• Hey All! Lately there has been more and more scammers on the forum board. They register and replies to members requests for guns and/or parts or other things. The reply contains a gmail or hotmail address or similar ”anonymous” email addresses which they want you to reply to. DO NOT ANSWER ANY STRANGE MESSAGES! They often state something like this: ”Hello! Saw your post about purchasing a stock for a Safari. KnuckleheadBob has one. Email him at: [email protected]” If you receive any strange messages: Check the status of whoever message you. If they have no posts and signed up the same day or very recently, stay away. Same goes for other members they might refer to. Check them too and if they are long standing members, PM them and ask if the message is legit. Most likely it’s not. Then use the report function in each message or post so I can kick them out! Beware of anything that might seem fishy! And again, for all of you who registered your personal name as username, please contact me so I can change it to a more anonymous username. You’d be surprised of how much one can find out about a person from just a username on a forum such ad our! All the best! And be safe! Jim

Browning High Power Safari 222 Sako L461

Sako Collectors Club Discussion Forum

I agree very much with what you are saying and it is/was not just Browning that would use up inventory in bitsa style - you have probably seen it in Smith & Wesson or any other manufacturer. There are frequently variations across production of firearms. What is VS?....

It's my way of abbreviating "vice versa" meaning it could also happen the opposite way. Remember, I'm a Texan and some of us may not talk or write accurately!:)
 
Does this tell anyone anything? The butt plate screws are rusted and I would think that this indicates salt but there could be other reasons. There is no sign of salt anywhere else that I can see (refer to the photos) and if the stock was salt affected from the date of manufacture.
of the stock in would be apparent everywhere. The FP is steel.

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Actually salt damage can be localized to one small area, or a few areas, or the entire stock. When it's localized, Browning collectors refer to it as a "hot area". The reason it can be localized or be the entire stock was due to the method they used to cure the stocks with salt. The stock blanks were stacked several blanks high on top of a wood pallet and covered with salt. The water that was drawn out by the salt was more concentrated toward the center of the stack than it was on the edge of the stack. Thus stock blanks on the edge of the stack were less salty and have hot spots of salt. This method of curing wood had been in use by furniture manufacturers for years because it was so fast. Browning was running out of wood and desperate to get a large amount of wood cured fast so they wouldn't have to slow production of guns. The rumor is that Browning cured over 300,000 blanks using the salt method and paid dearly for it later by honoring their lifetime guarantee and replacing stocks and repairing salt damage for free. For years they did the repair work even if the gun owner was not the original purchaser. After many years they could no longer stand the strain and began charging a modest amount to repair the damage.
 
OOOOw! Definitely a salt stock. It has been salvaged by coating the interior unfinished wood with a sealer to prevent the salt in the stock from corroding the (new) barrel and action. But the buttplate screws can't be isolated from the wood the way the rest of the metal can, thus the corrosion on them. The bottom metal was probably salvaged along with the stock and upon inspection you'll likely find some remediated corrosion on the internal parts of the bottom metal.
 
It's my way of abbreviating "vice versa" meaning it could also happen the opposite way. Remember, I'm a Texan and some of us may not talk or write accurately!:)

Haha Thanks Doug, wish I was in Texas - I understand you have your own understanding of what a declaration of independence means.
 
Actually salt damage can be localized to one small area, or a few areas, or the entire stock. When it's localized, Browning collectors refer to it as a "hot area". The reason it can be localized or be the entire stock was due to the method they used to cure the stocks with salt. The stock blanks were stacked several blanks high on top of a wood pallet and covered with salt. The water that was drawn out by the salt was more concentrated toward the center of the stack than it was on the edge of the stack. Thus stock blanks on the edge of the stack were less salty and have hot spots of salt. This method of curing wood had been in use by furniture manufacturers for years because it was so fast. Browning was running out of wood and desperate to get a large amount of wood cured fast so they wouldn't have to slow production of guns. The rumor is that Browning cured over 300,000 blanks using the salt method and paid dearly for it later by honoring their lifetime guarantee and replacing stocks and repairing salt damage for free. For years they did the repair work even if the gun owner was not the original purchaser. After many years they could no longer stand the strain and began charging a modest amount to repair the damage.

