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How to keep up with Browning news.

Months have passed since SHOT Show 2008. I will not be back writing in our blog until next Fall when we start preparations for SHOT Show 2009. But if you like updates on products, interesting news and a unique look at what is going on at Browning throughout the year, consider signing up for the Browning eBlast newsletter. Simply go to the www.Browning.com  welcome page and click through to the North America home page itself. Then click on the Browning eBlast promo located on the upper-middle portion of the page. This monthly newsletter will help keep you in touch with things that affect Browning and issues that affect you and other Browning customers. And of course updates on special products and promotions that may be available.

We look forward to seeing you there.

Looking back.

It has been several weeks since the end of the 2008 Shot Show. And reports from the Show are that attendance was at an all time high. At least for those who were there. For those of you who weren’t, we hope our coverage of activites at the Browning booth helped you not only feel a part of the show, but also gave you a heads up on the new products for 2008, not to mention the somewhat “secret” Shot Show specials.

So what is a Show Special? These are primarily firearms that are configured and outfitted just for the Shot Show. They are not in the Browning catalog. And, in fact, not every dealer will have them. The dealers that come to the show, or those who have good relationships with their sales reps, order these special guns at the show. Not all dealers take advantage of the opportunity. That is why these guns are sometimes hard to find. It is also why you should begin looking now if you are interested in getting one of these special guns for yourself.

A unique part of the Shot Show Special program is that many of these become among the rarest of all Browning guns with production runs in the hundreds and sometimes even less. This enhances their collectability substantially. That is not a big deal for a guy like me who is prone to “use” every gun I own to the extreme, but if you like to have very unique guns in your portfolio, these could be just the ticket.

This year the specials can be found by clicking here.

On occassion, a version or variation of a Shot Show Special will – by the next year or even in a year or two — find its way to the regular product line and into the Browning catalog. Every so often the Shot Show Special becomes the prototype of a very successful line of products that will endure for several years or longer.

Until recently, very little was written or said about the specials, but we hope this year we have helped by detailing them on our site.

On another note we want to mention our sadness at the passing of one of the great legends of the entire hunting and shooting industry. On February 18, 2008 Grits Gresham died in his hometown of Natchitoches, Louisiana, at the age of 85.

A great tribute to Gresham can be found at the NSSF website by clicking here.

I met Grits a number of times over the years and always felt quite a bit of awe just being around him. Years ago Grits got deeply involved with us in the introduction of the Browning BOSS system. He was on the Wyoming trip where many of the great gun journalists of the time gathered to see Browning’s new innovation for the first time. He gave us a great quote for our launch video praising the BOSS as “A major breakthrough for Browning and a boon for shooters.” That personally meant a lot to all of us who had worked on the BOSS project — both in research and development, and in the marketing. Grits also worked closely on the field testing of the 3 1/2″ Browning Gold. He was always a straight shooter and above reproach . . . and a good friend of Browning. We will miss him.

 Gresham receiving first annual Grits Gresham Award for Outdoor Journalism in 2006. Photo Courtesy NSSF.

Photo taken at SHOT Show 2006 Industry Dinner, where Grits Gresham was presented with the first annual Grits Gresham Award for Outdoor Journalism. Photo Courtesy NSSF and Scott Engen.

 

The Show is just about over.

The Shot Show for 2008 is just about over. For the people from a company like Browning no five or six days is more fun or more totally packed with things to do than the Shot Show. Thousands of our dealers are attending and we do our best to give them the information they need to make the right decisions in the products they order.

But they are dependent on you to. Make sure you look over the entire Browning line for 2008 and tell you dealer what you are interested in. They will order if you ask, but you can’t be sure they will have it in time for the seasons if you don’t ask.

We hope you have enjoyed our blogging, our video stories and all the fun photos of the show.

I will do a wrap-up when I get back to the office in Utah — and back to five feet of new snow in the yard too.

Thanks again,

Roger the Blogger and Browning

Final Day of show.

This is it. The last hours of the show.

But the excitement has not ended by any means. When most people come to the Browning site they are thinking first of guns. But the lineup of accessories and rugged hunting clothing is equally impressive. First thing this morning the Browning product managers for those “non-gun” products, as we sometimes call them, have provided some great video clips on the best of their new products. You will find them on the video link right on this page. Just press it and work you way down to items like new cleaning kits, cleaning oils and solvents, target shooting vests, upland wear (including the Pheasants Forever linep), baseball caps (Browning has the best hats in the entire industry), gun cases and much more.

More later.

Product Manager Rafe Nielson shows off the new Pheasants Forever upland line.

Pheasants Forever Lineup — Check it out in the video section of the Shot Show Blog page.

One Millionth Citori Donated to the NRA

Just a few minutes ago Travis Hall, Senior Vice President of Browning, made the presentation of the One Millionth Browning Citori ever produced to Wayne LaPierre, Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of the NRA. The One Millionth Citori was just completed — the Browning team has had the factory watching for this event to occur for some time.

This is a great day on two levels. First, it is amazing to think that the Browning Citori has now reached this benchmark which puts it among an excluisive group of the greatest firearms designs of all time. Second, this is certainly one of the most valuable firearms of its day.

The Citori is the gun that defines “The Best There Is” for Browning. It is the benchmark. The over and under that all others are judged by. Its proven duablity and strength is famous. And its handling is legendary. It is considered the most successful over and under design in the world. Certainly no other gun has it’s standing among aspiring hunters and avid sporting clays shooters alike.

Many of us know how revered the Citori is and wonder how much the NRA will be able to raise in the planned auction. We hope it does very well.

