My first shotgun that I got when I was 15 was a Belgium made Browning Auto 5. It is the shotgun that I first learned to shoot and hunt with when out shooting with my Dad.
Sadly, that beloved shotgun was later stolen in a burglary of my Dad's house. He replaced it, but by then production of the Auto 5 had moved to Japan. I still have that Auto 5, and it is a gorgeous gun that still shoots and functions absolutely great. I just wish I had my original Belgium made gun that I shot with as a kid, instead of this replacement my Dad's insurance paid for. Instead, someone somewhere else has that shotgun.
John Moses Browning was such a visionary, and he personally considered the Auto 5 to be his greatest breakthrough achievement in firearms design. In fact, it was his creation of the Auto 5 that lead to his fall out with Winchester, and his leaving them to go work with Fabrique Nationale instead.
Browning realized that the Auto 5 would revolutionize shotgun shooting, and demanded that Winchester give him a royalty for the gun. When the President of Winchester told him a flat no, and only offered him a miserably low fee to purchase all rights for it, Browning stormed out, and never did business with Winchester again.
The Browning Firearms museum in Ogden, Utah has both the first and last production Auto 5 shotguns on display:
I don't own any shotgun quite that old myself. But I am also a Browning fan, and by far my oldest shotgun is one that is a little over 70 years old, and is Browning's first big achievement in Shotguns: The Winchester Model 1897 pump action.
The 1897 was to pump shotguns what the Browning Auto 5 was to automatics: they were both the first guns of their type to be a real big success. In fact, both were huge hits in the market. The 1897 ended up selling over 1 million guns, and the Browning Auto 5 sold over 3 million units.
I'm honestly hesitant to shoot my 1897 much at all, and I've never even taken it hunting. It is a short 20" model, but has a modified choke, making it quite effective for hunting. It balances and swings just great, despite its short length.
Anyway, nothing is quite like these old classic Browning designed shotguns. They are indeed guns to always treasure. And they pay tribute to a true American hero and genius: John Moses Browning.
Here are some pics of my old Winchester 1897:
Here is a close-up of the stock:
And here is a closer view of the action:
A finer semi-auto shotgun has yet to be made IMO...
I think you have yourself a winner there great looking gun
