My experience with firing the BREN is pretty much in agreement with yours. Although it seems to me that it pushes back a bit more than a BAR does as well as spinging forward harder than the BAR. The BAR pushes back harder than it springs forward, if that makes any sense??? Anyway, I find the BREN seems to stay relatively stationary while the BAR will move you around a bit. Also the BAR is more prone to muzzle climb than the BREN. Suppose that may have more to do with the buttstock position i.e. drop at comb.

When I get around to it maybe I will take a picture of the BREN's piston/carrier next to the BAR's. The piston is considerably larger on the BREN. I would guess that the carriers themselves are probably about the same weight, though the BREN's may be heavier. Like I said, when I get some time (read PROPERLY MOTIVATED) I will post the pictures (the BREN is easy the BAR is sort of a b_tch to put back together!)

ASS_CLOWN

---

Compare this post to the first sentence of the post from AC that started this thread and you will understand why some folks get upset with him.

Covey16

Well is the BREN gun any good? Anyone have any first hand experience shooting a BREN in 303? How did it do? What were you impressions? Is the BREN open or closed bolt? Any feeding issues with that "upside down" magazine? Any issues with the buffer/recoil spring system? How about the operating system, is it reliable (you know does the it get dirty too quick, does the op rod bend, etc)?

Thanks,
ASS_CLOWN

Are water guns any good? Should you use distilled or tap water? Anyone actually shot one? What is their range? Do they get dirty if you drop them and run over them with your bicycle?

Could we trust the Ass Clown to own a working model and not squirt himself in the face?

You are SO STUPID, Scott! One minute you try to act like you invented firearms, the next you act like a fool. (You make a much more believable fool, by the way.)

Pecos,

Thank you for the dissertation on water guns. Now do you have anything to say about BREN guns?

ASS_CLOWN

Yes. Do a search on the internet like you do for all your other facts. It should take you about 5 seconds to find.

Pecos,

Ol' man, there just ain't squat on the old internet about the BREN. What is there is VERY basic and just doesn't provide any insight into the weapons REAL performance!

Also, I do VERY little internet searching for knowledge. Sorry to disappoint you. So my very limited experience may be hindering me from finding any more BREN gun data. Any pointers? Any first hand experience with the BREN? Do you know how to fieldstrip one?

ASS_CLOWN

My buddy Mike has one. Not sure about the bolt question, I've only fired it one time. It was full auto day at the range and everyone brought thier toys. In the course of a full days firing, there were no stoppages with the BREN (unlike the Lewis gun, which required clearing of at least a couple of rounds per pan). The mags don't care which way they are to feed (you can even argue that with gravity helping them along they could be more reliable), the gun has offset sights for sighting, and is a comfortable to shoot squad level automatic weapon, better for prone shooting then the BAR, although my uncle used to claim that during WW2 he couldn't get the mag low enough when he was burrowing in the dirt. FWIW - Dan

No, I don't know how to field strip one. But I'm pretty damn sure I'll never need to know and neither will you. So what's the big ass deal about that? Do you think such stupidity will make you some points here or make you look like anything but the Ass Clown that you are?

NOT

Here is a good link for the mentally impaired to answer your "burning questions" about this piece.


Bren Stuff

Dan,

Thanks for the input. If the BREN and BAR are both being fired from a bipod, does the magazine position really matter? Seriously, doesn't the bipod keep the rifle a given distance off the ground anyway, greater than the magazine anyway.

Do you have to load the BREN magazine in any special way, or is it simply push them straight down in the magazine like the AR15? I have also heard the BREN magazine holds 30 and then 28 rounds of 303 Brit, which is it?

Pecos,
So what you are trying to tell us ALL, since this a public posting, is that you know nothing about BREN guns, but something about WATER guns. Again thanks for the insight into the wonderful world of water guns.

ASS_CLOWN

Quote:

"Do you have to load the BREN magazine in any special way, or is it simply push them straight down in the magazine like the AR15? I have also heard the BREN magazine holds 30 and then 28 rounds of 303 Brit, which is it?"

No, silly...you have to push them "UP"...unless of course you stand on your head first.

Yeah...they hold 30...then 29, then 28, then 27, etc...until it stops going boom. Then you have to stand on your head again and load up another magazine.

I remembered a bit more....



It fires from an open bolt. The reason I remember this is because we used to go out on patrol with all the weapons Made Ready, which in British Army-speak means cocked and one up the spout, all you need to do is let the safety off and pull the trigger.



When the Bren/LMG is Made Ready the working parts are held to the rear and it has an annoying habit of the first round in the magazine falling down through the body of gun to be lost in the long grass of S Armagh. Expensive.

