My bro-in-law has a Silver Hunter be bought new 4-5 years ago. Last week he found that the forend had split completely in half. Thanks to a roll of electrical tape it hunted over the weekend but he's wondering what to do. Will Browning warranty it? If they replace the forend he's worried about it matching the stock. His thought was to maybe find a factory rep to talk with in person (he's in western Kansas; good luck with that!). Anyway, any ideas/experience/ opinions are appreciated; thanks...

Call Browning?

Well, yeah; just thought someone might have some experience to share.

Well, the one time I had a problem with a new Citori they took care of it, all at no charge. The gun was gone for 4 months, but this was back in the mid 1990's so I don't know if their service time has improved. Given the gun's age I have no idea if Browning is going to help him and he's going to have to talk to them directly to get an answer.

http://www.browning.com/customerservice/qna/detail.asp?id=35

You can also contact Midwest Gun Works which is a certified Browning repair station. They're in St. Louis.

http://www.midwestgunworks.com/page/mgwi

I really am trying to help.
Jeff

If they bounce him our try Art's gun shop. He has everything Browning and does very good work.

bill

I wouldn't expect much from Browning. I bought a Gold Stalker when they first came out and it wouldn't cycle sometimes when it actually fired, and sometimes it wouldn't even fire. Tried multiple brands of ammo. Took it to a Browning warranty smith three times to have it worked on, no charge for the work. Still wouldn't work reliably so I called Browning directly and they told me I had owned it too long and it was out of warranty (about 18 months from date of purchase). The gun had spent a good portion of that time in the shop and was never right. Browning stiffed me, and I have never purchased another Browning gun. Good luck.

Does it really require replacement? I've seen Jim Greenwood in Augusta do some amazing repair. He repaired a Parker repro for a friend of mine that had completely split through the wrist. It looked like it would need a replacement stock, but Jim's repair is invisible and stronger than the original. Just a thought.

Great answer, if it's a clean split in clean wood, and no pieces are missing. A correct glue job should be virtually undetectable and as strong as the original wood... if not stronger. I find that Titebond II wood glue is better than any epoxy for an invisible joint in clean wood that fits together closely. A correct job consists of the proper glue, very close fitting of the broken wood, and proper clamping.

Thanks all. My first thought was that a repair would probably be the best way to go; he just wondered about Browning's policies, etc. I figured it was optimistic to think that they'd do anything about a gun this old. Since Jim Greenwood is about 5 miles from my front door that sounds like the place to start.

I can't say enough good things about Jim Greenwood's work. He is a great resource. Anyone familiar with his work would say the same.

I hsve had very good service from Browning's repair shop in Pevely, MO.

Several years ago they replaced the split fore-end wood on my 4 year-old Citori at no charge. The new wood was a close match.

Another time they repaired the trigger on my well used A-5 which was 30+ years old at the time, again at no charge.

They also repaired/replaced the ejector on a 6 month-old Gold Hunter, which was in the warranty period. It probably should not have broken off that soon.

I know that some people have been disappointed in Browning's warranty work, but my experience has been 100% positive.

gold40

Have had a couple of experiences with them, all positive. The last one concerning a 1969 Superlight. It had occasionally become very difficult to open for no reason I could see. Dropped it off in person and 6 weeks later had it back. They replaced a couple of springs, locking bolt, repaired small split in forend, etc. No charge due to the fact I am the original owner...with the Life Time guarantee card which they issued back in those years. Have been told that only one or two of their people can do the Superposed work.