You have a typical Lefever that follows the "Lefever rule" exactly. Anything goes and if a customer asked the maker to put that type of wood on a gun it would be done. You scratching is very interesting. Another direction of engraving like the Baker style of etched engraving is different. It might look better i fyou darken it slightly to take away that high shine look.
I have a DS 12 with a burl walnut stock that would have looked at home on any high grade double of its day. How did a top selection blank end up on the cheapest grade gun? At first I thought it was a damaged blank but can find no sign of blemish or repair. Then considered an employee gun or a special order gun. Maybe some one did pay double for a DS with a great hunk of wood. If only the records remain so many of these open ended questions could be answered. How many odd Lefevers have we seen? Lefever are just like a box of chocolates and you never know what you will see or find inside or outside.
Boy isn't that the truth. I just found out this gun was re-barreled by Ithaca approx. 1916 +/- after Uncle Dan died, as it has a second set of serial #'s farther up the tube that correspond to that date. And, since the new barrel lug didn't fit the old forearm, Ithaca likely just grabbed one that fit, which likely explains the mismatched forend. Uncle Dan is full of surprises indeed.
