I'm new here and hoping for some help. When my dad passed away, one of the guns that I recieved from him is a 1971 Auto 5 Light 12. It came with 2 barrels in a tolex brown case. The barrels indicate made in Belgium and they look like a 24" I/C and a 30" full, both say "special steel" on the barrel and all are 2 3/4 inch shell only. I would say the gun and case is in good-very good condition. I'm hoping barrels are original but don't know for sure. Does anyone have a guess as to what this shotgun is worth or any resources that might help me determine this? Thanks folks for your help. Greg
Hello Greg, Your father had good taste in shotguns. That's a very nice set, my best guess on value is $2000 - $2500. Condition is everything however, from your picture it looks to be as new but if you are going to auction it you'll need a lot of detailed pictures to prove it. You can get an idea of prices by looking at completed auctions on GunBroker and GunAuction. Asking prices are all over the place as many sellers haven't a clue about value. The best source of information about the Auto-5 is this book: http://www.fnbrowning.com/browning-auto-5-shotguns
I just checked GunBroker and there is one Tolex case for sale -- minimum bid $875! I have no idea if that's realistic or not, I estimated $250 for yours. Like I said, it was only a guess. Good luck, and please let us know what you find out.
I love my dad, but I sure wish he had been the gun fan your father was Greg. That is a beautiful cased shotgun and barrel set. At some point, I want to get a case like that for one of my A5's.
Thanks all for the replys and info. My dad was a pretty avid bird hunter. He and I met face to face finally when I was 45 and I'm now 50, very interesting story. He passed from lung cancer about 18 months after we first met. He was a real estate lawyer here in Atlanta and this Browning was his joy. I might just keep it , not sure yet. Trying to justify a new AR15 to my wife but I might pass on selling it and part with some other firearms in my collection that I can part with. The gun is not cosmetically perfect but it isn't "very good" blueing about 75% and stock 95%. Again not a show gun as it got a good bit of real hunting use. Anyway thanks again for all the kind replys and help friends. This is a very good forum and I certainly appreciate everyone's input here.
Good to hear you're planning to keep it. The fact that it's in good, used condition means that you can enjoy it without worrying about hurting value. Happy Shooting!
If you sell it, you will regret it as it is a link to your father. I am sorry he was not part of your life growing up. AR 15's are great but you can find or build one any day. A5's have not been made since 1999. If you do sell it, give me a shot at it, it's a beauty.
I have a couple of guys messaging me back and forth. The barrels are metric length I think, 600mm I/C and 750mm full. I hope this makes sense. They are both Belgium made barrels and rated for "special steel" steel shot I assume. It ain't perfect bluing or wood but I'd say 75% and 90% respectively. Thanks fellas! I have it on armslist Georgia at $1,200.00 and maybe I'm too high don't know. I was told the case is an airways case whatever that is. Hell I might just keep it.
I'm glad you live in Georgia, Greg. At that price, if you lived in Missouri the gun would be MINE already. Incidentally, SPECIAL STEEL is just there to give you confidence that the gun won't blow up. It is not rated for steel shot.
Does anyone have aclue as to why the 60 cm. barrel (the shorter one above) ? I'm thinking the slug barrels or this era were 60 cm. but would they also have a vent rib and be choked I/C? The symbol on that barrel indicates I/C choke. One of the potential buyers thought that that barrel may have been cut down but I'm not sure about that. If anyone is intersted, my number is 770 843-9497. Same guy said the set was worth $700.00 (again cosmetically not perfect) which is fine if that is true, I'm not trying to rip anyone off but I don't want to get ripped either.
If you sell it, you could very well regret if later . It was your fathers gun. Many of us would like to have something like that. Use it , enjoy it, pass it down. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I don't disagree KyBob ... I will not give it away, not really hard up for the money and I have others I can part with to justify this new AR15. I got a sweet Remington 760 .30-06 carbine that is in "excellent" shape belonged to my great uncle and it was passed on to my dad then to me. I also got a "mint" condition Browning BBR in .30-06 from my dad (Mint because my dad hated deer hunting lol, it stayed in the safe). That BBR has already been passed on to my son so that one is staying in the family for sure. Thanks again everyone for all the reply and opinions ... ya'll are a big help.
I would hang onto that. Yes, that gun is in an Airways - not Tolex - case. It's seen some use so you will see many opinions on value. But I think you will figure out what works for you. With a gun that's been hunted you can get out and hunt with little worry! I have a Sweet 16 that was a 40 year safe queen. It's not anymore but I have to be careful when I take it out!! Lol. Whatever you decide it's a cool gun and I'm glad you have it. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I have all my father's guns but he wasn't a "gun guy." LOL. Two of the .22 rifles he won in a raffle, for 1 dollar each! He really did well on those deals. The Walther P38 is the best weapon he gave me, a war trophy he got in a trade for a Subaru engine.
