Lloyd, for Hunter Arms Co. it was all about cost. Find a true Syracuse gun in the serial number range of 16,000, 18,000, 19,000, 20,000 and early 22,000. The odd numbers were hammer guns. The latest Syracuse hammerless gun I have in my records is 23553 that has L.C. Smith Maker, Syracuse, N.Y. on center rib. The reason I said some early 22,000 serial numbers is because I have some in this range that do not have a makers name on barrel.
The joint check was one thing that was eliminated at Fulton because that was definetly a cost factor , but they opened much farther and made shell extraction and loading so much easier. The large raised convex ribs, the machining that went into that. There were other factors also.