Browning A-5 reviews

[M.T. Pockets]

My son wants a 12 guage of his own. He's 13 now and is tired of using one of mine. He can handle a 12 guage just fine and has his heart set on a Browning A-5. He likes it for many reasons and he's kind of nostalgic and wants to have a different gun in the field than everyone else.

Anyway, he's got his heart set on one and I was hoping to learn a little more so I came here.

I would appreciate anyone's first hand experience with the A-5. the good, bad & ugly.

He's looking at some used 2 3/4" guns and has found several used ones in very good condition in the $250 - $300 range. He'd like to be able to shoot steel in it. Should he be looking for one made after a certain date to handle steel ? He wouldn't need a 3" gun at this time.

I know some were made in Belgium, and some in the US, any preference here ?

Any comments on how they handle reloads, and which powder would you recommend ?

I know it's going to get a new recoil pad before we take it home.

I appreciate any experience available. Thank you.

[skeet]

I've had a little experience with a few. Shot the heck outta one although I never really liked the darn things. Put a couple hundred thousand shells through one. Had to rebuild the sucker about every year...or year and a half. The ones I usually shot were Belgian..but the Jap guns are actually better. Better harder steel. Brownings are a pain to clean...at least completely but they do operate fairly well. .You will learn the best way to keep them. They need a bit of oil to operate..except in the really cold winter. If you have found some for the prices you quoted you ought to buy one. The Belgian guns bring more money but the Jap guns are the better buy. Especially if you are gonna buy one to shoot steel in..oh and try to find one with invector plus chokes. You will pay more but they are the best of the browning type bbls. Most places people think the A5's are pretty dear as far as prices. They only made around 3 or 4 million. Most are shooters...no matter what they think. Heck people are going crazy with gun prices. I saw a Savage 99(250-3000) Saturday that was in terrible condition. The darn badly pitted receiver had been PAINTED black the bore was ok and the stock needed another refinish and the darn thing went for 875 bucks. sheesh. People always ask more than the darn things are worth it seems

[fabsroman]

I killed my first pheasant with my dad's A-5. It is actually in the closet behind me right now and it is older than me (e.g., 40+ years old). The thing still shoots just fine and my dad used it for opening day on doves.

Me, I don't like it anymore. For some reason, I just don't like the hump. However, the recoil really bothers me and I posted a thread comparing the A-5 to my Benelli SBE. The other thing that bothers me is cleaning it. Nowhere near as easy to clean as my SBE, but most of the older guns aren't.

At the end of the day, it will probably be a very reliable gun for your son, and if he is looking for nostalgia, I cannot think of too many guns that would be better than the A-5 at that. I think Lilred said it best when she said, "If only the older guns could tell stories." Mind you, I paraphrased on that one.

[M.T. Pockets]

Thanks guys. I ran into a very, very knowledgable person in the used gun shop at a Scheel's store and he spent a lot of time with me and my son. He's a retired engineer who happens to be a gun nut and works there for something to do. He answered a lot of questions on the A-5 for us. Little things like making some adjustments with the brass ring and replacing the recoil spring and how to clean them. He has one in every guage they made them in. He also said the he preferred the Japanese models for performance over the Belgian made ones, and they were often priced lower.

I think of this as being kind of a "bridge" gun for my boy. The first he's buying with his own $$ and something he can keep for life. At first I told him to wait a couple years and get a more modern autoloader, but he can still do that.

He reads a lot and wants a gun designed by Mr. Browning himself.

[fabsroman]

If he reads a lot and knows how to use a computer, why don't we see him on here? Are you keeping this site a secret from him MT? LOL

The A-5 isn't a gun for me, but it has worked for many, many people. If I couldn't afford other guns and the A-5 was all I had, I would use it and it would probably be just fine.

It should be just fine for your son. After using that gun, he'll be able to appreciate the newer, more expensive autoloaders a lot more.

