Browning BLR

I had a friend who used a BLR 308, he put an old Weaver K2.5 on it and really liked it for deer and speed goats on his Wyoming ranch.

I love the handiness of mine, only prob I have is I. Always take the scope on and off because I can’t decide which way I like it best( I will probably solve this by buying another BLR‍)

Trigger can be heavier, all the blr I've shot were good shooters.

One non-obvious good. They carry in the brush, using a single hand under the receiver / forearm junction really well, much like a Model 94 or 336.

One non-obvious bad. The final rotary bolt closure doesn’t have a lot of closing / lockup power. If you handload and full length size properly, not a problem. However, if your OAL is too long, or you don’t bump the shoulder back 2 to 3 thousandths, it will be a problem you discover when you try and pull the trigger. No go.

The BLR is a great modern lever gun! This one alternates between a Leo 4x and Williams receiver peep sight.

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If I were buying today, I'd get a Henry Long Ranger. It is essentially a clone of the BLR, with the same operating mechanism. But, the magazine release is easier to access, the trigger can be a little better (mine is okay for the 1980s, but not for 2020s), and the barrel is free-floating. None of this stupid folding hammer thing either.

I had one of the original ones in .308, from when they were made in Belgium.

My opinion was it was one of the best woods rifles for hunting. It was fairly light, short, powerful, and accurate.

I hear people speak of poor triggers, but that wasn't the case with mine. If I hadn't moved to a straight wall state I never would have sold it.

I’ve had one for 40 years (damn, that hurts to say). I have since lost count of how many deer I’ve killed with it. For most of its life I used the iron sight, which are really good, but awhile back I added a Leupold to accommodate my older eyes



Mine is a steel receiver BLR chambered in .358 win. I carried it in the swamps of SE Louisiana for many years hunting deer in front of dogs. It points well for quick acquisition of targets on the move and is hunting level accurate. One of the surprising aspects of mine is how well it has held up given the environment in which it was used. There’s not a speck of corrosion on it. The bluing is as nice as the day I acquired it. I can’t speak to the current level of quality coming from Browning but I have nothing but complements about mine.

Last August I gave it to my son on his 18th birthday and he killed his first buck with it this season.

TSchwab25 said:

I was looking at a BLR and bar for deer hunting, and decided against the bar from accuracy problems in another thread. So, what are some good and bad things about the blr that aren't super obvious? Edit: should have also asked about the accuracy of them, so, what accuracy should I expect?

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I picked up a BLR in 7mm-08 a few years ago. I was super excited to get it as I had always lusted after BLR's since first seeing them in the 90's. I didn't have it long however since the trigger was so heavy and I am too cheap to spend the money to have a qualified smith work on it. The gun was heavier than I expected too. By the time I scoped it I was toting a rifle that weighed about 8 lbs. and that's just more than I'm used to. The accuracy of mine was nothing to write home about. 1.5-2" was common. At the end of the day, it just wasn't accurate enough for me, and it was heavier than I wanted. So I sold it. The guy who bought it was elated though.

Here, have another gratuitous deer + BLR photo from a few years back.



Maybe it’s just sentimentality on my part, but I loved my BLR and hope my son has similar success with it.

The same negatives that associated with the BAR apply to the BLR. Between the 2 I'd rather have the BAR. And that's not to say either are bad rifles. Browning makes quality stuff. For a long time I wanted a BLR in 308 bad. But from a practical perspective I could never "pull the trigger". Pun intended.

If you just want to hunt with something different than the masses then either will get the job done. But from a practical perspective there are more efficient tools. But as I've said before, hunting is generally something we do for fun and using the guns and other gear we enjoy using is an important part of it.

Nature Boy said:

Here, have another gratuitous deer + BLR photo from a few years back.

Maybe it’s just sentimentality on my part, but I loved my BLR and hope my son has similar success with it.

