Browning Mountain Rifle

[PJ Hardtack]

OK, some of you 'long-in-the-tooth types show yer age ..... Remember the Browning 'Mountain Rifle' offered in .45, .50 and .54?
It had a full curl ram's horn at the nipple snail and single set trigger.

A sadist is dangling an UNFIRED Mountain Rifle in .50 before my eyes - .50 calibre with iron furniture and pewter nose cap. I am considering buying it as I haven't owned a civilian ML rifle since I sold my Green River Forge flint 'Astorian' and 20 ga HBC Barnett Trade Gun. Those should have been 'keepers'.

It's one of those guns I don't 'need' so much as 'want' - know what I mean?  Whaddya think?

[Mogorilla]

Having passed on itmes that I wanted rather than needed, they haunt you.
Thought that an appropriate response considering it is halloween.

[Tascosa Joe]

You only live once.  Was  the HBC trade gun original?

[TwoWalks Baldridge]

My GGrandfather
My Grandfather
My Father

Each said these words before departing this earth.

It is not the things I have done that I regret, it is the things I did not do.

Your choice to purchase or regret ... what will it be?

[PJ Hardtack]

Thanks for the input guys! I always appreciate solicited comments and opinions. I'm not very gracious when it's unsolicited.

I think I will acquire the Browning Mountain Rifle. It was out of my reach financially when it was current and it couldn't compete with the TC 'Hawkens' and Italian knock-offs that were flooding the market. Browning dropped it as a result.

My flint 'Astorian' and Trade Gun were Green River Forge repros made by the now deceased founder of the firm out of his home in Bellevue, Washington. His first name was Frank, can't remember his last. Both were a delight to shoot and the 'Astorian' was accurate to the point of disbelief. Made me into a good off hand shooter. NOBODY 'holds' like a flint ML shooter!

[wildman1]

I think it's a lot harder to forget something that ya really wanted than something ya needed. WM

[Marshall John Joseph]

Bondini Arms made a Hawken pistol that I learned about too late.  Would love to find one in good shape reasonably priced.  Ithaca Hawken is another one.  But I do have an early Uberti Hawken.  Wouldn't part with it.

If the price is right, go for it.  You work hard.  You deserve it.

MJJ

[PJ Hardtack]

Actually, I'm retired after a 42 year working life; twelve of them in the military. I'm also a cancer survivor. Beat it, but I no longer believe I'll live forever. My 69th b'day is coming next month, so I may make it a present to myself. As for price, the current owner is asking $700 (Canuck bucks) and won't take an offer of anything less.

I remember the Ithaca Hawken. They were very well thought of. A pal bought one in kit form and I often wonder what he did with it. My ML days were days of innocence and nothing but pure shooting fun. Never took game with one, but that may change .....

[boilerplatejackson]

I never regretted anything I bought and hid from the wife. Buy the rifle and enjoy retirement even more.

[The Elderly Kid]

Saw one at Ron Peterson's gunshop in Albuquerque a couple of weeks ago. Used but in fine condition, $450. I'll probably kick myself for not buying it, but I had my money committed to other toys. Always liked the look of the Browning, with the browned iron hardware unlike the blued barrel and brass mounts on most modern Hawkens. Maybe I'll go back and have another look, see if it's still there....

[Drayton Calhoun]

I passed up the Browning when it was in production and am still kicking myself!

[Jamestown John]

I remember that rifle well. Couldn't afford it then (was it around 1979 - 1980 or so?).  Anyway, considering inflation and relative dollar's worth, the price you mention is probably a good deal!
I remember it was beautifully done!
Good luck!
JJ

[PJ Hardtack]

Again, thanks for the positive feedback and encouragement!

Going through my collection of Gun Digests, the last price I can find on the Browning Mountain Rifle (1984) was $450 US. Rivals (like TCs) were $200 less. Only the Ithaca was in the same price bracket. That was a lot of bucks then for a working man.

I'm one of these guys whose wife is not only supportive, she has a rack of MLs, CAS guns (including a '97) and seven handguns - from .22 to .44 Spl. After shooting it, she recently fell in love with my stainless Remington .44 cap & ball so I gave it to her. Now she borrows one of my blue cap & ball .44s to make a pair for CAS.

After her Marlin .357 carbine threw a shoe (broken firing pin) she borrowed my B-92 and found an excellent used one for herself. The owner was so tickled that a lady wanted it, he gave her a price break he wouldn't have given you or me. That led to a brace of Ruger NM Flat Top Blackhawks in .44 Spl.

I do all the reloading and cleaning. Small price to pay for having a gun-toting wife. Surprises the hell out of her highschool kids when they see her picture in the paper, taken at a shoot. Gains her a little respect .... ;>)

[Forty Rod]

Life is too short for "what if".  It's a wonderful rifle.  BUY IT!

