AYA Yeoman
- Category
- Shotgun
- Barrel
- 711 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.06 kg
- Introduced
- 1957
About
What it is, and why it matters
The AYA Yeoman is a Spanish hammerless boxlock side-by-side double-barrelled shotgun built by Aguirre y Aranzabal of Eibar. It was the firm's entry-level, plain-finished field gun, using the classic Anson & Deeley boxlock action with double triggers, non-ejector extractors and fixed chokes. Chambered most commonly in 12 gauge (with .410 and other bores also offered), it typically carries 26 to 28 inch barrels choked three-quarter and full, a plain oil-finished walnut straight-hand stock, and a steel action. Popular in Britain from the late 1950s as an affordable, hard-wearing working gun, the Yeoman became a mainstay of ordinary shooting families.
So affordable and hard-wearing that it was described as the workhorse of practically all shooting families, the AYA Yeoman put a genuine Spanish boxlock game gun within reach of ordinary British sportsmen, and clean second-hand examples still change hands for a fraction of the price of AYA's best-quality guns.
The Yeoman was AYA's budget-grade boxlock, sitting well below the sidelock No. 1 and No. 2 and the best-quality boxlock No. 4. Standard guns were 2 3/4 inch (70mm) chambered non-ejectors with fixed chokes; magnum wildfowling versions with 3 inch (76mm) chambers, fuller pistol grip stocks and beavertail forends were also produced. Now discontinued and only found on the second-hand market, examples date from roughly the late 1950s into the 1980s.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Aguirre y Aranzabal S.A.L.
- Category
- Shotgun
- Country
- Spain
- Status
- Discontinued
- Produced
- 1957 to 1990
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 711 mm
- Overall length
- 1143 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.06 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Break action
- Firing mechanism
- Hammer fired
- Trigger
- Double trigger
- Capacity
- 2
- Magazine
- Internal
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Stock
- Walnut
- Finish
- Blued
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 400 m/s
- Effective range
- 40 m
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
No load solved for this record yetThe flight path is computed from a cartridge and a bullet. This record has no ammunition filed against its chambering, so there is nothing to solve.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Boxlock
Anson and deeley action
Side by side barrels
Double trigger
Extractors
Fixed chokes
Straight hand stock
Oil finished walnut
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 622 12 Gauge shotguns | 3.06 kg | 3.29 kg | Lighter than about 80% |
| Overall lengthAmong 570 12 Gauge shotguns | 1143 mm | 1150 mm | Shorter than about 60% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 650 12 Gauge shotguns | 711 mm | 711 mm | Longer than about 60% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 647 12 Gauge shotguns | 2 | 3 | Holds fewer rounds than about 70% |
Answers
Questions about the AYA Yeoman
How much does the AYA Yeoman weigh?
The AYA Yeoman weighs 3.06 kg (6.75 lb) empty.
What caliber is the AYA Yeoman?
The AYA Yeoman is chambered in 12 Gauge.
How many rounds does the AYA Yeoman hold?
The AYA Yeoman holds 2 rounds, fed from an internal magazine.
How long is the AYA Yeoman?
The AYA Yeoman is 1143 mm (45.0 in) long overall, with a 711 mm (28.0 in) barrel.
Who makes the AYA Yeoman?
The AYA Yeoman is made by Aguirre y Aranzabal S.A.L. (Spain). It was designed by Aguirre y Aranzabal.
When was the AYA Yeoman introduced?
The AYA Yeoman was introduced in 1957 and discontinued in 1990.
How does the AYA Yeoman operate?
The AYA Yeoman uses a break action, and its firing mechanism is hammer fired.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
Provenance
Confidence in this record
66%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/aya-yeoman' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "aya-yeoman", "name": "AYA Yeoman", "manufacturer": { "id": "aya", "name": "Aguirre y Aranzabal S.A.L.", "countryCode": "ES", "foundedYear": 1917, "website": "https://www.aya-fineguns.com", "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-07-06 11:00:16", "updatedAt": "2026-07-06 11:00:16", "version": "6a4c05ed1c8fbec52652e5e2741497cb21531be28c5e55bb77458b63a5f11222" }, "category": { "id": "shotgun", "name": "Shotgun", "description": "Smoothbore firearms designed to fire shot or slugs" }, "country_of_origin": "ES", "year_introduced": 1957, "barrel_length_mm": 711, "weight_empty_g": 3060, "action_type": "break_action"}