Browning

Among makes of weapons, there are some whose history is synonymous with the reputation of the entire industry. Browning is one of those brands.

Since 1897, the year when the first Browning gun was made, millions of shotguns and rifles for hunting or target shooting have been created and manufactured by the company.

Around 20% of game shots in the UK use a Browning for the majority of their game shooting. This is testament to the reliability and competitive pricing of the products, and over a century's history of making guns.

Browning is the inventor of the semi-automatic shotgun, over-and-under shotgun, semi-automatic rifle and, most recently, an over-and-under gun with the lowest action frame and fastest firing system on the market.

The company's products have really left their mark on gun making, with a wide array of models with two things in common – reliability and unparalleled levels of performance.

The company was founded in Utah by John Moses Browning, who grew up watching his father make guns. At the age of just 23, John Moses lodged his first patent - for the 'J.M. Browning Single Shot Rifle'. This invention simplified the percussion mechanism, making it more durable and reliable. From there, John Moses transformed his father's humble store into a small gun making workshop and ultimately into the business it is today.

Over the years, John Moses invented almost everything in the field of firearms. In 1897, one of the directors of the Fabrique Nationale (National Weapons Factory) at Herstal in Belgium saw the appeal of a Browning pistol and obtained the manufacturing license. This was the start of a lifelong collaboration between the inventor from the Great Salt Lake and the factory on the banks of the Meuse River.

In 1925, John Moses Browning put the finishing touches on the prototype of an over-and-under which would change the history of the hunting shotgun. He called it simply B25, for 'Browning 1925'. The collaboration with the Belgian factory continues to this day and the B25, invented nearly a century ago, is still being manufactured.