I am new to the LC Smith collecting having secured my Uncles Ideal grade. Shortly I plan on having a research letter done but in the meantime I have been trying to learn as much as possible. There are two questions I have which at least with my searches I have not been able to answer.
1. On the website I read the guns serial numbers changed for the 1945-1950 guns when Marlin took over the company. I believe they became FWS00001 to FWS50000 something. My gun is a 1945 gun that exhibits the Hunter Arms serial number with a prefix. My gun is FWE2050xx. Since the gun is a ejector gun I assume the 'E' is for ejector? Were all the featherweights marked FW in front of the serial number on the hunter arms guns and I am misunderstanding the FWS reference I read or is this a hybrid of the Hunter Arms serial number and the new system implemented by the LC Smith Gun Company during the Marlin ownership?
2. A friend told me that the stocks on L.C. Smiths were marked with the serial number of the gun under the trigger guard on the stock and under the forearm release on the forearm. When I removed these pieces I saw no serial numbers. In fact the forearm has no serial numbers anywhere on the wood. Every piece of metal does have the number though. Did they mark the serial numbers of the stocks in the late guns of 1945-1950, and have any of the transitional guns from the Hunter Arms era to the Marlin era been noted missing this? My Uncle owned the gun since at least 1950-1951 if not since new. He took extremely good care of it and he was not a person to change things. I have trouble with the idea he restocked this shotgun but I have no explanation as to the missing serial numbers if they in fact belong on the later guns.