Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles I broke a cardinal rule….A-Bolt

When I was younger I thought the Browning A-Bolt was the ultimate hunting rifle. It looked nice, short bolt throw, good “American” company, reputation for accuracy, etc. Then I started reading stories about their failures and shortcomings and my enthusiasm for them waned. Until last month when Cabelas had a used one in one of my favorite calibers the .338 Win mag and they had it out for $395. It has a 26” barrel which is probably at least 4+” more barrel than I’d prefer but it had open sights and was in good condition. I don’t think it ever had a scope mounted to it and was strictly hunted with iron sights. I figured that for less than $400 I might as well play around with it since I’m sure I can recoup my money if I decide to offload it but I’ll likely keep it as a backup and loaner rifle for up north.

I’m going to put a different trigger like a TT and I’ll put one of my extra scopes on it and see how she does. Whatever their weak spots are…..like pot-metal trigger groups or crappy bolt internals I can replace.

For those of you that have experience with the A-Bolt (NOT X-bolt) what do you think are their weaknesses and what would you focus on replacing?

Thanks in advance.

I would not replace anything. I bought my A-Bolt in 1998 for $305. It is .338 winchester mag. The early ones were really lite weight, mine weighs 7.75 lbs with scope. I have never had a problem with my rifle. It was only rifle I used for several years. It has been to Africa 4 times and has taken many deer and elk and couple moose. I use other rifles now but still use it a few days every year. It is the one rifle I would never get rid of.

I concur. I have three of the original A-Bolts (.257 Roberts, .25-06, .284 Win) and they are all superb shooters. Never understood the disdain for the A-Bolt. Not a fan of the X-Bolt (styling, plastic magazine).

Assume its an original or an Abolt II? If thats the case I'd let her ride...I've owned multiples, been around many more. Never witnessed or experienced issues with bolt internals or trigger group. Triggers are not on the same level as a TT but they are entirely serviceable for a hunting rifle - especially if its destined for loaner status. Some folks struggle with the magazine, can't say I've experienced their troubles there.

I'd run it as is.


AB3 - no experience.

Thanks for the replies guys I really appreciate your opinions. Since I’m not current on the various iterations of the A-Bolt I don’t know for sure but I believe it’s a A-Bolt 1 since it has a “retained metal magazine” and no plastic.

It’s actually a fairly lightweight rifle for a 26” barrel and it does balance well the way it is. I wouldn’t drag it to Kodiak for 2 weeks of hard hunting but I think for a general knock around rifle it should be perfect.

Thanks again guys.

Leave it alone and just shoot it . I don't think Triggertech makes a trigger for it but if they did that would be the only change.

I have only owned 2 a-bolts, so my experience is limited. First, I had a 300 RUM that I felt like the overall mag length was to short so I traded it away, and then I have a 325 wsm mountain Ti. The only thing I did to either one of them was to replace the trigger spring in them. They both shot great so no reason to do anything else to them.

I still have my Abolt Hunter in 30-06. It is a shooter. The action is smooth. I should have bought another one in short action at that time. You can replace the trigger spring easily with a lighter one. It is glass bedded at the recoil lug. 60 degrees bolt throw with plenty of clearance from the scope. You are going to love that rifle.

Their trigger can be made much better with a low cost spring kit. I have done several had have been surprised with the result.
They can be as good or better than most mid range aftermarket triggers with little work or expense. They are easy to install and can be found at Brownells or Cabela’s. Last kit I ordered had 2 springs that you can try and decide between 2 to 4 lbs. with no noticeable creep. Most required only swapping out the spring and no other adjustments.

I have an A-Bolt Medallain in 300 Win Mag. Nice rifle, hunt with it a fair bit. It isn't "range friendly" as it has a brake on it. My shoulder appreciates the brake for sure.
I wouldn't get rid of yours. Like most, I haven't had any issues. Trigger is plenty good enough for hunting and the rifle is are nice to look at when not shooting. Browning's are good guns.
Jeff

Junk, wouldn’t own one.

Have 2 in the safe today, owned several through the years , never any issues with any.

As you can tell by my campfire handle, my answers are biased. I bought my first one, a 30-06, in 1989 and right now, I have eight of them from .22 LR to .338 WM. I bought the .338 in 1999 for $425.00 at Kittery Trading Post in Maine, for my first trip to Newfoundland. I had the barrel of the .338 cut to 23 inches. To me it's better balanced, but I carried it a lot of miles with the 26 inch barrel.

A lot of people here want to bad mouth the A-bolt, but I've never had one problem. It's accurate and dependable. I like how they fit me. If there's any thing to change, it might be a better trigger, although I'm happy with mine. From my experience with other brands of rifles, I would buy the trigger spring kit from McCarbo and rock on.

Congratulations on finding the .338. If you use it, you may find yourself needing a different rifle for a loaner.

I once visited a guy, in upstate NY, who had a gun business he operated out of his garage. He shot almost every rifle he sold and he told me the most accurate rifles, on average, were the A-bolts.
I am not a fan of the trigger lever and have seen a couple which broke at the pin. Replacing it with a steel piece fixes that but it's a bit spendy to do. I was never a fan of the detachable mag but it actually works pretty well. I like the bolt design although I prefer a 90 degree lift. I dislike the bolt handle. There were issue with light primer strikes for a while (late 80's) but I think they fixed that. All in all, I think they are a better rifle than many give them credit for being. Having said this, I don't think I would buy one but that is just prejudice talking. GD

Thanks for all the replies gentlemen.

This rifle will be put through her paces this year and once I’m comfortable with it I’ll use it as another loaner rifle. I think I’ll take it up with me when I fly back on Tuesday….

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^


THIS...for damn sure.


I worked for 22 years behind the counter at the LGS...we had two top notch gunsmiths in there. Any time anyone questioned about the A- bolts I'd take them 'in the back' and ask if they see any A-bolts in the racks waiting for repairs....nada.

Reported accuracy was always excellent.

What was the cardinal rule that your broke?

I had a left hand A-Bolt 30-06 stainless stalker for a few years. It was a shooter. The previous owner had magnaport put a radial brake on it and the finish was very well matched to the barrel, almost looked seamless. Recoil was minimal with the brake and the limbsaver pad.

I wasn’t in love with the magazine system and my bolt wasn’t that smooth, but it shot very well. I liked the bolt throw, the bolt handle, safety position and the fact that it was stainless (not a ton of left handed stainless rifles out there).

I ended up selling it on here a few months back. Sometimes I regret selling it, but most of the time I don’t. I ended up getting a short action X-Bolt, which seems to be a better rifle for me.

my primary elk hunting buddy has an older abolt in 7mmremmag. he's used that same rifle for at least 25 years, killing probably 22 elk and i imagine easily over 100 deer and hogs. to my knowledge he's never had the first problem with the rifle. i think they are great rifles. not so for the ab3 though.

Abolt 2 owner for about 30 years. Have a medallion 7mag with boss system. 1st year the boss was offered. I he only thing I did was replace the trigger spring. Much lighter pull and feels nice. Cheap addition.

Killed my first elk and mule deer with a composite 7mm RM that I paid $330 for in 1988. Shot great and no issues. Only reason I sold it was because I went to a Gunwerks in 7mag. Great rifles.