Posted by Dan Hawkins on October 27, 2022, 12:52 pm
New to this forum. I just came into possession of a 16 Gauge LC Smith with pretty bad external rust. Cleaning it up will mean losing the bluing but as far as I can tell this is not an extremely valuable gun and I want to use it in the field.
Serial number is 20891 and has Field FWS marked on the action flat. Am I right that this is a 1945-1950 Marlin era Field Featherweight with extractors?
Barrels are marked Armor Steel and measure 28-3/16" overall length with both chokes measuring ID .630" on my inside dial calipers. Length of pull is 14-1/4" from inside curve of front trigger to outside of butt plate. No pitting inside the bores, no bulges, no dislocation of top or bottom ribs, no cracks in stocks. Action and safety function normally
I plan to use this gun for field hunting grouse and I'm curious to know what factory loads I can use. I have some new 2-3/4 Fiocchi dove loads with 1 Oz of 7-1/2 shot rated at 1,165 FPS and some older Winchester Super X Magnum and Long Range shells that are 1-1/8 Oz and 1-1/4 Oz with 3-1/4 dram equivalent. Are the heavier loads safe for this model gun? I know you can't tell the condition of the gun over the internet, but in general, is this vintage gun capable of firing modern loads?
Re: New LC Smith owner
Posted by Drew Hause on October 27, 2022, 3:00 pm, in reply to "New LC Smith owner"
Welcome Dan. Yes, the 'S' indicates a Marlin era gun.
In that it is a neglected 70 year old gun I would suggest an evaluation by a double gun specialist before use, with special attention to the head of the stock for cracks. If the external surfaces are rusted, the internals are very likely to be also.
The good news is that it would have 2 3/4" chambers. The hang tag that accompanied Smith 16g guns specified 1 oz. 2 1/2 Dr.Eq. (1165 fps) loads and after the gunsmith evaluation, that is what I would use.