Lubing Browning Auto 5 Belgium made

I have really nice looking low mileage Belgium made Browing Auto 5 Light 12 modified choke that I bought new back in high school in 1967. I probably have not shot it in 50 years, wow how time flies. Kept in in a case stored in area that has heating and air conditioning and removed from the case every so often to inspect and wipe doen the exterior metal. Probably around 1000 rounds shot through it and was totally reliable in the few years I did use it.

Now my son and I are going to an outdoor range soon that is a little bit of a drive for us but not too bad and he wants to try it out and I would like to shoot it some more. I plan to shoot only low brass loads 7 1/2 lead shot through it. I can adjust spring sleeve/buffers to low brass setting if it has trouble ejecting shells.

It has never been taken apart other than remove the barrel to clean and lube with the bolt locked back. Not to long ago I removed the barrel and cleaned the steel magazine tube and lubed it lightly with Slip 2000 EWL per the manual and put the spring and buffers back on set for high brass loads with both at the top of the spring toward the screw on cap. I also lubed the two slots cut in the receiver and each side where the bolt and barrel ride on during recoil to operatre the action. Beyond that the manual does not specify anything else to lube?

I am wonder what others that have experience with the Auto 5 recommeden lubing wihtout taking the shotgun down requiring removing the screws from the receiver. I was thinking about locking bolt back and spaying the area below toward the trigger group assembly a bit with Breakfree CLP or Hornnady One Shot. I like like how the Break Free CLP foams up so it can get into everywhere. I have read about Hornady One Shot but don't have any yet but I understand the excess dries quickly. With either one I would have the shotgun in some sort of a stand horizontally, handguard removed, with a tilt toward the barrel so that excess spray could drain out without going back toward the wood stock too much or maybe I should remove the stock first?

Any thoughts on the above lubing with the bold locked back? Do I even need to worry about lubing anything else other than I recently did?

Thanks a bunch for any advice and sharing of information.

I6turbo said:

Nice gun!

I take my Auto-5 apart so that I can clean it at the same time, but also so I can control where and how much I lubricate the friction points. The only advice I'd have about spray-lubing it while assembled is to be careful that you don't get so much in there that it eventually runs down and soaks the wood and screws up the finish or the appearance.

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Thanks!

Appreciate the advice. It would be easy enough to remove the butt stock per Brownells video I had seen. So I would do that and let it sit after I spray lubed to give time for excess to drip away for a few days plus clean up any else I can reach with patches/Q-Tips and then put back together.

I6turbo said:

This is probably why you haven't already taken it apart, but... if you do decide to take it apart beyond removing the stock and forearm/barrel, be sure you have correct screwdriver bits that FIT the narrow-slot screws, AND you are very careful not to let them slip. It'd be a shame bugger up the screw heads on that unmolested Auto-5.

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Yes you are right on about that! I learned a whiile back about having the correct screw drivers when people posted on SIG forum pictures of their P226s abd such with messed up grip screws from using generic flat blade screw drivers on them. Luckily they are easy enought to replace though.

natman said:

The brass friction rings need some lubrication and the bare steel mag tube needs to be protected from rust. I put a couple of drops of plain gun oil (no teflon or moly super lubes) on a patch and wipe down the outer surface of the mag to give a light coat. This will prevent rust and give enough lubrication but not be so slick that the friction rings can't do their job. The Slip 2000 EWL mentioned above looks like a good choice for this application.

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I always kept that mag tube lightly lubed using Browning gun oil back in the day. I recently read the A5 manual again and it did say to do such for the reasons you stated. I always have a small bottle of lube and some paper towels in range bag in case I ever need to do any maintenance on site. I have found lube problems to be the main reason for firearm malfunctions when at the range. A couple aquaintences that I shot with at the range don't shoot much and were amazed at how I could "fix" their malfunctioning pistols within a minute with a couple drops of oil and a warning from me that if they plan on using those pistols for self defense purposes they need to learn the basics of maintenance and the best place to start is reading the manual!

