nhunter:
Please take all of this with a healthy dose of salt. Unless one has access to the original order specifications, it is impossible to know the weight or "balance" of a gun as-built. If it needs sleeving today, and you get a good craftsman to do the job, the gun can still be balanced nicely - even to suit you. What's more, you'll have a gun that's supremely safe, looks good, and will serve for another century. All at a price far less than foolish purists prefer to pay for originality.
Then again, it's their money. And the economy needs a boost.