{
  "apiVersion": 1,
  "kind": "work-order",
  "purpose": "Taking the firearm apart for a job such as refinishing, and putting it back together to specification.",
  "firearm": {
    "slug": "browning-sa-22",
    "name": "Browning SA-22",
    "manufacturer": {
      "id": "browning",
      "name": "Browning Arms Company"
    },
    "category": "rimfire-rifle",
    "action": "blowback",
    "calibers": [
      ".22 Long Rifle"
    ],
    "alsoKnownAs": [
      "Semi-Auto 22",
      "Browning Takedown .22",
      "FN Trombone (related)"
    ],
    "coversAlso": [
      "Browning SA-22 Grade I through VI",
      "Remington Model 24 and 241 (the same John Browning design)"
    ],
    "page": "firearms/browning-sa-22.html",
    "bundle": "api/v1/firearms/browning-sa-22.json",
    "lastUpdated": "2026-10-29"
  },
  "notices": [
    "Browning Arms Company limits owner disassembly: Takedown, trigger guard/breech block assembly out, then breech block stripped (recoil spring and guide, firing pin, extractor); magazine tube out. Nothing further.",
    "This work order is written for the Browning SA-22. It is reported to cover Browning SA-22 Grade I through VI; Remington Model 24 and 241 (the same John Browning design) — if the firearm on the bench is one of those, check the torque notes: values do not always carry over.",
    "No torque values are recorded for this firearm. Get them from the manufacturer or a gunsmith; do not estimate."
  ],
  "disclaimer": {
    "headline": "Read this before you use anything here.",
    "points": [
      "This is a guide, not an authority. Entries are compiled from manufacturer manuals, technical manuals, published references, and community knowledge. Some of it comes from sources that are not authoritative, and some of it may simply be wrong.",
      "Always consult the manufacturer's manual for your specific firearm and serial-number range. Manufacturers change designs mid-production without renaming the model. The manual that shipped with your firearm outranks anything on this site.",
      "Consult a licensed gunsmith for anything beyond routine field stripping and cleaning, for any firearm you are unsure about, and for any procedure marked as gunsmith-recommended here.",
      "Treat every firearm as loaded. Verify it is unloaded, with the magazine removed and the chamber physically and visually checked, before any procedure in this database. Point it in a safe direction the entire time.",
      "Disassembly can damage a firearm or injure you. Springs are under tension, parts can launch, and reassembling a firearm incorrectly can make it unsafe to fire in a way that is not obvious from the outside. If a reassembled firearm does not pass a function check, stop and see a gunsmith.",
      "Torque values are shown in two groups. Values from the manufacturer or the issuing military are shown as such, with the document they came from. Values reported by anyone else — parts makers, gunsmithing publishers, articles, forums — are shown separately with who said them, how reliable that source is, and their exact words. Those are not specifications. Confirm any torque value with the manufacturer or a licensed gunsmith before relying on it.",
      "Nothing here is legal advice. Firearms law varies by country, state, and city, and some modifications or configurations are regulated or prohibited. You are responsible for knowing and following the law where you are.",
      "No warranty of any kind. Contributors and maintainers accept no liability for damage, injury, or loss arising from use of this material."
    ],
    "page": "disclaimer.html",
    "legal": {
      "summary": "Legal notice: this material is third-party information compiled from sources of varying reliability and is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It is not gunsmithing, technical, safety or legal advice, it is not verified or endorsed by any manufacturer, and it must not be taken as fact. Any work on a firearm beyond the routine field stripping described in its own owner's manual should be performed only by a licensed and insured gunsmith. You use this material entirely at your own risk. Fundamental Build LLC and the project's contributors make no warranty of any kind and accept no liability for death, injury, damage or loss arising from its use. Full terms: LEGAL.md.",
      "page": "legal.html",
      "notice": "https://github.com/Fundamental-build-LLC/Pew-Takedown/blob/main/LEGAL.md"
    }
  },
  "sourcing": {
    "confidence": "medium",
    "verification": "community-reviewed"
  },
  "manufacturerDisassembly": {
    "status": "limited",
    "limit": "Takedown, trigger guard/breech block assembly out, then breech block stripped (recoil spring and guide, firing pin, extractor); magazine tube out. Nothing further.",
    "statement": "Browning gives a takedown and breech-block cleaning procedure (including firing pin and extractor removal) and then says never to take the SA-22 apart further than the manual explains; further work goes to a qualified gunsmith or Browning's service facility.",
    "source": {
      "title": "Browning SA-22 Rifle Owner's Manual (web)",
      "publisher": "Browning Arms Company",
      "reliability": "primary",
      "url": "https://www.browning.com/support/owners-manuals/sa-22-rifle.html",
      "page": null,
      "pdfPage": null,
      "pageUrl": null,
      "quote": "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 THE “SERVICE OR REPAIR” SECTION."
