Lever gun info please and thanks

powdergun

powdergun

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I am looking for a lever gun to hunt with. The Brownings have caught my eye as they have a lot of options. My questions are as follows:

1) Accuracy ?
2) Feeding extraction issues ?
3) Do I need small base dies to reload for the gun or will full length resizing
work ?
4) Durability ? I don't want to be fixing things. My goal is an accurate fast handling workhorse.

Thanks again for all of your collective expertise

PS: I'll be hunting deer and not elephants
 
1. Great accuracy as good as you can shoot
2. No issues that I have heard of, Mag fed by the way
3. Full length probably better but with a mag feeding system neck may be fine
4. its a browning work it all you want
 
My experiance with a browning blr 308 was not great. The accuracy was fine for a hunting rifle but every once in a while when I levered a shell in ..the hammer would #### but when I squeezed the trigger there was nothing. The next 50 times it would work great then I would get the dead trigger thing. I couldn't trust it to work when I wanted it to so I got rid of it. On the other hand my buddy has had a BLR in 30 06 for many years and his has worked flawlessly. I have heard of other people having the dead trigger happen but only ever heard it with the short action (could be coincidence). I really wished it would have worked for me because the rifle itself carried nice and felt right and I really wanted that gun but the one I had couldn't be trusted.
For a lever gun I now have a winchester model 88 in 308. Nice gun but a brutal trigger.
Good luck
 
We had to replace the gears on some of them, none of those types of problems with the Marlins, I'd keep it simple with a Marlin or Winny.
 
I have had a couple of BLR'S in 358 win. they both shot and worked great.Nice rifles to pack around.
 
This wolf pup didn't like my Browning BLR. I had one in .308 and enjoyed its very smooth action and accuracy to boot. The .308 is a nice small light package. The long action one i tried (.30-06) cycled kinda clunky however. I have heard nightmares of folks taking them down to clean but not being able to put them back together. The gearing and ability to put it back together so it is properly timed when cycling the lever is known to be a pain in the ass. Some reputable smiths in fact will refuse to aattempt it once you have taken it down.

Wolfsitting.jpg
 
As far as dies and components go, I do have Hornady dies for the .308 as well as Hornady bullets.
All from P&D in Edm. I expect the .338 might take another 6 months for reload equip. but it sure looks nice, having the same ballistics as the 30-06 180gr.
 
The BLR's are great guns. The long action magnums are kind of akward feeling, but the normal calibers feel, handle and shoot great. The mag is also very easy to work and reliable.
 
I really liked everything about my BLR in 22-250, that I used to use for coyotes. Except, the couple of times, in very cold temps, when it didn't fire on the first pull of the trigger. I never figured out, for certain, why this happened. I know that it wasn't my handloads, because they would fire through my buddy's rifle (not a BLR). I would go with a Marlin. My 444 has never caused me grief.
 
A couple brothers I hang around with purchased a new BLR 308 each.
From what I saw with scopes neither was much better than a 2" shooter on a good day. Both required SB dies in order to cycle...could be my reg 308 die is sloppy?? but it works in my 308s just fine. I personally don't like the fit & feel of the straight stocked ones either, maybe the pistol grip is better, never tried one, also take into consideration 94 carbines don't fit me either, I much prefer the 64...but to each their own :)
 
BLR's are my favorite hunting rifle. I've hunted and target shot with them all my life and have never had an issue with any I've owned. A clip beats a tube type any day, and blr's are offered in pretty much any calibre you could want.
There's nothing wrong with a Marlin, ours seems to be a sturdy, reliable rifle, and my wife just loves her 30-30. Traditionally, the marlins were about 60% of the price of a blr(new prices); I see recently the new marlins have really gone up in price.
Personally, and this is just my "personal" opinion: when I look at our marlin and a blr side by side, compare the construction, action, and finish, I think a marlin Should cost less.
Again, the marlin is nice, well built. I just think the browning is giving you more for your money, but that's just my opinion, and like I said at the start, I'm biased.
It all comes down to: throw them both up to your shoulder. One'll fit better than the other.
You really can't go wrong with either.
 
mudbug said:
My experiance with a browning blr 308 was not great. The accuracy was fine for a hunting rifle but every once in a while when I levered a shell in ..the hammer would #### but when I squeezed the trigger there was nothing. The next 50 times it would work great then I would get the dead trigger thing. I couldn't trust it to work when I wanted it to so I got rid of it. On the other hand my buddy has had a BLR in 30 06 for many years and his has worked flawlessly. I have heard of other people having the dead trigger happen but only ever heard it with the short action (could be coincidence). I really wished it would have worked for me because the rifle itself carried nice and felt right and I really wanted that gun but the one I had couldn't be trusted.
For a lever gun I now have a winchester model 88 in 308. Nice gun but a brutal trigger.
Good luck
Click to expand...

Same thing happend to me, but it was my fault. My bullet wasnt seated deep enough. This was enough for the bolt to not be fully closed. I dropped the hammer, gun didnt go bang, I cussed, and the deer ran away. A lesson learned in humility! All factory stuff has worked fine for me though.
 
I bought a BLR in 308 almost 30 years ago and have taken moose, deer and bear with it over the years. I have numerous other rifles but in the bush it is still my favorite and the one rifle I always take even though it is sometimes a backup. I reload with 180 grain Hornadys for the 308 and use them for everything. I have to use small base dies to get it to function properly but have never had a feed or function problem with it. I disassembled the action once for a thorough cleaning (never again) and it took some doing to get it together again. I don't know if the new BLR's or the long actions and take down models are as smooth functioning as my old one but it is as smooth as glass.
 
Ive got a newish blr with the take-down feature. I really like it alot. Accuracy has been good, but as others have posted the triggers are not that great. I have heard that after a few hundred rounds the triggers do smooth out. Mine hasnt yet but I only got ~150 rounds thru it so far.

In regards to the 'dead trigger', I had that happen to me once and i noticed that the lever loop is really sensitive to pressure. If you dont have any pressure on the lever loop, the trigger goes dead. It doesnt need alot of pressure, but just a little bit.

I haven't had to take mine completely apart yet so I cant comment on the gear timing issue. I have heard a rumour floating around the internet that some BLR's have a plastic gear but that is not true, mine (and all that ive seen) have a metal gear.

Luke
 
The rifle that I had with the dead trigger, I had only used factory ammo ( I just started the reloading thing recently). As far as taking it apart, I never did but I bought the gun used sooo maybe the guy who owned it before me had done that. All that being said, at some point I would really like another one someday hopefully with better results , they just seem to be a nice fitting rifle.
 
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