Then post pictures.

[PJ Hardtack]

Thanks for all the input and comments!

The cheque is in the mail and I expect the rifle to arrive in 10-14 days. I still need 'Big Brother's' approval until such time as the gov't scraps our long gun registry. That bill has survived 2nd reading in the House. One more to go and then it gets goes to the Senate for approval/amendment before becoming law; a long awaited day.

The rifle is crossing the country from Nova Scotia to British Columbia, the true venue for a 'Mountain Rifle'. It will be put to appropriate use and will be my spring bear rifle. In the meantime, I've been boning up on my lore and history by reading:

"The Hawken Rifle: It's Place In History" by Charles E. Hanson and "Mountain Men", the diary and account of the travels of 'Ruxton of the Rockies' in the fur trade era. These boys were unimaginably tough, taking on deprivation, Indians, and all comers with equanimity. Ruxton was an erudite ex-British Army Officer who had served in Canada and got bored with garrison life.

I also found the catalog that came with my Frank Straight Green River Forge 'Astorian' .50 flinter that I once owned. What a classy rifle that was! Not a "Hawken" per se, it was a transitional piece, a half stock 'plains rifle' with some of the graceful lines of the eastern rifles. 1x72" twist, 32" barrel.
Price for it and the NW Trade Gun I bought as the same time was $450 each, a lot of money for a young Pilgrim at the time, but worth every dime! I had to float a loan and found a sympathetic loans officer who was amused that anyone would put himself in debt for a gun.
Everyone else at the time was shooting the affordable TC 'Hawkens'. There was no comparison.

If I was ever to order a custom rifle, it would be along the lines of the 'Astorian'; a flinter, of course.

Now that I've got the JBMR coming, I'm in the market for a horn. Nothing fancy and not huge. I tend to like dark brown tones rather than white horns. Any makers out there?

[Caleb Hobbs]

Congratulations on the Browning. I've seen a few over the years, and they're nice looking. I've heard they're good shooters, too. I once knew a guy who owned an Astorian. He could drive tacks with that gun.

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

I have made a few horns.  They are not beyond a kitchen table craftsman.  Here is one of the results from a google search;

http://oldetoolshop.com/trekking/hornmaking/hornmaking.html

PJ;  You are in Quesnel?  If you are in "Prince", look up Taylor Sapergia,  He is a wonderful craftsman, but I think he might be retired.  He did my Gemmer conversion of a Pedersoli Sharps.

An idea for a mountain rifle powderhorn is bison horn.  There are some buffalo ranches up North and one of them has a stall at the market by the Court House, but only in summer.  Buffalo horn is very hard, and slow to work with but would make a perfect horn for that piece.

[PJ Hardtack]

Caleb - I did in fact "drive tacks" with my 'Astorian'! It was one of the targets on our Trail Walk. You called your tack and went for it. I left several .495 holes in that board where tacks once were.
What I remember fondly about that rifle was the reliability of ignition during our typical 'wet coast' weather. The cap locks had far more failures to fire than I ever did.
I used a thin patch with that diameter ball, lubed with my own saliva. That worked until I had the breech plug pulled and discovered a ring of rust. I don't do that any more. The guy I sold the rifle to had it converted to cap lock. Ruined the character of the rifle.

Sir Charles - yep, I'm in Quesnel, sort of ..... more like 60 kms west on the Nazko Road and south a few. I've known Taylor since he lived in Squamish. I often encounter shooters with his rifles and I admire them immensely. Now that I have the JBMR I may just take the trail north to Fort George for the RV. My wife will carry her .36 Seneca.

The old hands behind our RV have announced their retirement due to burn out and poor attendance. Folks just aren't taking the trail like they used to. Now that our BP Trail has been approved for CAS pistols and carbines, I've suggested that we offer both the traditional ML class and a CAS class using BP in rifles and pistols. Most of our guys love shooting BP and we already have a cap & ball/BP only CAS event in memory of "Surprisin' Smith" (aka as Mike Standbridge), founder of CAS at our club.

For some reason, I've never been enamoured of the bison horn flasks, most being rather bulky and tightly curled. Just a matter of preference. The right horn will turn up. 'Sides, it's a good excuse to haunt the gun show tables ......

Speaking of Gemmers .... one of my local CAS pals has a45-70 Pedersoli Gemmer Sharps. No longer offered, it's a beautiful rifle. First thought it was a 'Hawken' when I saw it.

[kurt250]

if interested have a browning 52 cal hawken rifle for sale. used but in 90% condition bore great and shoots perfact. for sale at $450.00 plus shipping and handling. send pm if interested. kurt 250

[PJ Hardtack]

Kurt250

I may have a buyer for you, depending upon which side of the Medicine Line you're on.