Read this first. Many of us at Browning first read this book when we came to work for Browning. We all thought we knew a great deal about him, but nearly everyone is wrong. The extent of his contributions to firearms design and innovation is mind boggling.
Time after time he came forward with the right design for the right time. Some of them changed America forever, especially the early lever action rifles and pump shotguns he designed for Winchester Repeating Arms. Some change the world, like this contributions to military rifle designs like the .30 caliber machine gun, the 50 caliber M2 ("ma deuce" as it is often called), the 1911A, the BAR and many others. Read the book and you will understand why he is often referred to as a genius of firearms design.
Beyond firearms, he lived an amazing life. As the son of a Mormon pioneer (who incidentally happened to be a gunsmith and fine designer in his own right), he made Ogden, Utah the center of innovation in firearms design for over half a century.
Here's a brief list of some of the firearms detailed in this book.
Popular John M. Browning Firearm Designs – 1885 to 1926
Without doubt, John M Browning was the world’s foremost designer of firearms. While other designers also made extremely significant contributions to firearms design and production, those designed John M. Browning have seen longer and wider service than any other guns in history. He was granted more than 100 patents during his lifetime and many of his designs, like the 1911 pistol, continue to be the design of choice in competition, law enforcement and the military.
His major firearms designs included:
Single-Shot Rifle:
Winchester 1885
Bolt-Action Rifle:
Winchester 1900
Lever-Action Rifles:
Winchester 1886
Winchester 1892
Winchester 1894
Winchester 1895
Slide-Action Rifles:
Winchester 1890
Recoil-Operated Semi-Automatic Rifles:
Remington Model 8 and 81
Blowback-Operated Semi-Automatic Rifles:
Browning 22 Semi-auto
Double-Barrel Shotgun:
Browning Superposed
Lever-Action Shotgun:
Winchester 1887
Slide-Action Shotguns:
Winchester 1897
Remington Model 17 (later the Ithaca 37)
Stevens 520
Recoil-Operated Semi-Automatic Shotguns:
Browning Auto 5 / Remington Model 11
Blowback-Operated Semi-Automatic Pistols:
FN M1900
Colt 1903/1908 Pocket Hammerless
FN 1906 Vest Pocket/Colt 1908 Vest Pocket
FN 1910
Colt Woodsman .22
Recoil-Operated Semi-Automatic Pistols:
Colt 1902
Colt 1903 Pocket Hammer
U.S. M1911
FN G.P. 35 Hi Power
Gas-Operated Machine Guns:
Colt M1895
U.S. M1918 BAR
Recoil-Operated Machine Guns:
U.S. M1917/M1919
U.S. M2 Heavy Machine Gun
Automatic Machine Cannon:
Colt Browning 37mm
