if looking at a browning safari that was made in 1971 is there a simple way to tell what action it has. fn long extractor or sako short extractor.cal is 375h/h. need help. as you can tell new at this.

FN Action - Made in Belgium
Be careful might be salt, check real well before you buy.

Good luck,
Roland

Go to a gun store and ask to look at a Remington Mode 700 and a Ruger M-77 Mark II. Lay them side to side with the bolts closed and look at the bolts. The Ruger will have a long bar running down the side of the bolt, while the Remington has no such bar, just a smoothe rounded bolt. The long bar on the Ruger is the long extractor, which makes it a Mauser-style bolt. The Remington is push feed and has no such bar.

If the Browning you are looking at has the bar, like the Ruger, it is a true Mauser-style FN rifle. If it is smoothe, then it is a push feed, like the Remington.

Of course, you don't have to use a Ruger to demonstrate this difference. Any Mauser, military or commercial, has the long extactor you can use for comparison.

Maybe someone on the forum who is better than me at posting pictures can take a close-up digital picture of the two styles of bolts and post it here to save you a trip to the gun store.

salt wood guns were made from 1969 till 1973.
in 1967 they changed the mauser 98 action to a push feed (called "short extractor").
they kept the "long extractor" for the .270 and 30-06.

quote:

Originally posted by brad may:
salt wood guns were made from 1969 till 1973.
in 1967 they changed the mauser 98 action to a push feed (called "short extractor").
they kept the "long extractor" for the .270 and 30-06.

salt wood guns were made from 1969 till 1973.
in 1967 they changed the mauser 98 action to a push feed SAKO ACTION(called "short extractor").
they kept the "long extractor" FN MAUSER ACTION for the .270 and 30-06.


In this case the above is true, but not in all cases does the length of the extractor indicate whether an action is CRF or not, on all rifles. It should be explained that the type of extractor in only one componant of a CRF action. The SAKO looks like a short extractor CRF, but is, in fact, a pushfeed action, as is the Wby Mark-V action, and the only CRF action used on Wby rifles were the FN Mauser actions.

The rifle you are looking at is likely a salt wood rifle, and unless the salt wood has damaged the steel of the rifle, the loss of the stock is no draw-back, because WBY stocks need to be replaced anyway. If you can get the rifle priced right, then a couple hundred dollars will put it in a good synthetic stock, but cretainly wood is going to cost considerably more!


In this case it will tell you, but if it is a SAKO,it is push feed, and if it is an FN MAUSER, it is CRF.

Mac 37
Thanks for making that a little clearer.
It should also be pointed out that not all Brownings in that time period were affected by salted wood.
I do not know how to make a link on the computer to the article, but on Shotgunworld.com in the "I love Browning" forum on page 19 there is thread "Salt wood Superposed". There's an article from Art Isaacson (Art's Gunshop). He knows more about salt wood than anyone.

Howdy Mac. Can you point me (or any of you in the know) , or maybe you know yourself as to a good source of info on subject rifles? I just picked up an almost new (with box) Safari Grade in 3006 (1964 manufacture I'm pretty sure). It has a whole bunch of nifty Belgina proof marks on the left side of the barrel and receiver (all correspond according to the Blue Book) that I'd never seen before on Safaris. Also where on previous Safaris I've owned the bolt is very shiny, this one's in a very classy dull patina and I've never see that before either. It also has the early square bridge rear sight. It's a beaut! jorge

quote:

Originally posted by jorge:
Howdy Mac. Can you point me (or any of you in the know) , or maybe you know yourself as to a good source of info on subject rifles? I just picked up an almost new (with box) Safari Grade in 3006 (1964 manufacture I'm pretty sure). It has a whole bunch of nifty Belgina proof marks on the left side of the barrel and receiver (all correspond according to the Blue Book) that I'd never seen before on Safaris. Also where on previous Safaris I've owned the bolt is very shiny, this one's in a very classy dull patina and I've never see that before either. It also has the early square bridge rear sight. It's a beaut! jorge

Jorge,

This is very strange, the way you describe the metal work is remarkable.
In the early days FN made series of very limited barreled actions like the one you describe, the were intended to be engraved by the late Louis Vrancken and are top quality, I believe you acquired something extraordinary.

Good luck,
Roland

Hi Guys

Is this the type of Browning 375 H+H with a Mauser action you are taking about?

The above looks like a Zastava Mark X to me. The bottom metal is the later style with side button floorplate release.

Lucky its got Browning stamped on the barrel then

Does it have FN or Browning stamped on the receiver too or Zastava/Yugoslavia? Could be a Browning barrel in a Zastava action. Doesn't really matter, it's not a Browning Safari either way, its a custom rifle.

FNs & Zastavas are of the same design. That is why they look alike.

Just out of interest it says Browning Arms Utah. Made in Belgium

I have one of those Browning Safaris, but it's factory original. I suspect somebody cracked a stock on mine early on, because the serial # in the forearm doesn't match the rifle - but it's by far the best 'factory' wood I've ever seen on any rifle. This rifle has a 2-digit serial number....just L-xx, which probably makes it a '58.

I have one other .375, though, that's always puzzled me. It's nearly identical to the 'Browning' marked rifle, except it has the big swooshy "FN" logo on the front ring and the recoil pad. It's factory drilled & tapped, and appears to be new/unfired. In addition it has steel bottom metal (the Browning is alloy), with a military style pin release. The serial # on this one starts with a "B". I've had this one for thirty years or so, but I've never managed to figure out it's origins - it's the only one I've ever come across.

Both of the above have the non-folding, Dumoulin-style rear sight and the barrel steps seem to be the same.

quote:

Tumbleweed: I have another .375, though, that's always puzzled me. It's nearly identical to the 'Browning' marked rifle, except it has the big swooshy "FN" logo on the front ring and the recoil pad. It's factory drilled & tapped, and appears to be new/unfired. In addition it has steel bottom metal (the Browning is alloy), with a military style pin release. The serial # on this one starts with a "B". I've had this one for thirty years or so, but I've never managed to figure out it's origins - it's the only one I've ever come across.

What you have is an FN Deluxe Sporter, very similar to the Browning Safari.