The accuracy of your Browning BLR. Got groups?

[CoRoMo]

Okay, so my previous thread didn’t find anyone with answers. That’s fine, onto my next question because I WILL be getting one of these sometime soon.

So how well does your BLR group?

I reload, so I should be able to find the potential of the BLR when I get it, but give me some of your own testimonies please. I really like my hunting rifles to be precision shooters. I know the old ‘accurate enough for hunting’ line, but I simply enjoy precision more than ‘accurate enough’.

I don’t have my hopes up, but could my new BLR give my best bolt gun a run for its money?

 

[CoRoMo]

And please, don’t get hung up on the whole accuracy vs. precision thing. Just tell me how well or how bad the BLRs in your experience have shot.

 

[atblis]

If you already own one, why don't you shoot it and report back to us.

 

[Silent Sam]

My BLR in 358Win will shoot right along with my best big game hunting bolt guns. Having said that, it is not as easy to do so off the bench, if that makes sense. It has consistently put the first two shots touching and the third shot 3/4" to 1" out. Lever guns are not as well adapted to shoot off the bench as a bolt gun. I guess you would have to define your criteria. Are three shot groups statistically significant? Are they after 30 or 40 separate range sessions? I don't routinely shoot my BLR off the bench. After developing a load with a hunting rifle, especially leverguns, I prefer to refine and check my zero from field positions.

 

[northwoods99]

Well, both my .358 and .284 BLR shot very nice groups. I to find that shooting for a bench is not the best. Often have 2 shots very close and the third off and inch.

My 14 year old son has a .243 BLR and likes to play this game he calls Hostage. He put a golf ball on the top of a beer bottle. Golf ball is the bad guy's head and the beer bottle is the hostage. He has no problem hitting the golf balls at a 100 yards with a 4X sightron scope on it.

Lever guns are fun to shot and great for hunting. I love the Savage 99, and the Winchester 88 as much as the BLR's.

 

[Ole Humpback]

With my BLR in 257 Roberts, I will kiss the edges of a 3" plate at 100yds all day long. Good enough for me and my shooting skills.

 

[fiddleharp]

Love the rifle, hate the trigger!
It's crisp, but heavy. My gunsmith tells me there is nothing he can do to make it lighter. Every rifle I've ever owned had light triggers. I've been used to that type of trigger my entire adult life.
That being said, when the BLR is resting on sandbags, I get excellent groups. In my opinion, the only thing that keeps the BLR from being the "perfect" rifle is that trigger. :banghead:

 

[CoRoMo]

Hmmmmm. Never heard/read that about the trigger, but I found your thread about it and a Google search brought up much the same comments. Otherwise, all good. I wonder if the impossibility of the trigger job is relative to the gunsmith though.

 

[Ole Humpback]

I understand that trigger's are a matter of personal preference, but I must say that the BLR has the lightest trigger of all the guns I've shot with the exception of the 50cal Armalite I've shot.

Then again, triggers could have changed over time. Mine was made in 1982.

 

[CoRoMo]

Yeah. Their touting the "Gold Trigger" that this one comes with. I really don't need the trigger to be gold, but a light pull would be nice.

 

[dtvburns]

I have a BLR take down in 308. It is good to carry gun in thick woods, light, quick to shoulder and points well. However it is not as accurate as my Savage or Weatherby rifles off of the bench. I can consistently get sub MOA groups from those bolt guns from a rest. The BLR averages a 2 inch 4 shot group at 100 yards. When I shoot my BLR off hand it is quicker and easier to shoot than the bolt guns, so it is my gun of choice for stalking/walking hunting. When I shoot off hand I average a 6 inch 100 yard group with the BLR. I will see if I saved any targets from the BLR from the bench, I think I have one but it might be from shooting off hand.

 

[Ole Humpback]

Yeah. Their touting the "Gold Trigger" that this one comes with. I really don't need the trigger to be gold, but a light pull would be nice.

I've yet to see any Browning without a gold plated trigger. Just another one of those things that Browning does just so you know for sure that you have a Browning.

 

[wombat13]

About a year ago I became intrigued by the .358win and began researching it and the BLR. I read many comments about the trigger and read several recommendations of the following gunsmith for BLR trigger work:

http://www.neiljones.com/html/gunsmithing.html

 

[CMC]

I got the BLR takedown in 308 with the Leupold 2.5 x Scout scope and from the bench i can easily do 1 to 1.5 inch groups at 100 yards with150 gr Nosler partition Federal Premium ammo.
Havent tried it yet with reloads or a higher power scope.

 

[Ole Humpback]

About a year ago I became intrigued by the .358win and began researching it and the BLR.

My dad has a 358 Win in a BLR. If all you're worrying about is the trigger, go ahead and buy it. You will not be disappointed with it at all My dad has a 4-10x Simmons on it, but he's more sensitive to recoil than me, so he had a muzzle break & recoil pad put on it. The only real issue I thought that it ever had was that the muzzle seemed to jump a bit when you shot it.

 

[wombat13]

My dad has a 358 Win in a BLR. If all you're worrying about is the trigger, go ahead and buy it. You will not be disappointed with it at all My dad has a 4-10x Simmons on it, but he's more sensitive to recoil than me, so he had a muzzle break & recoil pad put on it. The only real issue I thought that it ever had was that the muzzle seemed to jump a bit when you shot it.

No, it isn't the trigger that stopped me from buying. Too many competing shooting/hunting related "needs."

 

[WNC Seabee]

I had my .308 BLR out last week. With a Weaver CK4x scope, off-hand on the bench (no bags, held in the hand, elbows on the bench...) I got <2" at 100 yards with Winchester Ballistic Silver Tip 150grs.

 

[Ole Humpback]

No, it isn't the trigger that stopped me from buying. Too many competing shooting/hunting related "needs."

I can understand that.

 

[CoRoMo]

Thanks guys.

I got to handle a 30.06 a few days ago. For one thing, these things are a lot harder to find than I ever imagined. Almost no gun shops have a single BLR in stock, but I found one. The bolt alone is an impressive wonder.

 

[Funshooter45]

I have a couple of BLRs. I've had one in 7 MM Mag for about 20 years now. It will shoot just as well as my Win Mod 70 in the same caliber. Just under 1" at 100 yds is pretty common. It has a Weaver V9 scope on it. As mentioned, the trigger is not great, but it works OK.

The newest one is a takedown model in .325 WSM. It is still pretty new. Less than 60 rounds through it. I am still in the process of working up loads for it. When I have shot a few groups with it, it was not as impressive as any of my other rifles. The groups were about 2-2.5". i'm not worried yet though. The trigger is even worse than the old one, but I think it will get better with more shooting. And I have quite a few different loads worked up just waiting to see which works best. I think after finding the right load, letting the trigger wear in a bit, and shooting some of the rough edges in the barrel, it will hopefully shoot under 1" just like its older brother does.