doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com A Few ?s about a Lefever

I have a Box-lock Grade A Lefever SxS in 12 gau. It has a single trigger - how common is this? Also it has a beaver tail fore-end that is OK but just doesn't seem right, looks to be a replacement. Did Lefever produce beaver tail fore-ends at the factory? If they did could someone post a pic of one - it would be appreciated. I know absolutely nothing about these guns so any comments / insight will be appreciated. --- John

John Can. - Please post some pics of your Lefever. Someone who knows Lefevers will be able to tell you if your forearm is original.

Jay

It sounds like an Ithaca-Lefever Nitro Special model 5 or 6. Not a LAC gun at all. The Nitros were mostly plain good quality guns built for progressive smokeless powder. The A grades, there were two of them, were better finished with border engraving, and bring good money at resale due to relative rarity...Geo

P.S.: I think both the model 5 and the model 6 had single non-selective triggers and beavertail fore ends.

It is a Ithaca Lefever with border engraving as you say Geo. I'm about 100% certain the beaver tail is a replacement, just by the workmanship. The checkering is very "messy" to say the least. Is there somewhere I can see the "real" checkering. No doubt I will remove and redo once I have the pattern. Thank you all for your input. --- John

This photo is Walter Snyder's Model 6 410, which is a skeet gun and will have BT forend auto ejectors and NST. They made less than 600 in all gauges. Really rare is a trap model that is probably configured like the model 6.

John, the "A" grade had a slim, rather nice looking beaver-tail. I'd post a picture of mine but it has a home-made replacement; probably just what you have except mine's likely uglier. You might try one of the firearm auction sites for a picture or maybe the Lefever collector's site. There are pics is both Walt Snyder's Ithaca book and Bob Elliot's Lefever book if you have access to them.

By the way, if you ever read the magazine "Shooting Sportsman" in which 'The Major' was for many years the monthly last page standard, the Major's only gun was a 20ga Lefever A grade. I think that alone accounts for a lot of the consumer interest in the guns...Geo

The Lefever Model 4 Vent Rib Double Trap was a less graceful gun than the Model 5 or 6 Lefever A Grade.



According to Walter, the Model 4 began at serial number 285000, and the last entry was 285297 with a lot of blanks near the end. So, only about 250 made. Production being in 1929, 30 and 31.

Here is a Model 5 Lefever A Grade 20-gauge, optioned up with single trigger, beavertail, recoil pad and twin ivory sights --



If it had ejectors it would be a Model 6. Lefever A Grade serial numbers began at 300000 in 1934 and ran to 302496 in 1939.

Just for the sake of making the discussion broader, here are a Lefever Arms Co A grade (lower gun) and an earlier B grade. As you can see, there is little similarity to the much later Ithaca guns called Lefevers.

It sounds like the gun you have is a Lefever A Grade Model 6. Also refered to as the Skeet Gun. 26" barrel length was common if not standard on this model. BTFE, single trigger and ejectors were features of this grade.

Forend will have Ebony wedge inlay. Slight variations were found in forend checkering. Mainly in the layout of the forward points and also wheather the checkering runs right up to the push button latch or not. I have seen factory guns done both ways.

Thank you all, just the kind of info. & pics. I was looking fot.
I'll prints this out and put it with the gun. --- John