Browning Buck Mark Pistols

[SVC]

My previous query was about the Sig Sauer Mosquito .22LR. After reading the feedbacks, I drop the idea of buying it.

Now I am contemplating the Buck Mark Pistols.

My requirements are:
Excellent precision

Reliability: no jamming regardless the bullet I use


Any comments?

Thanks,
S.

[bosshoff]

There are a ton of threads on this, you should search. That being said, Buck Mark pistols meet ALL of your criteria.

[enfield]

Buy the ammo your Buckmark likes and you shouldn't have any problems. As far as I know, all semi-auto .22's have trouble with some types of ammo, some more than others.

My used Buckmark didn't particularly care for Remington (UMC) ammo when I first got it, but a good cleaning seemed to cure that.

[Bula]

I think You'll find the Buckmark is a GREAT .22 pistol. Should fit your requirements perfectly. I really like the older Ruger Mark II's too. My Buckmark will shoot Sub 1" at 15 yds. I'd think 1-1.5" at 25 yds is within reason. I have the slabsided 5.5" model and the only thing I'd like to change is the grips. The fact wood grips sure are nicer than the hard rubbers that came on mine.

[cmidkiff]

I believe that my Buckmark is the best firearm purchase I've ever made. Reliable, accurate, cheap to feed, and I've introduced more new shooters to the sport with it than with any other firearm. My kids put 2 or 3 hundred rounds through it every time we go to the range.

Mine doesn't like Federal bulk pack. It'll shoot 'em, but it hiccup's every once in a while with them. It really likes Winchester SuperX, so that's what I typically feed it. Empty 12g shells at 20 yards don't stand a chance :)

Buy one, you won't regret it!

[Control]

I'll agree with cmidkiff. I have much finer firearms that have cost me thousands of dollars. However, for the price, the Buckmark is my best buy.

Mine is a 5 1/2 camper. You can get this model for $300 new and perhaps cheaper. There are now 22 models to choose from with different sights, finishes, rails, etc. Browning knows they have a winner.

I would not expect a .22 pistol to not jam regardless of the bullet you use. There are many ultra-cheap .22 rounds sold in bulk and the quality control is not excellent. Mine jams every once in a while with bulk Remington or Federal ammo. What do you expect for cheap'o ammo?

It is reliable with Federal Premium Gold Metal. It will shoot consistent 1" groups at 25 yards with this stuff. I use the iron sights, bags, a pinhole (Merit Optical Attachment), and lots of practice to get these results. The trigger is crisp and breaks at 4lbs 4oz but your control must still be precise to get these results. The target center (a 1” square black box) will be a simple dot on top of your front sight. You must put the dot in the middle of the front sight and have precise elevation alignment which is why I use the pinhole.

The screws that hold the top on the gun often come loose during firing. They are easy to tighten and the rail versions that fit scopes may not have this problem. Getting the firing pin back in after a full cleaning is a bit tricky. These are the only two negatives. I have guns costing hundreds more with more negatives than this.

The target models have trigger stops and scope rails but they are slightly more expensive. I may get a target model in addition to my camper.

I do not often give overwhelmingly positive reviews.

[2bigfeet]

Funny you should ask, I just bought a Buck Mark Contour 5.5 URX tonight...:D

Hopefully I can get out to the range tomorrow. I'll let know how things go. Now I'm looking for a Red Dot rig. Any suggestions out there? Something on the low end, price wise.

http://www.browning.com/products/catalog/firearms/images/051421m.jpg

[distra]

I have target 5.5 that I use for bullseye shooting and it meets all your criteria.

[Eric86GT]

I'm using a Buckmark micro std 4" for Bullseye (yeah bbl is a little short) and accuracy is great. Trigger is excellent. A longer sight radius would definitely help for the longer shots. As posted above any .22 semiauto pistol will probably jam at some point or another with cheap bulk ammo or if the pistol is really dirty. Mine shoots Remington bulk accurately but has an occasional FTF. Winchester bulk gives an occasional FTE. No problems whatsoever with CCI minimag. Haven't tried Federal bulk yet. Only negatives as already stated are the screws to field strip. I lock-tited the screws and they have not budged one bit.

