any of you Alaskan`s ever use a Browning BLR levers up there in Alaska ? I purchased a couple of BLR s.s. levers last year, 308 win that shoots excellent under a 1/2inch off bench with my handloads and a 300 win.mag which also shoots great 5/8 inch groups off bench both at 100 yards ? I kinda want to purchase a BLR s.s.7mm rem. mag also ?Any thoughts from you Alaskan hunters ?
There is nothing mystical about firearms in Alaska. Ironically people here seem less concerned about these things than those in the CONUS. or COMUS as so many on here refer to it. Just bring what you've got 30-06 and up. You don't have to buy a new rifle to come hunting in AK.
oh but its fun to buy new rifles or nice old rifles and see well they perform, as a gun dealer I do have a small advantage I buy and sell . plus I enjoy reloading ammo and trying new bullets ,powder etc. I am kinda a gun nut I even have my own rifle range , heated shooting house ,cement benches,plus my 100 yard rifle range has lights so I do have the ability to shoot anytime, any weather condition too. lately these Browning BLR rifles have really preformed well at my range and son shot a couple of real nice bucks big 8pt. here in Minnesota 5x5 out west both over 200 yards.
i own a couple of lever 45-70 `s , I just prefer I rifle with much more range and these magnum BLR`S shoot real good,plus I like the clip magazine also,over the years I have over looked how nice these BLR Brownings are and how accurate a BLR shoots at 400 and 500 yards and still have plenty power too.
They look like good rifles and I her they shoot good. They made a take down model I liked. If a guy runs the gun dry, how fast can he get one back in the chamber? Do the magazines lock in tight where they won't come out when one is going up hill in the alder patch from hell or busting through the Alaskan pucker brush?
On more then one occasion I have pushed through brush that was so bad and wore me out so much that I was concerned about the bolt on my Mod. 70. So I closed the bolt on an empty chamber and put the safety on, which locked the bolt down. My son in law lost a detachable magazine on and old Savage 30-06, never has found it. Military rifles seem to have a more secure detachable magazine system then sporting rifles do.
Your going to need a mcmillan stocked CRF 340 weatherby stainless, fluted bolt, a scope with at least 3 knobs, a tube of turtle wax and a roll of pink electrical tape. And a 500 S&W in a chest rig...
My only reservation about a BLR for Alaska is the complexity of bolt removal should you need to do a complete field stripping, Rack and pinion timing is tricky. Lots of moisture in Alaska and travel by small boat is not unheard of.
As to your question, I have, and use -[Two-2]- Lever Action's here in Alaska, a BLR in 30-06, and a Marlin .375 Win., and the 30-06 with Remingtons 220gr. Core-Loc's are the only Load you need for Moose,,,, and its "Plenty" of Gun if Mr. Griz, or a Browney show-up, and oh-yea,,,, both of those Lever-Actions are Mag-na- Ported. Lj
AK, thanks for the pictures and info , I really wished Browning made a 338 win. mag. ,I have a 300 win.mag and its got plenty recoil I do plan on buying a 7 mm. rem mag. BLR too, so we all have same cartridge used , just for a small safety concern.they are all ex-military except myself 2 live in Alaska,my friend goes up to Alaska to visit every other year.
AK, thanks for the pictures and info , I really wished Browning made a 338 win. mag. ,I have a 300 win.mag and its got plenty recoil I do plan on buying a 7 mm. rem mag. BLR too, so we all have same cartridge used , just for a small safety concern.they are all ex-military except myself 2 live in Alaska,my friend goes up to Alaska to visit every other year.
Ok then,,,, you know it's not that hard to have that "Wish" come True,,,, I did it in the early 90's, sent my .300 Win. Mag BLR to a Gunsmith in Eugene, Oregon, Robert (Bob) West,-[now deceased]- he was an old partner in Crime with P.O. Ackley in Colorado, at Trinidad School of Guns, back-in the Day. Anyway, he Bored that Barrel Out, and Cut a New .33 Cal. Barrel in,,,,, Same Barrel, No Swap-out, just to be clear. There's a guy in Cottage Grove, Oregon, doing the same thing now, his Name is "Jess", @ .35caliber.com or Phone# 541-942-1342 Ok,,,, there you go, a Couple Hundred Dollars is what it cost me, I'm thing it's still about the same, >? Lj [i][/i][b][/b]
AK, thanks for the pictures and info , I really wished Browning made a 338 win. mag. ,I have a 300 win.mag and its got plenty recoil I do plan on buying a 7 mm. rem mag. BLR too, so we all have same cartridge used , just for a small safety concern.they are all ex-military except myself 2 live in Alaska,my friend goes up to Alaska to visit every other year.
