1930s Browning A5 Value - Page 2

jaughtman · July 10, 2016, 06:35 PM

You guys who are mentioning that it might be worth $100 or a parts gun in your neck of the woods - I will pay $150 for ANY A5 that actually shoots! LOL. I will even kick in the shipping!

J

FITASC · July 10, 2016, 07:37 PM

I don't see anyone saying it's a $100 gun; it's a $400 gun at best (and that is only if I am wrong on the seeming crack on the left side)...........

Soclosenotnear · July 10, 2016, 10:00 PM

I could price that a5 out at $499 and get every penny of that rather quickly in my pawn shop. Folks around here, in Charleston SC, are still excited about browning automatics, especially Belgian guns. Nice shot gun.

bn12gg · July 11, 2016, 09:31 AM

A5's were made in Belgium and Japan for the better part of a century. Polychoke meh!
Just me but by the looks of the shotgun, and if it cycles nicely -- I'd say $400. Be careful to keep the forearm cap screwed down tight or the forearm will crack. It's happened to many, many A5's.

.02.

Hawg · July 11, 2016, 03:27 PM

It's already cracked.

bn12gg · July 11, 2016, 07:51 PM

Ok, I'll up my suggested value to $425 -- the stick has character !

David.

Dreaming100Straight · July 11, 2016, 08:06 PM

Quote:

I don't see anyone saying it's a $100 gun; it's a $400 gun at best (and that is only if I am wrong on the seeming crack on the left side)...........

FITASC said.

BigJim said in his area it would be difficult to sell for $100.

BigJimP · July 11, 2016, 11:43 PM

Yes, in that condition ...Crack in for end is a big deal in my view - plus the other Crack and dings I see in photos..... ( rust and or pitting, buggered up screws, poly choke...) .... ( but I know I'm in the minority in this discussion )....../ there are too many of these old guns out there for under $500 in way better condition....

But I don't get the attraction to the auto 5's anyway....( I didn't like them in the 50's either...)...and I don't like the new version either although they're priced competitively ....at around $ 1200, I think..../ there are just too many other good options out there today in sem- autos. ..or in used semi autos from browning, Beretta, etc....that are better all around guns for the money.

I get the nostalgia of the auto 5's...../ but in my view they cycle so slow, it's like watching paint dry....not really, but you get my point. I know i'll get "roasted" for this....but seriously ...shoot an old auto 5 ...alongside a Benelli Super Sport ( which is my semi auto of choice )...and the benelli cycles so fast you can shoot it as quickly as an over under, with no hesitation...

So maybe i'm biased --- but at least one shop owner in my area agrees with me.../ but I also know the market seems to vary a lot regionally on these old guns..../ I will admit, I may be wrong on this one.....but I would not have told anyone to buy that gun, at any price, in that condition....sorry...

But I hope the OP gets a lot of use out of it - and is happy with whatever he paid ...

jaughtman · July 12, 2016, 09:06 AM

To be honest, my affinity for the A5 is strictly sentimental. And I mostly just collect them, not shoot them. Handsome as all get-out and look GREAT in a wood display case. Haha. My grandad and father both bird hunted in the 60's and 70's and they collected them - a Sweet 16 was considered THE quail gun if you did not like doubles. I was brought up "brainwashed" that it was the be-all end-all auto. LOL. Yes, they do cycle slow. I just get a warm and fuzzy feeling shooting them. Truth be told, my main bird gun is my Browning Superposed - on the couple of times a year I get to shoot birds. You are correct on all points in your above post, save for it bringing $100 - at least anywhere around here. LOL.

J

amd6547 · July 12, 2016, 10:45 AM

Cycle slow?
I used two different Remington Model 11 riot guns over years, and they were very fast cycling.
I recall firing five rounds of 00 buck, and having all five empties still in a line in the air, like a comic book machine gun.

BigJimP · July 12, 2016, 01:38 PM

Oh, come on man..../ the only way you'd get 5 shells in the air at one time out of an Auto 5...

...( is to load the gun with 5 shells...and throw the whole darn thing up in the air...)...

