Pasche
I had similar issue with a new from the factory BLR .308 a couple of months ago, installed the Leupold two piece scope bases, cycled the lever action a couple times and it started to make a grinding sound. The action cycled but was very difficult to move without extreme effort. No indication what caused the issue.
Returned the rifle to Browning, they exchanged the faulty rifle with a new BLR.
From my research the internal components of the lever and bolt gears are very difficult to set-up (for lack of a better description) and there are very few gunsmiths here in the US that work on the internal components of BLRs due to this.
Sending it to the manufacturer is the best action.
I have the .30-06 pistol grip (not a takedown), really like it, if the trigger was a bit lighter and broke consistently, I would like it even more.
Good luck.
