By Brad Fitzpatrick      Published on January 22nd, 2024

John Moses Browning patented his long-recoil semiautomatic shotgun in 1899 and revolutionized the shotgun industry. Browning originally planned to sell the design to Winchester, but after a deal could not be arranged, Browning eventually solicited FN Herstal in Belgium to build his Auto-5. The reliable and popular Auto-5, or A5 as it became widely known, set a new standard in semi-auto shotgun design and popularized autoloaders with American hunters.

The Auto-5 remained popular for decades, until Browing discontinued the shotgun in 1998. Browning fans were heartbroken to see an original go. Still, in 2012, Browning released a new, modern version of the A5 with an entirely different but no less robust operating system known as Kinematic Drive. 

Almost immediately, A5 fans awaited the arrival of a 20-gauge version, but Browning surprised everyone with the release of the 16-gauge, A5 Sweet Sixteen  in 2016. Very few new 16-gauge shotguns were available at the time, but the success of the Sweet 16 prompted other shotgun and ammunition manufacturers to take notice of renewed interest in 16-gauge guns. The A5 Sweet Sixteen is available in several variants from Browning and remains a best-seller.

The question remained when, and if, Browning would offer the new A5 in a 20-gauge version. For over a decade, hunters and shooters have asked how long they would have to wait for an A5 20-gauge, but there's no longer a need to speculate. It’s here.

The heart of any semi-automatic shotgun is its operating system. Unlike the Silver, Gold, and Maxus II semi-auto shotguns from Browning, the A5 doesn’t use a gas operating system. Nor does it employ the long recoil operating system of the original John Browning-designed Auto-5. Instead, modern A5 shotguns — including the new 20-gauge version — use the patented Kinematic Drive system, which relies on inertia to cycle the gun. 

A spring in the floating bolt slide compresses when the shotgun goes boom and moves rearward with recoil. As pressures drop, the four locking lugs in the front of the bolt that engages the chamber rotate and are released, and the compressed spring within the bolt expands, driving the bolt slide rearward to eject the spent shell. Another spring in the stock pushes the bolt forward, and as the bolt goes back into battery, it loads the next round into the chamber.

This system is highly effective and offers several benefits. First, the operating system is straightforward. Primary parts include the bolt slide and rotating bolt head, bolt spring, and the return spring. Gases are vented out of the barrel, and the handful of moving parts can be disassembled very quickly. 

Cleaning and maintenance are fast and straightforward, and the engineers at Browning have tuned the A5 bolt to operate with a wide range of field loads. The new A5 20-gauge functions reliably with light 7/8-ounce field loads, heavy 3-inch magnums, and everything in between — all without swapping pistons or any other modifications.

The Kinematic Drive system also allows shotguns to be built lighter than competing gas guns. The A5 20-gauge weighs about 5 ¾ pounds, which is ideal for a field gun you’ll carry all day. However, most hunters automatically associate lightweight guns with abusive recoil. Gas guns help prolong the recoil impact to reduce perceived recoil, and the added mass of a gas gun effectively dampens the kick, but the A5 20-gauge’s Inflex 2 recoil pad directs stock slightly down and away from the shooter’s face which helps soften felt recoil.  

The A5 20-gauge comes with high-gloss Grade I walnut stock as well as high-gloss bluing on the barrel. The classic "Humpback" receiver is made of high-strength, precision-machined aluminum and has a black polished finish that matches nicely with the barrel. Elegant 18 LPI checkering on the pistol grip and forearm improves grip and gives the A5 20-gauge a stylish look, and the included shim kit allows the shooter to adjust the length of pull, cast, and drop. 

Any shotgun instructor will tell you that proper gun fit is critical for consistent shooting, and the A5 allows the shooter to customize their shotgun to their specifications without the added cost of a trip to the gunsmith.

Shim kits are just one of the practical additions found on A5 shotguns. The chrome-lined chamber will withstand years of heavy use, and the included flush-fit Invector-DS chokes (Improved Cylinder, Modified, Full) make it easy to match the gun’s constriction to the conditions. 

The nickel Teflon^™ coating on the bolt, bolt handle, and other vital components resists corrosion and protects against damage in the field. Browning’s Back Bored Technology and Vector Pro lengthened forcing cones also help to improve patterns. Research shows that forcing cones (a reduction in the interior diameter of the bore) helps keep more pellets on target, and the A5’s Vector Pro forcing cone is more gradual than competing brands. It’s the same technology that the company uses in their Citori and Citori 725 over/under shotguns and is one factor that makes Browning guns perform so well in clay target competitions. That same technology means that hunters can expect more hits and fewer crippled birds in the field.

