Put it on a scale, read the dial. My case colored 1966 manufactured ten weighs 9 pounds, 10 ounces, what I regard as a "lightweight" compared to the near 12 pounds of some sixties vintage Spanish ten magnums meant for the US market. The Gun Digest of the time does not mention any ten other than the blue frame Matador. The Blue Book says the Matador was discontinued in 1963 and does not mention any ten gauge after the original Matador. They state that the vent rib Matador ll was only available in 12 and 20. My gun and the many others I've seen identical to it have Firearms International markings so are obviously intended for the US market and do exist, regardless of the thin information provided by the Blue Book. My Firearms International research material is a little light, so I have no more answers. It is amazing to me that the Gun Digest, that included mention of FI imported AYA guns all through this period, never mentions the case colored lightweight ten, nor does the Blue Book. I guess the real story is that the gun was probably offered for only a short time, then discontinued. Since all I have seen have been in the Washington, DC area, it could have been a prototype, distributed in very small quantities through the FI headquarters just south of DC in Maryland. Maybe it was never catalogued. It is the best ten gauge for the price that I have ever owned, and I've owned a bunch. Now that I realize how obscure this gun is, I will be on the lookout for another.
