Perhaps the 1940 shooters bible did publish an average or target weight most probably based on input from Savage's marketing peopel and we all know how accurate/honest they can be now don't we. But Mr. Brown you are dead wrong in your statement that the barrel weight stamped on the barrels will determine the final finished weight it is an indicator but nothing more.
You suppose those folks at Savage (and Fox before them) spent any time trying to balance those guns before they sold them, TB? I do. If they didn't do that, they would have been putting out some guns with some very unusual (read undesireable) handling characteristics--like the balance point out close to the forend, if you have really long, heavy barrels matched up to a really light piece of stock wood. Somehow, I don't think that would've been real good for their reputation.
Here's a little experiment for you to conduct: Get yourself a good scale (like electronic postal) and a handful of doubles, preferably as they came from the factory. I just did that (although 2 of mine have pads), and here's what I found: the greatest difference between the weight of the barrels and forend, together, and the stock and receiver was . . . 4 ounces. In one case, less than an ounce difference between the two. Now if you consider that Fox had 12 ounces difference to work with, at any given barrel length between heaviest and lightest, I'd say barrel weight is a whole lot more than an "indicator" of final weight--because if Mr. Smith wants his 28" Sterlingworth to weigh as close to 7# as possible, it's a dead certainty Fox/Savage would not slap heavy #1 (4/2) or #2 (3/14) barrels on that gun; highly unlikely even #3, at 3/10. And yes, I know wood density will always cause variations of 2 or 3 ounces one way or the other . . . but don't you suppose those guys could find a stock and forend that would match up nicely with Smith's desires--and yes, one could order a Sterlingworth just like one could order a graded Fox--and, together with those barrels weighing 3/4, give him something awfully close to 7#? And would you think, even in a gun that's not special ordered, even shipped to Acme Hardware, those guys at Fox would take a set of 4# 28" barrels, slap on a forend . . . and then mate it up with a 3 1/2# stock/receiver? Sterlingworths (and Trojans, and Ithaca and Elsie Fields) may have been the "knockabout" guns made by those companies, but they did not do stupid stuff like turn out guns with godawful balance. So you give me the overall weight of a Fox as it came from the factory, tell me if it's splinter or beavertail and whether it has ejectors or not, and if you give me the length of the barrels, I'll tell you what # they are. Could possibly be off one number, either high or low (maybe someone cleaned out pits, opened chokes, etc), but I think it's that good of an "indicator".
