Lefever sxs sidelock,grade g damascus 32" barrels hammerless
 

im going to be trading for this gun and one other for a rifle i have here, ive looked all over the net and cannot find one lefever g grade sidelock hammerless with 32" fine damascus barrels, i do have photos of the gun in question, i could email someone if they had info on the gun, maybe a value or rarity? i do not plan on selling it, i just dont hear of the old lefevers that much around these parts, except the odd nitro special boxlock, but this is a nice old sxs, one downfall is butplate is a fitted replacement of rubber, however the rest of the gun is in original untouched cond, locks up tight, hinge area is a ball type system versus a rolled pin, it has a dolls head extension lock as well, any info would be great

nobody has any info??

You didn't give guage info and that would be helpful. As far as info on rarity or function, I can say this, the Lefevers grades are similar to Parkers, ie; the lower grades are more common and less expensive than the higher grades. Again, like Parker, the lower grades are as serviceable and robust as the higher grades, just less embellished. I am speaking to the sideplate models, not the Nitro Specials. Value is determined by the guage, overall condition and originality.
Here's a few on auction.
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/Vie...Item=319129233
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/Vie...Item=317123510
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/Vie...Item=318802810

I hope you get the Lefever. I have one and love it.

My Lefever is in perfect used condition. It has been refurbished, but not brought back to like new. I think it is a wonderful shotgun, light and almost whispy thin.

My gun is an "I" grade. It is not damascus. I was told that the "I" grade was the least expensive gun they made and is what one would have found in the hardware store of old. Strangely, I NEVER see another "I" grade offered for sale. I see lots of "Gs", but no "Is". Is my gun, therefore; rare? I suspect that my gun was the last made before they came out with the box lock models and the Nitro Special.

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/a...shotgun010.jpg

i never heard of this grade..it may be rare... charlie

Yeah, Charlie; I was thinking the same thing. It is clearly marked with a capital "I" on the water table, no question about it. What have i got here? It is obviously not a fancy gun. I didn't take a pic of the water table. Guess I'll have to. The forearm has no buttons or clips. It just snaps on and off. The butt dad has obviously been replaced. Checkering appears to be recut and the barrels have been re-blued, but in the old way.

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/a...shotgun003.jpg

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/a...shotgun009.jpg

Here's one to check out.

http://www.1898andb-4.com/products.p...tegory=Lefever

Fellows, the I grade was the bottom Lefever sideplate grade. I, H, G, F, etc.

There is an excellent book by Bob Elliot about Lefever which describes the various periods, the grades, history and construction details.

Unfortunately, there is no Lefever forum although there is a collecting organization. Several people here are Lefever collectors, Josh Lowensteiner being a significant collector. We have had posts here about them, you might check the thread Lefever Fever.

Replacement reproduction Lefever butt plates and correct pads are available from Connecticut Shotgun Mfg.

Thanks for the replies gents, the gauge on the G grade is a 12, chambers are 2 3/4, barrels are the rare 32" fine Damascus, bores are mirror bright, wood is original, untouched, serial is in the 44,000 range which puts it at 1903 production, one gent on shotgunworld had some values for the G Grade "1750$ ex cond, 1350 in vg cond, 1000$ gd cond, 800 fair and 450 poor, this was taken from the gun book of values 2009 which is latest he had, so i suspect they may have risen some since that issue, he also said the production of 32" barrels was smaller, and could increase its value due to rarity, it has a fitted rubber pad on butstock, original has been lost or damaged and replaced, i would like to find a replacement if anyone could point me in a gd direction to one

Yep and it looks a lot like my gun. Mine is F and M, but I'm not sure those are the original chokes.

As I recall my gun is a 1902 gun too. Too me all of these older Uncle Dan, guns feel similar. I have held a Nitro Special a few times, but don't know much about them, nor am I drawn to them. It's also my opinion of the Flues gun which is a joy to many folks and the high grade ones are nice, but they leave me cold, but; that's just me.

The esthetics of a shotgun is ironic in a way. It is a gun and deadly, after all, but also beautiful, so was the Spitfire. Some, I think are more beautiful than functional, others are functional and plain, but still graceful. I am not a huge fan of highly engraved and inlayed shotguns, but it is a matter of personal choice. I have a gun-nut friend who covers his guns with fine engraving, even pocket pistols.

