CaptainBeaky Posted March 26, 2014 Report Share Posted March 26, 2014 I've just bought one... Actually, the one on Gun Watch last weekend. Bought as a doer-upper, so cheap! The query is, does anyone have an idea how old it is? Chap I bought it from said he had had it 15 years, and his wife's uncle had owned it before that. Serial number starts L160xxx. As advertised, the wood is tatty. The wrist has a longitudinal crack at one side, and the cheeks have been repaired badly. Mechanically, it is very good - the action looks like new inside, and the barrels are ok for their apparent age. Bluing is showing it's age, and there are a couple of little dings, but all the difficult bits are ok, so I'm pretty happy with it. It's now in bits, and I started the restoration work on the stock this evening, scrubbing it in soap and washing soda to remove all the old oil, especially from the head, which stank of old mineral oil. After two washes, the whole thing is a different colour! Another couple of washes between now and the weekend, then into the turpentine bath with it. Pictures are being taken... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDAV Posted March 26, 2014 Report Share Posted March 26, 2014 What model? The inspectors mark in the proof marks will give you best stab at age (proof year at least) I have a 200E I inherited from my grandfather which is 1967 iirc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainBeaky Posted March 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2014 (edited) Thanks All it says on it is "Light". Single trigger non-ejector, pistol grip and splinter fore end, so I would guess at a variant on the model 100. Weighs in at 6 lb 9 oz. I'll have a look at the proof stamps tomorrow if I get the chance. Edit: splinter, not bt fore-end. Edited March 27, 2014 by CaptainBeaky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDAV Posted March 26, 2014 Report Share Posted March 26, 2014 Get a magnifying glass! Jewellers style ideally! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainBeaky Posted March 27, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2014 Magnifying glass located! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphant59 Posted March 27, 2014 Report Share Posted March 27, 2014 My dad bought an SKB light s/h in about 1975, the bluing was quite worn then so I'm guessing it was mid 60's. I'm sure it was made in Japan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDAV Posted March 27, 2014 Report Share Posted March 27, 2014 (edited) My dad bought an SKB light s/h in about 1975, the bluing was quite worn then so I'm guessing it was mid 60's. I'm sure it was made in Japan SKB are Japanese (only recently stopped making guns) BSA imported them and badges them as BSA, I have a BSA (SKB) 200E i inherited from my grandfather it is mid 60's IIRC. Amongst proof marks are codes enabling one to determine the date of manufacture of many guns. Sample photos of their layouts are at the bottom of the page. Birmingham, England: date code letter placement: 1921 - 1941: Letter at top of intersection of crossed swords. Number of dots beneath to indicate inspector. 1950 - 1974: Letter at left of intersection of crossed swords. B at right. Inspector's number underneath. 1975 - 1984: Letter inside upper left of circle. B at upper right. Inspector's number at bottom. 1985 - 1997: Letter at left of intersection of crossed swords. C at right. Inspector's number at bottom. Letter is A to Z but does repeat.... As long as you know decade ish you can work it out http://www.hallowellco.com/proof_date_codes.htm Just checked an mine is 1966 Edited March 27, 2014 by HDAV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainBeaky Posted March 27, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2014 Just checked mine, and it's dated 1963, so slightly younger than me! Thanks, HDAV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainBeaky Posted March 28, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2014 Just found another minor problem - a crack running halfway along the fore-end. Another repair on the list. Hey ho... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainBeaky Posted May 13, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 OK, some photos, if anyone's interested Apologies for the poor quality of some of the photos - some were a bit of an afterthought, and all were taken with my phone!The stock was in rather poor condition: multiple contusions along both sides of the lower edge .Top of left cheek cracked away and repaired badly - the wood used appears to be ash, and the gaps were filled in with red Hermetite sealant. Yes, seriously!Close-up of damage to edges of stockDotted lines show position and length of cracks in the head of the stock:Left cheek with old oil finish removed - the ash sticks out like a sore thumb.Removing all the oil, grease and dirt made the cracks even more obvious, and bigger than I first thought:There was a crack running two-thirds the length of the fore end as well. And there's more...Fore end iron stripped and cleaned...... and re-assembled, and the cracks glued up.After two weeks in the turpentine bath:Right stock cheek pinned and epoxied, with the old repair to the left cheek removed.New piece of walnut glued and pinned in place, held down with earthing tape while the glue sets. Good stuff this tape - slightly stretchy, so it's easy to build up the clamping pressure gradually.And set, prior to removing the tape residue and shaping the new piece.And shaped to the original profile. OK, my attempt at matching the grain was a bit off the mark, but I'm learning this as I go along!Fitted to the action - again, I'm not entirely happy with the fit along the vertical surface:But the profile from the top looks OKA piece of horn from the Box of Useful Items became a pistol grip cap - cut to size:And fitted and blended in, also removing the damage from the bottom of the pistol grip. Must re-do the chequering as well. The white marks on the bottom of the cap is figuring within the horn.Re-finishing started - after one coat of oil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainBeaky Posted May 13, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 (edited) And finally... If you've got this far, thanks for looking. More thanks to Daf and Gordon for the walnut. You may note that there are no photos of my practice attempts at working the walnut - I have drawn a decent veil over these... At some stage, I will have to re-do the chequering on the pistol grip where I had to remove the damaged wood, but that is for another day. Total spend, excluding the gun, is about £40. Edited May 13, 2014 by CaptainBeaky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grrclark Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 fantastic post and the finished product looks great. Has it given you the bug to do more? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshwarrior Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 Nice work and glad that bit of walnut got an old gun up and back to life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackpowder Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 Never ceases to amaze the number of skilled people on this forum. Here the OP started off with a weapon which appeared to have spent most of its life aboard a tractor and finished up with a very presentable shotgun. Blackpowder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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