The annual question: How does an A5 friction ring setup work? Remember, what we show here is what you need to go learn, not a tutorial. If you do not posses the skills to perform at this level, do NOT attempt. Support on Patreon: / anvil
my Remington mod 11 has a crack going down the wrist and a forend, and one of the back screws is messed up, I love the thing but she’s a bit fragile (I have not shot it much yet, I did not cause the damage, got it at an estate auction), I wish I could find some synthetic furniture for it, I love wood but I intend to hunt with it till I’m to old to hunt so I’ve gotta make it a lil more durable, thinking about getting it professionally dura blued. I gotta modify a mag tube cap for a sling swivel to, can’t find that aftermarket.
Buzzard 1860, I think Ramline made a synthetic set of stocks that may work. I put a set on an A-5 I had and it took some time to fit the buttstock up. I believe the mag tube caps with swivel studs are available from Uncle Mike’s. It would make sense to take it to a gunsmith for a good cleaning. Every new A-5 I have purchased over time needed a good cleaning and lubing before I did much shooting with them. I hope you enjoy your Remington!
Excellent video! Many people dont understand them and get quickly get frustrated with having FTE. This is the best shotgun design ever, 1898 to 1998, a 100 years of John Browning perfection. These guns will shoot 10,000's of rounds with just some grease on the mag tube and a couple drops of oil in various spots. Ive been shooting auto5 for 37 years it's the one gun does that does it all ! If you find your not ejecting in colder weather dont be tempted to use oil it will soak your stocks, instead use a lighter synthetic grease sparingly on the tube.
@@randomidiot8142 Im not sure but I speculate it was expensive to manufacture. Also, I believe it would need a redesign to make it lawsuit proof....the safety doesn't block the firing pin.
My neighbor brought me a bag of parts, a receiver and a barrel. He didn't know what it was or how it went together. I didn't even know what it was until I had fully put it together, as I'd never worked on an A5 before. Needless to say I was laughing at how ingenious the braking system was, as it was pretty obvious immediately that's what was going on. I tried some of my nastiest recoiling no.4 buck from it after having shot my benelli M4 with it quite a bit, and I was stunned that the recoil was softer than my benelli. These guns are something else, I should try to get one sometime.
I've had an A5 for over 65 years, Light Twelve. I set the rings for high brass, and it has never malfunctioned, even with light, low brass loads. Very dependable. Mine is Belgium made.
I have a 1906 Auto-5 and it still runs perfectly. Interesting thing is it has a straight stock and a Chinese police dept property stamp burned into the butt. If only it could talk
A buddy of mine had an A5 and man.....that gun kicked seriously hard....way harder than anything else using the same ammo. I figure now that he had the brake assembled wrong but back then I didn't know and for sure he didn't know. Next time I run into one it won't pull that again! Thanks for the lesson Mark....always entertaining.
The manual that came with my 1957 Light Twelve says not to use grease, only a drop or two of oil, on the mag tube. It recommends removing oil, if using magnum loads, so as to increase friction (reducing felt recoil). The manual says it is safe, and will not harm the gun, to do so. I really enjoyed the description of how the rings themselves function. Very informative!
That has to be one of the best explanations. I liken it to a compression pipe fitting a nut and ferrel so to speak. Took me 2 years and 3 boxes of parts to build my first A500. I refer to Brownings Shotgun as one of the most quintessential steps in the development of Automata. It operates in a simple reliable way to perfom a repeated action...robot? IMHO The Browning A5 is by far and away the very best Automatic Shotgun Rifle I have ever had the extreme pleasure of shooting and learning how to build and dismantle. John Moses Browning is the father of the modern firearm and the A5 will most likely be around for many generations to come. If you cannot tell the A5 is my very favorite firearm right next to my AK's with the two and a handfull of ammo some targets to vaporize I am virtually guaranteed to exceed grin factors unknown.
Like many, I inherited an A5 from dad, that was granddad's first. Granddad got it for an anniversary gift from my awesome grandmother. It is in my care now, and I love shooting it. It is the fancy deluxe version. Not shot much at all. I hear complaints all the time about A5's, but I love it. I see nothing to complain about. It is very reliable, beautiful, accurate, and just a good shotgun.
Now, the questions will start...'What do I do with the other stuff?', from the guys with the 3 inch magnum guns! It works exactly the same, you just have two friction rings and multiple cone rings. I get the same question because everyone wants to soften the gun for dove and quail loads early, then punch it up for Magnum buckshot. BTW, The A5 magnum that was left to me by my late father, will run the lightest loads fine, when set correctly. Correctly also means all the parts in the gun, not some taken out and in your pocket! Great video and you will probably have to repost this every summer before hunting season! Take Care and be safe, John
@@marknovak8255 Yep! Take Care buddy! I wish I knew where to email or msg you and I would send pics or video of a A5 magnum system for you to use. Great Work friend, John
Love the A-5, but my field gun is a Franchi 48 in 20 gauge. A lot lighter than my all steel A-5 Magnum. Coolest action ever. Going deer hunting with a Remington 81 this year too.
