I recently acquired another sweet sixteen from a guy who had Arts gun shop redo it. What has me baffled is that the barrel markings are unlike any I have seen. The receiver and forearm both have serial number 4s-20###. In book by Shirley and Vanderlinden there are 12 examples of addresses on barrels, this gun has none of them. None of the examples have Fabrique Nationale address with "special steel", this one does. This gun has "Fabrique Nationale D'armes De Guerre Herstal-Belgique" on left side with **special steel 16gauge shells 2 3/4 below it. Followed by proof marks. On the right side of barrel says only "made in Belgium". No where does it say St.Louis or Utah. The barrel does not have a serial#. To me the date code looks like (alpha), which would be 1948. The Controller of proof Codes mark is B*. that would be either 1927-1959 or 1976-1978. The vent rib has (X post) which would be pre-1974. Also the wood is a very nice dark reddish tint with a 'tigergrain.' Stock and forearm seem to match. The checkering on the stock meets between the round knob and receiver. The book also says that the checkering stopped meeting and the wood went to a more blonde in 1963 year production. So, the book also says that forearms were no longer marked with serial#s after 1953. That only certain high grade A5s such as SAC series have matching #s. So do I have a Frankenstein of a gun, some kind of special order, a barrel that was sent to St.Louis but not marked except 'special steel' or what? Sorry the post is so long, but I wanted to include as much info as possible. Im gonna try to attach pics. Thanks so much in advance for any help, I been lurkin here a long time.http://s1149.photobucket.com/user/steve8285/library/
Steve, welcome to the site. You seem to be as well versed as anyone on Auto-5 history. One thing to remember is that none of the rules are set in stone. That said, I agree that your barrel seems unique. A few observations: Though it has a World Market address, it says SPECIAL STEEL instead of ACIER SPECIAL. Also on that line is says SHELLS instead of CART. I'm not sure that's an anomaly if the barrel was intended for an English speaking country or if someone grabbed the wrong roll stamp. I agree with 1948 as the year of production. S/V speculates that WM 16 gauge barrels kept the 65mm chambers until 1953, and yours is 70mm. That makes it more likely for it to have been intended for the U.S. The fact that it doesn't have a serial number makes me believe it's a replacement or an extra barrel. Of course, in 1964 the original barrel wouldn't have had a serial number either. Browning advertised the availability of extra barrels, and FN probably kept a supply on hand. I would guess that these wouldn't be as tailored to a particular market as the originals. As far as the stock is concerned, 1964 is close enough to '63 to explain the checkering. The serial number on the forearm could have been added later -- maybe even by Art's to avoid getting it mixed up with the hundred or so other forearms lying around the shop.
called browning customer service and the nice older gentleman/historian told me that there is no record of a gun with this serial# having been sold in the USA. It is his belief that the gun was most likely bought oversees and brought back here.
Gorgeous shotgun! "Given the choice between a hot woman and that shotgun, how would you like that shotgun shipped to you?"
I love the flame on that stock. There were a number of FN barrels that eventually ended up here in the US that were sold in Europe. I have one myself. We Auto 5 junkies are a cool breed, eh? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
OMGosh! I saw that shotgun on google imagines and copied it to the Browning Auto 5 page on Facebook! (I did mention I did not own it). Many members on that FB page are overseas, your shotgun has an "international following" Steve8285.
