The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - Were A-5 parts made to Rem. Mod. 11 specs in WWII?

DG45 · October 24, 2010, 08:18 PM

Maybe there is a profound difference between the question I asked and the one you answered, but I don't get it.

Maybe what I should have asked was would owners who purchased one of these Remington-made guns have believed they owned a "real" A-5 instead of a disguised Model 11? I ask this because on another thread on this forum, someone mentioned that he owned a 1949 A-5. According to what I've read on this thread, Fabrique National ceased production of A-5's in Europe in 1940, and did not resume production of them in Belgium until sometime after 1950, and maybe it was as late as 1952 or 1953. Presumably, Remington produced in the US all the "A-5's" that were manufactured during this period. From your answer above, I gather that the gun Remington manufactured for FN circa 1940 1953 was in reality just the barreled action of an unmarked Remington Model 11, except for the addition of a mag cutoff, which was then stocked with wood furnishings and finished and marked as an FN A-5.

Since there is at least one owner on this forum who owns a gun manufactured in 1949 who is under the impression that he owns a bona fide FN A-5; not a disguised Remington Model 11, I wonder if this was (and still is) a common misconception that led owners and/or gunsmiths to later use parts made to FN A-5 specs in guns that should have been be fitted with parts made to Remington Model 11 specs.

I ask because I have been surprised by several posts from folks claiming to be present or past A-5 shotgun owners have responded to questions about A-5 reliability with posts saying that they find or have found them to be "finiky" or slow to cycle, or failed to eject properly and other negative comments. Usually these problems are blamed on the friction rings (recoil brake) and maybe this is true, but I can't see how all these things could be caused by incorrect settings of the friction rings. These negative comments always floor me because I've always thought of A-5's as very rugged and reliable, though I've never owned one. I know Remington Model 11's are rugged and reliable because I do own one. I't's interesting that such negative comments are rarely made about real Remington Model 11's, and I just wondered if the problems that were being reported in A-5's may have resulted from after-war repair work that that resulted in FN parts being used in the Remington-made guns, or vice-versa.

October 24, 2010, 08:18 PM	#3
DG45 Senior Member Join Date: January 5, 2009 Posts: 904	Maybe there is a profound difference between the question I asked and the one you answered, but I don't get it. Maybe what I should have asked was would owners who purchased one of these Remington-made guns have believed they owned a "real" A-5 instead of a disguised Model 11? I ask this because on another thread on this forum, someone mentioned that he owned a 1949 A-5. According to what I've read on this thread, Fabrique National ceased production of A-5's in Europe in 1940, and did not resume production of them in Belgium until sometime after 1950, and maybe it was as late as 1952 or 1953. Presumably, Remington produced in the US all the "A-5's" that were manufactured during this period. From your answer above, I gather that the gun Remington manufactured for FN circa 1940 1953 was in reality just the barreled action of an unmarked Remington Model 11, except for the addition of a mag cutoff, which was then stocked with wood furnishings and finished and marked as an FN A-5. Since there is at least one owner on this forum who owns a gun manufactured in 1949 who is under the impression that he owns a bona fide FN A-5; not a disguised Remington Model 11, I wonder if this was (and still is) a common misconception that led owners and/or gunsmiths to later use parts made to FN A-5 specs in guns that should have been be fitted with parts made to Remington Model 11 specs. I ask because I have been surprised by several posts from folks claiming to be present or past A-5 shotgun owners have responded to questions about A-5 reliability with posts saying that they find or have found them to be "finiky" or slow to cycle, or failed to eject properly and other negative comments. Usually these problems are blamed on the friction rings (recoil brake) and maybe this is true, but I can't see how all these things could be caused by incorrect settings of the friction rings. These negative comments always floor me because I've always thought of A-5's as very rugged and reliable, though I've never owned one. I know Remington Model 11's are rugged and reliable because I do own one. I't's interesting that such negative comments are rarely made about real Remington Model 11's, and I just wondered if the problems that were being reported in A-5's may have resulted from after-war repair work that that resulted in FN parts being used in the Remington-made guns, or vice-versa.