I haven't owned one of the "new" 1885's, but have had several of the earlier Brownings...both B-78 and 1885's. All were very good shooters, but as noted disassembly can be troublesome (if you get the procedure wrong, they tend to self-disassemble, post-haste). I still have one in .45-70 that is currently in the vise. I looked at the stock as long as I could stand it, and decided to make some changes. I took off the forend hanger so I could slim and shorten the forend, and restocked it from a fairly plain (but very hard) piece of Turkish I've had gathering dust around the shop for several years. I'll re-strike and hand polish the metal while it's apart, and re-finish that as well...too damn shiny for a carrying-around rifle. The light weight .45-70 should make a very adequate rifle for deer/bear/elk.
Greg
