Got me a Rifled Barrel for my old A5

[6pt-sika]

I wanna get my hands on one of the older Browning take down hard cases for the A-5 with two barrels like you have pictured above . I have a couple of them for my Superposed guns but none for the A-5 , SO FAR !

[W.R.Buchanan]

6Pt; I just got a new A5 hard case for two barrels for $150 ish and that was a really good deal. The outfit was asking $200 but Ebay had a 25% off day so I grabbed it. Model 1115 for the A5s or BPS's

Since I don't have the new gun yet the Ithaca 37 is living in it for the time being, and it might just stay there as it is nicer than the A5 I bought today..

That case my nice gun lives in has had that gun in it since 1965 when my Uncle bought it. He got the Light 12, modified and full choked vent ribbed barrels and the case all in one package, and that gun has lived in that case for 54 years! Still has the owners manual.

I have several gun safes, but I prefer to keep my really nice guns in hard cases. I have some large desiccate packs in those cases so I don't worry about rusting or anything like that. The biggest problem with safes and nice guns is safe rash from getting the gun in and out of the safe. That's where the majority of dings happen.

My nice guns go to the shoot in the case, get assembled, shot, wiped down, bore snaked and back in the case, then back in the gun closet in the house. That way stuff stays looking new for along time.

Randy

[6pt-sika]

6Pt; I just got a new A5 hard case for two barrels for $150 ish and that was a really good deal. The outfit was asking $200 but Ebay had a 25% off day so I grabbed it. Model 1115 for the A5s or BPS's

Since I don't have the new gun yet the Ithaca 37 is living in it for the time being, and it might just stay there as it is nicer than the A5 I bought today..

That case my nice gun lives in has had that gun in it since 1965 when my Uncle bought it. He got the Light 12, modified and full choked vent ribbed barrels and the case all in one package, and that gun has lived in that case for 54 years! Still has the owners manual.

I have several gun safes, but I prefer to keep my really nice guns in hard cases. I have some large desiccate packs in those cases so I don't worry about rusting or anything like that. The biggest problem with safes and nice guns is safe rash from getting the gun in and out of the safe. That's where the majority of dings happen.

My nice guns go to the shoot in the case, get assembled, shot, wiped down, bore snaked and back in the case, then back in the gun closet in the house. That way stuff stays looking new for along time.

Randy

Yeah I've been debating a new one that a few bucks more then you paid . But I'd rather have an older period correct case . The other Browning luggage hard cases I have are all pre 1975 or so and I'd like to find one for the A-5 for barrels up to 32" and preferably for two barrels .

[W.R.Buchanan]

You probably will have more access to that type of case where you live or off Ebay. I very seldom see a nice hard gun case out here unless it has a high dollar shotgun in it.

Most of the hard cases we see now are cheap plastic ones like the Beretta's come in. Nice hard cases have turned into hand built masterpieces like Dewey's.

That new Browning Case I just got is not nearly as nice as the old one with my A5 in it. It was made in Costa Rica?

It is nice but doesn't have all the features the old case has like little pockets for accessories like chokes and such.

It is adjustable for barrel length and gun length.

Randy

[W.R.Buchanan]

Fired up the lead pot and made my first Russian Paradox Slugs today. The mould worked just like any other mould and started producing good slugs about 10-15 pours into it.

The mould came with 3 different rear cavity pins. A small tapered one which will no doubt yield the heaviest slugs, a pin that generates an hour glassed shaped rear cavity which also puts a hole in the nose of the slug. This one is designed to have the wad or gas seal screwed onto the back of the slug. I started out with this one and it dropped slugs right at 525 gr +/-.5 gr. .724-.725 in dia. I will powder coat them to get some more dia. Can't run this one thru a choke, Rifled Barrel or Cylinder Bore only..

The third mould pin generates a rear cavity designed to be used with the Italian Plug in wads, which I am still looking for a source for.

I can't see anything living thru a hit by one of these slugs, but then again I can't see any thing living thru a hit by any of the slugs I've got. They do look like they should fly strait.

Won't know about accuracy until I get back from SHOT as my new gun comes out of jail the day I leave.

Randy

[longbow]

What is the as cast diameter Randy?

The slugs KrackenFan69 sent me were a bit small at about 0.727". I knurled some up to 0.735" then sized down to 0.733" to suit my fat bored single shot but have not shot them yet. The Slugster has a 0.729" bore so they may do okay from it but accuracy from my single shot was mediocre. Not bad, just not great. I had higher hopes... but they are undersize so in fairness they should be re-tested at close to bore fit so that is coming up shortly I hope.