Sovblocgunfan said:

Re: using spray lube inside the action.

it’s fine, but a little goes a long way. I would not use so much as to “wet” the action. But since you will have the barrel off, dont forget to apply a light coat to the barrel extension. The barrel extension moves inside the action and deserves a drop or two.

i run my mag tubes almost dry. The bronze ring and spring are supposed to be friction pieces, not slide freely. Properly sprung, and with a nearly dry mag tube, these guns are soft shooter, not mean mule kickers.

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Thanks! Yes I did put a light coat of lube on the barrel extension exterior - the shiny part with no finish.

Thanks for all the replies, much appreciated.

My son is a firearm enthusiast too and I am very happy he is expressing interest in my Browning A5. His only shotgun right now is a Henry lever action .410. It will be his before too many more years now that I am 70. He will take very well care of it too. Being an engineer he appreciates the design and high quality of it.

Well son and I went shooting today and my Browning Auto 12 worked perfect. Shot 2 different low brass loads Winchester 1 1/8 oz 1200 MV and Federal 1 oz 1290 MV both 7 1/2 shot. Shot like a dream and I busted first and almost every clay from the shooting area with the bench with the clay launchers. Son did very well with it too. What a sweet shooter even just wearing T shirt. I left the recoil spring setup for "high brass" and lightly lubed steel recoil tube with Slip 2000 EWL. I also did spray inside the receiver above the trigger group area with the bolt locked back with Breakfree CLP, which foams up, while on cleaning stand and let that sit for 2 days so any excess, which was not much, could drain out and that worked well.

So glad my baby still shoots like a dream after half a century and will surely shoot it some more this year. Thanks again for all the very helpful info!

steveus101 said:

Sounds like you did exactly what I would have done, if anything, sounds like plenty of lube. Just one thought, it's really not supposed to work properly with light loads while set for heavy loads. Although your gun (a beauty by the way) hasn't been shot much, just with 50 years under it's belt, the recoil spring could have taken a "set" and is now shorter than spec. This could cause a little more wear and tear than it should. No big deal though. I wouldn't take it down any further unless like others have said you have the right tools. Great gun, I love them.

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I remember way back when that it worked for some low brass loads even set for high and not for others. Thanks for tip about recoul spring as I do have a new spare I bought from Brownells I bought years back but forgot to put it in.


BTW this is what the A5 manual at Browning's website says about the recoil tube setup. Earlier manuals may have stated something bit different though plus lubes have changed a lot since I bought my A5 and it's possible the Slip 2000 EWL I used may be slicker being synthetic. In any case my A5 was very pleasant to shoot. I put a couple drops on a cotton patch and wiped down the recoil tube wth it. I will put new recoil spring in before next range trip.

https://www.browning.com/content/dam/browning/support/owners-manuals/auto5-light-om-s.pdfg's

"Oil on the Magazine tube.

Whether the friction ring is set for heavy loads or light loads, the amount and kind of oil on the magazine tube will, by varying the amount of friction, have an effect upon the amount of recoil. In general, the more oil that is put on the magazine tube (or bronze friction piece), the easier this friction piece will slide on the tube; hence, a greater degree of recoil will be obtained. If you are firing a light load and the gun fails to eject, the addition of oil to the magazine tube in the region of the bronze friction piece will sufficiently increase recoil to a point satisfactory for good ejection. Oil which congeals in cold weather or deposits gummy residue may reduce recoil to the point where the gun will fail to eject, Use a high quality lubricant. Occasionally clean the magazine tube and relubricate. If temperatures of ten to thirty degrees below freezing are likely to be encountered, it is best to utilize an oil which maintains its fluidity in such temperatures. Browning Gun Oil is particularly well suited for this purpose. At all times there should be a film of oil on the magazine tube except when 12 gauge, 2 3/4” magnum loads are being used. With this load it is desirable to wipe the magazine tube practically dry. Function will not be affected and you will find these heavy loads much more comfortable to shoot."

Master Blaster said:

Very light lubrication for any semi auto gas operated shotgun. put it on wipe it off. Do not slather it with grease, grease collects water and dirt and will slow the action. If you overlube it it will malfunction. Remington 1100 and 1187 are the same. I also follow this advice with my Beretta shotguns.

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Thanks but the Browning Auto 5 Belgium made vintage are not gas operated.