I have a Belgium made Browning O/U I acquired from a deceased friend April of last year with an odd serial number. I looked up date codes and even called Browning and spoke with a very nice and knowledgeable young man who could not help. The shotgun is a 12 ga with a Simmons vent rib. The receiver and trigger guard are nickel plated. The S/N on the tang under the lever has a "B" and then 98xxx. By just the digits manufacture date is 1962, neither the website nor the young man can explain the "B" prefix. I was told the gun was sent in to Browning to repair some damage years ago and was also sent to Briley for a full set of barrels , which I have. Briley said they don't mark firearms for which they provide service. Any help is appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Browning over/unders are not my area of expertise, so I may be off base. But I’d guess that your gun was not imported to the US by Browning, and as a World Market item it doesn’t follow the Browning serial number convention. One clue may be the address on the barrel.
I've encountered a few Trap models from that sn range with either a 'B' or 'T' prefix. I'm not certain of their significance but out of those 7 examples 6 are 32" Broadway ribbed trap models. The other is a 28" m/f but I could not confirm whether it's a field or target configuration. You indicated this is a skeet gun. Could you provide more specifics including bbl length, chokes, forearm type, and the full serial number for my research purposes? Photos would help too. While I like a good charade, it does you little good to entertain 'guesses' if you're objective is to receive something definitive and reliable. The B's are in the 97xxx range (3 Gr I's) whereas the T's are in the 92xxx to 93xxx range (1 Midas and 3 Diana grades). The addition of your serial number will help me establish (along with future entries) a pattern which could lead to conclusions regarding the significance of these prefixes. Following 'Rudolph31's thought relative to FN or BrowninG product line (barrel address)..... What grade is the gun in question? 'B' from the info I have, appears to be for Gr I. Chrome is not a factory finish but I have seen some chrome or silver nitrite finished Gr I's - Otherwise, factory 'grayed' receivers would be Pigeon, Pointer, and Diana during this period. A close-up photo of the Simmons rib replacement might help us determine if it was originally a Broadway rib. Otherwise, you could ask your contact at BrowninG if there are original invoice records for this gun - which would specify whether it was a Broadway or narrow rib. What type of damage? And Briley full sets of barrels? Please elaborate. Thanks.