We've just had a couple of big snow dumps though so range access may be iffy for a bit.

They are a nice looking slug and same (or looks the same) tail wad as Gualandi uses.

Longbow

[W.R.Buchanan]

.724-.725 and PC will add another .004-5 so they will work in a .730 bore. Also the attached wads/gas seals will bite in the bore as well.

These are big chunks of lead. er Wheel Weights.

Randy

[Ginsing]

Randy:
The source for the wads is the same company that makes your slug mold.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I haven't been able to find the wads on their website. I clicked on every single Icon and nothing about wads anywhere?

Maybe I have the wrong web address? I clicked on the one form another post.

Randy

[Ginsing]

They operate a bit different over there. Go to the buy section on that website and send the retail address an email. Just inquire about pricing and they will email you a complete price list.
Then send him an email what you want and request a total price with shipping. If you say yes to his price he will send you an invoice.
It is a bit different but it works and all happens quickly.

[Hogtamer]

Randy,
This may not interest you in the least, but in your run and gun sport it's worth a minute to read. This gun was a commercial flop because when it was introduced most semi-auto shotgunners were die hard A-5 or Rem 1100 shooters. I was an A-5 guy but I bought my first Browning 2000 in 1978. It's gas operated semi-auto, Belgian made, assembled in Portugal. Unbelievably easy to dissasemble
(yes, it's a Browning) with the loading port on the left side. Whoa you think! The most perfectly balanced gun you'll ever pick up and the quickest to load with a little practice (assuming you are right handed). Here are pics:

For starters, with bolt open slide shell into loading port and it slams into chamber ready to fire. Your shell pouch is on your left side and it's pretty easy to grab 3 shells at once. 2 more quickly into the mag with your left hand. Your right hand never comes off the grip. (It will hold 4 - 2 3/4" in the mag but the plug is only removable after removing the trigger assembly.) Any receiver will accept 3" shells but the barrel must be chambered for 3"' and not all are. The magazine will then only hold
3 shells. The 3" barrels have 2 gas ports on the bottom of the barrel at the attachment ring, the 2 3/4" barrels have only one port....maybe I got that backwards, but the barrels are clearly marked nontheless. Recoil is greatly reduced, of course, by the gas mechanism. So besides the hard marketing challenge against the popular A-5 and the loading port on the "wrong" side, the 2000 never found a niche to speak of - except by folks who used them! They developed a reputation for unreliability because folks didn't read the owners manual, imagine that! Most hunters like me picked up a gun and went to the field, bang bang bang. The guns came with a liberal coat of cosmoline or whatever they used then to protect the gun and it had to be thoroughly cleaned first. Plus the magazine tube runs dry! Unlike oiling the springs and mag tube on an A-5. When a ftf occurred most people took out the gas piston assembly, oiled that and put the piston in backwards!
OK! Looong post I know. After I shot doves with mine for a season I went back to the gun shop and bought the six he had in inventory for $200 bucks a piece. That was about half price. Kept one and my buddies bought the other 4. Bought one from a guy a couple of years ago whose Daddy said his never would shoot and it had been in the closet 30 years. Gave him $175 and yep, petrified packing grease and the gas piston in backwards. The only fault with them is a thin forearm that when it got wet several times would swell and loosen. The small metal supports in the breech end of the forarm would fall out or get lost in assembly after cleaning and the forearm would have some side to side play. Still shoots fine but could be annoying. The braces are still available and the problem solved with wetting the wood and holding with string until reset. Beautiful wood by the way. I do believe it worth your while to go out of your way to handle one if you could. They did make some sighted smoothbore slug barrels too. Well, if you're not asleep yet I'm about to be....whew!
PS.....one pin removable trigger assembly

The doves weren't flying yet last year when I took this pic. Yep, still loading my all time favorite Activ hull, just got a new supply yesterday from a terrific guy on the site.

[W.R.Buchanan]

HT: I'm always interested to hear what other interested parties have to say about anything that is pertinent. Have no problem Hijacking other peoples threads and don't really care if it happens to me unless the guy is an A hole and just wants to bash. I'm a "anything to keep the conversation going," kind of guy.

As far as B2000's go I almost bought one back in the day, but my uncle promised me his A5, so I just held out for it.

They were nice shotguns and I think they were better than the A 500 they have now, which I haven't heard anything good about..

As you know the later A5's with the 2 Piece Carrier and Speed Feed feature load instantly from the empty magazine as well. But the real kicker for me is that I already have two A5 slug barrels and I don't think they ever made such a thing for the B2000.

