Well, I own it now. The condition was much nicer in person than in the photos. Action is tight, bores are flawless, ejectors work. It's lovely. The fore-end is better than it looked in the photo - the wood is very dark, not oil-saturated. Yes the checkering worn but it was very shallow and flat-topped in the first place. I may not have it refreshed at all.
Regarding the rib inscription, I had mistakenly related to Nick it read "Barrels Re-fitted by..." and his thought, maybe in the nature of devil's advocate, was if they can't get the terminology correct then maybe its fair to change it.
Rocketman, do the numbers come out the same whether side lever or top? Not debating here, simply curious.
thanks everyone for your insights.