The beautiful finish and ebellishment is extraordinary, with all of the exquisite and special detail work being done by two of our own Browning gunsmiths out of the Browning facility in Arnold, Missouri. The engraving work is at a level of detail that puts this special shotgun in a class with the finest gun engraving designs ever. And certainly the quality of the hand work is at the top of craft, comparable to work done by the most skilled engravers in history. Browning gunsmiths Rich Hambrook and Ron Reimer are master engravers in every way and are responsible for the remarkable hand engraving, gold work and overall detailing and fine finish found on this masterpiece.  

In addition, extra care and attention was given to this special shotgun as it passed along the manufacturing line at our Miroku facility in Japan. Mioku is considered one of the finest facilities in the world. A place where the commitment to detail and careful craftsmanship is a way of life. Once you have seen how much personal, hands-on care each Citori is given, you understand why each becomes a personal treasure to the owner.

In addition to the hand-engraved and finished One Millionth Citori dontated to the NRA, a special edition limited run of 500 special One Millionth Citori shotguns is also being built. Click here to go directly to details on these shotguns.

Be sure to check out our Shot Show Blog videos as well for the presentation as it occured.

Here are a few photos of the event. You can see Mr. LaPierre and Mr. Hall in the photo.

Travis Hall donating the One Millionth Citori to Wayne LaPierre of the NRA   Wayne LaPierre shows off the one Millionth Browning Citori just donated by Browning.

Back at it on Super Bowl Sunday

Yes, the blogger is here. I hope you have been checking in on the web cams because then you will know how busy it is today. Crazy. We have been working hard to post more videos and to add some stories to the listing. If you are not aware, there are special guns and other outdoor clothing and gear that you can only get from dealers who order them at the show. These are called Shot Show Specials. And they are on the website with specifications and all details.

They are located by pressing the yellow “product” button over on the lower left of your screen, right now.

Michael Buffer announces new Browning 2008 clothing line.

Battle of the Elements.

Michael Buffer whipped up the crowd at the Browning Fashion Event today. Mr. Buffer is the famed HBO announcer. While the crowd screamed its approval, Mr. Buffer gave them what they wanted: ”Let’s get ready to rumble.”

 This kicked off the biggest Browning outdoor clothing event ever. Set to a boxing rink theme, models walked the runway showing off the latest Browning gear for the nearly 200 members of the outdoor press gathered for the event. This consititues most the the primary writers in the industry.   

Michael Buffer

See video clips from the event here.

Citori One Millionth Commemorative — Can you believe it?

In the big scheme of things this is probably the most significant of the 2008 Browning news items.  The Citori was introduced in 1973 and now 35 years later over a million have been built. The commemorative guns (detailed below) are a fitting tribute, doing justice to what has to be one of the most incredible runs in the business.

In discussions around the booth today it is clear that the amazing strength combined with a level of exceptional handling is what has kept the Citori line so strong. Another contributor, when Sporting Clays first experienced it’s growth burst nearly two decades ago, the Citori was the only gun really in a position to meet the chalenge. The range of the models was huge and the strength of the lower lug design has proven itself many times over in clay target circles.

Description:

  • Receiver – High polished blued steel receiver with special engraving commemorating the one millionth Citori with gold and silver enhancement. Extra engraving coverage on all metal surfaces
  • Barrel – 12 gauge, 3” chamber with gold enhanced script on the upper barrel commemorating the one millionth Citori; Ivory front and mid bead sights
  • Action – Single selective trigger; Hammer ejectors; Top-tang barrel selector/safety
  • Stock – Lightning style buttstock and forearm; Grade V/VI walnut with gloss oil finish; Unique 22 line per inch checkering pattern and special cut border; Buttstock has teardrop side panel and inlayed oval nameplate; Black plastic buttplate
  • Features – “One of Five Hundred” special Citori models commemorating the building of the one millionth Citori in 2008; Special Citori One Millionth Commemorative high grade leather case. Each case features top grain dark brown leather with 100% wool lining, brass hardware and engraved plaque; Three Invector Plus™ choke tubes (F,M,IC)
  • Special serial numbers 08-1000001 through 08-1000500.

View this Citori here.

Noisy.

This is truly the most noise ever at a Shot Show. I suppose the reason is the complete madness of the crowds. It is impossible to go anywhere quickly.

 I just took a quick tour through the front end of the Browning booth — the gun end — and the interest seems to center heavily around the two 2008 stars: the new X-Bolt bolt action rifle and the new 625 Over and Under Shotgun.

I’ll write more about the X-Bolt later, but first the 625.

 The big news here goes beyond the new aesthetics. That is, the new engraving styles and the  new checkering. The hot features center around the new VectorPro barrel dynamics. Vector-Pro starts with an elongated forcing cone. 2 1/2″ that is. This is a huge jump from the standard forcing cone which is about 3/8″ or so. Speaking to the product teams it is clear that this improvement is something that they have been thinking about for a while. 

Extended forcing cones offer several advantages that most shooters are seeking. First, the slower progression of the forcing cone is less likely to damage or deform pellets as they move from the chamber to the bore. Second, the reduced resistance to the shot cup moving to the bore has the effect of less felt recoil. Some of those who shoot long forcing cones consider the reduction to be huge. 

This combines with barrel dynamic features already in place like back bored barrels and the most popular choke system ever: the Invector plus.

More later.  

Browning booth — muzzle end.

The Show is about to begin. This photo is of the firearms end of the Browning booth. The muzzle end. The only people in the Show right now are exhibitors and a reps who are working the booths.

The Show opens in 30 minutes. Stand by.