![]() ![]() Historians and writers have speculated perhaps Val was anticipating conservation efforts would eventually restrict the magazine capacity of all hunting guns, plus there were no target games requiring more than two shots. Perhaps it was the prestigious Browning name or the noticeable decrease in felt recoil, but for whatever reason the American market seemed more receptive than the Europeans, even though the gun only fired two shots and not the five of the A5 or Remington offerings. Assuming the production numbers were contiguous, 10,800 guns were produced prior to their offering in America in 1955. Whether the Serial number records reflect the exact number of guns produced or not, between 19 the numbers were assigned at a rate of 3,600 per year. Initially Val took his new gun to the European market where it was a dismal failure, so much so many “histories” of the Browning Double Auto claim production didn’t start until 1955, the year he introduced it to the American market. Eliminating the “double shuffle” effect of the A5, his new design considerably reduced the felt recoil of the 12-gauge cartridge. Since the barrel only moved about 1/2″ it was christened a “short-recoil-action” shotgun. Then, in 1952 Val Browning received a patent for a “speed loading” mechanism he integrated into his new shotgun and started production of the radically designed Browning Double Auto. Remington and Savage both made clones of the A5 and the original Browning design was pretty much the only operating system for semi-automatic shotguns for the first half of the 20th Century. They provide a two-impulse recoil which old timers often referred to as a “double shuffle.” This dual-impact-recoil is exacerbated if the friction ring is not set appropriately. Foremost among these products was the popular A5 shotgun, a long-recoil-operated shotgun in which barrel and bolt remain locked together and move approximately 3″ to the rear upon firing. The Double Automatic was Val’s baby alone and when he passed away in 1994, and even though he had accumulated 48 patents of his own, he is still firmly ensconced in his father’s shadow.įrom 1920-1935 Val oversaw the production of Browning firearms being made by Fabrique Nationale Herstal. The Browning Double Automatic was the creation of Val Browning, John Moses’ talented and under-acknowledged son. ![]()
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