Browning BAR Short Trac

[trooper509]

I'm thinking of getting one of these for deer hunting this fall. I've been able to handle them at the gun shops, but I haven't shot one. It will be a .308 win. if I get one. I like the light
weight and was wondering if anybody has one and what they like or don't like about it. I'm still trying to decide between the wood or the composite stock. I really like the looks
and feel of wood but I know this gun will be hunted with and will probably get some dings. I did like the rubbery feel of the Dura-Tech coating on the composite stock. Just not
much for looks. Any replies will be appreciated. Thanks

[borrowed time]

I just picked up the .308 short trac with wood stock and 22 inch barrel, 6 lb. 10 oz. I believe. Nice light well balanced rifle, after never having owned an auto, I am looking forward to shooting it in the near future. Never had a .308 either, so load development will take a bit, but I will comment on that aspect when I have shot the gun some.

[trooper509]

Well, despite all the negative comments ( just kidding. Not much traffic on this site.) I went out and picked up a Short Trac in
.308. Beautiful wood, nice and light. Fit & finish are top notch. I haven't been able to shoot it yet. I'm loading up a small batch of
Hornady 150's to start with and we'll go from there. Did a lot of searching on the net but I couldn't find much bad being said
about the BAR's, so I picked one up. I have some friends that have them and have had good luck. No jams and pretty good
accuracy. And the Short Trac looks to be the same action has the Safari's and Mark 1's so I feel pretty good about my buy. I'll let
you know how it shoots.

[v-man]

I bought one in .308 with camo finish last year. Looks and shoots great. Shot it on the 100 and 200 yd range. Won't claim sub-MOA but definately under
2 MOA and also took a small buck at about 75yds. All with reloads. It likes the same 150gr PSPs over 3031 that I shoot in my AR-10 and loves the 180gr TSX's. (although the deer didn't) Just joined a new club with 300 and 600 yd range. Can't wait to try it long with AR-10 and Model 7.

[borrowed time]

After a few inquirys about how I like this rifle, I had better respond about the pros and cons of this gun. Like I stated before, first auto rifle for big game.  Easy to shoot, accurate enough for deer. I have yet to shoot for a group, but will this spring. Nice to carry, balance is just right. I have not had this long enough to find anything wrong with it, but the quality definitely seems to be there. I see the price is up some from when I bought mine, but with the political climate like it is, I would buy one now if you are thinking of it, and can find one. Be back in a month or so with accuracy report.

[Cheesehead]

I handled one at a gun shop the other day. I would be interested in a range report.

Cheese

[JTD305]

I have a camo 308 shorttrac and I am very pleased.  I have a Trijicon Accupoint 3-9 mounted on it.  The combo is perfect and I have taken several deer with it.  I have fired several factory loads through it.  All were under 2" at 100 yds, but the Hornady 165 BTSP's shoot under and inch conistently.  I shot a nice 10 pointer with this load last year and he was dead on his feet.  You can't go wrong with the Brownings.

[mirage1988]

I have a longtrac stalker in 7mm with boss. I was ready to sell it until I tried the fed fusions. Best group just over 3/4", worst 1 1/8". Best i could do with anything else was over 2", tried barnes TSX, nosler part, and sierra gamekings.

[Ask_r]

Had to register to ask my question... Please advise where can i order composite stock for Short trac like this one
http://www.browningint.com/products/firearm.php?productsarea=browning&sommaire=Rifles&classe=bar%20shorttrac&famille=BAR+SHORTTRAC+COMPOSITE
I own short trac .308 in wood and i hope 270 wsm composite stock will fit anyway. Browning dealer in my country is disgrace, so please help. Thanx

[Bigfoot]

Ask_r, that's from Brownings International site. The Euro guns are a bit different (oh man I wish that Browning would import the 9.3x62 BAR here) but that stock looks identical to US spec composite stocks. Can't help you with dealer contacts.

Would some Shortrac and Longtrac owners weigh their guns for me? I can't figure out why the Shortrac would be lighter since it uses an additional magazine block.

I shoot a 30-06 Stalker, it was the lightest BAR at the time that I purchased it.

1st, I'm trying to decide if the lighter weight of the newer guns is worth the expense of trading.

2nd, I have a suspicion that Browning might have fudged the advertised weights in order to sell short action calibers in an otherwise long action rifle.

Thanks
Bigfoot

[Ask_r]

Thanks, already ordered from browning.com. Fits perfect!
Another question i have is - my shorttrac has a 51 cm (20 ") european barrel. US models have 22" barrels. The twist is 1/12" for both am i right? If so bullet fired from european barrel is less stabilized and that should affect accuracy. Am i wrong with rate of twist figures or we are getting lower quality product?      

[Bigfoot]

Got a chance to test my theory about Browning fudging the weights down for the Shortrac and up for the Longtrac. If they weighed the same who would buy the 308 when they could have a 30-06? So, I spotted a 270 Longtrac in a gunstore and the fella and I went in back and weighed it on their postage scale. 6 lb 12 oz. Right between the 6 lb 10 oz and the 6 lb 15 oz stated weights by Browning. I wasn't shocked. If I can find a Shortrac and it weighs the same or close then I'm getting the 30-06.