--- in my experience, of course...

zippy13 · July 12, 2016, 02:30 PM

Big Jim, I know you don't do much bird shooting in your area; but, it's pretty wet. An A5 could be used as an emergency paddle (USCG approved?).

Sorry A5 fans, I couldn't resist.

bn12gg · July 12, 2016, 02:54 PM

A5 "shuffle"-- you have to love it -- unique ! The recoil pattern from my A5 mag has brought a smile to the face of more than one of my friends upon shooting it for the first time.

Rings set up right and you have a solid shotgun. Hard to argue with a century long production run.

.02

David.

FITASC · July 12, 2016, 02:57 PM

More like an anchor Zippy........................too much drop for a paddle

They just aren't that great compared to other guns - even of the same genre. Heavy, poorly balanced, older ones can have issues finding parts or getting repaired (like old Colt revolvers).

Shoot it, enjoy, realize it is not a collector; have a backup for when it goes kerplunk, but most importantly

If YOU love it and it works for you, go have some fun with it

Hawg · July 12, 2016, 04:11 PM

I love old guns like that. I'd put it around 400-500 around here. You can get replacement stocks and forearms from Numrich for about 120.00 or original for about 350.00 but if you do that you're never going to get 750.00 bucks back out of it.

July 10, 2016, 06:35 PM	#26
jaughtman Senior Member Join Date: March 2, 2010 Location: Alabama Posts: 868	However..... You guys who are mentioning that it might be worth $100 or a parts gun in your neck of the woods - I will pay $150 for ANY A5 that actually shoots! LOL. I will even kick in the shipping! J

July 10, 2016, 07:37 PM	#27
FITASC Senior Member Join Date: December 6, 2014 Posts: 6,446	I don't see anyone saying it's a $100 gun; it's a $400 gun at best (and that is only if I am wrong on the seeming crack on the left side)........... __________________ "I believe that people have a right to decide their own destinies; people own themselves. I also believe that, in a democracy, government exists because (and only so long as) individual citizens give it a 'temporary license to exist'—in exchange for a promise that it will behave itself. In a democracy, you own the government—it doesn't own you."- Frank Zappa

July 11, 2016, 11:43 PM	#33
BigJimP Senior Member Join Date: February 23, 2005 Posts: 13,195	Yes, in that condition ...Crack in for end is a big deal in my view - plus the other Crack and dings I see in photos..... ( rust and or pitting, buggered up screws, poly choke...) .... ( but I know I'm in the minority in this discussion )....../ there are too many of these old guns out there for under $500 in way better condition.... But I don't get the attraction to the auto 5's anyway....( I didn't like them in the 50's either...)...and I don't like the new version either although they're priced competitively ....at around $ 1200, I think..../ there are just too many other good options out there today in sem- autos. ..or in used semi autos from browning, Beretta, etc....that are better all around guns for the money. I get the nostalgia of the auto 5's...../ but in my view they cycle so slow, it's like watching paint dry....not really, but you get my point. I know i'll get "roasted" for this....but seriously ...shoot an old auto 5 ...alongside a Benelli Super Sport ( which is my semi auto of choice )...and the benelli cycles so fast you can shoot it as quickly as an over under, with no hesitation... So maybe i'm biased --- but at least one shop owner in my area agrees with me.../ but I also know the market seems to vary a lot regionally on these old guns..../ I will admit, I may be wrong on this one.....but I would not have told anyone to buy that gun, at any price, in that condition....sorry... But I hope the OP gets a lot of use out of it - and is happy with whatever he paid ... Last edited by BigJimP; July 12, 2016 at 12:07 AM.

