Hello, new to the forum, and was hoping for some insight and/or help with a recent purchase. I believe I have a Made in USA 1950 Browning (manufactured by Remington?) Auto 5. S/N B31225 stamped on the left side of the receiver. The furniture appears to be aged evenly with the receiver but I'm unsure if its entirely original. There are no cracks in the forearm, the stock is NOT the rounded knob, but instead "pistol" gripped shoulder stock with a plain cap on the bottom. There was a suede pad tied on and a LimbSaver recoil pad underneath. I pulled it off and the stock is not cracked, but there is no butt plate. There are two larger holes bored in the center, in between the butt plate screws. Blueing is worn, but there is no rust. The screw heads all appear original and not marred. It came with two barrels, both marked 2 3/4. Both appear clean with no pitting and few wear marks. The barrel attached is a smooth bore rifle sighted slug barrel, stamped "Browning Arms Company St. Louis Mo & Montreal P.Q" "Made in Belgium" Blueing is all there and the sights appear unmolested. Its in great shape IMO. The other barrel is a Poly Choke'd one, stamped Browning as well. It was originally a "**" barrel. It has a stamped S/N on the ring showing B31225 leading me to believe its an from nearly the same time as the receiver but obviously not original. Its in pretty good shape as well. Plans are to either correct issues (if effecting function) and either let my father enjoy it during our Deer shotgun season, or move it along if its not wanted. I thought it would make a great upcoming birthday gift, and if i was going to do so either leave it as is (after all it took 66 years to get this way), replace the furniture and have it parkerized or Cerakoted, or move it along. I don't believe i paid too much..but feel free to tell me if I did...$350 for all of it. Pictures as soon as I get a moment, and thanks in advance for the help, and also for having me aboard!
Thanks Shooter! I'll have to see how she cycles once the shoulder heals...surgery a few weeks back has me sidelined for a few more weeks.
The Remington produced Auto-5's were made 1940-46. There should be a date code on the barrel composed of 2 or 3 letters. The "American Brownings" typically go for quite a bit less than the Belgians. $350 may be on the high side, except yours came with 2 barrels, the second being a Buck Barrel that's probably worth $350 all by itself. Congratulations, and welcome.
Thanks! The slug barrel is what really caught my eye when I was purchasing it. I figured that alone might have made it worth buying. I'll look over the barrels again and try and find the date codes. So just to clarify this isn't a Remington produced version? I wasn't quite sure and just assumed (according to the Browning website) FN took over production in 1952 that those before that were all made the same...if not was this made by Browning in Utah?
You have a Remington produced gun. Only the Remingtons had the serial number on the side, and the letter refers to the gauge, A for 16, B for 12, and C for 20. I don't know why you think yours was made in 1950, but the Browning site is full of errors. This is a better reference; though your gun falls through the cracks, the Remington date codes are listed and should clear up the confusion. http://www.nramuseum.org/media/940941/serialization-date of manufacture.pdf FN was actually back in business delivering guns by 1946. Also, your Buck barrel will have a date code on it as well. They're listed here: http://damascus-barrels.com/Belgian_All_Proofmarks.html
