doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion German & Austrian Sporting Guns @ doublegunshop.com BRNO 21 and 22

This is slightly off subject, since BRNO is neither German nor Austrian (although it was once located in the Austro-Hungarian Empire), but I wonder if anyone could enlighten me about the model designation 21 and 22 for post-War BRNO sporting rifles.

I have always thought that the BRNO 21 was a version without integral scope bases and the BRNO 22 designated a model with the integral bases, but I have never seen this in print, and I somtimes see rifles advertised as 21's with the integral bases and vice versa.

I have owned examples of both, and as far as I could determine there was no model designation marked anywhere on either.

I was under the impression that the 21 was a sporting rifle and the 22 was a carbine with a full length stock. I noticed that the Blue Book states that the 21 was available with a full length stock and with or without integral scope mounts, but who knows if they are correct. I have a carbine in 7x57. I always thought it was a 22F? Guess that I will look through my collection of Gun Digest to see if they have anything on BRNO.

Yes, 21 is the rifle, 22 the full stock carbine, Pre war. Usually a date stamp on left side of action and barrel joint.

Craig

This is confusing, because the suffixes H (for half stock) and F (for full stock) appear to be in use with both model numbers 21 and 22.

My Blue Book says says that the 21H was available in four versions, which makes little sense. The article mentions manufacturing dates of 1946 through 1955 evidently pre-dating the ZG-47.

That is interesting, I always thought that the 22F was only available in full stock. I think it came chambered in 6.5;7;and 8 mm.
I would bet that the only difference between the 21 and 22 was barrel length. 20 inch for the carbine or model 22, and 22 to 23 inch for the model 21. That would allow for four versions. A model 21F would not be good looking!

Craig

My 1953 Gun Digest lists the half stock rifle, but with no model designation. The price was $167.50, compared to $120.00 for a Model 70 Winchester.

If I recall correctly, the import duty on Communist Bloc items was virtually prohibitive, which is why the 21 and 22 rifles found their way to Canada, but not to the US.

The 1951 Gun Digest shows both the 21H and 22F was imported by Thalson Company, price was 167.50. Thalson was located in San Francisco at that time. The 1952 issue still had listing for both models.

My take -- 21H in either carbine / rifle, 21F full stock all with no integral mounts but sometimes claw mounts.

22H in either carbine / rifle, 22F full stock all with integral mounts. All models were a small ring, standard length Mauser, could be had with either DTSs similliar in design to the Oberndorf Mauser(integral to the bottom metal) / single trigger. All could be had with either a butter knife / round bolt handle. A factory scope could be ordered with the 22 series and possibly the 21 but I have never run across one, I think cost kept the combos in the rare category.

The switch from 21 to 22 came around 1953. Mine is a 22H made in 1954-integral mounts with factory scope. FWIW - TTBOMK

Mine butter knife, set trigger, integral mounts, 7 X 57, made in 1950, bought it new, my moose rifle, accurate, with handloads astonishing.

My 1954 ed. of the Stoeger's catalog does not show BRNO rifles. I am Slovakian (on my father's side) and in WW2- the British Bren in, of course, .303 and not our 30-06) had some advantages over our BAR-- The Bren (Bruno-Enfield merged) had a 30 rd. top set box magazine (about 10:30 on the clock position) which meant the operator could get closer to the ground (deck) when firing from the prone position- and unlike the BAR with the two-fire position trigger assembly, the Bren had a better and less complicated trigger assembly and a slower cyclical fire rate- darn fine weapon, IMO.