Winchtr

Discussion in 'New Member Welcome Area' started by winchtr, May 6, 2017.

  1. winchtr

    winchtr Copper BB

    Hi,

    My name is Marvin and I'm from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. I've collected and used Browning firearms since the late 60's / early 70's. I'm 68 years old, having retired 11 years ago. I'm married and Donna and I have one son who is an Emergency Medicine Doctor here in Edmonton.

    I currently own about twenty Browning firearms including several handguns-Nomad, 9mm High Power, several rim fires, five centre fire rifles and a bunch of shotguns - Citories, Maxus! Auto 5. I use the majority of these either for target shooting or for hunting.

    My wife and I hunt migratory and upland birds, varmints, and big game; mostly moose and elk. Our latest big game kill was a female elk which we took early in Nov, 2016 near Wainwright, Alberta. I shot the female elk with a Browning Safari High Power - 30-06 ( 180 gr.) at a distance of roughly 80 yards very early one morning.

    I have taken up handloading in the last 2 years and have loaded 9mm, 22-250, 270, 30-06 and 7mm Rem. Mag. ammo.

    One of my Browning centre fire rifles - a B-78 calibered in 7 mm Rem Mag which I purchased in 1976, is currently being worked on by a Browning certified gunsmith here in Alberta. This rifle has fired fewer than 70 shots and has basically sat in a gun safe sinc the day it was purchased. About a year ago, I took the B78 to a gun range where I have a membership and after about a dozen shots, the trigger became unserviceable. By this I mean that periodically it would fail to engage the hammer. As well the safety mechanism which is part of the hammer ( half- cock position) would not function. This was quite alarming to me since the rifle has had very little use. I suspect that while sitting in the gun safe for roughly 40 years, the factory locktite applied to the various set and adjustment screws in the trigger assembly had dried up and this was the basis of the problem.

    This rifle has been with the gunsmith now for 7 months and remains unfixed. In speaking with him several times over this period, I sense he is quite frustrated but not giving up! He works on the rifle periodically.

    I sure would like to know if anyone else who is a member of the forum has had a similar experience and any details of what the fix entailed.

    Thank you for granting me membership to the group!
  2. SHOOTER13

    SHOOTER13 Guest

    Welcome to the Browning Owners Forum !!

    Enjoy our community...
  3. Setters4life

    Setters4life .270 WIN

    That's a shame, these are nice rifles. What is more of a shame is that this "gunsmith" has taken 7 months to dance around the problem. Judging from the schematic and manual, it doesn't look too terribly complicated that a qualified 'smith couldn't overcome and resolve.

    Someone posted these on the Castboolits forum some time ago. The manual/schematic is worth a look.
    http://castboolits.gunloads.com/sho...ervice-Manual-Browning-B-78-Single-Shot-Rifle
    Rob poston likes this.
  4. Rob poston

    Rob poston .270 WIN

    Never dealt with this, but hammer work should not be an overly difficult job to do. Just to give you an idea, I completely stripped a Taurus revolver to the frame and rebuilt it. Total time involved was about 2 hours (including cleaning and de-gunking, lubricating, and trigger polish). I am in the middle of doing the same gutting to a Judge, and changing it from a DAO to a single/double action. I suspect the job will take about the same amount of time. Now keep in mind that parts are readily available on these firearms, unlike a B78 which parts might not be as easily found. Still, 7 months is definitely too long.
    Last edited: May 15, 2017
  5. Rob poston

    Rob poston .270 WIN

    When the trigger is held in, can you manually push the hammer far enough forward to engage the pin?

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