    }
  },
  "recalls": [],
  "shopTier": {
    "tier": 2,
    "group": "rimfire-rifle",
    "rating": "Pew-Takedown editorial rating (1 easy – 3 hardest), not the manufacturer's",
    "reason": "55 listed parts in a takedown, bottom-ejecting blowback with a fitted interrupted-thread barrel joint and adjusting collar, and several parts Browning says must be fitted by its service department. Owners do not describe it as notably hard, so mid Tier 2.",
    "confidence": "low",
    "partCount": {
      "value": 55,
      "kind": "line-items",
      "covers": "Browning 22 Semi-Auto parts list, Grade I standard models, 22 LR only",
      "basis": "manufacturer-parts-list",
      "source": {
        "title": "Owner's Manual, Browning 22 Semi-Auto 22 Caliber Rifle",
        "publisher": "Browning",
        "reliability": "primary",
        "url": "https://archive.org/download/gunmanual_Browning_22_Semiauto/Browning%2022%20Semiauto.pdf",
        "page": "10",
        "pdfPage": null,
        "pageUrl": null,
        "quote": "55 Trigger, Right Hand"
      }
    },
    "painPoints": [
      {
        "issue": "Owners recall the SA-22 as not especially hard to work on, but heavy trigger pulls tempt people to file the sear, which ruins it.",
        "during": "reassembly",
        "source": {
          "title": "Browning SA 22",
          "publisher": "Canadian Gun Nutz",
          "reliability": "anecdotal",
          "url": "https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/threads/browning-sa-22.2468403",
          "page": null,
          "pdfPage": null,
          "pageUrl": null,
          "quote": "I don’t remember these being horribly difficult."
        }
      }
    ],
    "minutes": {
      "strip": 45,
      "rebuild": 70,
      "basis": "estimated",
      "note": "Strip of takedown barrel and collar, bolt and recoil spring, trigger guard group, magazine tube in the stock and sights; rebuild longer for the trigger group and barrel-joint adjustment.",
      "source": null
    },
    "stripScope": [
      {
        "assembly": "Barrel",
        "removes": [
          "takedown (interrupted thread)",
          "adjusting collar and lock",
          "front and rear sights"
        ],
        "tools": [
          "sight pusher"
        ]
      },
      {
        "assembly": "Receiver",
        "removes": [
          "trigger guard / trigger group",
          "bolt, recoil spring and guide",
          "ejector"
        ]
      },
      {
        "assembly": "Bolt",
        "removes": [
          "firing pin and spring",
          "extractor and spring"
        ]
      },
      {
        "assembly": "Stock / magazine",
        "removes": [
          "stock bolt",
          "inner and outer magazine tube"
        ]
      }
    ],
    "hardware": {
      "pins": 8,
      "springs": 11,
      "detents": 2,
      "basis": "counted from the manufacturer's parts list (one per key number unless a quantity is given)"
    },
    "specialTools": [
      {
        "tool": "Punch set",
        "usedFor": "Trigger group pins"
      },
      {
        "tool": "Sight pusher or brass drift",
        "usedFor": "Dovetail sights"
      }
    ],
    "fitOnRebuild": [
      {
        "check": "Barrel joint adjusting collar",
        "why": "The collar must be set so the joint does not rattle; a loose joint hurts accuracy and wears the threads.",
        "source": null
      },
      {
        "check": "Trigger/sear not filed",
        "why": "Heavy pulls tempt filing the sear, which owners warn ruins it.",
        "source": {
          "title": "Browning SA 22",
          "publisher": "Canadian Gun Nutz",
          "reliability": "anecdotal",
          "url": "https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/threads/browning-sa-22.2468403",
          "page": null,
          "pdfPage": null,
          "pageUrl": null,
          "quote": "If I file some off the sear ,then the contact may be less"
        }
      },
      {
        "check": "Function check: safety, trigger/sear release, disconnector and feeding with dummy rounds",
        "why": "Standard after any detail strip; a mis-assembled sear or disconnector can double or fail to fire.",
        "source": null
      }
    ],
    "assessed": "2026-10-29"
  },
  "videos": [],
  "configurations": [],
  "tools": [],
  "phases": [
    {
      "id": "clear",
      "title": "Clear and make safe",
      "steps": [
        {
          "n": 1,
          "instruction": "Point the muzzle in a safe direction and keep your finger off the trigger."
        },
        {
          "n": 2,
          "instruction": "Engage the safety."
