New to the board, so please forgive my ignorace, but I had a quick question.
Having recently been introduced to LC Smith, I am quite uninformed - aside from the great articles on this site - and have only seen a couple examples in person.
I recently came across a 1940-42 LC Smith in what appears to be great condition. The case colors are very bright and look like the best images from the site. Similarly, the barrels and wood are in near perfect condition and the action is tight.
My initial impression was this was a nearly unused LC Smith, but the wood is not overtly proud to the plates (some areas not proud at all) and while the bore is shiny, it has obviously been shot - yet there doesn't seem to be any carry markings (aside from some scuffs on the stock).
The screws look clean, the color is the same on the plates as on the blocks, the barrel is blued nicely yet not perfectly even, but the engraving is sharp but not deep (certainly not blurred but not shockingly crisp, just sharp).
My dilemma is that I do not know anyone who is knowledgable in this area and I have a limited window to make a decision.