NRA Gun of the Week: Browning X-Bolt Pro McMillan Long Range

by
posted on September 3, 2021
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **

The Browning X-Bolt Pro McMillan Long Range, chambered for .280 AI, is a rifle outfitted with features and accessories that are conducive for the repeatable accuracy that long-range hunting and target shooting requires. Treated with Cerakote’s Carbon Gray finish, and adorned with a premium McMillan stock, this latest X-Bolt rifle is one of Browning’s top-tier offerings.

right side camouflage rifle bolt-action text on image noting "Browning X-Bolt Pro McMillan Long Range"

At its heart is an X-Bolt series receiver that internally offers a three-lug bolt with spiral fluting on its body and handle. A Cerakote finish covers the bolt and action, as well as the company’s air-gauged and skip-fluted 26” steel barrel. The gun’s overall length comes to just under 47” and comes in at a combined weight of about 7.5 lbs., which is a lot of gun in a fairly lightweight arrangement.

right side bolt-action receiver and stock camouflage paint gun

Browning supplies a 20-m.o.a. canted rail with an integrated bubble level atop the X-Bolt Pro receiver, which is a handy indicator for maintaining proper rifle position while sighting those distant, hard-to-reach targets. Included with the package from Browning is the company’s Recoil Hawg muzzle brake. Our experience on the range found the device to be an effective design, thanks to its gas-dampening baffles and ports.

rifle bolt-action underside action receiver gunstock camouflage magazine gun parts

Included with the X-Bolt Pro McMillan Long Range is Browning’s well-regarded Feather Trigger system, an adjustable design that comes factory-set to break at 3.5 lbs. A lightweight polymer magazine comes standard, too. Though, unlike traditional leaf-sprung magazines, the X-Bolt magazine is designed to feed cartridges directly in-line with the bolt rather than an offset configuration, thanks to the internal, rotary design.

rear view of man wearnig glasses and earmuffs shooting bolt-action rifle target shooting gun text on image noting "remote camera"

Watch American Rifleman staff in this latest NRA Gun of the Week video to see the Browning X-Bolt Pro McMillan Long Range rifle in use.

Browning X-Bolt Pro McMillan Long Range Specifications
Importer: Browning
Action Type: bolt-action, centerfire rifle
Chambering: 
.280 AI (Ackley Improved)
Receiver: 
steel
Barrel: 
26" steel
Magazine: 
four-round detachable box
Sights: 
none; 20 m.o.a. Picatinny rail
Finish:
 Cerakote Carbon Gray
Stock: McMillan Game Scout, Sonoran Carbon Ambush finish
Overall Length: 46 3/4"
Weight:
 7 lbs., 7 ozs.
MSRP: $2,630

Latest

Ruger American Gen2 Patrol 1
Ruger American Gen2 Patrol 1

Review: Ruger American Gen II Patrol

Ruger's American rifle line represents a good balance between cost and performance, and the latest generation offers many welcome upgrades, as seen on this Gen II Patrol model in 5.56 NATO.

SOG Knives Celebrates 40 Years in Business

SOG Knives, which was established by Spencer Frazer in 1986, is celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2026.

The History of Repeating Arms Gun-Control Groups Don’t Want the Courts to Know

This episode of NRA’s The Armed Citizen Podcast refutes one of the biggest false claims gun-control groups and the politicians they support repeat ad nauseam by asserting that the Founding Fathers could not have imagined the AR-15.

Rifleman Review: Springfield Armory Kuna

Initially designed by Croatian manufacturer HS Produkt to fulfill a military contract, the Kuna has since arrived on U.S. shores through Springfield Armory as a semi-automatic, large-format handgun chambered for the 9 mm Luger cartridge.

All-American AK: The Bear Creek Arsenal BC-47

North Carolina’s Bear Creek Arsenal makes AR-15s, 10/22s and handguns, but new for 2026, it is introducing its first AK-pattern firearm with the BC-47.

Review: TNW Firearms ASR 1911

Reliable pistol-caliber carbines, especially with quick-caliber-change capability, are fun, and the ASR 1911 from TNW Firearms is one of the most unique of the bunch.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.