Browning Model 71 in my future...

[Hobie]

I don't know what to say but...

Today I bought 9 boxes of Hornady .348 bullets for $90. I already have brass and dies. Now I need to find a rifle. I guess I will decide between the rifle and carbine on price... That's going to be pretty easy for the moment as I doubt I have the money for either.

BTW, anyone else here get these things "ammo first" so to speak?

[pwl44m]

That's how I get the Gun by the Wife, get the Ammo then U have to have the Gun.
Perry

[damienph]

Yep, I've have a box of Hornady 7mmJFPs that I've had for years waiting for the right 7-30 Waters to cross my path.

[RIHMFIRE]

sounds like your committed to me!
rifle or carbine.....I kinda like the Browning high grade carbine
but would get either if i have the chance...
Do you hunt up there in stauton va?....... bear maybe?
Your not to far away from elk country in Kentucky

[Shasta]

I just bought a set of .45-75 dies in the classifieds from rjohns94 without having a rifle in that caliber, yet...

Hey, ya gotta start somewhere! Good luck on finding a rifle. Those Brownings are sure nice!



SHASTA

[Nazgul]

Went into a gunshop 4 years ago and the owner, who knows me by name, says "Need any 375 JDJ ammo?". Didn't have one, bought 5 boxes of ammo at a good price. Found barrels for the Encore on sale from Midway. Great fun. Had JD Jones put a muzzle break on it.

Have fun with the 348. I have a Browning 71. Don't get to shoot it near enough.
Killed a groundhog with it.

Don

[6pt-sika]

Hmmmm I know of a nice DeLuxe Grade Winchester 71 in the Staunton area at a local shop !

Think the place is called Nuckols

[6pt-sika]

BTW, anyone else here get these things "ammo first" so to speak?

Did I not sell you ELEVEN boxes of Hornady 7mm 139 grain FN's that I had planned to use in a 7-30 Waters I never had built .

To say nothing of the 1,000 pieces of Sierra 7mm 120 grain FP's , the 24 boxes of Nosler 7mm 120 grain FP's that I also had and sold to other folks

[tman]

If u are gonna hunt with it, grab the carbine. The 348 aint a long range lazor. The 24" barrell version makes it heavier and i don't think it will add all that much range or velocity. Mines a great woods rifle

[Sixgun]

BTW, anyone else here get these things "ammo first" so to speak?

Hobie,
Thats "old news" to seasoned guncranks. I remember buying up a half dozen boxes of W-W 219 Zipper and then waited 5 years before a Marlin showed up.

I bought several sets of dies (cheap) and then had an excuse to buy the gun---most notably the 38 WCF and the 35 Winchester.

I've bought weird caliber bullet heads and then waited for a gun to show its face---It always did

I've bought old Lyman tang sights for a specific gun.

I bought a box full of En-Blocs for the M-1 Garand cheap and within several years , the Garand of my dreams dropped by. (one of the first N.M's--1953)

Look dude, its a serious disease. I've even bought old catalogs and waited for the gun to show up.! Don't feel guilty. ---------------------------------------------------------------------Sixgun

[Borregos]

I very much doubt if Hobie feels guilty

[ollogger]

id a bought the 348s for that price & put another gun on my list
my main hunt now is a 25-35, just happen to have every thing
cept the gun

[rjohns94]

I certainly have bought ammo before the rifle. You are going to love that 71! Nothing like the 71 rifle.

[Boreman]

Your in good company.It's a mind over a matter thing,if you don't mind it don't matter.So do it the way it works for you..,,,
I am looking for a Ruger LC9. haven't found one to suit me yet but I have 2 holsters and 2 mags and a good supply of ammo when the gun shows up.
I am a lover of the M-71,I think everyone should have at least one.IMHO it's the best levergun ever made.I have 4 of them a Brownchester and 3
Winchesters. You can't go wrong with either one.You will love it !!!!!!
Good luck with your search.

[big bear]

Carbine nice to carry/hunt with. Rifle nicer to test loads and shoot 50-100 rounds of 348 in an afternoon. Now that you got all those incredibly cheap bullets,$10 /box (I'm surprised nobody commented on the incredible bargain you got) you'll be reloading and shooting alot of 348 ! Oh yeah, get a carbine first (fewer of them) then get the rifle so you can shoot more (perfect excuse for the rifle, right , you are welcome).

[smokenrust]

You guys are all nutz!!! Buying ammunition, dies and holsters and accesories for guns that you don't have yet.
Has anyone seen a rifle for sale in 7mmSTW? Or in a few other cal. like 219 donaldson , 222Rem, 240wby, 264winmag etc...?

[getitdone1]

Hobie,

I don't know which I like best. My Browning 71 carbine or 86 SRC. Believe I recall you have the 86 SRC. If so expect you'll have the same problem. It's a nice problem. I will say that hot loads in the 71 feel a lot better than hot loads in the 86.

Buying those bullets was the right thing to do. Just a matter of time.