Another worthwhile A5 feature is the TurnKey Magazine Plug. Legislation requires that hunters limit their gun to a capacity of three shells while hunting some birds, and for most guns with a five-round tube like the A5, you’ll have to install or remove a plug in the magazine tube to adjust capacity. The TurnKey system allows you to insert a key into a slot on the top of the magazine tube to unlock and remove the plug, or easily install it, to adjust capacity. It’s a simple and effective system. 

The A5 also comes with the Speed Load Plus feature, which automatically feeds the first shell loaded in the magazine tube into the open chamber. Hence, the gun is instantly in battery, and shells can be directly unloaded from the magazine tube without the need to cycle each through the chamber. Speed Load Plus is a time-saving feature that appeared on John Browning’s original Auto-5 guns. The other part of Speed Load Plus is the unload feature that makes it possible to remove shells from the magazine without cycling them through the chamber.

Dilley, Texas, is in the southern portion of the state and is home to Redstone Ranch. Each fall the area is inundated with mourning doves, and hunters travel from across the country to test their skills on these fast-flying birds. It was an ideal location to test the merits of the new A5 20-gauge.

When Browning’s Shaundi Campbell first handed me the A5 20-gauge, I was impressed by the light and lively gun. Because it lacks a gas system, the forearm is very trim and comfortable, and the A5 balances at the front of the receiver. I shouldered the gun and looked down the rib toward the bright red fiber-optic front dot. The A5’s characteristic humpback profile is not simply an aesthetic touch. By effectively mating the top of the flat receiver to the rib, the sight plane increases by 30 percent or about eight inches. In addition to giving the A5 its signature profile, it also improves performance because the rear sight of the gun (effectively the shooter’s eye on a shotgun) is almost directly connected to the muzzle of the gun.

When the sun dropped, and the temperatures began to fall, we left Redstone Ranch headquarters and traveled to an open agricultural field bordering a mesquite forest. We were told the birds would be flying across the open field directly overhead as they made their way to roost sites, and as the temperature dropped, the first birds began winging overhead. 

Guns & Ammo’s Joe Kurtenbach was the first to limit, and about the time he finished shooting, the birds began flying in more significant numbers. Sometimes, focusing on a single target wasn’t easy because the sky was filled with birds rushing through the plum-colored evening sky. 

Before darkness fell, the entire party had a bag of doves.

It’s times like these when the Speed Load Plus feature is most valuable. With birds whistling by to our left and right and directly overhead, it took only a short time to empty the A5 20-gauge magazine, and no one wanted to be caught reloading when the next flock flew over. 

When I felt the gun run empty (once you’ve shot the A5 20-gauge for a while, you can identify when the gun is unloaded without looking), I could reach in my vest and stuff another shell into the magazine tube.

The next afternoon, we headed to Redstone’s sporting clays course with the A5 20-gauge. It’s easy to ignore a bit extra recoil when looking up into a sky darkened with doves, but on the clay course, the impact of heavy recoil becomes taxing as you shoot a hundred or more targets. 

A sub-six-pound 20-gauge gun has the potential to be abusive when firing that many rounds, but the A5 is not. I attribute that to two things. First, the Inflex 2 recoil pad indeed does its job. Second, the A5’s adjustable stock allows almost any shooter to fit the stock to them properly. Like the A5 12 and 16 gauges, the 20-gauge model shoots flat. In shotgun terms, it’s a 50/50 pattern, meaning roughly half the pattern rises above the bead and half below. It’s ideal for field guns since it offers the most versatility and room for error when faced with various shot presentations. Place the bead in the center line with the target, adjust for lead, and press the trigger.

Following our time on the clays course, we headed out into the field for another evening of dove hunting, and that meant everyone in camp fired the A5 20-gauge hundreds of times that day. Conditions were demanding for the guns. The baking mid-afternoon sun left the A5s so hot that the barrels would burn an ungloved hand after a round of 25 clays. 

Throughout the day, the dry wind blew dust over the guns and into the actions, so photographing the A5s required carrying a rag to wipe away the fine coating of powder that quickly accumulated on them. But the A5s ran hard without complaint, which is a testament to their design and manufacturing. Browning backs these guns with a 5-year, 100,000-round warranty, and it’s easy to understand why the brand has so much faith in its firearm.   

The A5 20-gauge has finally arrived. Shooters waited patiently for this gun, and when they finally get one in their hands, they’ll find that the years of anticipation were worthwhile. The A5 20-gauge does not disappoint.