Description

Browning B525 Advance Sporting
In mint condition, Game scene engraved action, 10mm sporting rib, vent side ribs, Adjustable trigger blade, 5 Extended Briley Invector chokes, M, IC, IM, CYL & SKEET Browning ABS case. Custom work below carried out in 2018 at a cost of £1080 receipt available.
Fully adjustable Gracoil to adjust length of pull with Replacement Super-Coil Cylinder with 3 changeable springs 94lbs 74lbs and 64lbs. Gun can be set up to have minimum felt recoil suitable for juniors and ladies.
Kick-Eez sporting pad
Adjustable comb
Oil finish
New Service Kit not fitted everything needed to keep the gun shooting for years.
This gun can be adjusted to fit just about anyone and shoots great.
RFD to RFD available I pay to send you pay to receive.

ONLY SELLING DUE TO CERVICAL DISC PROLAPSE IN MY NECK BEEN ADVISED TO STOP SHOOTING.

Can send RFD to RFD
REVIEW BELOW BY MIKE YARDLEY

The Browning Advance may have (rather good) game scene engraving but it is intended primarily as a sporter. First impressions are of a solid, well-finished gun; nice wood, nice machine engraving, and lustrous blacking. The new 525s all seem significantly prettier than the 325s and Citoris. I will not include the 425s in the ugly duckling list (a few of which are still made). They are excellent guns, but the 525s have been significantly revamped and have also been improved mechanically (with subtle changes to the trigger mechanism). Most significantly, however, the 525s now have chromed chambers and barrels (eliminating a problem with some previous Browning models – chamber rusting). The 525 Advance also comes equipped with 5 extended Briley X2 chokes. Briley and Teague lead the world in choke technology - so this is a useful bonus.
So What's the Difference with the Older Guns?
Compared to the 425, the action fences on the 525 have been reshaped, and some of the other action shapes changed (the essential mechanics are still based on the famous Superposed as modified in Japan). When one looks at the 525 and compares it to older guns, it looks sleeker. Moreover, on the handling and balance front, the test 525, comes to face and shoulder especially well.
As with the 425s, the 525 is available in 28”, 30” and 32” form. The test 525, however, has 30" tubes - an ideal all-round length for most people as far as clay shooting is concerned. If you intend to shoot more game than clays, I usually advise 28" tubes because they swing more easily (but point less well and are less easily controlled - more significant issues in competition).
The barrels on the test 525 are put together using the monobloc system like the majority of 425s. The earlier 325s (and some 425s) were of the desirable demi-bloc (chopper-lump type construction) where the barrel and breech are formed from one piece of bored steel rather than a tube inserted into a block. One could argue about the relative merits of both systems. The late Gough Thomas, one of this country's most famous gun gurus, always argued that Monobloc barrels were especially strong. Best quality over and under, however, use demi-bloc barrels.
Nevertheless, monobloc construction is now near universal as far as mass producers of guns are concerned. It has economic advantages but is extremely strong if well executed (as it is in the case of the Advance). Indeed, the joints between barrel tubes and monobloc on our 525 are perfect - as good as any that I have seen. If I had the choice of chromed monobloc versus unchromed demi-lump, I would definitely opt for the former.
The barrel’s bear steel shot proof marks for 3” (76mm) cartridges. The tubes themselves are well struck up with Browning's trademark deep and shiny blueing (it is not unlike the finish on a London best gun in appearance). Barrel weight - always a critical consideration in how a gun handles - seems good too. Not too heavy. The barrels have ventilated joining and a well-machined ventilated 10mm sighting rib equipped with a traditional white bead (which I prefer as a standard fitting to bright types).

Internally, the barrels passed muster well. The bores - not back-bored as some current Browning models - are mirror finished without ravelling or imperfection. Apart from the practical chroming as noted earlier, Browning continues to opt for a shorter style of forcing cone. Some say that long cones reduce felt recoil, but Browning made extended tests of their barrel geometry some years back and concluded that there was no advantage to the long cones. I used to sit on the fence on this issue, but I have been convinced by some of my side by sides - where recoil may be more of an issue - that lengthening the forcing cones can smooth out the pressure wave and therefore reduce felt recoil. I am also of the opinion that a long cone makes sense as far as pellet deformation is concerned. Whether one is talking of the forcing cone leading into the bore, or the one leading into the choke, it seems to make sense to keep things smooth and gradual.
Good Old John Moses!
The action is of course closely related to the famous Browning superposed design. This was the last creation of gun making genius John Moses Browning. It is one of the enduring classics and has been in production for three quarters of a century. Superposed guns and their clones (of which this is one) have traditional lumps beneath the barrel and a full width hinge pin. They still manage to look quite compact. Lock up is achieved by a full width bolt that comes out of the bottom of the action faces and meets a long slot bite beneath the bottom chamber mouth. It is an excellent system, but, not, in my opinion, quite as neat as the bifurcated lumps and conical bolts of some later designs.
The test gun has the usual Browning safety and combined barrel selector (the best of all the designs around in my opinion). The trigger operates on the inertia principal. The blade is well shaped, and, gold plated (but not too brightly). The quality of pulls was fine but I could not note great difference to previous guns. Aesthetically, the game scene engraving was attractive and coverage was good too. My only comment is that it is a little thin. But this is not a high grade gun - somewhere between a grade 2 and 3. At that level, it is very good.
The stock on this test 525 was made from surprisingly nice timber (better than the average 425). Length originally was about 14 3/4" (but I have fitted a1” pad which brings into about15 ½” gun having removed a black plastic butt-plate). Drop was about 1 3/8” at comb and about to 2 1/8" at heel (the modern standard). The tightly radiused full pistol grip felt comfortable. I liked the new chequering, which was well cut, but was not quite sure about the rounding of the panels. The Schnabel forfend was a typical, traditional, browning shape and the comb profile too – none of which is criticism, other manufacturers could do far worse than copy them.
Conclusions
This 525 is well made and well designed. The reworking of the action shape and the chroming of the barrels are major improvements. Steel shot proof may be useful to some people too. All things considered, this is one of the most attractive Japanese made Browning’s that I have yet seen (hand engraved models excluded). It shot well too - a solid gun in every respect. Browning over and under shotguns are predictably good, that is why they have become so popular in this country over the last three-quarters of a century. This one does not let the side down in any way and represents great value as well.