In your most recent podcast you spend a few minutes talking about Browning and how they used to be everywhere but now not so much.
Made me recall, back during the post covid craziness I would go on Sportsman’s website and filter out the different rifle manufacturers. Christensen was always number one with around 250 rifles available, but Browning was always right behind them.
Just decided to repeat that process. Savage is now number one by far with almost 600. Weatherby is next in line with 270. CA right behind. Then there’s Ruger and Bergara are in the mid 100. Browning is now number six with only 79 options. And most of those are not the newer X bolt 2, but rather older X bolt first Generations that did not sell, as well as the ab3
What’s the story from an industry Insider perspective?
Just curious what you see as “not-nice” about the XB2? I am currently considering purchasing one in 6.8 Western. Just looking for all the information that I can get.
Certainly. I may have worded that a little more strongly than I intentioned.
In the interest of fairness I’ll even tell you what I like about them.
Pro’s
Lots of sku’s. Don’t particularly like a barrel length, or stock option, look around you’ll probably find another SKU that has what you’re looking for.
Browning has been rather Forward Thinking With regards to twist rates for modern bullets. They made some news a few years ago when the introduced fast twist 270 winchester. What hasn’t made news but which is just as important is that they also offer fast twist in 280 ackley, 7 mm magnum, 300 Winchester magnum, and 300 prc. In fact, when I last looked at factory rifles in 300 PRC it was either browning, horizon, or custom if you wanted 1:8.
I love a 60° Bolt throw. I wish that was industry standard.
I love their action mechanism. Safe position also locks the bolt. But with a push of a button you can get a single cycle in case you want to either chamber around or remove one. It’s very similar to what Sako does. And when people ask why do Sako cost more than tika, that’s one of the reasons for me at least.
They do look good!
Cons
Many, maybe even most, sku’s are vaporware. Years ago when I was looking for my first 280 Ackley I found in SKU that was absolutely perfect for me. I couldn’t find it anywhere to buy and when I asked Browning they said they discontinued the model before they even produced a single one of them. I’m told by my local gun store that that’s not the first time they’ve ever heard Browning doing that
They’re better about this now, but still many models come with odd metric threads. Not the end of the world but it means you have to play the adapter game if you want to change to a different muzzle device or put a suppressor on. Not only a hassle but that leads to another potential point of failure
Triggers not that good. Haven’t tried one of the X bolt2 yet. There are some aftermarket options available but the most popular one like timney renders the bolt locking and releasing mechanism completely useless. It turns the rifle into a Remington 700. from an operating standpoint
It can also cause stock fit issues depending upon which particular stock your model has
4 Very little aftermarket support. I won’t say it’s 0 obviously but it’s a lot less than other things especially something like a Tikka or a Remington 700. If you want a chassis, good luck with that.
Not much way of gunsmithing support either. Once you shoot out a barrel or if you decide you want to change barrels, good luck. There’s been a lot of discussion by Smith’s online that the threads are very weak and once you try to remove the old Barrel you’re most likely going to destroy the receiver. You also don’t see major aftermarket Barrel companies making pre fits for Browning
Hope that helps
I’d really like for them to be successful. If I were to buy a factory 300 PRC it’s one of the few that tics off the boxes for me. But I also hate to think about buying a rifle from a company that might be on the decline and ready to close down. Ask people who purchased Remington 700s right before Remington closed up shop how they liked their guns
Thank you for the response. I appreciate the info. It’s funny that you mention the 280 Ackley because I have been searching for one in the Speed SPR configuration and have not found one listed for sale on any website.
Yeah, when they first rolled out the XB2, there were 0 SKU’S for 280AI. Now they have added a few 280AI SKU’S, but there are zero in stock or on the auction sites.
I’ve signed up for an email notification for the spr version at my local gun store but I’m not holding my breath at all.
If you get one in 6.8W, be sure to let us know how it goes. That would also be one of the main rifles I would consider if I were looking at that cartridge right now
I have had such bad luck with Browning rifles that I will never buy another. This is strange since I have several Winchesters to include XPRs and all are outstanding in quality and accuracy.None of the Brownings, two AB3s and one Xbolt would not shoot anywhere close to sub moa, with the 300 WM having a barrel so bad that after firing as little as 5 rounds when bore scoped it looked like a high producing gold mine. Conversely I bought a XPR Varmint in 6.8 Western, primarily because I like the 277 bullets, accuracy and performance. The 6.8 Western shot sub moa from the first 3 shots and continues to shoot sub moa with the variations of Winchester factory ammo as well as reloads. Don’t waste your money on the XB2 when the XPR is much cheaper and a much better shooter.
Another con- what’s with the metric thread pitch on the end of the barrel, you have to buy a adapter just so you can screw on a suppressor
Plus Winchester rifles used to be premium guns back in the 90’s and earlier- Browning has basically turn Winchester into the budget gun and a level below there Browning models
I’m not sure about metric threads. I own two vintage Model 70s, neither of which have threaded barrels. However the XPR came with a threaded barrel in 5/8 x 24 and a standard muzzle brake fit just fine. As for Winchester’s being sub standard to the Browning, I take exception to that statement. I’ve had several brownings, AB, AB3 and X bolt, none of them grouped anywhere close to the Model 70 or most recently XPR.
Yes, and no. I compared new Model 70s to the new XPR and found the fit and finish of the Model 70 much nicer than the XPR; but not by much. The Model 70’s bolt was smoother than the XPR, but once locked up the XPR shoots just as well as the Model 70. While fit and finish are nice, actual accuracy is much more important. The XPR Varmint was $300+ less than the Model 70, and some of the most butt ugly rifles I have ever owned and shot ended up shooting better than the pretty ones. From my point of view (jaded as many of you think it is) actual performance outshines pretty any day of the week.