it. He never cleans his rifle! A wipe down on the outside with an oily rag, once every couple of years he runs an oily patch down the bore. That's about it. Craig Boddington once wrote of a guy he knows who hunted the world with a BAR .30-06. This guy claimed to Boddington that he had never cleaned his BAR at all! I'm not that bad, but once a year I do a detail cleaning, after that I shoot the darn thing until coyote season is over here at the end of March.
The trigger isn't crisp and clean like a finely tuned bolt action. But there are plenty of bolt guns with crappy triggers too. I think it's more a matter of what you get used to shooting. Put some range time in and you'll be surprised how well you can shoot an otherwise accurate rifle, if it's a bolt, semi, pump, or lever action, it's what you get used to.
Scout22.....Yes the Brownings are a lot of rifle for the money and if your lucky like myself, will end up with one that has far to nice of a stock (beautiful wood) on it, to take out hunting in the woods.
I can tell you that I have owned 4 Browning Bars during my years of hunting and every one of them shot far beyond my expectations. A .270, 25/06, 30-06, .338 magnum. Only the .338 mag has failed to clover leaf 3 shots at 100 yards from the bench with factory ammo. I did have to try several brands of ammo to find out what each rifle did like to digest.
They are as accurate as any over the counter bolt action rifle I have ever owned. The quality is first class in my humble opinion. If you handload, make certain that you "full length size" your cases.
I can tell you that I have owned 4 Browning Bars during my years of hunting and every one of them shot far beyond my expectations. A .270, 25/06, 30-06, .338 magnum. Only the .338 mag has failed to clover leaf 3 shots at 100 yards from the bench with factory ammo. I did have to try several brands of ammo to find out what each rifle did like to digest.
They are as accurate as any over the counter bolt action rifle I have ever owned. The quality is first class in my humble opinion. If you handload, make certain that you "full length size" your cases.
GC.....Never was there a finer piece of production rifle made than the Belgium Browning Bar's! A little heavy according to todays wants from hunters in the field. However, you never had to worry about one of those rifle ever fouling up on a hunter. They were indeed a class act as were the bolt guns that Browning made during that time frame. The workmanship of those rifles was better all way around the board! I have a friend who bought his first one in the mid-60's and still has it today! His only hunting rifle mind you in a .338 mag, talk about a beautiful stock and smooth working, even his trigger is a joy to pull.
His only statement when asked why just one gun?
It is all I need to hunt anything on the continent.
His only statement when asked why just one gun?
It is all I need to hunt anything on the continent.
Jack Roberts
Moderator - Deceased
BTT
Jack
Jack
Mike Pearson
New member
I think the lightweight synthetic stocked version would be a fantastic choice for coyotes and deer! However, if you wanted even more accuracy, Browning makes at least one of their BAR's with the BOSS unit in .243. The BOSS will also reduce recoil substantially especially with bullets that get the bulk of their energy from velocity (lighter weight bullets). A great dual purpose bullet for both coyotes and deer would be the Barnes X 75gr. bullet. This is a deep penetrator made for deer and antelope but would also do a great job on coyotes. Make up one accurate, flat shooting load with this one and be done with it. Heck, with the BOSS attached, you'd probably get recoil of about .22 Hornet (or less) level. Without the BOSS, you're probably looking at somewhere around .223 recoil using the 75gr. bullet. Makes it easier to get off AIMED repeat shots!
Doug Bethe
New member
Guys .... As you know, the weather has cooled a bit here on the plains so I had an hour to kill yesterday. I went out the back door and once again confirmed to myself .... the most accurate gun I own when fired from a hunting position ... (no table, no sticks, no tripod, sitting postion and off my knee) continues to be my .243 BAR. I've been dabbling lately with the .204 Ruger and it is just not the same as that big whop when that 75 grain V-Max makes contact on fur. I'll play with the bolt gun now and then, but, when it comes time for serious coyote calling, the BAR is the workhorse to grab. Varget and the 75 grain V-Max is the perfect combo in this caliber. I did not really purchase my BAR upon any recommendations ... I was just searching for an alternative to purchasing "just another bolt gun". These BAR's are built to last, they are extremely pleasing in the accuracy department, and fun to shoot. On another subject ... I'm seeing good numbers of coyotes this year, plus seeing and hearing stories of bobcats already. I loaded up another box of "BAR ammo" yesterday in anticipation. It's gonna be fun! And ... wifey and I have season tickets to KSU home games this year ... gotta run ......