        },
        {
          "n": 3,
          "instruction": "Withdraw the inner magazine tube from the buttstock and open the loading port.",
          "warning": "The magazine spring is compressed inside.",
          "partsFreed": [
            "Inner magazine tube"
          ]
        },
        {
          "n": 4,
          "instruction": "Tip the rifle so any remaining cartridges roll out of the buttstock tube, and count them out.",
          "partsFreed": [
            "Cartridges from the magazine tube"
          ]
        },
        {
          "n": 5,
          "instruction": "Cycle the bolt several times to eject any chambered round through the bottom port."
        },
        {
          "n": 6,
          "instruction": "Hold the bolt open and inspect the chamber through the bottom ejection port with a light.",
          "warning": "There is no side port. Use a light."
        },
        {
          "n": 7,
          "instruction": "Physically confirm the chamber is empty and remove all live ammunition from the work area."
        }
      ],
      "videos": []
    },
    {
      "id": "disassemble",
      "title": "Disassemble",
      "videos": [],
      "procedures": [
        {
          "procedure": "field-strip",
          "title": "Field Strip",
          "level": "field-strip",
          "configuration": false,
          "steps": [
            {
              "n": 1,
              "instruction": "Complete the Clear and Make Safe procedure."
            },
            {
              "n": 2,
              "instruction": "Loosen the takedown locking collar at the barrel-to-receiver joint.",
              "partsFreed": [
                "(collar loosened, not removed)"
              ]
            },
            {
              "n": 3,
              "instruction": "Rotate the barrel relative to the receiver to disengage the interrupted threads, and separate the two halves.",
              "warning": "Do not force the rotation. The joint is a fitted interrupted thread.",
              "partsFreed": [
                "Barrel assembly"
              ]
            },
            {
              "n": 4,
              "instruction": "Clean the bore from the breech end of the separated barrel, and clean the bolt face and chamber."
            },
            {
              "n": 5,
              "instruction": "Stop here for routine maintenance. The fire control is not owner-serviceable in any casual sense."
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "refinish",
      "title": "Refinish",
      "components": [
        {
          "name": "(collar loosened, not removed)",
          "procedure": "field-strip",
          "level": "field-strip",
          "step": 2
        },
        {
          "name": "Barrel assembly",
          "procedure": "field-strip",
          "level": "field-strip",
          "step": 3
        }
      ],
      "manufacturerPartsList": {
        "parts": 55,
        "scope": "\"Browning 22 Semi-Auto Parts List\", which the list says covers Grade I (standard models) in 22 long rifle only. Other grades and 22 Short are excluded by the printed note. One list, no variant lists."
      },
      "partsDiagrams": [],
      "materials": [
        {
          "component": "Receiver",
          "material": "Steel",
          "finish": "Polished Blued",
          "appliesTo": "Semi-Auto 22 Grade I, item 021001102",
          "note": null,
          "source": {
            "title": "Semi-Auto 22, Grade I — Specifications",
            "publisher": "Browning",
            "reliability": "primary",
            "url": "https://www.browning.com/products/firearms/rifles/sa-22/semi-auto-22-grade-1.html",
            "page": null,
            "pdfPage": null,
            "pageUrl": null,
            "quote": "Receiver Material Steel … Receiver Finish Polished Blued"
          }
        },
        {
          "component": "Barrel",
          "material": "Steel",
          "finish": "Polished Blued",
          "appliesTo": "Semi-Auto 22 Grade I, item 021001102",
          "note": null,
          "source": {
            "title": "Semi-Auto 22, Grade I — Specifications",
            "publisher": "Browning",
            "reliability": "primary",
            "url": "https://www.browning.com/products/firearms/rifles/sa-22/semi-auto-22-grade-1.html",
            "page": null,
            "pdfPage": null,
            "pageUrl": null,
            "quote": "Barrel Material Steel … Barrel Finish Polished Blued"
          }
        },
        {
          "component": "Stock",
          "material": "Black Walnut",
          "finish": "Gloss",
          "appliesTo": "Semi-Auto 22 Grade I, item 021001102",
          "note": null,
          "source": {
            "title": "Semi-Auto 22, Grade I — Specifications",
            "publisher": "Browning",
            "reliability": "primary",
            "url": "https://www.browning.com/products/firearms/rifles/sa-22/semi-auto-22-grade-1.html",
            "page": null,
            "pdfPage": null,
            "pageUrl": null,
            "quote": "Stock Material Black Walnut … Stock Finish Gloss"
          }
        },
        {
          "component": "Trigger guard",
          "material": "Steel",
          "finish": null,
          "appliesTo": "Semi-Auto 22 Grade I, item 021001102",
          "note": null,
          "source": {
            "title": "Semi-Auto 22, Grade I — Specifications",
            "publisher": "Browning",
            "reliability": "primary",
            "url": "https://www.browning.com/products/firearms/rifles/sa-22/semi-auto-22-grade-1.html",
            "page": null,
            "pdfPage": null,
            "pageUrl": null,
            "quote": "Trigger Guard Material Steel"
          }
        },
        {
          "component": "Trigger",
          "material": "Steel",
          "finish": "Polished Blued",
          "appliesTo": "Semi-Auto 22 Grade I, item 021001102",
          "note": null,
          "source": {
            "title": "Semi-Auto 22, Grade I — Specifications",
            "publisher": "Browning",
            "reliability": "primary",
            "url": "https://www.browning.com/products/firearms/rifles/sa-22/semi-auto-22-grade-1.html",
            "page": null,
            "pdfPage": null,
            "pageUrl": null,
            "quote": "Trigger Material Steel … Trigger Finish Polished Blued"
          }
        }
      ],
      "note": "The components the procedures above separate. Coating, masking and cure are outside this database; follow your coating system's instructions. A part the manufacturer marks \"factory fit\" should not be swapped or reworked."
