Thanks for this info. I just bought one of these rifles in late December 2011.
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If I had to guess, being a 8L45XXX SN range ... I believe my Browning to be a 1968 gun, assuming that they started with SN "1" and likely did not make 45k rifles in 1958, esp since most sources (not all) state that this model debuted in 1959.
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I think you are right on the 1968 date. Every Safari I could find from 1959 to 1965, except one from 1962, did not have the number in front of the L and they were all 4 digit numbers after the L (i.e. L9234). I have not seen a Medallion or Olympian grade gun without the date stamp on the gun from these years.
In early 1966 they apparently started the 5 digit serial numbers in the 30,000 range. Every gun I have seen from 1966-1968 had the year before the L and a SN between 35000 and 45999 (i.e. 8L45123).
In 1969 and later production they all had the L and two digit date code at the end of the serial number (i.e. 64444L69). This was probably so that they avoided confusion with the 1959-1968 production even though the serial numbers were now all in the 60,000 range and up.
My rifle is chambered in .30-06 and I was told by the prior owner it is a 1965 gun. It has the L94## style SN with no preceding year digit.
So far I have found a few 1964 rifles with SNs in the L92## range and a 66 with a 6L355## (5 digit) SN so I think the dating is probably right and that the year number was not commonly stamped on the Safari grade rifles from 1959-1965. I found only one exception to this in a 1962 gun. All the Medallion and Olympian grade guns I have seen had the year stamped in front of the SN.
Here is my FN Browning High-Power Safari:
It came with a Leupold M7 4X scope and Weaver pivot mounts so you can use the iron sights in close quarters.
Here was the first trip to the range. I'll go back and sight it in with Hornady 150grain shells.
Edit:
On the salt wood, I read that it mainly affected the higher grade guns, not the Safari grade.