The Browning Automatic Rifle

Little more than a month before the United States entered the war against Germany in 1917, Browning officially demonstrated his two newest brainchildren for an audience of senators, representatives, military officers, and assorted members of the press. One entry was a .30 caliber, water-cooled machine gun capable of discharging 600 rounds per minute. The other was a rifle light enough to be carried by a foot soldier, fired from the shoulder or hip and instantly convertible from single shot to fully automatic fire at 480 rounds per minute. The Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR) was an immediate hit.

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Those are two of the guns on my dream list. The other two being the johnson rifle and the webley fosberry automatic revolver. :)
john

I have had three, Marlin Rockwell 1918 with no over strikes and the original walnut butt, Royal Typewriter 1918A2 which was like new and a New England Steel (NESA) 1918A2 which had been well used and refinished. All were outstanding to shoot. But if you read the article they blend the new Browning which doesn't really work like the B.A.R. together with the old one. They aren't really the same.

When I was a company armorer (sometime ago) we had 12 of the Model 1918A2 BAR's. These were all WW1, Winchester and Marlin-Rockwell that had been rebuilt for WW2. They had the fore-ends cut-down, new trigger groups and plastic butt stocks - none of them had the carrying handle - which I think came into use near the end of WW2? These BAR's were well used but aways worked very well and I can not recall any problems. We never shot blanks only AP and tracer.

Some of the parts were pre WW2 and I have a photos of a CV marked firing pin and a case colored magazine follower

for some reason the photos will not post !

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Originally Posted by jamie5070

Those are two of the guns on my dream list. The other two being the johnson rifle and the webley fosberry automatic revolver. :)
john

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I am afraid your Fosberry will remain a dream at current prices. I have seen one in town. Funny story about that. The owner decided to take it out to the range without giving it a good cleaning of the dried grease. It went full auto on him because the disconnector was frozen. The gun was pointing straight up when it ran our of cartridges.:eek:

I have been told he sold it recently for over $4000

We have one in the collection belonging to the local gun club. I asked if they were giong to let me fire it and they said,"What if you break it?" I would have loved to see that one go full auto!

I've got 2 1918A2 Korean War Royal Typewriters. They run great, but I don't shoot them very often because my Mk I Bren Gun is a lot more fun to shoot.
Forgot to add a photo.
Sarge