Ok then,,,, you know it's not that hard to have that "Wish" come True,,,, I did it in the early 90's, sent my .300 Win. Mag BLR to a Gunsmith in Eugene, Oregon, Robert (Bob) West,-[now deceased]- he was an old partner in Crime with P.O. Ackley in Colorado, at Trinidad School of Guns, back-in the Day. Anyway, he Bored that Barrel Out, and Cut a New .33 Cal. Barrel in,,,,, Same Barrel, No Swap-out, just to be clear. There's a guy in Cottage Grove, Oregon, doing the same thing now, his Name is "Jess", @ .35caliber.com or Phone# 541-942-1342 Ok,,,, there you go, a Couple Hundred Dollars is what it cost me, I'm thing it's still about the same, >? Lj [i][/i][b][/b]
I have a 7600 West rebored to 35WAI over 40 years ago. He has been gone a long time.
Last edited by Sitka deer; 03/30/18. Reason: Frigging autocorrect!
Mark Begich, Joaquin Jackson, and Heller resistance... Three huge reasons to worry about the NRA.
AK, thanks for the pictures and info , I really wished Browning made a 338 win. mag. ,I have a 300 win.mag and its got plenty recoil I do plan on buying a 7 mm. rem mag. BLR too, so we all have same cartridge used , just for a small safety concern.they are all ex-military except myself 2 live in Alaska,my friend goes up to Alaska to visit every other year.
Ok then,,,, you know it's not that hard to have that "Wish" come True,,,, I did it in the early 90's, sent my .300 Win. Mag BLR to a Gunsmith in Eugene, Oregon, Robert (Bob) West,-[now deceased]- he was an old partner in Crime with P.O. Ackley in Colorado, at Trinidad School of Guns, back-in the Day. Anyway, he Bored that Barrel Out, and Cut a New .33 Cal. Barrel in,,,,, Same Barrel, No Swap-out, just to be clear. There's a guy in Cottage Grove, Oregon, doing the same thing now, his Name is "Jess", @ .35caliber.com or Phone# 541-942-1342 Ok,,,, there you go, a Couple Hundred Dollars is what it cost me, I'm thing it's still about the same, >? Lj [i][/i][b][/b]
I have a 7600 West rebored to 35WAI over 40 years ago. He has been gone a long time.
Hey there Sitka,,,,,, yea Bob was quite the character, I made the mistake of calling him a "Gunsmith" once,,,, well he quickly corrected me, and informed me that he was a "Gun-Maker", and as I learned later he was a Founding Member of "The American Gun Makers Guild", I met P.O. Ackley at Bob's shop about 1978-79 or thereabouts, that's when I found out Bobs Nick-Name used by P.O., he called him "RG", ie... Robert Gordon West, seems he did that to all the guys that worked with him, anyway that's what I was told. Yea, Bob passed in 2001 I belive, or maybe 2002,,??? and I learned later on that P.O. was in Oregon visiting some old friends down in Roseburg, Or., kind of where he got his start, back in the Day, I also ran into and met the Old Man John Nosler at Bobs shop,,,, it was quite the gathering place at times, some good memories for sure. Lj
There is nothing mystical about firearms in Alaska. Ironically people here seem less concerned about these things than those in the CONUS. or COMUS as so many on here refer to it. Just bring what you've got 30-06 and up. You don't have to buy a new rifle to come hunting in AK.
True and great advice...
Ping pong balls for the win. Once you've wrestled everything else in life is easy. Dan Gable I keep my circle small, I’d rather have 4 quarters than 100 pennies.
My cousin has a BLR in 7mm-08, and .300WSM. Both shoot well.
He's shot deer out to 400 with the WSM.
I suppose they'd work fine in Alaska, just like they work everywhere else. It's a little bit of a complex action though. There is something to be said for the simplicity of a bolt when it comes to keeping a rifle clean in the backcountry.
-Jake
Small Game, Deer, Turkey, Bear, Elk....It's what's for dinner.
If you know how many guns you own... you don't own enough.
for years I have used bolts and Ruger # 1`s and just over looked the Browning BLR but 2 years ago I started to load and shoot a couple of BLR`S I never realized how well these lever rifles shoot ,I thought BLR rifles would be like Winchester levers and Winchester levers do not impress me . these BLR`S shoot very accurate,can handle much more powerful cartridges,have longe range accurate ability too. I do have a BLR 7mm rem. mag on order now too to use in Alaska for moose ,caribou and wolves,because the guys I will be hunting with like the 7 rem. mag. cartridge in Alaska where they live. Pete53
The BLR is a sort of a lever activated multiple lug bolt action and with the long shank barrel in the steel action they can be exceptionally accurate. I would first de-magnatize them for use in Alaska as those northern light displays are para magnetic and could completely throw off your accuracy.
"When you disarm the people, you commence to offend them and show that you distrust them either through cowardice or lack of confidence, and both of these opinions generate hatred." Niccolo Machiavelli
