Browning A5 12 ga.



 Browning A5 12 ga.

Browning A5 12 ga.
Updated on August 19, 2013

The Browning A5 or Auto-5 was patented in 1900. FN began production in Belgum in 1902. At the start of WWII production moved to Remington in the United States until FN could resume production after the war, actually 1952.

This gun was manufactured in 1937. Because the A5 is the second largest selling shotgun in history (Remington 1100 is #1), there's not much I can say that hasn't already been written.

The Browning A5 has the destinction of being the first mass produced semiautomatic shotgun. John Browning himself called it his greatest achievement at the time, of course that was before the 1911 .45 caliber semiautomatic handgun. If you own one of these guns and it has a letter in the serial number, the letter is a code that represents; G = Lightweight, M = Standard Weight, V = 12 Gauge Magnum, S = Sweet Sixteen and X = 20 Gauge.

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"One of my favorite things to do in the Fall is to go to the Turkey Shoots. For those of you that may not know what I'm talking about, a Turkey Shoot is where a bunch of guys bring their shot guns to an event usually sponsored by a Community Center or Volunteer Fire Department. The sponsor provides the shells and paper targets and the shooters pay $3 to $5 to compete for a prize (usually a ham, turkey, slab of bacon, sausage, etc.)."

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Browning A5 12 ga.

This Browning A5 12 gauge is stamped U.S. Property.








Serial NumberTable

FN Auto-5 Pre-WWII Guns

Year
of
DOM		 Begin
Serial
Number		 End
Serial
Number
1924 3000 18000
1925 18001 33000
1926 33001 48000
1927 48001 63000
1928 63001 78000
1929 78001 93000
1930 93001 108000
1931 108001 123000
1932 123001 138000
1933 138001 153000
1934 153001 168000
1935 168001 183000
1936 183001 198000
1937 198001 213000
1938 213001 228000
1939 228001 229000


Note: Unable to identify pre-1924 guns, but we know there were far more than 2,999 because John Browning ordered 10,000 initially in 1902.