HOME | DD

Description
The Browning Automatic Rifle or commonly known as the BAR, was first developed during the First World War. The horrible fighting conditions and slaughter that occurred whenever the Axis or the Allies tried to charged each others fortified trenches was taking its toll. Weapons developers on both sides were trying to come up with small arms that would allow the individual soldier to have the fire power of a machinegun but without the heavy weight. John Browning was one of those arms developers, he was already famous for his development of the 1911 .45 caliber pistol, 1902 Auto 5 Shotgun, Winchester Model 1897 pump action shotgun, Colt-Browning 1895 "Potato Digger" machine gun, etc. Browning began to develop a weapon that troops could use to walk across "No Man's Land" but be firing all the way across to pin down the Germans in the trenches. His development would become the 1918 BAR, a semi-auto or full auto rifle chambered in 30-06 round and had a magazine size of 20 rounds. But unfortunately only a few of his walking fire weapons would reach France as the war was coming to a close and the US Army didn't want the Germans to get their hands on the gun. But they saw service with US troops during the Allied's Hundred Day Offensive of August-November of 1918. After the war, the US Army began to refurbish their BARs, the first model was 1918A1, which included a spiked bipod and a hinged buttplate to help with the accuracy of the weapon when firing. The second version was the 1918A2, which had a barrel mounted bipod (very horrible design, usually discarded in the field), a hinged steel buttplate, a carry handle and the stock was sometimes made of a plastic and fabric material instead of wood. Thou the weight of the weapon increased to around 19 pounds from the original 15. The Browning 1918 BAR when on to serve as the US squad automatic weapon threw WW2, Korea and the early years of Vietnam. It remained in use with the National Guard until the end of the 1970s and early 1980s. The weapon was also produced by FN Herstal in Belgium and saw service in many other nations such as Sweden, Poland, Belgium, China and other nations. Thou these weapons differed from the American version of the BAR as they would be in different calibers, have changeable barrels, pistol grips, large magazines, and better bipods. Today the 1918 BAR still is highly sought after by collectors and shooters alike, it's tough and rugged design makes it a very robust weapon. Its design also makes it very accurate as well. In recent years, the civilian version of the BAR called the 1918A3 has been produced by the Ohio Ordnance Company. The different between the 1918A3 and the original BARs is that it is a semi-auto weapon rather then a full auto. The demand for the weapon has been so great that back orders stretch for around a year long, so if you want one you will have to be patient. Also the company is releasing a more modern and updated version called the HCAR, which has a 30 round magazine, adjustable stock, a shorter barrel, pinnacle rails for optics, grips, bipods, etc. It is still chamber for 30-06, but its recoil is more manageable now and they might get it modified for more 7.62 calibers later on. All in all Browning 1918 BAR, has a long and very successful career in military and civilian usage, the robust, rugged, reliable and accuracy of the rifle are a testament to John Browning's skill and legacy of his small arms designs.

Description
The Browning Automatic Rifle or commonly known as the BAR, was first developed during the First World War. The horrible fighting conditions and slaughter that occurred whenever the Axis or the Allies tried to charged each others fortified trenches was taking its toll. Weapons developers on both sides were trying to come up with small arms that would allow the individual soldier to have the fire power of a machinegun but without the heavy weight. John Browning was one of those arms developers, he was already famous for his development of the 1911 .45 caliber pistol, 1902 Auto 5 Shotgun, Winchester Model 1897 pump action shotgun, Colt-Browning 1895 "Potato Digger" machine gun, etc. Browning began to develop a weapon that troops could use to walk across "No Man's Land" but be firing all the way across to pin down the Germans in the trenches. His development would become the 1918 BAR, a semi-auto or full auto rifle chambered in 30-06 round and had a magazine size of 20 rounds. But unfortunately only a few of his walking fire weapons would reach France as the war was coming to a close and the US Army didn't want the Germans to get their hands on the gun. But they saw service with US troops during the Allied's Hundred Day Offensive of August-November of 1918. After the war, the US Army began to refurbish their BARs, the first model was 1918A1, which included a spiked bipod and a hinged buttplate to help with the accuracy of the weapon when firing. The second version was the 1918A2, which had a barrel mounted bipod (very horrible design, usually discarded in the field), a hinged steel buttplate, a carry handle and the stock was sometimes made of a plastic and fabric material instead of wood. Thou the weight of the weapon increased to around 19 pounds from the original 15. The Browning 1918 BAR when on to serve as the US squad automatic weapon threw WW2, Korea and the early years of Vietnam. It remained in use with the National Guard until the end of the 1970s and early 1980s. The weapon was also produced by FN Herstal in Belgium and saw service in many other nations such as Sweden, Poland, Belgium, China and other nations. Thou these weapons differed from the American version of the BAR as they would be in different calibers, have changeable barrels, pistol grips, large magazines, and better bipods. Today the 1918 BAR still is highly sought after by collectors and shooters alike, it's tough and rugged design makes it a very robust weapon. Its design also makes it very accurate as well. In recent years, the civilian version of the BAR called the 1918A3 has been produced by the Ohio Ordnance Company. The different between the 1918A3 and the original BARs is that it is a semi-auto weapon rather then a full auto. The demand for the weapon has been so great that back orders stretch for around a year long, so if you want one you will have to be patient. Also the company is releasing a more modern and updated version called the HCAR, which has a 30 round magazine, adjustable stock, a shorter barrel, pinnacle rails for optics, grips, bipods, etc. It is still chamber for 30-06, but its recoil is more manageable now and they might get it modified for more 7.62 calibers later on. All in all Browning 1918 BAR, has a long and very successful career in military and civilian usage, the robust, rugged, reliable and accuracy of the rifle are a testament to John Browning's skill and legacy of his small arms designs.