They certainly paid dearly. Thanks for that information, I did not take into account that it could be localised like that.
 
OOOOw! Definitely a salt stock. It has been salvaged by coating the interior unfinished wood with a sealer to prevent the salt in the stock from corroding the (new) barrel and action. But the buttplate screws can't be isolated from the wood the way the rest of the metal can, thus the corrosion on them. The bottom metal was probably salvaged along with the stock and upon inspection you'll likely find some remediated corrosion on the internal parts of the bottom metal.

Thanks - yes, it is hard to see how those butt plate screws would get to that state otherwise. I will update this when I get the chance for a gunsmith to have a look at it.
 
Thanks - yes, it is hard to see how those butt plate screws would get to that state otherwise. I will update this when I get the chance for a gunsmith to have a look at it.
You can core out a hole in the wood where the buttplate screws go, fill the hole with epoxy, & install new screws that will never rust again. Nice rifle, great caliber, easy fix, go see how it shoots.
 
You can core out a hole in the wood where the buttplate screws go, fill the hole with epoxy, & install new screws that will never rust again. Nice rifle, great caliber, easy fix, go see how it shoots.

As there is no other rust anywhere on the rifle that is a good suggestion. Thanks
 

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I opened up the rifle and the good news is that apart from a small area of rust on the bell that someone noticed earlier all the metal is in good condition. I was interested to see that the barrel has been bedded. Can anyone tell me if this is factory? The action is marked 'Made In Finland' but I guess you would expect that as it is a L461 action.

Thee rear floorplate shim is missing so if anyone has one or knows where I can get one please let me know.

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It may have never had a rear bottom metal shim. Why do you assume it is "missing"? They were only used to flush up the bottom metal to the stock. If the bottom metal was flush at the rear they wouldn't have used one. If one is needed they can be made quite easily from steel or brass shim stock & a pair of metal snips. Based on the nice bedding job, I doubt a shim is really necessary.
 
It may have never had a rear bottom metal shim. Why do you assume it is "missing"? They were only used to flush up the bottom metal to the stock. If the bottom metal was flush at the rear they wouldn't have used one. If one is needed they can be made quite easily from steel or brass shim stock & a pair of metal snips. Based on the nice bedding job, I doubt a shim is really necessary.

On exploded drawings there seem to be two - but you are probably right that it doesn't really need one. Perhaps 'shim' was the wrong word.
 
Aussie.......

Your action picture......the small set screw above the round safety drum.......on the trigger housing....
It looks to be a little further "out" than usual. Its function is to regulate how "stiff" the safety lever is to operate fore and aft.

You may want to adjust it to your preferred stiffness of safety operation.
I would suggest, once adjusted, a drop of clear fingernail polish on the screw head....to seal possible future movement.

Hope this helps.

Note: Careful.....as there is a tiny spring and 3mm detent ball, under that screw. DON'T lose them. :)
 
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Aussie.......

Your action picture......the small set screw above the round safety drum.......on the trigger housing....
It looks to be a little further "out" than usual. Its function is to regulate how "stiff" the safety lever is to operate fore and aft

You may want to adjust it to your preferred stiffness of safety operation.
I would suggest, once adjusted, a drop of clear fingernail polish on the screw head....to seal possible future movement.

Hope this helps.

Note: Careful.....as there is a tiny spring and 3mm detent ball, under that screw. DON'T lose them. :)[/QUOT

Hi, I can see what you mean and I will check that.
There is always 'a tiny spring and 3mm detent ball, under that screw' on any gun by any manufacturer, anywhere! I will be careful. Thanks
 

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