Don

[Hobie]

Hmmmm I know of a nice DeLuxe Grade Winchester 71 in the Staunton area at a local shop !

Think the place is called Nuckols

It was already sold! Good stuff goes fast out of that shop. Price was $3000.00

[Molasses]

You guys are all nutz!!! Buying ammunition, dies and holsters and accesories for guns that you don't have yet.
Has anyone seen a rifle for sale in 7mmSTW? Or in a few other cal. like 219 donaldson , 222Rem, 240wby, 264winmag etc...?

Saw a late '60s-early '70s Model 70 in .264 Mag t'other day at Frontiersman (a few miles W of downtown Mpls just off I-394) that wasn't priced too extortionately. If my money wasn't already spoken for...

I've got a few boxes of .32 Special that I picked up cheap some years ago because I know how I am and am confident that someday one will follow me home. Likewise a set of 6.5 Mannlicher Schoenauer dies. I think I'll probably buy a set of .256 dies if I ever find a cheap set, just because I wouldn't mind an excuse to get a Contender barrel in that chambering (or a Marlin Levermatic).

A Model 71 is on my short list, if I ever figure out how to pay for one. Maybe after finishing paying for the friend's collection and getting out of debt, I can splurge to the extent of going that far back in.

[alamogunr]

I only come over here to lurk occasionally but the thread title caught my eye. I've been reading old 71 articles in Handloader for the last couple of days. Several years ago a ran across a Browning 71 on Gunbroker. The price was reasonable but I usually walk away and think about it for an hour or two. When I came back the seller had dropped the buy-it-now price to $719 plus shipping. I almost broke the keyboard hitting that button. The seller was in a hurry to buy some expensive camera and I helped him scratch his itch. I scratched an itch I didn't even know I had.

I don't shoot it all that often but I do take it out of the safe and handle it. I'll never hunt bear, elk or moose but I can dream.

I've got two boxes of Buffalo Bore ammo for it that I haven't tried yet. Maybe someday. For now, cast loads allow me to shoot without too much recoil.

John
W.TN

[Wrangler John]

Back in the '80's when the Browning's were new I bought a Model 71 Carbine (and two '86's, a Model 65 and a '95 but that's another story of obsession) anyway I also picked up a box of Winchester .348 ammo that was marked ".348 Winchester for Browning Model 71 Commemorative Rifle." Still have that box of ammo as it's just too pretty to shoot, even has a picture of the Model 71 on it. Also picked up 250 Rounds of brass in the old yellow boxes. Soon heard that Winchester was discontinuing the cartridge, so I bought another 250 rounds of brass. Years later the brass became a seasonally manufactured item, so I bought 500 more cases.

Had my gunsmith install a Williams receiver sight on the carbine, as my eyes were beginning to change, and took it to the range. Well, it proved to be a bit less than a grand experience. Didn't, group very well, lucky to keep them under 4" at 100 yards, but still good enough for deer or hogs. Every time I fired it, the lever popped open, I thought it was my big hand pulling it down from recoil. Tried various loads with suitable powders, and the few bullets available. Lost interest and put it in the safe where it sat. Now I had 1000 rounds of brass and nothing to shoot it in, but it would keep. 20 Years later I remembered the cardboard box sitting in the corner. It had been sitting there for that same 20 years. Inside was a Siamese Mauser action still in the white that I had barreled in .35-348 Winchester Ackley Improved. Sent the mess off to David Gentry for a little finish work and matte bluing. Made a stock for it and now I had a use for some of that brass. Then in a fit of nostalgia I thought I'd try the Model 71 again.

Back at the range, the model 71 still shot lousy groups and the lever still popped open. Maybe something was wrong (you think?). Browning no longer serviced the M-71's having sold the parts off to Midwest Gun Works, so I sent it off to them for a check up. Turns out the locking bars were defective from day one. They fixed it for a nominal fee and I was happy the lever stayed put when it fired. Still grouped lousy, but got it down to 2.5" or so, not too bad. Problem now is that only two bullets are available for it, the Hornady and a Barnes Original. Which got me to thinking, what if I rebarreled it to .35-348 Winchester Ackley Improved? Plenty more .35 caliber bullets around, the brass would last longer, and it rivals the .350 Remington Magnum. Bob Hutton and Ackley designed the cartridge as one of the "Lever Power" series based on the .348 case, it was designed to give the old lever guns a boost. Haven't done it yet, maybe never will - but it's something to think about. Talk about a long term project! Sometimes expectations far exceed the reality, kinda like life.

[6pt-sika]

Problem now is that only two bullets are available for it, the Hornady and a Barnes Original. Which got me to thinking, what if I rebarreled it to .35-348 Winchester Ackley Improved?

If I were you I'd get a mold or two that are gascheck design . Well before I did that I'd make sure that Gator checks made a gascheck for the 348 and if they did I would get two molds both gas checked one in 200-225 grains and another in 250-275 grains .

[AJMD429]

These days, if you buy a bunch of ammo before you buy the gun, you've got the most expensive part out of the way already...!