Browning Reloading Tools, Ogden Utah
John Browning was an interesting fellow. He had to be good at what he did, because he was so far from the Industrial East. If you get a chance, buy and read his Biography, "John M. Browning, American Gunmaker." You will be surprised at his accomplishments! Guns that you are very familiar with today.
Do you have a 1911 Colt Automatic? Maybe you have a modern copy.
Did you fire a 50 caliber Browing Machine gun during your Military Service?
Do you have a Browning High Power in 9mm? Browning Over and Under Shotgun?
Do you collect Winchester Lever Action Rifles like the 1892, 1894 or 1886?
You will be shocked at the designs that came out of the Browning Shop in Ogden Utah!
His first patent, in October of 1879, became the 1885 Winchester Single Shot Rifle.
For a while, he made these rifles himself. A little later he patented this Reloading Tool. These were made in the Browning Shop in Ogden. It did not take long for the Big Gun Companies to take notice. All his patents were purchased by Gun Manufacturers. Some were bought just to block their manufacture.
If you like our History, you will enjoy his story!
This patent Drawing looks a lot like the Marlin Tool for a good reason. Marlin bought the rights to make this tool. I have had several of the Marlin Tools through the years. I never had the desire to use one. The bullet mold was nestled into the middle of this large mass of metal. It would have been hard to cast good bullets. You would have to heat the whole tool up to make the lead fill out in the mold well. That does not seem like a fun process!
William Wirt Winchester had patented his 1874 tool years before, then improved it in 1875. Winchester also offered a separate, modern looking bullet mold in 1875. These were much better Reloading Tools!
I never bought one of these browning tools. All I ever had a chance at, were in horrible condition. Either they were used a lot out West, or they were thrown in junk boxes because there were better tools available. They do show up occasionally in several types and sizes. Check out Volume 2 of " Reloading Tools of the Black Powder Era." There were some wild looking variations.
A Second Type 44-40 Browning Tool
Recently, a Fellow Collector E-mailed some pictures. He found some Reloading Tools at a garage sale/ flea market. Most were in pretty bad shape. One was nice! He was wondering if this might be a Marlin Tool. I let him know he had a good one here!
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This is a nice example of a Browning Reloading Tool. Way better than I have ever found. This gold paint is original on this type.
It is nice to know that these tools show up, even now, in unexpected places!