doublegunshop.com - home Forums Thread Like Summary - Lefever with re-blued damascus: Q

Second of two shotguns I'm posting about this AM:
Friend of a friend evaluated inherited Lefever 12 Ga double (S/N 19854, mfd 1892, E Grade)
They identified following flaws-
Re-blued damascus
Missing barrel hinge pin
Receiver plates re-glued

Not a gun guy. This shotgun belonged to my grandfather who passed before I was born, and has been in my mother's possession since my father passed >20yr ago.
I've been maintaining it since my father passed, but with no interest in the family it's time to pass it on someone who appreciates it.
Location: Central NY. Considering a local auction house in Geneva NY for a few other guns.

Appreciate perspective on value with the described flaws, and recommendations for best options to sell and get a fair return.

Thanks for your time!

[img]https://imgur.com/1U7WcBV[/img]
[img]https://imgur.com/f8biHz8[/img]
[img]https://imgur.com/GIIrZCB[/img]
[img]https://imgur.com/Ee4zUHe[/img]

OP,

Its tough to tell from those pics. Blued-over Damascus can be fixed, but it would need to be worth it to someone to do that, as the bluing may be masking fissures.

I would say a rough range on this gun is $700 - $1,300.

You dont need to go to an auction house. Create a profile on GunBroker, take good pics, and let it fly. When it sells, have the person send you the details of the FFL they wish to use, and whem you receive their payment, you ship to their FFL with a copy of tour drivers license in the box.

That's all it takes to sell a gun.

NDG

First off, Syracuse Lefever shotguns do not have barrel hinge pins. Lefever used an innovative ball and socket joint that permitted a small amount of adjustment to take up eventual wear.

The rebluing really hurts the value of your gun. Collectors dislike any such egregious deviation from original condition. The greatest concern is whether the barrels were blued using the common hot salts method. Soft soldered shotgun barrels should never be hot blued because the caustic salts may become trapped under the ribs and attack and loosen the solder joints. Most guns have some small voids in the solder joints that allow the Hot blue solution to enter, and flushing out the corrosive residue is difficult, and often ignored by gunsmiths ignorant of the problem.

I also note some damage to the wood where the relatively fragile stock fingers meet the frame. But it is hard to tell the extent and severity of the damage from your pics. I saw your friend's valuation of your 16 ga. L.C
Smith Ideal grade, and feel he is optimistic. To get a better handle on actual values, I'd advise spending some time watching ACTUAL SALES on a large internet site such as Gunbroker.com

You need to compare your guns to those in very similar condition and configuration, and understand that small gauge guns carry a premium over the more common 12 gauge guns. You also need to just ignore the large number of guns that are listed with unrealistic reserves, and are relisted over and over with no bidding activity. Those sellers are simply trolling the waters for a naive buyer with more money than brains. The only thing that matters is ACTUAL SALES. Opinions and wishful thinking are meaningless. Once you arrive at a selling price, don't forget that this forum has a For Sale section with a $12.00 fee for a successful sale.

You’ll be lucky to find anyone willing to pay more than a few hundred dollars given the flaws you’ve mentioned and the unknown condition of the gun. Sounds like a bottomless dollar pit to me. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

A gun sight without Freedom of Speach