[FR Baseball]

You can't go wrong with a buckmark. I just picked up one over the weekend, its a blast to shoot. I put almost 1500 rounds through it this weekend (Win SuperX, CCI MiniMag, Federal Bulk, Win Xpert, and American Eagle) and did not have one gun related malfunction. I did have a few dud rounds, but thats to be expected with bulk ammo. I'm no expert shot, but I could bounce baseballs around at 25 yards, thats good enough for me (for now). Definitely pick one up if you can, you won't regret it.

[jonnyc]

All you Buckmarkers ought to try Winchester Dynapoint. The price went up, but I seem to find alot of it around again. I thought it went out of production. Shoots and feeds great. I get about 1 FTF every 300-400 rounds.

[Eric86GT]

johnnyc,
Forgot to mention I did shoot a box of Dynapoint. For the first 400 rds of dynapoint the only malfs I had were occasional FTE. The last 100 rds however I had a few FTE and FTF. The accuracy of the first 400 rds was very good and very consistent though. I bought it at K-mart for 16.99+tax. To me that's just a little high for bulk.

[TimboKhan]

I got no problems with Buckmarks, and I think you would probably pretty happy with one. That said, I just sold a "camper" model precisely because it DID jam pretty frequently. I know what the problem was (top plate kept rattling loose), and it wasn't hard to fix, but it got tiresome and so I sold it. Here is the simple fact: ANY autoloader you choose may end up being a jam-o-matic. It's a mechanical device and is thus susceptible to failure, even though you may never experience a failure of any sort. There are tons of great Buckmarks out there, and I willl probably own one again someday. The one I had was a PITA.

[mrcpu]

I bought my Wife a URX (UX?) Buckmark with the fluted barrel and such for Christmas. She really likes it, and I do too. THe trigger is awesome. Just snick, snick, snick, and little holes appear pretty much where I will them to...

[Trebor]

The Ruger MK II and Browning Buckmark are both good choices. I prefer the Ruger, but the Buckmark is also a good gun.

Just so you know though, *any* .22 is going to be more finicky than any centerfire pistol. .22 ammo is notriously dirty, and the working areas in the guns are smaller, so ammo related malfunctions are more common. You can reduce malfunctions by keeping the pistol and lubed and by avoiding the cheapest .22 ammo. Even then, the gun may function better with one brand of ammo or be more accurate with a particular brand.

[2bigfeet]

Just went the range today and put 200 rounds through it. As I posted on another Buckmark related thread: I had two FTF about fifty rounds in with CCI standard velocity. I did not strip or clean the gun first. Looking at the rounds both bullets had a couple of good nicks in them. Whether that happened during feeding or they were nicked and didn't feed who knows. The rest went flawlessly. Very pleased with the accuracy too. Its a keeper so I'll be looking into a Red Dot scope of some sort.

Unlike the Ruger it only comes with one magazine. The second one was $25... Yikes! It was a toss up between the Ruger Mark III & the Browning. I shot both and they both shoot very well, feel basically the same in my hand, same basic weight and trigger pull. I just happen the like the looks of the Buck Mark better and the spring tension on the magazines make it easier to load than the Ruger. You could flip a coin and be happy with either one.

http://kerrykling.home.comcast.net/graphics/buckmark_2.jpg

[joplinsks]

I have an early 80s Browning Challenger II, which is the father of the Buckmark. Excellent gun. Someone installed a custom Wilson Combat rear sight on it which makes it dead accurate. It shoots cheap Walmart Federal bulk ammo all day without issue. Had a chance to compare it with a Ruger Mark II and the Challenger just seems to feel more solid and better quality. It's definitely the best used pistol I've ever bought. Chances are I'll stick with Browning and buy a new Buckmark one of these days to complement it.