The history of the Browning (FN) Auto 5 is probably a story well-known by many shotgunners but it’s one worth repeating. The Browning A5 is a recoil-operated semi-automatic shotgun that was designed by John Browning in 1898 and patented in 1900. It was the first mass-produced semi-automatic shotgun.
The name of the shotgun, Auto-5, designates that it’s an autoloader with a capacity of 5 rounds, 4 in the magazine and 1 in the chamber. It features a distinctive high rear end at the back of the receiver, giving it the nickname “Humpback”. The reason for this is that the top of the action goes straight back on level with the barrel before cutting down sharply towards the buttstock. This distinctive feature makes it easy to identify an A5 even from a distance. The shotgun was produced in a variety of gauges with 12 and 20 being the most common though 16-gauge models were also available.
John Browning presented his design to Winchester, where he had sold most of his previous designs. There are a number of theories as to why Winchester did not accept the design and manufacture the A5. One was that Browning wanted royalties for the A5. Previously he had just sold his designs to Winchester so this was a change. Another possible reason for Winchester’s refusal to accept the A5 design was that Winchester upper management was unhappy with Browning as he was deemed uncooperative in the creation of the Winchester 1893 production version (of Browning’s design), a pump shotgun. That model was designed to utilize black powder rounds and struggled with newer smokeless rounds, leading to the rapid development of the Model 1897.
Whatever the reason, Browning took his design to Remington. However, the president of Remington died of a heart attack before any agreement could be reached. Browning then took his design to Europe and Fabrique Nationale de Herstal (FN) in Belgium. FN had already been producing Browning-designed pistols. Browning would later license his design to Remington. They produced it as the Model 11. The Remington Model 11 was the first auto-loading shotgun made in the United States.
Production of the Auto-5 in Belgium continued until the start of World War II. FN began producing the shotgun after the war where it continued until the end in 1998. However, by then, the majority of the production had been moved to Miroku in Japan (1975).
My Browning (FN) was manufactured in 1925. It’s a 16-gauge model with a 26” barrel and a Cylinder choke. In true European firearm manufacturing at the time, even small parts like screws and the bolt are marked with 4 numbers from the 5-digit serial number.
I inherited it from my father who had inherited it from a family friend when he died in the 1970’s. The shotgun was well used, even surviving the 1937 Portsmouth, Ohio flood.
My father sent it off to Browning for refurbishing in 1977. The correspondence related to the refurbishing is interesting to read and the total job was $293.50 ($1567.00 in 2025 dollars). The entire job was done except for replacing the stock and forearm. Personally, I think the original wood in its current condition gives the A5 character.
My A5 doesn’t see much use. I use it primarily for hunting pheasants at a preserve located near Delaware, Ohio. The cylinder choke limits it to close-in shots at birds found by a pointer. It never fails to function and it’s a lot of fun to shoot.