July 12, 2016, 09:06 AM	#34
jaughtman Senior Member Join Date: March 2, 2010 Location: Alabama Posts: 868	I can help you out Jim P.... To be honest, my affinity for the A5 is strictly sentimental. And I mostly just collect them, not shoot them. Handsome as all get-out and look GREAT in a wood display case. Haha. My grandad and father both bird hunted in the 60's and 70's and they collected them - a Sweet 16 was considered THE quail gun if you did not like doubles. I was brought up "brainwashed" that it was the be-all end-all auto. LOL. Yes, they do cycle slow. I just get a warm and fuzzy feeling shooting them. Truth be told, my main bird gun is my Browning Superposed - on the couple of times a year I get to shoot birds. You are correct on all points in your above post, save for it bringing $100 - at least anywhere around here. LOL. J

July 12, 2016, 10:45 AM	#35
amd6547 Senior Member Join Date: May 27, 2006 Posts: 2,313	Cycle slow? I used two different Remington Model 11 riot guns over years, and they were very fast cycling. I recall firing five rounds of 00 buck, and having all five empties still in a line in the air, like a comic book machine gun. __________________ The past is gone...the future may never happen. Be Here Now.

July 10, 2016, 10:00 PM	#28
Soclosenotnear Senior Member Join Date: July 8, 2016 Location: Summerville, sc Posts: 163	I could price that a5 out at $499 and get every penny of that rather quickly in my pawn shop. Folks around here, in Charleston SC, are still excited about browning automatics, especially Belgian guns. Nice shot gun.

July 11, 2016, 09:31 AM	#29
bn12gg Senior Member Join Date: February 19, 2011 Location: Winter Park, Florida Posts: 470	A5's were made in Belgium and Japan for the better part of a century. Polychoke meh! Just me but by the looks of the shotgun, and if it cycles nicely -- I'd say $400. Be careful to keep the forearm cap screwed down tight or the forearm will crack. It's happened to many, many A5's. .02.

July 11, 2016, 03:27 PM	#30
Hawg Senior Member Join Date: September 8, 2007 Location: Mississippi Posts: 16,189	It's already cracked.

July 11, 2016, 07:51 PM	#31
bn12gg Senior Member Join Date: February 19, 2011 Location: Winter Park, Florida Posts: 470	Ok, I'll up my suggested value to $425 -- the stick has character ! David.

July 12, 2016, 01:38 PM	#36
BigJimP Senior Member Join Date: February 23, 2005 Posts: 13,195	Oh, come on man..../ the only way you'd get 5 shells in the air at one time out of an Auto 5... ...( is to load the gun with 5 shells...and throw the whole darn thing up in the air...)... --- in my experience, of course...

July 12, 2016, 02:30 PM	#37
zippy13 Senior Member Join Date: August 23, 2008 Location: SoCal Posts: 6,442	Big Jim, I know you don't do much bird shooting in your area; but, it's pretty wet. An A5 could be used as an emergency paddle (USCG approved?). Sorry A5 fans, I couldn't resist.

July 12, 2016, 02:54 PM	#38
bn12gg Senior Member Join Date: February 19, 2011 Location: Winter Park, Florida Posts: 470	A5 "shuffle"-- you have to love it -- unique ! The recoil pattern from my A5 mag has brought a smile to the face of more than one of my friends upon shooting it for the first time. Rings set up right and you have a solid shotgun. Hard to argue with a century long production run. .02 David.

July 12, 2016, 02:57 PM	#39
FITASC Senior Member Join Date: December 6, 2014 Posts: 6,446	More like an anchor Zippy........................too much drop for a paddle They just aren't that great compared to other guns - even of the same genre. Heavy, poorly balanced, older ones can have issues finding parts or getting repaired (like old Colt revolvers). Shoot it, enjoy, realize it is not a collector; have a backup for when it goes kerplunk, but most importantly If YOU love it and it works for you, go have some fun with it __________________ "I believe that people have a right to decide their own destinies; people own themselves. I also believe that, in a democracy, government exists because (and only so long as) individual citizens give it a 'temporary license to exist'—in exchange for a promise that it will behave itself. In a democracy, you own the government—it doesn't own you."- Frank Zappa

July 12, 2016, 04:11 PM	#40
Hawg Senior Member Join Date: September 8, 2007 Location: Mississippi Posts: 16,189	I love old guns like that. I'd put it around 400-500 around here. You can get replacement stocks and forearms from Numrich for about 120.00 or original for about 350.00 but if you do that you're never going to get 750.00 bucks back out of it.