by GCA Member Robert Garr

Let me start by making an observation and a comment. First, where would we, the collective we of gun lovers, be if not for John Moses Browning? This is food for thought. If you have any knowledge of the man, spend a few minutes sometime and ponder that question. The impact of his design genius not to mention the elegance and style that came from his ideas boggles the mind. Secondly,  for me, at least from an engineering perspective comes the marvel of the take down gun. Many have done it, some well, others not. But looking at Brownings designs there is a certain awe and wow factor involved. So let’s take a quick look at some of the take downs and their design methods we may see or be familiar with, in no particular order. And not all Browning designs. As we know in our Granddads time, 1890 – 1920’s or so, lots of hunters took to the rails for 2 or 3 day weekend hunting trips. This necessitated a need for a compact traveling shotgun or rifle. Hence the takedown. Yes, I’m sure they existed prior. But this is when their golden age came to be. One of the best was the Winchester m-12. This could be purchased as a solid frame or a takedown. And oh what a takedown it was. It had a method which allowed for any wiggle or slop of the barrels fit to be corrected. And this shotgun introduced many to the brilliant concept of the interrupted thread. A quick 90° twist and the barrel and magazine tube were off. Another Winchester that could be had as a takedown was the slick little m-62. A fast shooting .22 pump with no disconnector. Here, you had a takedown screw on the receivers left side. Unscrew it and the two slab sided halves separate. No fuss, no muss, no parts falling out. Just clean neat and simple, and did I mention fast. The Marlin m-39 .22lr is a similar type of takedown. Another Marlin .22 that has the benefit of compactness is their little Papoose. A spin off on the popular model 60, it’s  a handy neat little item. It lacks a front hand guard, a negative. But makes up for it by being a low priced, ultra compact proven design. A more modern take on the takedown is the .22 known as the Charter Arms AR7, or Explorer, or the Henry something or another. In this case not only does the barrel and receiver takedown, but these and the magazine all stow snugly into the butt stock. And it floats, kinda. The butt pad remains above water at least. Of particular interest to me is the Browning design in the Stevens series of shotguns like the model 520. Here we  have a different approach. The front of the steel receiver is milled with a set of slots? ridges? grooves? Call them what you will, they run perpendicular to the bore from the face of the receiver and back towards the bolt about an inch. On the receiver extension that the magazine tube and barrel reside are the same set of ridges, but they are offset by one ridge. This allows the two to slide together vertically, and then be tightened and secured by screwing the magazine tube into the barrel extension. It’s more easily done than said. This makes for a rock solid, secure method of takedown. This model shotgun was made by Stevens and sold by them, but also marketed out to others such as Montgomery Ward. This was at a time when firearms did not have the undeserved stigma they have today and were sold by Wards, Sears, and a gazillion smaller chains and hardware stores. A real neat looking and shooting. 22rf is the Browning 22 Auto. A brilliant design. Sleek, light as air, graceful, quick and slick as snot. Internally brilliant, and it takes down into a compact package by just un screwing a barrel nut! This butt stock fed rifle is quick to take down or put together, and a pleasure to shoot. Probably the nicest example of a current production takedown firearm, and a design that was really well thought out, and works to perfection, is the Ruger 10/22 takedown.  It’s method is very well thought out, is strong and can be adjusted for looseness and wear. With it’s many options and fitted case this is one for the books. Ruger got it right with this one, a good job! There are not as many rifles that are takedown. Sure you have the custom rigs like the Robar, which are incredible, and others. But the most common are Winchester model lever guns and the Savage 99, to name a few. Most are as scarce as hens teeth. There is also a gray area that one may argue are takedowns also. Are side by side and over under shotguns takedown? How about the T/C Contender carbine or Encore rifle? For that matter do many of today’s MSR’s fit the bill, the AR platform? SIG 556, Beretta AR70, H&K 91, 93 and 94 series? They do takedown, so in theory they may fit the bill. I just wanted to offer a taste of these great designs. Their cool factor can’t be denied. The same can also be said of the incredible genius behind the design engineering that created them. If you have the chance to lay hands on one, take the time to really look at it. Study it. And then you will understand better the men who made them. You will also see why they are not much made anymore. Time is money today. In the past, time was quality.