Browning, who held 120-odd patents in his life, considered the Auto 5 to be his greatest invention. It was also his most profitable. The Auto 5 was made for almost 100 years from 1903 to 1998.

The first Browning Skeet Model Auto-5 was introduced in 1935 in both 12 gauge and 16 gauge. Browning added the Sweet Sixteen to its line in 1937 to provide a lightweight model of the 16-ga. shotgun.

In 1976, rising Belgian labor costs prompted Browning to shift Auto 5 production from FN to Miroku in Japan. The Auto 5’s run ended in 1998 after 2,700,000 A5s were made. By the very end of the Auto 5 ...

John Moses Browning received a patent for his semi-automatic Auto 5 in 1900 and two years later Fabrique Nationale’s factories in Belgium were producing the long-lasting design for civilian use.