Pennsylvania Firearm Owners Association
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  1. #1
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    Default ID SXS that has serial number but no name

    Well, I'll probably name it Fred, but I have no idea who made this.



    The only distinguishing feature is the minimal scrollwork around the side plate. It's a 20 Ga SXS, 20" barrels, right is Modified, Left is Full choke. Extractors but not ejectors. 6-digit serial # 463XXX. Anyone have a clue.

    Took it out on the bench trap field today. Did an admiral job of vaporizing clay birds.
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  2. #2
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    Default Re: ID SXS that has serial number but no name

    Did you take the barrels off and look on the lug? Many manufacturers used to put their name, serial numbers, and/or proof marks under the barrels so not to mess with the beauty of the guns.
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  3. #3
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    Default Re: ID SXS that has serial number but no name

    Quote Originally Posted by knight0334 View Post
    Did you take the barrels off and look on the lug? Many manufacturers used to put their name, serial numbers, and/or proof marks under the barrels so not to mess with the beauty of the guns.
    OK, so I finally got the barrels off. All that's there is the serial number and an S on one side and an F on the other - which I assume has more to do with the safety than the brand (although I don't know why it would be there). Other than that, no proof marks, no other writing. Reading from breach to muzzle on the underside of the barrels is the 6 digit serial number and an S on the far bottom left and an F on the far bottom right.
    Know your audience. Don't try to sell a Prius at a Monster Truck Rally.

  4. #4
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    Default Re: ID SXS that has serial number but no name

    Looks almost identical to a shotgun I have that just says "Berkshire" on it. Nothing fancy just one of those "run of the mill" shotguns you picked up in a Western Auto 50 years ago, kinda like the Sears/Wards/JC Higgins guns.
    "You never lived till you almost died, for those who have fought for it, freedom has a flavor the protected will never know"

  5. #5
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    Default Re: ID SXS that has serial number but no name

    Quote Originally Posted by dannyb View Post
    OK, so I finally got the barrels off. All that's there is the serial number and an S on one side and an F on the other - which I assume has more to do with the safety than the brand (although I don't know why it would be there). Other than that, no proof marks, no other writing. Reading from breach to muzzle on the underside of the barrels is the 6 digit serial number and an S on the far bottom left and an F on the far bottom right.
    The "S" and "F" probably represent the chokes. "Skeet" and "Full" most likely.

  6. #6
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    Default Re: ID SXS that has serial number but no name

    Quote Originally Posted by bac0nfat View Post
    The "S" and "F" probably represent the chokes. "Skeet" and "Full" most likely.
    I would have guessed that except we checked with a choke gauge and found them to be full on the left and modified on the right. Anyway, whoever made old Fred there, it's fun to shoot and hasn't misfired yet. Maybe I'll add a fiberoptic front bead, a sonar set, mini speakers and an MP3 player with Ride of the Valkyries on it. If I do, I'll put a photo down in Gun Pictures.
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  7. #7
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    Default Re: ID SXS that has serial number but no name

    I may have a winner of sorts. By the look of the scrollwork and by the stock checkering and lettering on the underside of the fore-end, I think I have an Ithaca NID field grade with a replacement barrel. There are no maker's marks on the barrel, but the minimalist engraving on the side matches those I've found on Ithaca NIDs I found on Gunbroker. Here's the listing for one of them:

    http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/Vie...Item=260337378

    The capper is the serial number - the letter S is actually part of the serial number. The letter F would then stand for Field Grade. If this is a correct surmise, I got a really good deal for my $200. In fact, it shoots sweet and busts clays with great abandon, so I got a great deal in any event.
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  8. #8
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    Default Re: ID SXS that has serial number but no name

    not an ithaca . possibly a stevens?

  9. #9
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    Default Re: ID SXS that has serial number but no name

    Quote Originally Posted by dannyb View Post
    I may have a winner of sorts. By the look of the scrollwork and by the stock checkering and lettering on the underside of the fore-end, I think I have an Ithaca NID field grade with a replacement barrel.
    Looks like it. Serial number you posted falls in with the class of 1937. That's indeed one hell of a deal for a classic field grade double shotgun. Congrats!

    There are no maker's marks on the barrel, but the minimalist engraving on the side matches those I've found on Ithaca NIDs I found on Gunbroker. Here's the listing for one of them:

    http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/Vie...Item=260337378
    The Gunbroker model is a Field grade - made in 1937, just like yours. The "S" is present, as in your gun, but it is not part of the serial number if it's an actual NID.

    The capper is the serial number - the letter S is actually part of the serial number.
    Well, the numbers are the actual serial number, though. The S could either mean special or skeet.

    Those guns were extremely well-made, and superb at trap and hunting, with excellent regulation. That's probably why it shot so well recently. You'll be glad to know the thing should be perfectly safe for modern shells - as the design is based on the brick-commode-solid Lefever Nitro Special.

    I'm assuming it locks up properly, right? Should be as tight as a bank vault, with no slop. If not, it's fixable. There's a guy who used to work for Ithaca gunsmithing the older guns now.

    Hell, this is a good month for old side-by-side doubles. Just got one of Uncle Dan's guns myself.
    Last edited by kunsunoke; November 15th, 2011 at 07:37 PM.
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  10. #10
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    Default Re: ID SXS that has serial number but no name

    Absolutely tight when in battery, nary a wiggle. The screw holding the trigger guard was a tad loose when I picked it up, but two gentle turns with a tight-fitting Chapman screwdriver and you could bounce a quarter off it - so to speak. This is one of my "what goes around comes around" guns. I have been screwed a couple of times over the last year, finally something that makes me feel better. Ordinarily I don't even look at SXSs, but this was handed to me on a "feel this and see if you like it" basis, and it just nestled in my arms and crooned "buy me."
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