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Nice of you giving him a pillow.

jmr40 said:

The same negatives that associated with the BAR apply to the BLR. Between the 2 I'd rather have the BAR.

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Except, as far as I know, the BAR was never chambered in .358 Winchester. A BIG except.

Nothing new to add...
My BLR-81 .358 is the early Steel receiver.
After 2-300 rounds to break it in (Original owner fired it less than 100rds), accuracy improved somewhat. 1.5MOA with ammo it likes....

Trigger isn’t great nor terrible. About like a Glock with a NY trigger. Lots of creep...
By removing the original butt pad I reduced the weight noticeably and shifted balance forward. It wears a Leupold 2-7x VariX II. Otherwise it looks like Nature Boy’s...
I prefer my Marlin .338’s. Superior triggers and accuracy.

No, the BAR wasn’t offered in .358 but was in .338winMag!
But, with a 1/2” Boyd’s butt pad, the BLR is 1lb lighter.

I haven't looked at them in a while since I went on a Rem M7 kick, but holy cow are they offered in a a lot of calibers:

https://www.browning.com/products/firearms/rifles/blr/blr-lightweight-stainless-pistol-grip.html

I'd think a lightweight BLR in 325 WSM at 6lbs 12 ounces would make a heck of a timber elk rifle with coverage for clear-cuts to boot!

One more victim that fell to the BLR and the under appreciated .358 win, then I’ll stop, I promise….

Nature Boy said:

Here, have another gratuitous deer + BLR photo from a few years back.

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Proof that with a .358, you can shoot a deer in the gut and they will still drop!

SwampWolf said:

Proof that with a .358, you can shoot a deer in the gut and they will still drop!

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I can assure you that it’s an exit wound you are seeing!

GooseGestapo said:

I can assure you that it’s an exit wound you are seeing!

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That is true. Entry was through the right shoulder. Deer took off on 3 legs, jumped a log, and went down 40 yards away

I was trying to be facetious. I almost wrote, "See, shot placement doesn't mean anything if the bullet is big enough"-but, I lost my nerve.

SwampWolf said:

I was trying to be facetious. I almost wrote, "See, shot placement doesn't mean anything if the bullet is big enough"-but, I lost my nerve.

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I got it

Most rifles and shotguns fit me pretty well. The BLR is an exception as the lop is just too long.

jmr40 said:

The same negatives that associated with the BAR apply to the BLR.

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Except when you have to work a lever, in freezing cold, with big fat gloves. To say they have the "same negatives", hasn't been the case for me in MN.

jmr40 said:

But as I've said before, hunting is generally something we do for fun...

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Who is "we"? Not me. That sounds like a PETA argument. When I hunt, I have fun. I dont hunt just to have fun. I want the meat.

-Trigger can be poor. Mine is about 8.5#, creepy and gritty. Need to send it to Neil Jones.

-Straight grip stock, and maybe the pistol grip stock without the raised cheekpiece, has too much drop to get a proper cheek weld with a scope. Even mounted as low as you can go with a small objective scope.

-Lever is too small for even a light insulated glove. My hands are moderately sized (large glove) and even a thin deerskin glove is too tight. Tighter than a 336 which is still too tight. And no obvious remedy on the Browning.

-The rotary bolt has pretty weak primary extraction. A tight or less than well polished chamber can make extraction quite sticky. Another thing I need to have Mr. Jones address when I send mine down.

I love the little gun, but for me , since scope use is less than ideal with my head waving around in the sky (tracking and shooting moving deer) and it impedes the "thumb around the receiver" carry I love, I run mine with iron sights. And since my 56 year-old eyes limit my effective range to about 150 yds with irons, I don't need a 7mm-08 to kill a deer. So I carry my old 32 Special 336 with and RPP medium loop instead of the BLR. Ah no, its not for sale.

I have a 1972 Belgium manufactured BLR .308. Good trigger, accurate and a pleasure to shoot and carry, though a bit heavier then my M94 Winchester.