Help Identify BSA 308 - Featherweight Majestic?

[Backcountryal]

BSA MA Viscount, often referred to as a "Hunter", manufactured 1956 - 63. They marketed some as the Featherweight, and had the action scalloped out to reduce weight, yours appears to be a featherweight. Great rifles, and that one looks all original. The integral brake was called a BESA brake, was often cut off and recrowned. Also came with a spring metal "clip' thingy on the barrel and you could slip it over the brake if you didnt like it, or slip it back if you felt you needed some diminished recoil. Controlled feeding means you should only feed rounds in to the chamber from the mag to allow the cartridge rim to slip in to the extractor. Not a good idea to throw a round on to the mag and try to feed it like a push feed, will sometimes snap or bend the extractor.
As said above, the trigger is excellent and fully adjustable. But best to consult with a good old school gunsmith cos they are a tad complicated. I have a full schematic and instructions for the trigger here that I can send if you need it.
The stocks are excellent and strong, no need to change them. Should you actually break one, Boyds use to make one to fit the Herters U9 and they are a simple fit.
If you need some genuine rings of that era, I may have a set of genuine PH rings here that fit. Happy to post them to you.

 

[Pembykid]

Definitely a featherweight Hunter. The bolt handle has been hollowed and in addition to the scallop on the left side of the receiver the butt-stock is also hollowed out.

These CRF rifles were built in the mid to late 1950's and were replaced by a push-feed model in 1960-61

The short actions were the first one built with a magnum sized action and long action following later. The early short-action rifles had poor gas-control in case of a pierced primer. The long and magnum actions were built with improved gas control vents.

Okay. I’ve scrolled through what I could find

https://www.airgunspares.com/whats-my-bsa

Halfway down has serial prefixes. It seems to be certainly a BSA Featherweight Majestic based on serial #’s.. some guy said there was only 443 built between 57-63 .. not if that’s true or not

I found a site that talked about the build date stamps. It appears to have and ‘I’ in from would would seem 1958 build.

It has the I , B , 2 on the stamp.

So it pretty firmly seems to be that; A feather weight majestic .. are these collectible?

 

[Pembykid]

BSA MA Viscount, often referred to as a "Hunter", manufactured 1956 - 63. They marketed some as the Featherweight, and had the action scalloped out to reduce weight, yours appears to be a featherweight. Great rifles, and that one looks all original. The integral brake was called a BESA brake, was often cut off and recrowned. Also came with a spring metal "clip' thingy on the barrel and you could slip it over the brake if you didnt like it, or slip it back if you felt you needed some diminished recoil. Controlled feeding means you should only feed rounds in to the chamber from the mag to allow the cartridge rim to slip in to the extractor. Not a good idea to throw a round on to the mag and try to feed it like a push feed, will sometimes snap or bend the extractor.
As said above, the trigger is excellent and fully adjustable. But best to consult with a good old school gunsmith cos they are a tad complicated. I have a full schematic and instructions for the trigger here that I can send if you need it.
The stocks are excellent and strong, no need to change them. Should you actually break one, Boyds use to make one to fit the Herters U9 and they are a simple fit.
If you need some genuine rings of that era, I may have a set of genuine PH rings here that fit. Happy to post them to you.

I got a Gunsmith in Williams lake who seems pretty good with stuff. Blue Mtn just redid a stock on an old Cooey 71 and I was blown away and how it turned out.

The trigger seems to free pull, firm up (after pulling the slack) and then go off. Not sure if this is by design or in need of service

 

['Boo]

So it pretty firmly seems to be that; A feather weight majestic .. are these collectible?

No, they are not really "collectible" as not many people appreciate the quality these rifle represent. If someone wanted to have a "collector" it would have to be in excellent condition while your rifle is "Fair" condition at best. The lack of any parts for these rifles also limits resale value.

I have seen these listed here and on other sites in "Good" to "Very Good" condition with asking prices between $400.00 and $600.00.

 

[cosmic]

Modestly collectible to a select few. With the flood of older rifles coming from Europe (including BSA's) the value of rifle is limited.

 

[Pembykid]

No, they are not really "collectible" as not many people appreciate the quality these rifle represent. If someone wanted to have a "collector" it would have to be in excellent condition while your rifle is "Fair" condition at best. The lack of any parts for these rifles also limits resale value.

I have seen these listed here and on other sites in "Good" to "Very Good" condition with asking prices between $400.00 and $600.00.

Yeah definitely fair condition. Unfortunately the top sling mount is gone and it seems the floor plate mechanism may be partially broken not allowing to to firmly lock the floor plate in place.

I’m still pretty excited about it though as it’s such a unique configuration.. I think I may get the stock redone with the local guys, they re blue but something about original worn ‘old style’ blueing is appealing to me

I’m really not sure about the truth if only 443 3D Featherweight Majestics being made but for me that’s worth something.

