I have a Browning Citori 12 gauge grade 1 that was made in Japan in 1981. I believe it is unfired and I am trying to find out what it is worth. Are these older Japan made Citori's very desirable or just shooters. Just looking for info on the gun.

There are a number of different models that vary in price. Made by Miroku?Jeweled received?English stock?Pretty nice guns, but like I said depends on the model.

Its been awhile but nice ones seem to go $600-800. They are shooters. The hardcore browning guys dont put a lot of value on them. During that same period Miroku sold it under the Charles Dailey name plate. I have one of each but I prefer the CD because it has the wide rib. It was also the Citori Broadway and they will be the most valuable of the japanese citori. I don’t even think I’ve got 1k in both of my mirokus.



ETA:  in my opinion, the miroku guns are better quality than the 80s and 90s belgians. I’d take a miroku charles daily citori copy over a browning GTi made in the 90s every day of the week. Just my opinion, worth what you paid for it.

Buyers prefer the removable chokes. Fixed choke models $800-1000 in good shape

All Citoris are shooters. They're made to be shot. A lot . . . (whether anyone wants to shoot your old gun is another question)

Value/desirablility is determined by:
• Barrel length: These days, shooters want 30-32" barrels. Some guys will still buy 28". Almost nobody will buy a 26" barrel gun.
• Choke: Does it have screw-in chokes? (Yours probably doesn't) Invector or Invector Plus? Few guys are willing to settle for fixed chokes these days.

In the case of the Citori, most guys will want the more modern series -- i.e. 325, 425, 525 and similar models like the XS, CX, etc. The older, original Citoris are not as desirable. Being made in 1981, yours is an older gun with limited appeal.

Your gun is probably worth $600-$900 depending on barrel length (it will be surely be fixed choke if made in 1981). Not really an easy sell to active shooters. The shorter the barrels, the harder it will be to sell. A longer barreled gun can have its chokes opened up to something more usable so there is still some market for guns with barrels 28" or longer. A few old guys still like 26" tubes for hunting but they're a pretty small pool of buyers.

You can buy a brand new Browning CX or CXS for about $1,600 if you shop carefully. The guy who wants an O/U to shoot is much better served going that route.

Perhaps you're confusing the Citori with the Superposed. Either way, your timeline is all wrong. The CD/Miroku guns were not a "citori copy", though they had some external similarity to the Superposed.

In fact, the Citori was an evolution of the Miroku gun.  Charles Daly lost the right to import Miroku guns in about 1973. Soon after, Miroku began producing the Citori in cooperation with Browning. Browning has had exclusive USA import rights to Miroku guns ever since. No Citori was ever made in Belgium. EVERY Citori ever sold has been made in Japan by Miroku. Again, the Belgian gun was called a Superposed and had a completely different design internally/mechanically . . . BTW, the GTI's were pretty sweet. They're really the first of the modern purpose-built sporting clays Brownings.

To correct your timeline, I suggest you read this:

https://www.browning.com/news/articles/brief-history-browning-legendary-miroku-factory.html

ETA: Few knowledgeable shotgun guys I know would say the Citori is "better quality" than a Superposed. A modern Citori is definitely more practical, useful, versatile and probably a better choice for 99 percent of over/under shooters than an old Belgian Superposed. But the Superposed is a work of art. Truly hand crafted. It's like a Leica rangefinder or a good old S&W Model 27. It just ooozes quality.

I've never really liked the Citori and I shoot a 1957 Superposed that I love. It just fits me better.

It is a fixed choke with 26 inch barrel. I guess I will just shoot it and have fun with it. Thanks

A 26" barrel gun is likely to be choked IC/Mod (or maybe Skt/skt). That's a pretty useful gun, barrel length notwithstanding. At one time, 26 inch barrels were THE THING for skeet shooting. Today's shooters demand longer barrels, but that's partly fashion. The longer barrel do swing more smoothly and help with follow-though. The shorter barrels are pretty easy to overswing because they're so light. Still, a lot of clean rounds were shot with short barrel back in the day. You can definitely kill birds with that gun (either live ones or targets) but it would be hard to sell. Enjoy it and don't worry about what's popular.