Going Back To My Childhood Shooting Discipline

        
        My Review of the M Blade Junior Air Rifle from Browning

When Armex asked me to take a look at this (their words) great little junior air rifle they had just brought into stock, my thoughts were ohhhh well just another run of the mill springer nothing to get all excited about, you see I have over the years shot and hunted with shot targets, as well as shot both inside and outside in all-weathers with almost every make of air rifle there is weather its a springer or pcp, it really takes something special to make my ears prick up now days, almost like when I first took the Walther RM8 out hunting from the very first shot it had me interested almost like it was my first time with a gun moment you know what I mean.

So the Browning M Blade arrived early one Saturday, as the post man knocked on the door saying here you go another long box what’s in this one a kite, I just laughed and wished him farewell, young sport Jake was with me this day all the other young sports were off doing rugby or martial arts clubs etc, Jake asked what is that then mucker as I said in a not excited voice just another air rifle to test, Jake on the other hand was like a kid at Christmas open it up now he said, ahhhhh it will be there after I have made a mug of tea kiddo and not really paying much attention to it.

The un-boxing I let Jake do as I drank my tea and dealt with a phone call from a farmer who had a vermin problem, I said I would pop down after breakfast and take a look at the feral problem in the grain barn, I also said so long as I could borrow his back garden to give this pellet gun a test, farmer agreed and so the plan was hatched, Jake took it out of the box and was more excited than a ferret faced with a rat asking can we go now, all in good time lad I have not had my breakfast yet as I cast my eye over this new pellet gun.

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My first impression a nicely moulded synthetic stock and rubber coated barrel with a nice shape to it almost like it was moderated, it has some really nice open sights with some crisp clear green and red light catching reticule’s, they really do make aligning the gun and sighting it in much easier, it has a nice safety catch that operates by the thumb, the gun itself shoulders very nicely and fits really well considering it’s a junior model, the gun is set up ready to put a nice little scope on it if you so wish, but I like it the old way with iron sights.

I went from being oh just another pellet gun to being intrigued and excited as this had now caught my attention to being up graded to the possible title of junior Air Rifle, I made breakfast and wolfed it down whilst talking to Jake about how we were going to test this gun, his excitement was catching as now I too could not wait to fire this gun and see what she could do.

We set up in farmers back garden next to his chicken run as you will see in the video and photo’s, I put out some bottles of water and my Jack Pyke pellet trap at about 20 yards, from the very first shot zeroing this sweet little gun, I was transported back in time to my childhood, I was 8 years old again plinking cans in my Pappy's back garden with his old BSA air rifle, I simply just did not want to put it down once zeroed I just could not miss, in fact I put a score in that I would have been more than happy with if I were using a scoped rifle.


I was also so pleased I still had the old shooting ways in me as I had not shot open sighted in a fare few years so was a bit rusty, it was just like riding a bike it all came flooding back with every shot I took with this sweet little gun.

I was so impressed I put it on the chronograph and it came out as just short of 9 foot pound using Armex Air Streams .177 pellets, by this point young sport Jake was fit to burst wanting a go for himself so much so he was like a Jack Russell pulling on my trouser leg, you know he nailed centre bull with his very first shot and with every shot after his smile got wider and wider, the little bugger put the best part of a tin of pellets through the gun before he would let me have another go with it, I think we have a winner with this latest youth gun so much so I am going to buy some for the Pass It On Young Sports air rifle ranges.

Farmer then asked could we stop having fun in his back garden and drinking all his tea and eating all his cake (his good lady kept us well fed and watered) and go and look at the vermin problem in the grain barn as that's why he called me in the first place.


Jake took the Browning M Blade and I took the Walther RM8 in .22, now I know this little gun is not a serious hunting rifle but I will say open sights in a dark grain barn works very well as that's exactly how farmer and I used to shoot his farm when we were teenagers.


I let Jake do the shooting first, you know he nailed every rat/feral pigeon and corvids alike in fine style, all head shots all stone dead as soon as the pellet hit the mark, I never got to have a single shot he shot everything with the Browning M Blade and never missed a beat.

I think the proof is in the pudding and the Browning M Blade in our hands is a cracking little air rifle, it’s like being a kid again for us old duffers who remember shooting the old ways, as for the young sports don’t let them near this feisty little gun as you won’t get the bugger back, its that much fun and deadly accurate and very light in weight too, you can get the M Bade from The Out Post over at www.reallywildadventures.co.uk I am ordering one for myself I am that in love with this cracking little air rifle, but shhhhhhhh don’t let my young sports know or I may never get to use it at all.

M Blade review

By The Ole Hedge Creeper

Ake Rob Collins.

www.theolehedgecreeper.co.uk

www.reallywildadventures.co.uk

www.pass-it-on-young-sports.org.uk