Look on the barrel lug both front, bottom, back and sides for other numbers. In my opinion that set of barrels match the grade three damascus that was the original to the gun.
I will also state that I wouldn't hesitate to do a little work to that gun and use it. I don't know that I believe the wood is original, but it looks decent and solid. I would first get the barrels put in shape and refinished. Generally $500 would be close to right for that I believe. Take the rest of the gun down completely and give all the metal a good sonic cleaning. Remove the finish from the wood, give it a soaking in acetone then mineral spirits to de-oil the wood. Then install a period correct recoil pad with solid black spacers to the limits of good looks. sand the pad down to the level of the wood and then fine sand down to 320 or 400 grit. Teach yourself how to apply an oil finish and do it. There are hundreds of U-tube videos on doing this. If that puts you off, get a can of Watco's Danish Oil Finish in either walnut or clear depending on your preference and have at it with a soft cloth. It gives an excellent soft finish in three or four coats and completely fills the grain along with the finish. If you do the stock work yourself, total out of pocket expenses will be in the neigborhood of $750-800. I can't tell if the stock is checkered or not so I can't speak to that. I have no idea what you paid for it, but I would think just the cleanup and barrel refinish would raise the value as much as that part of the cost, so I doubt you would lose any money on the work.
You will also pick up some valuable skills in the process.
My general impression is that, with the situation of a significant high end gun, you will never recover the value of a new complete custom stock. As noted, you can only justify tht by the fact you want it.
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01-27-2024, 02:24 PM
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