ORIGINAL: MichaelT.
I have 2 browning shotguns I am trying to find info. on.
One is a Browning Sweet Sixteen A5, Belgium made, Rib vent barrel , gold trigger 2 3/4" ... SN# on the bottom of the gun, in front of the trigger guard looks like 6S above then 60853 below it. I cannot place the serial # from browning's web site.
The other is a Browning Full 12 A5, Belgium Made , says something like Browning Arms Company, Ogden , Utah ,.... down the barrell. SN # on the bottom of the gun in front of the trigger guard is 136262. The Browning site says it was made between 1903 and 1939, if I have dated it correctly.
I am trying to find out any info I can to get a good idea of their age and value for possible sale.
Is there anything else I need to look at, or for, to determine age and value?
Thanks,
Michael
Your Sweet was made in 1966. The serial number is somewhat irrelevant. That 6S is all you need to date that gun. From 1958 until 1967 Browning used the last didgit of the year of manufacture followed by a product code (S for Sweet 16, V for Mag 12ga etc). In 1968, realizing the problem of repetition, they started putting the last two didgits in front of the letter. In about 1975-76 they started using they letter/number system that they still use today.
Is there any letters or numbers in front of the serial number on that 12ga? The fact that Ogden, UT is written down the barrel really doesn't tell us much about the gun itself. Almost all of the barrels from the early (50s and back) A-5s have that feature. We need to know what it says on the gun itself. Pictures would help a heck of a lot.
As far as placing value, sight unseen on that 16, it could be from $500 to $1300 of maybe even more if you found the right buyer. What is the constriction on the barrel? Whats the recoil pad made of (should be either hard rubber or buffalo horn), what type of safety does it have? Cracks in the forearm just forward of the receiver? Condition of the metal?
On the 12, I need more information. Might be worth a mint, might be worth $250....