Blr

The BLR was made in Belgium from 1971 - 1972... then it was made in Japan until the Model 81 BLR came out.

The BLR is a fine rifle in either version, the Belgium or the Japanese made one. Really no difference in the two.

I was working at Barotto Sports in Calgary when we received out first shipment of BLR's from Browning in 1971. One of the owners (Otto) took one off the shelf and asked me to mount a scope, and sight it in with a box of 100 grain CIL (Dominion). I did and it shot a 3/4 inch group right out of the box.
 
Had one I carried for years in 308, nice handling little lever , took several moose with it . gave it to my niece for a wedding gift , she got rid of the husband and kept the gun , she's also taken severl moose with it !
 
Barotto Sports (Calgary AB) wish book circa 1981. :cool:

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guntech said:
The BLR was made in Belgium from 1971 - 1972... then it was made in Japan until the Model 81 BLR came out.

The BLR is a fine rifle in either version, the Belgium or the Japanese made one. Really no difference in the two.
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Not quite....have both....the Belgium is FARR smoother in action and fitment....imho
 
I have owned them in 243 (Belgian), 308 (pre-81), and 358 (pre-81 which I still own). Have been looking for one in 257 Roberts for a while now.
Have never attempted to strip one down as I was was warned and heeded the advice.
Triggers are poor, but with practice, become known and can be used with confidence. My 358 will consistently shoot 1" groups. Have learned its creep profile.
One writer reports have taken a mountain goat at 600 yards with a T/D in 300 WSM.
The older models may be somewhat heavier, but I do prefer the all metal rifles as opposed to the alloy Lightweight models. I also prefer the straight grip to the pistol grip models. But this is just my preference.
 
ShrtRnd said:
Wouldn’t it be nice if they were still that price of $446.95
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$446.95 in 1981 dollars would be $1,365.90 in 2023 dollars.

On the subject..... I've had 3 different BLR's. All in .308 Win. Two with stick out mags & one later one with the flush mount mags. Never found any of them particularly accurate or interesting enough to keep.

Prefer the A-bolt series rifles over them any day.

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NAA.
 
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Back in the day, a BC gunsmith had rechambered numerous BLR 358s to the 35/284
I rhink iirc he did dozens from all over BC, funny have never ever seen one for sale
 
NAA said:
$446.95 in 1981 dollars would be $1,365.90 in 2023 dollars.

On the subject..... I've had 3 different BLR's. All in .308 Win. Two with stick out mags & one later one with the flush mount mags. Never found any of them particularly accurate or interesting enough to keep.

Prefer the A-bolt series rifles over them any day.

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NAA.
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dropped a 6.5-25 scope on a 308 and did load work at 300 yds, much easier to see potential at distance
best groups were around 2 to 2 1/2", pleasantly surprised
 
Lever lover, my BLRs have the glassiest action. Love them dearly. Was not aware about the advice against disassembly until a few years ago, I bought a second in .308 to try and make a scout rifle with and wanted to cerakote it like I have a few others but never ended up taking it apart and it's on the wall. Still want to do it.
 
TargetAcquired said:
Lever lover, my BLRs have the glassiest action. Love them dearly. Was not aware about the advice against disassembly until a few years ago, I bought a second in .308 to try and make a scout rifle with and wanted to cerakote it like I have a few others but never ended up taking it apart and it's on the wall. Still want to do it.
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They are tricky, but not as bad as some people make them out to be. I've done a few. - dan
 
My brother has used a BLR .308 for a long time. He's taken a lot of game with it.

He's always looking for another magazine, Says they are super hard to find. Tells me to keep an eye out for them.

I do think the BLR is the best fitting lever gun I've handled
 
Growing up in the 80s and reading outdoor life magazine basically gave me a serious addiction to BLRs. It was the first centerfire hunting rifle I bought (308) and now I have 3 - the other two being .358 (blued pistol grip) and .358 (stainless takedown). Handy, accurate, lightweight, some think they are ugly but I think they are cool as heck.
 
TargetAcquired said:
Lever lover, my BLRs have the glassiest action. Love them dearly. Was not aware about the advice against disassembly until a few years ago, I bought a second in .308 to try and make a scout rifle with and wanted to cerakote it like I have a few others but never ended up taking it apart and it's on the wall. Still want to do it.
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I had black box customs do my 450 marlin BLR stainless takedown and am extremely satisfied with the result. They know how to put it back together correctly.
 
SuperCub said:
I'm not a lever fan, but if I was, the BLR would be the one I'd use by a longshot.

They are accurate, dependable, easy to scope, will take pointy bullets in modern chamberings and have the best detachable mag system out there
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The hell you would. You'd be using a Savage 99 like the Fudd you are!
 
doctor_meltdown said:
I love it, particularly the takedown model, which is much easier to clean.
The stainless takedown 358 is my go-to hunting rifle now.
The stainless takedown 450 marlin is loads of fun and, IMO, much better built than a marlin 1895 (I haven't seen the new ruger-built ones though). I initially got it to replace a Wild West Guns Co-Pilot I had sold to a friend and have since since reacquired since his passing. It was 1/3 of the price, and except for the trigger was just as good. In fact I think the detachable mag is more practical, though I guess some would prefer the extra round in the tube mag. I much prefer the 1-lever takedown mechanism on the BLR as well.

I'm on the fence about re-boring a stainless takedown in 270 win to 9.3x62. The balance of the longer BLRs isn't as nice as the short action ones.
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Man, if you can find someone willing to tackle the job, I'd be all over that conversion. As weird as a European metric might be in a very American lever action, that rifle would be an outstanding tool in a lot of scenarios.
 
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