Browning

Buck Mark Pistols. Rimfire pistols built the Browning way.

Browning Buck Mark rimfire pistols lead the industry in quality, reliability, accuracy, and variety. Every Buck Mark starts out as a solid piece of aircraft-grade 7075 aluminum alloy and then is CNC machined to exacting tolerances. The crisp single-action trigger, hand-reamed chamber, target crowned barrel, and finely adjustable target sights mean the Buck Mark comes ready for fun straight from the box. The Ultragrip RX™ and Ultragrip DX™ represent the latest in grip technology. The finger grooves, laser stippling, and stylish wave patterns combine to form an Ergonomic Interactive Surface (EIS) that puts your hand in the same place on the grip for every shot, resulting in more instinctual shooting and improved accuracy. The textured surfaces are comfortable and secure in any condition, while the narrow profile makes them perfect for all hand sizes.

Action: The straight blowback design offers enhanced simplicity and reliability.

Slide: Built-in recess and raised side panels for better grip. The convenient manual slide release is easily operated with the shooting or support hand.

Barrel: Most models have bull barrels for improved stability. The Challenge model has a tapered barrel. The Lite model has a steel liner inside an ultralight aluminum sleeve. Each chamber is hand-reamed and muzzle crowns are recessed to protect them from damage that could degrade accuracy.

Rear Sight: 16-click per revolution adjustable Pro-Target™ sight is standard on all models. This sight provides a finer range of adjustment over the industry’s standard of 12 clicks per revolution.

Front Sight: Plus models feature a Truglo®/Marble’s® fiber-optic front sight. 5.5 Target includes hooded target sights.

Frame: While many popular 22 pistols are cast or fabricated from sheet metal stampings, each Buck Mark frame is CNC machined from 7075-T6 aluminum to exacting tolerances.

Magazine: Heat-treated magazine body for long-term feeding reliability. The coil spring provides a more consistent follower angle than a typical Z-spring. 10-round capacity.

Magazine Release: Positioned adjacent to the trigger guard for convenient operation.

Trigger: Compare it to the competition and feel its light, crisp break with less creep and overtravel.

Safety: Large, manual thumb safety. The trigger is disconnected when the magazine is removed for added safety.

Grips: Several wood, laminate, and composite styles are available. Soft nitrile Ultragrip RX® (URX) and wood Ultragrip Deluxe™ (UDX) ambidextrous grips have ergonomic finger grooves.

A bit of history on the Buck Mark pistol slide design

The Buck Mark pistol is one of the most proven 22 rimfire designs in the world today. It superseded the original Challenger series of Browning 22 Long Rifle pistols in about 1985. Over the years the design of the Buck Mark has remained very similar with refinements most often in aesthetic design, grips, and finishes.

One interesting bit of history is that on earlier Challenger pistols the slide had a design with a flat side with slanted grooves for gripping and racking the slide back. The slide on earlier Buck Mark pistols had side grooves in a cut-away, scalloped area only. But this made racking the slide a bit more convenient. Current models feature the grooves plus slide cocking "ears" at the rear of the slide that makes racking the slide back even more convenient.

All three designs work very well, but today's Buck Mark slide has been helpful for some shooters. This is primarily because, in general, pulling the slide back when the striker is decocked requires a bit more effort than when it already is cocked. This is something you will want to try out and test when you inspect one at your Browning dealer. Since the Buck Mark has a top strap that does not move in relation to the frame, you must rack the slide back with a "thumb-to-finger" grip rather than the "over the top" method you would use on most centerfire pistols. That is why the ears on the slide really help.