browning.com • BROWNING US: Morgan, Utah 84050-9326 BROWNING CANADA: Browning Canada Sports Ltd/Ltée, St-Laurent, Quebec H4S 1W6 BROWNING INTL: Parc Industriel des Hauts-Sarts, B-4040 Herstal, Belgium • NEU101015.
Important operating instructions for: C o n t e n ts Pa g e Browning® 1911-22™ aut o l o ad i n g p i st o l You are Responsible for Firearm Safety...................................................2 General Description and Operation......................................................10 If you have any questions or comments regarding your new firearm, please contact us. Nomenclature..........................................................................................
You Are Responsible For F i r e a r m S af e ty Failure to heed any of the following warnings could result in serious injury or death. As a gun owner, you accept a set of demanding responsibilities. How seriously you take these responsibilities can be the difference between life and death. There is no excuse for careless or abusive handling of any firearm. At all times handle this firearm, and all other firearms, with intense respect for their power and potential danger.
Always wear eye protection when disassembling and cleaning any firearm to prevent the possibility of springs, spring-tensioned parts, solvents or other agents from contacting your eyes. 5 Keep all firearms unloaded during transport, even when stored in a holster, gun case, scabbard or other container. BEFORE CHECKING FOR A BARREL OBSTRUCTION, BE CERTAIN YOUR FIREARM IS COMPLETELY UNLOADED, THERE IS NOt a LIVE cartridge IN THE CHAMBER AND THE “SAFETY” IS IN THE ON SAFE POSITION.
12 examine every cartridge you put in your firearm. We cannot assume any responsibility for the use of unsafe or improper firearm and ammunition combinations or damage or injury caused by damaged ammunition. It is your responsibility to read and heed all warnings in this owner’s manual and on ammunition boxes. See page 16 for more information on the correct ammunition for your firearm. 13 USE ONLY SAAMI APPROVED AMMUNITION.
23 read AND HEED ALL WARNINGS in this owner’s manual, on ammunition boxes and with all accessories that you install on your firearm. It is your responsibility to secure the most up-to-date information on the safe handling procedures of your Browning firearm. We assume no liability for incidents which occur when unsafe or improper firearm accessories or ammunition combinations are used.
GENER A L d e s c r i p t i o n a n d OPER A T ION Figure 3 Figure 4 Thumb “safety” shown in the on safe position. Thumb “safety” shown in the off safe position. The Browning 1911-22 is a recoil-operated, straight-blowback, singleaction autoloading pistol.
O p e r at i o n o f th e H a m m e r The Browning 1911-22 is a singleaction pistol featuring an exposed hammer with dropped, half-cock and full-cock positions. The hammer spur is serrated to help insure positive control while manually cocking and lowering the hammer. In order for the trigger to operate the hammer, the magazine must be inserted in the pistol. Figure 6 The half-cock hammer position is between the dropped position and full-cock position (Figure 7, page 12).
1 Ensure the firearm is completely unloaded as explained in Unloading on page 22. Place the “safety” in the on safe position. Figure 9 2 Insert an unloaded magazine into the pistol. 3 Point the muzzle in a safe direction, firmly grip the Lowering the hammer to the dropped position. firearm in a normal shooting manner and move the “safety” into the off safe position. 4 Grasp the hammer with your other hand and squeeze the trigger to allow the hammer to move forward slowly, under control (Figure 9).
Ammunition Figure 11 Figure 12 Press the magazine release and remove the magazine. Load cartridges into the magazine one at a time. Browning 1911-22 pistols are chambered for 22 Long Rifle cartridges only. Do not use ammunition other than what is inscribed on the right side of the barrel. Examine every cartridge you put in your pistol. The barrel and action of this pistol have been made with substantial safety margins over the pressures developed by established American loads.
2 If the “safety” is in the on safe position, move it down into the off safe position. 3 With your fingers away from the trigger, pull the slide completely to the rear and release it. The slide will move forward under spring pressure and feed the first cartridge from the magazine into the chamber (Figure 13). Figure 13 1 With the slide locked rearward, eject the empty magazine from the pistol. 2 Insert a loaded magazine into the pistol.
Figure 14 DO NOT USE UNORTHODOX SIGHTING METHODS. You will have observed when cocking the pistol that the slide moves rearward about ½" past the rear of the frame (Figure 14). To prevent the slide from causing injury in its rearward The slide moves rearward about ½" past the movement when you are end of the frame. shooting, keep THE pistol away from THE EYEs or face, and neither hand should be in a position where it could be hit by the slide. 1 Load a cartridge into the chamber as explained previously.
U n l o ad i n g S i g ht A d j ust m e n t While unloading your pistol Always keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction, and your fingers away from the trigger. Failure to follow these warnings could result in serious injury or death. Before performing sight adjustment procedures, Remove the magazine from the firearm and ensure the chamber is Completely Unloaded. Replace the magazine in the pistol and lower the hammer to the dropped position. Always Keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction.
D i sass e m b ly BEFORE PERFORMING disassembly PROCEDURES, Remove the magazine from the firearm and ensure the chamber is Completely Unloaded. Replace the magazine in the pistol and lower the hammer to the dropped position. Always Keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction. Failure to follow these warnings could result in serious injury or death.
Figure 20 Figure 21 Figure 22 Figure 23 Move the slide forward and off of the frame. Lift the recoil spring guide rod from the barrel block. Align the barrel bushing lugs with the slide opening and remove it from the slide. Remove the barrel through the front of the slide. 11 Rotate the barrel bushing counter clockwise approximately 45° until the barrel bushing lugs align with the opening in the front of the slide and remove the barrel bushing (Figure 22, page 27).
5 Lightly compress the recoil spring plug to hold it in position and replace the slide on the frame. Move the slide rearward until the disassembly notch aligns with the slide stop opening. 6 Replace the slide stop in the frame. 7 Press the recoil spring plug into the slide and rotate the barrel bushing counterclockwise 90° until the recoil spring plug locks into position. the recoil spring and recoil spring plug are under tension.
To maintain the utmost accuracy of your pistol it is recommended you clean the bore with a copper solvent after shooting copper-plated bullets. Residue from copper-plated bullets sticks to the barrel and require more frequent cleaning. Swab the bore with a quality copper solvent using the manufacturer’s recommended procedure. MOST SOLVENTS ARE HIGHLY FLAMMABLE. WEAR EYE PROTECTION and practice APPROPRIATE SAFETY MEASURES WHEN WORKING WITH SOLVENTS to avoid serious injury.
Notice! NEVER ATTEMPT TO TAKE YOUR firearm APART FURTHER THAN EXPLAINED IN THIS owner’s MANUAL. Your firearm is a specialized, finely fitted mechanism. You may permanently damage it by attempting to disassemble the inner mechanism assemblies. If further disassembly for service or cleaning is required, take your firearm to a qualified gunsmith, or contact our Arnold, Missouri Service Facility as explained under “SERVICE and Repair” on the following page.