Final Test in my first year of Gunsmith School, 1 question, describe the Complete Cycle of Operation of an A5 from the point where the cartridge is ejected to the point the next cartridge is ejected. I was very unpopular, I blew the curve, it would take me a week of studying to attempt that again. A5 is proof that St John was doing drugs, performance enhancing drugs!
But did you pass again??? And honestly, given the time period he was alive, I wouldn’t be surprised if he did cocaine, opium or some other drugs occasionally lol.
My first gunsmithing experience was with a A5. The bolt block that rolls up into the square in the top of the barrel was wore out. The gunsmiths at the shop ordered the part for $35 and I got to machine it to fit. The curved lip that rolls it I to place when the bolt is closed and the sides were too big and they taught me how to machine them down to fit. My dad bought the Browning at a garage sale in the suburbs of Denver for $2.50 because the guy said it was a wall hanger. That was one good deal. The guy didn't think that the other parts were worth money. It took about 20 minutes to figure out what was wrong. I still have the old bolt block as a reminder. I would never work on someone else's firearm but I do work on my own. I can't tell you how many 1911 triggers I have destroyed before I got it right.
I've never used grease, just a bit of light oil. Replacing the spring and friction rings periodically is required maintenance as far as I'm concerned. Excessive slamming from worn parts and improper setup is what cracks the forend.
Just yesterday I had short stroking issues with my Rem Model 11, despite being set on no friction. The lithium grease worked like a charm. Thanks Mark!
Replace the springs on it if you dont have the correct screws for it send it to art gun shop in Missouri if your confident in dissembling it buy a rebuild kit from him will ease up the recoil as well as keep the forearm from cracking
When I was a kid, only the Townies with more money than sense got those expensive semi automatic guns. Only local who got one loaded all rifled slugs for deer season. He got buck fever so bad he did a mag dump first buck he saw. His muzzle was pointed skyward and Lord only knows where his rounds went!
I have an early Remington Model 11-48 from 1948. The beveled friction piece is labeled for either light or heavy loads so there's no confusing which way it goes. fjb
Yup, getting asked so much about this, it's smart to just make a video about it and direct people to watch it! Plus it's interesting to me to learn all I can from you and your experience. Much appreciated sir!
I just pulled apart a 1964 Savage 775A with exactly the same action. I learned I need to pull it back apart and align the ring gaps and white lithium the tube. Thanks!
Great video. I just came across a Franchi 48 AL, which as I understand is a licensed version of the A5. The previous owner had it assembled with the steel governor ring between the receiver and the spring for no braking action, as you said. I've had a bit of trouble finding official information on it, so you've helped me see just how similar the two firearms' recoil rings are when reduced to their parts like this. Not sure if it's a difference specific to the Franchi, but the only manual I've been able to find online (an old 'American Arms, Inc.' publication) INSISTS in big bold warning letters that the magazine tube should never be oiled, and should be wiped dry after cleaning contrary to what you've mentioned on the A5, and what I would have thought should be done.
I find using Lithium grease provides a little TOO much lubrication causing the friction rings to lose the ability to brake effectively, causing undue stress on the bolt by slamming it to the rear. It also causes the A5 to kick much harder causing a longer reacquisition of the target. Just a few and I mean a few drops of gun oil works fine once the gun is properly broken in. Save the lithium grease for the wheel bearings on your boat trailer, and use gun oil on your guns.
You may be using too much. I have experienced none of these issues in the 30+ years of doing it this way. That, however, is why we talk about the double kick, as it DOES injure the equipment, as you mentioned
I totally agree, I use maybe 5% of the grease shown in the video, the only time I have to use it is when I shoot trap loads from my 3 Inch Magnum A-5 when I go for birds or deer wipe the grease completely off set the friction rings for the load you are shooting them just a few drops of gun oil does the trick.
I'll try the lithium grease next time I clean my Model 11. A former Browning smith swears a drop of motor oil on the tube (then spin the spring to spread the oil) is the way to go. I'm a fan of using grease over oil for lubrication on firearms. It stays where you put it...
The #1 thing I've seen start arguments about A5's is what lubricant to use on the mag tube for the rings. My grandpa taught me motor oil, but after seeing it here, I started using grease. EDIT: the gun in question is a 60's FN produced 12 magnum.