I traded a good running 288 chainsaw and some other parts for it that was taking up space so I can’t really complain.. they were taking up space

 

[unstableryan]

I have the same rifle in 30/06. Even with the aggressive brake, it’s no fun off the bench.

 

[Milt Dale]

My Dad bought a 30 06 BSA P17 action in 1952, #### on closing, full length mauser style extractor, toggle style side safety, fixed metal floor plate. He gave it to me and I gave it to my son. Subsequently the stock developed a bad crack along its length. He bought a Boyds stock inletted for an Enfield P17 with a flat floor plate, it was a drop in fit. I can't tell from the pictures if the action dimensions are similar.

 

['Boo]

I have the same rifle in 30/06. Even with the aggressive brake, it’s no fun off the bench.

Mine was a 30-06 Featherweight before I had Bevan King re-barrel it to 338-06 using one of his stainless barrels. At ~7 1/2 pounds scoped it does catch your attention when the trigger is squeezed. .

I had 2 sets of PH rings break due to recoil before I had the bridge drilled and tapped for steel Weaver bases.

 

[Backcountryal]

Okay. I’ve scrolled through what I could find

https://www.airgunspares.com/whats-my-bsa

Halfway down has serial prefixes. It seems to be certainly a BSA Featherweight Majestic based on serial #’s.. some guy said there was only 443 built between 57-63 .. not if that’s true or not

I found a site that talked about the build date stamps. It appears to have and ‘I’ in from would would seem 1958 build.

It has the I , B , 2 on the stamp.

So it pretty firmly seems to be that; A feather weight majestic .. are these collectible?

If it is controlled feed, it aint a Majestic. That one is the medium action Viscount. The John Knibbs Airgun page is renowned for having a number of mistakes, apparently he was an old fella that originally use to work for BSA and wrote up that serial number list from memory well after he finished working for them.

 

[Pembykid]

If it is controlled feed, it aint a Majestic. That one is the medium action Viscount. The John Knibbs Airgun page is renowned for having a number of mistakes, apparently he was an old fella that originally use to work for BSA and wrote up that serial number list from memory well after he finished working for them.

I see. Yeah only other post I found that could suggest to the contrary is this one.

The build date states I for 1958 on the stamp

 

[Bustercluck]

No, they are not really "collectible" as not many people appreciate the quality these rifle represent. If someone wanted to have a "collector" it would have to be in excellent condition while your rifle is "Fair" condition at best. The lack of any parts for these rifles also limits resale value.

I have seen these listed here and on other sites in "Good" to "Very Good" condition with asking prices between $400.00 and $600.00.

Almost every time I share info on my rifle online I get a pm asking if I’m willing to sell it. There’s lots of guys who want them but they’re never willing to pay much.

 

[Rick]

My sheep hunting father's pride and joy was the 30/06 BSA Imperial Featherweight complete with that BESA dragon call on the end he purchased sometime around 1960 (probably from Sidney I. Robinson as there were no gun shops anywhere near where we lived). That was and is a beautiful rifle from a sheep hunter's perspective, although he certainly shot a lot of moose, elk and deer with it as well. I wanted one exactly like it when I turned old enough to buy my own hunting rifles, but by then they were no longer being imported, nor were the similar Husqvarna "Husky" featherweight models. I was lucky enough to find a stash of those Husqvarna's at a gunshop a few hundred miles away, discovered when the old gunsmith who owned the shop lost his mind to dementia.

My brother inherited Dad's BSA and still hunts with it. I have thought of trying to see if there's something he wants to trade for it, but realized it really isn't significantly different than my Husqvarna Huskies. They don't even look all that different from each other as far as the lines and the weight go.

I do suspect that BESA style muzzlebrake does nothing other than make the muzzle blast much louder. I was sliding my new pin gauges down the bores of all the 30 caliber rifles owned by members of my family about 20 years ago or so and discovered that the bore dimensions in the muzzlebrake cut portion of the barrel are no different than anywhere else in the barrel. I could be wrong on this, but I read a discussion of these brakes some time ago that said that for real performance the portion of the barrel that had the slots/holes prior to the muzzle should be of larger diameter than the rest of the barrel.

 

[Potashminer]

OP - if you have a BSA Viscount rifle - I have one in 7x57 - that one's safety will flip to "fire" if the bolt handle is jiggled. When dismantling that bolt, there is a coil spring with a "top hat" in it's end it that bears against the safety's cross shaft - in my case it went flying across the shop when I dismantled it - so I had to make a "new one" - I still have not found whatever end went flying with that coil spring, so I had to go by some drawings provided by a CGN reader - thank you! The true fix is probably a new stronger coil spring, but I do not think one can buy new parts for it and making a stronger coil spring would be over my head. I am considering to grind another flat for the "safe" position - similar to how the factory did for the "fire" position.

