Browning Auto-5 A-5 A5 Light Twenty Invector Plus + 20 GA Semi-Auto Shotgun
SOLD FOR: $2000
LSB#: 220117LJ050
Make: Miroku in Japan for Browning
Model: Auto-5 Light Twenty
Serial Number: 10716NW231
Year of Manufacture: 1994 (https://www.browning.com/support/date-your-firearm/auto-5-semi-automatic-shotgun.html)
Gauge: 20 Gauge, 2 3/4″ Shells
Action Type: Long-Recoil, Semi-Automatic, Tubular Magazine Fed Shotgun
Markings: The left side of the barrel is marked “BROWNING ARMS COMPANY MORGAN, UTAH & MONTREAL P.Q. / MADE IN JAPAN”. The right side of the barrel is marked “BROWNING AUTO-5 / INVECTOR-PLUS SPECIAL STEEL 20 GA. SHELLS – 2 3/4″ – 22″ / BROWNING PATENTS”. The bottom of the receiver is marked with the serial number at the front. The left of the receiver is marked “Light Twenty / BROWNING” and with a bust portrait of John Browning. The receiver has tasteful Grade I engraving. There is a Browning Buck-Mark logo on the bottom of the trigger guard filled with gold paint.
Barrel Length: 22″, Vent-Rib
Choke: The barrel is threaded for Invector Plus chokes. Improved Cylinder is installed.
Sights / Optics: This shotgun is mounted with a steel bead at the front of the ventilated rib. The top of the rib and the top of the receiver are serrated to reduce glare.
Stock Configuration & Condition: The stocks are two-piece checkered walnut with finger-grooved forend, round-bottom pistol grip, straight comb and textured black plastic Browning buttplate. The stocks have a few scattered minor nicks and scuffs, there are a few slightly more notable nicks at the front of the comb and at the toe on the bottom and left. There are no chips or cracks. The checkering is sharp. The LOP measures 14 1/8″ from the front of the trigger to the back of the buttplate. The plate has minor wear. Overall, the stocks are in Fine condition.
Type of Finish: Blue
Finish Originality: Original
Bore Condition: The bore is bright. There is no erosion in the bore.
Overall Condition: This shotgun retains about 95% of its metal finish. The action shows minor operational wear, including some on the barrel from the forend during cycling. There are a few other scattered minor marks. The receiver has infrequent spots of minor surface oxidation with a patch of more notable erosion on the top-right toward the rear and at the rear edge behind it. The screw heads range from sharp to lightly tool marked with strong slots. The markings are clear. Overall, this shotgun is in Fine condition.
Mechanics: The action functions correctly. There is a magazine cutoff on the left front of the receiver, a safety at the rear of the trigger guard and a bolt release on the right side of the receiver. We have not fired this shotgun. As with all used firearms, a thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance standards.
Box, Paperwork & Accessories: None.
Our Assessment: The Browning Automatic 5, most often Auto-5 or simply A-5, is a recoil-operated semi-automatic shotgun designed by John Browning. The Browning Auto-5 was the first mass-produced semi-automatic shotgun. Designed by John Browning in 1898 and patented in 1900, it was produced continually for almost 100 years by several makers with production ending in 1998. It features a distinctive high rear end, earning it the nickname “Humpback”. It is also an important piece of Browning/Winchester history.
John Browning had previously sold his designs to Winchester for lump-sum payments, turning over all of the patents related to a particular model. Winchester had gotten in the habit of having their engineers and attorneys assist Browning in filing for his patents, in order to ensure that when they received those same patents they would be airtight. Browning’s experiences with Colt and FN had convinced him that he would be better off licensing his designs rather than selling them outright, but when he presented this to Winchester, they refused his terms. This ended the relationship between Winchester and Browning.
Browning would eventually license the design to FN in Europe and later to Remington for their Model 11 and to Savage Arms for their Models 720 and 755. These designs went on to be a great commercial success, the first truly successful autoloading shotgun. This Auto-5 was built in Japan by Miroku in 1994 after production was moved there from FN and just a few years before the model would finally be discontinued. It is a Light Twenty chambered for 20 GA. 2 ¾” shells with Grade 1 engraving and has a 22″ vent-rib barrel threaded for Invector-Plus chokes. This makes for a fast-handling gun which is still versatile. The gun is in Fine condition with minor wear, a great bore and strong mechanics. While this should still make for a great hunting shotgun, as one of the last of the Auto-5 shotguns it may also interest collectors. Please see our photos and good luck!