Richard,

Thanks a lot! That is the kinda of information I am interested in.

Rick,
I do not believe one loads BRENs from a stipper clip. So I doubt you would need to "stand on your head" to load the magazine since it is removable.

ASS_CLOWN

I have never used a Bren in 303. But in the 60s the British Army rebarrelled all their Brens to 7.62 NATO and called it the LMG (light machine gun).

I have used the LMG many times. It is an amazingly accurate weapon, as was the 303 version.

I have not laid a finger on one since 1987, and cannot even remember if it fired off an open or closed bolt. duh! My memory has been shot since I got a big dose of organo phosphates in 1990.

I'll post a pic if I can find one...

Field stripping a BREN:



There's pin in the receiver body which must be pushed left or right - can't remember - it's 35 years since I've seriously handled one, but once you've done that, you can pull the butt back, and then it's:



Piston, barrel, butt, body, bipod.



Reassembly is the reverse.



Removing the piston also brought the breech block into the sunshine - it lifted out by pulling back and up - it had 'claws' machined into it that engaged in grooves machined into the piston. The barrel was removed by pulling a lever up on the left side of the body. Can't recall if anything had to 'turned', but I don't think so. The gas port had a 4 way rotating thing with different sized holes that enabled you to keep firing - the ports increased in size to allow for build up of gunk.



Operational cleaning usually meant giving the gasrings a quick wipe over, making sure no mud or sand was in the thing, and getting it back together as quick as possible - used to able to do it blindfolded!



That was drilled into me so much that when I took my son to a military museum a while ago, I almost did it as an automatic procedure - the museum caretaker was MOST impressed - I had that thing in pieces and together again in the fastest time he'd ever seen!! Mind you, when you've done it a gazillion times it's easier to do than it is to go thru the steps in writing - I may have missed a step or detail here.



Open or closed breech on firing? I seem to recall that they fire from an open breech - they don't have a 'bolt' as such, it was called a 'breech block' - they make an awful lot of noise and movement when dry fired, and if memory serves this was the reason they tended to creep FORWARD when firing! The piston moves forward, and the breech block picks up the cartridge, and is then locked by a cam at the end of the piston pushing the back of the breech block up into the receiver. Ejection is thru the bottom of the action.



Lovely LMG, VERY accurate (even on full auto) almost too small a 'cone of fire', VERY reliable, light (relatively) to carry. Simple mechanical operation (no rotating bits), beautiful machining and construction, and relatively few moving parts, the BREN, like the SMLE, and Owen SMG, could handle atrocious conditions (African Desert to New Guinea) with minimal maintenance and stoppages. For the life of me I can't recall whether a hammer was involved in the firing process, or if the firing pin was inertia driven. Flash hider made night firing relatively OK, but didn't eliminate the flash completely.



Limiting factor (in my experience) was mag capacity - can't recall if it was 28 or 30, but it was in that region, and I seem to recall you had to be careful how you stacked the rounds (I only ever shot them in 303). Belt feed would have been nice on a few occasions!!!!!!



In my opinion, it has a well deserved reputation, and I'd go into battle again without hesitation, armed with one.



Thinking about this brought back one of my favourite 'military memories' - we were on sentry duty one nght during a training exercise, and my mate (No 2) was supposed to be the 'one behind the gun'. We were basically sitting back having a smoke, when the Lt sprung us - "why aren't you at your post soldiers?" Dule (my mate) said, "it's OK Sir, the gun's on Automatic..." Dule was shitting himself (it's a chargable offence), the Lt and I were rolling on the ground laughing.



AssClown, thanks for helping me rekindle some very good (and some not so good) memories.



Now field stripping a water pistol does have some challenges...



First, you have to ensure that NO AMMUNITION remains in the weapon in case of AD...



Funnily enough, when I'm shooting off a bench, or using a bipod, I instinctivley still adopt the 'BREN' way of holding the rifle!!



And I've NEVER heard of loading a Bren mag from a stripper clip - the mag release was a big lever perfectly placed so that you could push your hand against the release and in one movement, pull the mag out - when you replaced the mag, your right hand was in a perfect position to get to the cocking handle - on the right hand side.



re-reading this, it looks like an advert - it ain't - these are my personal recollections of a firearm I still retain a great deal of affection for! But my Ruger's better as a hunting rifle!

Pecos, forgive my ignorance, but why do you have such an antogonistic response to Ass Clown's request?

I see his as a simple request for info, from people who've used the Bren, which I have. I don't have any issues with his request, why do you?