I am not trying to step on toes. My opinion is just MHO and nothing else. If you love highly engraved guns, have at them! I like looking at them too.

Gents,

You may want to try www.lefeverforum.informe.com and post your questions and pics there as a number of Lefever afficionados are found there way more qualified than me. The I grade is really the same as the DS grade or Durston Special (which is different than a D grade). The DS grade was available in 12, 16 or 20 ga and available with ejectors as well. The I grade was SUPPOSSED to be available in 12 ga only and without ejectors. However, I "think" I remember one in 16 ga and had heard of 1 or 2 in 12 ga having ejectors. Neither the DS or I grade had anything but steel barrels, no dolls head extension or cocking indicators. However in gun collecting, one learns never to say never.

Jack Kuzepski

Actually the DS was the bottom of the Lefever grade scale. The DS was pretty much identical to the I grade in most ways. I believe the only real difference was that one could get an I grade with a pistol grip stock.

I own a DS with a pistol grip stock.

well the lefever will be here tomorrow according to canada post , will be test firing it tomorrow, i will be most upset if it goes KABLOOIE, lol , i doubt that will happen, of course i will look it over before any shooting happens, now here is something to think on, i have 2 boxes of smokeless 2 1/2" shells one box of lylevale expess from birmingham england, 1 1/16oz #7 shot, super field loads, also a box of gambore fibre wad load, 1oz #6 traditional upland loads, now on these boxes it says for use in guns proved to 3 tons? any idea what that equals in PSI? ive used these in my husqvarna underlever sxs 12g and my other sxs guns with fluid barrels, they are great shells, i get them for 14$ a box from a local shop, wonder if they would suffice to be used in the damascus lefever, or would the gang here say stick to black powder loads, which i have a plentiful supply of?

A full pistol grip or a round knob grip?

well gents, my lefever arrived, im very pleased, a G grade sxs 12 with fine damascus of 3 or 4 irons, horsehoe pattern, no here are some interesting features, maybe someone can shed some light on, the barrels bear the same 44061 serial# as reciever, and forend, reciever is stamped G, However, the bottom of the barrels is 44061, followed by an F?? chambers are 3" they have not been altered, they are factory, had a reputable smith examine it, barrels on muzzle ends are nearly 1/8" thick? could this have been a specially ordered gun, ? barrels are 32" long, i have pics of it, im unsure how to post pics, its choked extremely tight on both barrels, down to near 16 gauge diameter, there are no other marks under the barrels except the serial and the F, the F is separate from serial, i do have clear pics of it, also i thought the butt pad wasnt orig, it is, its a jostam anti flinch recoil pad, which was offered by lefever /ithaca on lower to mid grade guns of the time

pics of lefever grade g 32" fine damascus
 

Rodney, your hotmail account cannot be accessed by others.

From your description of your Lefever, I believe your gun is set up as a fowler with the heavy, long barrels and super tight chokes. I don't know whether it was specially ordered. Not all Lefevers are built this way, some are lighter for an all rounder. My guess is that you have an over 8 pound gun whereas the 30" lighter 12's often weigh 7/3 to 7/8, and some with shorter barrels are lighter still, as explained in the Elliott book.

my gun weighs 9.5 lbs

muzzle thickness is ,109 thou, id say its special

the pics i have were from hotmail, a membner told me to put them on desktop and add them to the thread, i did that, and thats what happened, i know people cant acess it, if u want pics, or anyone does provide an email id be happy to forward some

i looked at over 100 grade g guns, not one had fine damascus barrels, or anything close to this thick in muzzles
i was told this was a g grade gun, with f grade barrels ordered to fit from factory, by a collector from upstate new york
he said it was common for wealthy people to have a set of lighter barrels for upland birds, and heavy barrels for geese and waterfowl, for heavy loads, the serial on my receiver is same on barrels however reciever is marked with a G, barrels are marked with an F, i was told it is very uncommon to find any proofs or marks on american damascus guns of any make so he told me the F was in same style of stamp as the G that this was the case, it also has 3" chambers, which are original and not altered , i had a smith confirm this

Bruce, if you have an email, i would send some pics to you of the gun, also was just given a piece of cape buffalo horn, cut in a rectangular blank, nice black/charcoal hue to it, will make a fine replacement butplate!, but let me know on the email adress, mine is coltkid_93@hotmail.com,