 

[Pembykid]

My sheep hunting father's pride and joy was the 30/06 BSA Imperial Featherweight complete with that BESA dragon call on the end he purchased sometime around 1960 (probably from Sidney I. Robinson as there were no gun shops anywhere near where we lived). That was and is a beautiful rifle from a sheep hunter's perspective, although he certainly shot a lot of moose, elk and deer with it as well. I wanted one exactly like it when I turned old enough to buy my own hunting rifles, but by then they were no longer being imported, nor were the similar Husqvarna "Husky" featherweight models. I was lucky enough to find a stash of those Husqvarna's at a gunshop a few hundred miles away, discovered when the old gunsmith who owned the shop lost his mind to dementia.

My brother inherited Dad's BSA and still hunts with it. I have thought of trying to see if there's something he wants to trade for it, but realized it really isn't significantly different than my Husqvarna Huskies. They don't even look all that different from each other as far as the lines and the weight go.

I do suspect that BESA style muzzlebrake does nothing other than make the muzzle blast much louder. I was sliding my new pin gauges down the bores of all the 30 caliber rifles owned by members of my family about 20 years ago or so and discovered that the bore dimensions in the muzzlebrake cut portion of the barrel are no different than anywhere else in the barrel. I could be wrong on this, but I read a discussion of these brakes some time ago that said that for real performance the portion of the barrel that had the slots/holes prior to the muzzle should be of larger diameter than the rest of the barrel.

Interesting.

My sheep hunting father's pride and joy was the 30/06 BSA Imperial Featherweight complete with that BESA dragon call on the end he purchased sometime around 1960 (probably from Sidney I. Robinson as there were no gun shops anywhere near where we lived). That was and is a beautiful rifle from a sheep hunter's perspective, although he certainly shot a lot of moose, elk and deer with it as well. I wanted one exactly like it when I turned old enough to buy my own hunting rifles, but by then they were no longer being imported, nor were the similar Husqvarna "Husky" featherweight models. I was lucky enough to find a stash of those Husqvarna's at a gunshop a few hundred miles away, discovered when the old gunsmith who owned the shop lost his mind to dementia.

My brother inherited Dad's BSA and still hunts with it. I have thought of trying to see if there's something he wants to trade for it, but realized it really isn't significantly different than my Husqvarna Huskies. They don't even look all that different from each other as far as the lines and the weight go.

I do suspect that BESA style muzzlebrake does nothing other than make the muzzle blast much louder. I was sliding my new pin gauges down the bores of all the 30 caliber rifles owned by members of my family about 20 years ago or so and discovered that the bore dimensions in the muzzlebrake cut portion of the barrel are no different than anywhere else in the barrel. I could be wrong on this, but I read a discussion of these brakes some time ago that said that for real performance the portion of the barrel that had the slots/holes prior to the muzzle should be of larger diameter than the rest of the barrel.

That’s pretty cool. I bet the thing must of kicked like a mule.. I don’t know if there will be a way to tell if the muzzle brake actually does anything for this thing… it’s just so light and compact.

I’ll be trying it here shortly after a clean. I’ll likely be getting the stock spruced up and some little things fixed on it.

 

[Mike Webb]

Here is a cut & paste from a thread I participated on 16 years ago ..................
And yes, I still think the 1950's BSA rifles were of higher quality than the Winchester Model 70. Their downfall today is that it is nearly impossible to find any parts for them if something breaks.

"The original BSA sporting rifles were marketed in England and Commonwealth countries at the "Hunter" line that consisted of 4 separate action lengths. These same rifles were sold in the USA as the "Royal" line. The Emperor was a full magnum-length action that was chambered for the .458 Winchester. The Imperial was a long action and came in 30-06 and .270 Winchester. ( The Imperial came in two action weights, a standard at ~ 7 1/2 pounds and a Featherweight at ~ 6 1/2 pounds.) The Viscount was a true medium action and was sold in .257 Roberts, .300 Savage, and 7x57 Mauser. The Regent was a short action and was chambered in .222 and .22 Hornet. A good number of these rifles -even in .222 - sported directionally ported barrels that held the muzzle down during recoil.


In the 60's in an effort to cut costs the action was modified to a push-feed bolt and all were produced in one standard-length action. The Monarchs (introduced in 1965) and the later CF2's (1972) were still all 100% hand-built and the quality was still excellent. BSA also sold the Monarch actions to Herters in the USA who sold them as their U9 Action. I personally believe the BSA rifles were a much better rifle than the much-vaunted pre-64 M70 Winchester.

In the end the management at BSA decided that producing firearms was not only not making them enough money it was starting to be socially unaceptible in the UK as well. Not only did the management kill the firearms end of the business they also ordered all the production records be destroyed.

Today BSA is know for it's air-guns and low-end rifle scopes."

They are very well made rifles, highly underrated imo. Had a regent in 222 and a Viscount in 7x57. Read a writeup years back that send there were 70 separate machining operations on the action alone.