Is the A5 the same as a model 11 sportsman? My father in law just gave me his built in 1943. He never shot it and I am having problems with the first shell hanging up after it fires while I have two in the tube. So put two in tube close the bolt to load one from the tube and then add another one to the tube. The first one won't eject after it fires but then the other two fire and eject fine.
FYI, Sir Isaac Newton stated, "To every action there is always opposed an equal reaction" NOT, For every reaction there is an equal and opposite counter reaction. That's similar to a double negative. Also you did not really explain what position the friction ring should be in with regards to light loads vs heavy loads. Or did i just miss it? Just sayin.....hope your not offended. LOL.
Isn't grease of any kind on the tube overkill ? Light oil works a lot better in any condition. I've seen greased Auto 5 mag tubes freeze up in cold weather hunting. It looked like a pogo stick in slow motion. I loved hunting with mine and was my go to gun for years during pheasant season. Even my dog would get excited when it came out of the safe.
Or never replacing the spring. The one that came out of my Model 11 was banana-shaped... One guy I know swears the A5 is prone to blowing up randomly and "kicks too hard." Funny how there was a gaggle of 10-14 year old kids breaking clays with my 12 gauge this weekend without a one complaining about recoil...
At @3:03 he shows how to do it for light loads. Previously in the video\ (with brass friction ring between the 2 cones) it is being set up for heavy loads.
Oh thank you sir Browning Auto 5 1983 pretty much new in the box it's a little gritty and I forgot the ring positioning it's been a long time thank you for the schooling
WOW... What a clever set up... Is it a bad idea to grease the top sliding area that telescopes where the breach is? other then any excess later getting on your coat..?
Love this. I actually own a '57 fn made 16( not the sweet). The stock was damaged during Harvey, has a little bit of cosmetic rust.... at some point I'm going to re-oil the stock, and try my hand at carding. It developed the classic a5 worn out rear pin hole in the stock, as a teen i cleaned the hole up and bedded a piece of metal into it to tighten it up. Looking back on it I probably should have drilled it out, either put a wood plug or metal ferrule in, and bedded that with acriglass or similar, but many hundreds of rounds later it has no stock walk.... thinking ain't brok, don't fix it.
I don’t get it. I have the Remington Model 11 and it beat the shit out of me, new springs, no help, Browning’s long round spring still beat me up, clocked the friction ring gaps like the gas rings on AR and suddenly I had to rearrange the friction setup to cycle light loads. On the verge of buying the wood and magazine tube to change it from a Sportsman to a 5 shot Model 11
I have a Winchester Model 11- the old Widow Maker...never been brave enough to shoot it. The issue is they tried to bypass Browning's patents and failed.
So something else you can do with the friction setting if you want to shoot singles trap if you set it to the heaviest recoil setting it will not eject at all and will act as a shell catcher.
Hi Mark, I assembled an A5 just last week using molybdenum grease (Is this bad?only just saw your video!) Is Lithium grease the best option for the majority of slides, bolts and friction tubes, or do different mechanisms suit different greases/lubes? And thank you very much for the fantastic videos!
My roommate has a Franchi 48AL he picked up for absurdly cheap that's being difficult, I was wondering, would setting it up in this manner work on it as well? From stripping it down and cleaning it per the owner's manual, the parts look strikingly similar.
How can one bring the the silver colour on tje magazing tube from the outside id it has rusted a lil. Can it be cleand and what good to use to remove the rust so that it done come back again.
i have been asked to look at one of these where the feed ramp will not lift up. it seems to cycle properly, but the feed ramp is being stubborn, any ideas?
Love your videos Mark. I have a 1958 A5 in 20 ga. Sweet shooting ,but it ejects the shells usually 8 to 10 feet away. Is this caused by the friction ring setup?
Generally speaking it's almost a set it and forget it system. I'm sure you would eventually find a shell that didn't like how you had it set but it's got a pretty good range before that happens.
I understand that the butt of the cartridge pushes the bolt back. But the wad,pellets, and burning force are pushing the barrel forward as they go forward out of the barrel. So why does the barrel come back? I'm missing something.
Every action has a equal and opposite reaction, the force used to drive the load forward causes the opposite reaction of the bolt backwards. That is why your gun kicks. In the Auto 5 case when you fire the bolt is locked to the barrel causing the bolt as well as the barrel to the rear, hence the "braking action" when it reaches the rear the barrel is released and the spring pushes it forward followed shortly by the bolt right after the spent shell is ejected and then pushes the next shell into the chamber. There are several good slow motion videos of this check them out and see if you can't further slow them down on your computer. It is a lot easier to understand this visually then verbally.
A5 only gun that uses the stock for fire control tolerances? What about the Lee/Metford/enfields that had the trigger mounted in the stock? What about the Ruger mini 14 with the 'op rod'/gas piston crudely and stupidly guided by a sheet metal insert in the stock?