    },
    {
      "id": "reassemble",
      "title": "Reassemble",
      "videos": [],
      "procedures": [
        {
          "procedure": "reassembly",
          "title": "Reassembly",
          "configuration": false,
          "steps": [
            {
              "n": 1,
              "instruction": "Engage the barrel and receiver halves and rotate them together until the interrupted threads seat."
            },
            {
              "n": 2,
              "instruction": "Tighten the locking collar until the two halves are snug with no perceptible play.",
              "warning": "If the rifle rattles at the joint, adjust the collar. A loose takedown joint hurts accuracy and eventually wears the threads."
            },
            {
              "n": 3,
              "instruction": "Reinstall the inner magazine tube."
            },
            {
              "n": 4,
              "instruction": "Cycle the bolt several times and perform the function check."
            }
          ],
          "instruction": null
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "torque",
      "title": "Torque",
      "coverage": "none-recorded",
      "manufacturer": [],
      "reported": [],
      "notes": "The manufacturer's documents give no torque value. They say: \"Tighten the screws snugly, but do not overtighten.\" (Browning SA-22 Rifle Owner's Manual (web)) \"Should you overtighten the barrel, (indicated by inability to assemble the barrel to the receiver), reverse the operation by turning the adjustment ring in a clockwise direction.\" (Browning SA-22 Rifle Owner's Manual (web))"
    },
    {
      "id": "function-check",
      "title": "Function check",
      "checks": [
        "Verify the rifle is unloaded — chamber and magazine — before each step.",
        "Cycle the bolt by hand and confirm it travels smoothly and returns fully into battery.",
        "Cock the action, engage the safety, and press the trigger. The hammer must not fall.",
        "Disengage the safety and press the trigger. The hammer should fall.",
        "Confirm the magazine seats, locks, and releases cleanly.",
        "Confirm the takedown joint is snug with no perceptible play.",
        "Confirm the inner magazine tube latches securely."
      ],
      "videos": []
    }
  ],
  "troubleshooting": [],
  "sources": [
    {
      "n": 1,
      "id": null,
      "title": "Browning SA-22 Owner’s Manual",
      "publisher": "Browning Arms Company",
      "reliability": "primary",
      "url": null,
      "accessed": null
    },
    {
      "n": 2,
      "id": "browning-arms-company-3abb35",
      "title": "Browning SA-22 Rifle Owner's Manual (web)",
      "publisher": "Browning Arms Company",
      "reliability": "primary",
      "url": "https://www.browning.com/support/owners-manuals/sa-22-rifle.html",
      "accessed": "2026-09-27"
    },
    {
      "n": 3,
      "id": "browning-sa-22-parts-manual",
      "title": "Owner's Manual, Browning 22 Semi-Auto 22 Caliber Rifle",
      "publisher": "Browning",
      "reliability": "primary",
      "url": "https://archive.org/download/gunmanual_Browning_22_Semiauto/Browning%2022%20Semiauto.pdf",
      "accessed": "2026-09-27"
    },
    {
      "n": 4,
      "id": "browning-specs-3eb176",
      "title": "Semi-Auto 22, Grade I — Specifications",
      "publisher": "Browning",
      "reliability": "primary",
      "url": "https://www.browning.com/products/firearms/rifles/sa-22/semi-auto-22-grade-1.html",
      "accessed": "2026-10-03"
    },
    {
      "n": 5,
      "id": "tier-586ac940",
      "title": "Browning SA 22",
      "publisher": "Canadian Gun Nutz",
      "reliability": "anecdotal",
      "url": "https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/threads/browning-sa-22.2468403",
      "accessed": "2026-10-29"
    }
  ]
}