THE BEST .22 HANDGUNS - BROWNING BUCK MARK - V part

THE BEST .22 HANDGUNS

V part

BROWNING BUCK MARK

 

In line with earlier mentioned rimfire handguns indeed, belongs Browning Buck Mark model that hit the market in 1985 as a direct rival for Ruger and others. Formally, the Browning Buckmark pistol is the youngest of all, but if we explore a bit more, we`ll find that earlier Browning .22 LR series pistols are actually a descendant of a design from the Colt .22 Automatic Target Pistol. The model originally designed in 1915 by John Moses Browning himself. This handgun was renamed the Colt Woodsman in 1927 and after several decades of production and few successful variants was discontinued in January 1963.

A half-century after its introduction by Colt, the Woodsman’s form and basic blowback principles were redesigned under the name - Challenger by John grandson Bruce Browning, and afterward, the new models known as the Challenger II and Challenger III reached the marketplace in 1976 and 1982, respectively. Accompanied with the same overall concept as the Colt`s Woodsman and High Standard Supermatic, these models were used for further development, producing the latest Woodsman descendant—the Buck Mark, which first appeared in 1985 representing nearly twice longer evolutionary history of the Smith & Wesson or Ruger pistols. Apparently, the Buck Mark blends some of the best features from guns that came before it, but also it represents a significant advance over the evolving Challenger series since along its distinctive look, it offers the superior trigger mechanism and a new superb Pro-Target Sight.

The Buck Mark incorporated several standard features of rimfire semi-autos such as 5.5-inch barrel fixed directly to the frame, with a short slide and block that integrates the striker-fired, blowback action. The Browning Buckmark’s best feature is the simple single-action trigger. Moreover, the trigger unit has a broad, curved trigger-blade with a light, crisp break that’s odd for a gun at this price point. Combining a weight of 34 ounces with an excellent ergonomic the Buckmark is completely absolved of recoil, there is only a slight jar, and that's it. As a result, an average experienced shooter can easily score 1" groups out to 15+ yards.

Reviewers find only one tiny flaw with this gun related of the inherent dirtiness of .22 ammunition as it tends to get pistol`s mechanism a bit dirty with lead and unburned powder. Though Buckmark`s action is more open than its counterparts and it tends to build up less fouling if you have "forgotten" to clean this pistol after firing a few hundred rounds the failures to feed or erectile dysfunction can occur.

As with almost every .22 LR pistol out there, the Browning is offering countless variations and iterations of the Buck Mark, but let us mention just a few of them. The Browning striking model Hunter is equipped with the 7-1/4-inch  heavy tapered bull barrel, the competitive Buck Mark Camper model is used as a base to make an integrally suppressed Dragonfly pistol, while the most interesting are the Browning Buck Mark Sporter, a semi-automatic hunting rifle that features an 18-inch flat matte finish heavy target tube. Technically speaking, this accurate little gun is simply an auto-loading pistol with a rifle-style, unconventional, skeletonized stock. This small rifle or a lengthened pistol (if you wish) uses 10-shot, single-stack magazines the same as the pistol version and utilizes the one-piece Picatinny rail for mounting optics and Truglo adjustable sights. 

The Browning Buck Mark ranks as one of the best rimfire pistols ever made created as a sports pistol for training new shooters but, also for the shooting contests, and even hunting.  Finally, one can only say this firearm is very comfortable to fire and superbly accurate with a bit more higher price tag, but it deserves every recommendation.