[Catfish]

I used to hunt fox with a 3 in A 5 years ago. I loved it for fox and it deadly on them. What I could not understand is that I could shoot at clay birds all day and not hit one. Rabbits and phesants were safe if they were 30 ft. away or more. I could hammer fox with it, but nothing esle. :rolleyes: :(
I would recomand you not shoot steel shot throught it unless it is a cylinder bore. Those old guns can split barrels with tight chokes.

[jmarriott]

I love the humpback. I shot my first tree rat with one. (After 5 shot's with a 22 rifle) at about 9 years old. Dads is a 1964 belgium and it has been his only shotgun since that date that he has used. With the Slugster smoothbore barrel he and I can place 3 shots in 3 inches at 60 yards. The other barrels hold there own for ducks and doves.

[Aim to maim]

A-5's are fine firearms. I still miss mine almost 20 years after it was stolen. There is a vast amount one needs to know about them before buying a used one.

As a quick for instance, a significant number of those on the used market will have a crack/split in the forearm where it mates with the receiver. This is almost always the result of the forearm being improperly re-installed after cleaning, or of improper positioning of the recoil rings around the magazine tube. Examine a used one very carefully before purchasing. Replacement parts will be getting harder to obtain each year. There are a great many other potential pitfalls to be aware of. Some can be used safely with steel shot, but that is another long and involved subject.

A good A-5 is a thing of joy to those who are proficient with and appreciate them. I suggest you do extensive internet research, or better still, find someone in your area who is truly knowledgeable of them before you shell out any hard-earned $$.

For what my opinion is worth, I'd be very wary of a $250-$300 A-5. Caveat Emptor (for those who did not take Latin in high school, that means "buyer beware."):D :cool: ;)

[tjwatty]

skeet can correct me if I'm wrong, but, I believe if your A-5 had/has invector choke tubes(factory of course) then it should be ok for steel shot.
And it goes without saying that improved cylinder was the tightest recommended for steel.
IMHO

I have the Remington version and I can't hit anything flying with the thing, got something to do with the darn hump and lousey fit I think..

[skeet]

The jap guns are all ok to shoot steel in choked or not. This was according to Broiwning. The invector and invector plus bbls are easier to choose what size. With full fixed chokes i wouldn't shoot anything larger than 3's up to Modified use no larger than BB maybe BBB anything larger use IC or Skeet or cylinder. Now this is in Jap made Brownings only. No steel at all in the Belgian..not even in cylinder. I've never seen a Belgian that split although I have heard of it...but they sure will bulge at the choke area easily. I saw a full choke bulge with the first shot when a fellow shot an ounce and a quarter of 4's at a duck. Killed the duck but ruined the bbl.:eek:

[M.T. Pockets]

Thanks for all the advise. My son is a teenager now and I may as well get used to him making up his own mind about things.

He bought a Browning A-5 a couple weeks back. It is a Belgian made 2 3/4" that is in good to very good condition, $265.

We took it out the first night home and shot some clays, he hit 8 of 10 and we were very pleased. Next day we went rabbit hunting and he made a couple very good running shots. He's in love with the thing and I'm happy for him.

It's heavy, kicks hard and can't shoot steel. But it's what he wants and he shoots it well and can use it for upland game and trap shooting and couldn't be happier.

[Dan Morris]

Dang, that lad is growin up! Had a ole 5...Belgan made years back. Wish I still had it! He made a good choiced.
Dan

[skeet]

Good for him. Love to see happy kids shootin.... even when they aren't so little anymore I always remember when I was one.:D

[fabsroman]

Great pic. I shot my first pheasant with an A-5.

He can still use it on waterfowl, but I think you need to use something like the "cheap" bismuth in that barrel.

[gold40]

That was a very good price!

I'm also an A-5 fan, but newer shotguns with choke tubes are better in many ways. He'll probably want a different gun in a few years.

More importantly, ENJOY your hunting time together. He will grow up all too soon....

JERRY

[8X56MS]

the Browning A5 is the only semi auto shotgun I will use. I am used to them, shoot them well, and think they are the best shotguns ever made.
I look for Belgium made guns from the 60's myself. To solve the barrel/choke problem, I just put on a Hastings Barrel.