There are so many good shotguns out there that it is hard to decide what to buy.

I was looking pretty hard at one of the little Franchi 20 ga Autoloaders the other day. I consider those guns to be among the best dove guns ever made and at 5 lbs they certain wouldn't wear you out toting it around all day. I went to put it back on the rack, as it was not exactly perfect, and someone else practically snatched it out of my hands and bought it on the spot.

So many guns, so little time.

Randy

[W.R.Buchanan]

OK some more developments on this story. I was able to win an auction for a New Browning Motor Case for an O/U shotgun I paid $109 for it! and since it was located in Irvine CA, I received it the day after it was shipped. I got here yesterday and it is prefect. All for $109!!!!!!!

Well the only problem with the case is neither of my O/U's fit into it very well?

However with a bit of re-configuring of the innards my Ithaca fit perfectly and it now has a new home. Plenty of room for all the choke tubes for the Cutts and extra stuff. Good setup.

Cat will not fit in this case, and believe me he tried.

The case before this has the A5 Slug barrels living there and will have the Rest of the gun as soon as I pick it up after SHOT. 10 day wait over on Sunday 1/20 after I leave for Las Vegas.

Randy

[W.R.Buchanan]

On another note: I received some more shot shell loading components today from BPI. I also corresponded with Luca Roca of Gualandi in Italy who is the guy I met at the SHOT Show a few years ago. He gave me 5 of the Thunderbolt Slugs that BPI sells at the time, and actually remembered me!

A goodly portion of the wads and slugs that BPI sells come from this outfit. I struck out trying to buy the plug in wads for the Russian Slugs with them, but Petander put me onto the right place for the website of the Svarog outfit that makes the moulds. I was able to buy 250 of those wads and will be loading them up after I get back from SHOT.

So I will have the A5 I need, along with a Smooth Bore Slug Barrel and a Hastings Rifled Barrel to test all these new slugs and other stuff to shoot out of shotguns. I can also test with both the M500's, the Tac Gun with 20" Vang Comped barrel and the 18" HD gun with a cylinder bored barrel.

Lots to do coming up.

Randy

[W.R.Buchanan]

OK This just keeps getting better and better.

I got home from SHOT on Thursday nite and went to pick up my new gun Friday. Got it home and I had to use a strap wrench to get the mag cap off. Something weird here ? It has a little friction ring instead of the larger one with the steel ring around it? Called Art's gun shop and Nick told me that how the Magnum guns are set up.

Have I told you guys yet that I am actually an IDIOT!!! Well if not, here it is,,, I am an idiot!!!. The gun bought is a 3" Magnum gun! I completely missed this when I looked at it about 5 different times!

The reason it has a Belgian 32" barrel is because it is "first year Japanese production" and they were still using up parts from Belgium.

Neither of my slug barrels will work in the gun, which was kind of a major slap in the face.

Luckily I can sell it for more than I paid, so I won't get hurt $$$, but the ignominy of this is,,,

I just wiped out all my Attaboys and am starting over from scratch!

This was a major Awship!

So, life goes on and the quest for a proper gun continues. In the mean time, I decided to get my good A5 out and use it for testing of my slug and buckshot loads already put together. I can use it in a controlled environment for testing so it doesn't get scratched up, and keep looking for one I can use for 3 gun.

It is nice here for this week and the road to the range is open (had been closed due to several mudslides) so I can get out and shoot something.

Randy

[stubshaft]

Don't feel too bad. Years ago I bought a 1941 "American" Browning A-5...The only "Browning" made in America by Remington...

[W.R.Buchanan]

Yes, during the War Browning A5s were made by Remington here in the US. They already had the tooling as they had been the first to produce the gun as the Rem Model 11

Something about that Nazi Occupation of Belgium having a negative effect on European Production.

But the Germans did get to experience the effects of other Browning Products,,, we didn't want them to feel left out.

I thought that was very Inclusive on our part.

Randy.

[W.R.Buchanan]

OK I have managed to trade the Magnum A5 for a Light 12 A5 with a two piece carrier. Basically one year older than my good A5. 1963 model.

So now I have to go thru the whole registration process and wait again. Getting closer to having a working system. I think.

Randy

[W.R.Buchanan]

On another Note: My plug in wads for the Svarog slugs arrived from Mother Russia today.

Have to cast some slugs for them tomorrow. I can use the excess heat generated by the pot for warmth.

It got all the way down to 50 F today here in CA while it was raining like hell. I was layered up big time.

Here's a pic of the wads.

Randy

[centershot]

50 *F??!! Yeah, I wish! I live 50 miles south of Buffalo!