Browning - The Best, BAR None

Browning in History - WW1

The history of the Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR) has illustrious ties to World War 1, and World War 11, as an integral part of many of America's fighting units on every front during both wars.

In 1917, before the US entered the war, John Browning took two types of automatic weapons to Washington, D.C. for demonstration purposes. One was a water-cooled machine gun which later become known as the M1917 Browning machine gun, and the other was a shoulder-fired automatic rifle know at the time as the Browning Machine Rifle, or BMR. Mr. Browning arranged for a public demonstration of both weapons just outside of Washington and displayed their power before 300 people - military officials, Congressmen, Senators, foreign dignitaries and the press. The crowd was so impressed with the live fire demonstration that Browning was awarded a contract for the weapon's production immediately.

WW11

The Browning Automatic Rifle, as it became known, was sold to and used by the armies of many countries and made a huge comeback when WW11 broke out. In 1917 the rifle was designed to fire at 3330 rounds per minute. Each shot had a distinct sound that eventually became associated with the BAR. In World War 11, the BAR appeared again as the 1918A2, a newer version with a rate of 550 rounds of fire per minute.

Time Marches On

Many years have passed and much has changed since the great wars of the last century, but the Browning Automatic Rifle continues to hold its place as a masterpiece of design and function. The sporting version of the BAR is very different from its military counterpart, M1918, but the design has the signature of the original designer, John Browning - a man with understanding and expertise in creating automatic rifles. The driving force behind today's BAR is the grandson of John M. Browning, Bruce Browning, who has his grandfather's gift for guns.

New Designs, New Innovations

In 1966 a group of automatic rifle designers in Belgium, along with Bruce Browning, developed and tested prototypes of a new product line called "Carbine 66" which was released in 1967. The new design incorporated many changes in the trigger group assembly as well as the safety. In 1970 the operations were moved from Belgium to a new plant in Viana, Portugal where today the BAR continues to be assembled, as does the 12 and 20 gauge Gold and Silver auto loading shotguns.

Type 1, Type 2, Mark 11

BAR rifles produced before 1976 were known as Type 1 rifles and the Type 2 rifles were produced between 1976 and 1992. In 1993 the Mark 11 versions came out and remain in production to date. There were several noteworthy upgrades to the Mark 11 series. Cross pins in the trigger assembly made it easy to disassemble the rifle and the gas system was reconfigured to be more reliable. The BAR Mark 11 continues to keep its original hinged type magazine that was built into the original rifles.