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Stevens 20 gauge

3K views 3 replies 2 participants last post by  Researcher01 
#1 ·
Hello gents,
I imagine you may have seen some guns like this before, this is an old gun owned by a grandpa that a friend of mine got, I was wondering if you could give me any information on it...it is certainly greatly appreciated. The gun barrel was actually shortened, but it was actually redone, it's not simply sawed-off, so gun is more like a coach gun now. I don't know the original length.

I'm just posting links to images because they're quite big and I didn't really want to shrink them down. I don't know if it's possible to post thumbnails.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v45/c ... GP0230.jpg

The following reads:
J Stevens Arms Company
<not clear> Falls, Mass. U.S.A.
Patented April 20 1915
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v45/c ... GP0231.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v45/c ... GP0235.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v45/c ... GP0233.jpg

And I'm pretty sure this recoil pad was put on later:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v45/c ... GP0234.jpg

I did not photograph it, but there is a number inside of the action. When you break open the gun, under the left barrel it says: 79399, and across from that on the reciever inside the action it says X79399.

Those are the only real markings on it.
 
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#2 ·
Apr. 20, 1915, refers to the patent date of Patent No. 1,136,247 granted to G.S. Lewis and assigned to the J. Stevens Arms & Tool Co. of Chicopee Falls, Mass. This patent covers a hammerless double with coil-spring driven strikers, rather than internal hammers rotating about an axle. From the time of the patent until WW-II this action was used on a number of different Stevens, Riverside and Springfield doubles as well as many marked with a variety of "trade names." The gun of this design was introduced in 12- and 16-gauge as the Riverside No. 315 in the J. Stevens Arms & Tool Co. Catalogue No. 54, with a list price of $16.50. The plants of the J. Stevens Arms & Tool Co. were taken over by, as I recall, New England Westinghouse for wartime production during WW-I. After The Great War they were sold off to Savage Arms Corp. and became J. Stevens Arms Co. J. Stevens Arms Co. continued to make this gun during the 1920s as the Riverside No. 315. By 1925 the 20-gauge and .410-bore were added to the No. 315. The same action was also introduced as the Stevens No. 330 with a capped pistol grip walnut stock, while the Riverside had a half-pistol grip walnut stock. My Mother's double marked "Ranger" was one of these. By 1930 they dropped the Riverside name and the gun was the Springfield No. 315. For 1931 they introduced the Springfield No. 311 which was a similar gun but with an uncheckered "walnut finish" stock. These guns remained in the line up to WW-II. After WW-II the No. 311 emerged as a cheaper version of the Fox Model B action with a Tenite stock and forearm as a Springfield No. 311 in 1947. By 1948 the Springfield name was gone and the same gun was a Stevens No. 311.
 
#4 ·
Nope!! While the company name was J. Stevens Arms Co. until just after WW-II, they were using just STEVENS in logos much earlier. Here is the listing on the No. 330 from the January 3rd, 1928, J. Stevens Arms Co., Wholesale Price Sheet, clearly showing STEVENS and the goose logo --

 
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