Drew,
I remember seeing a few new Spanish doubles in the rack along with other sporting implements in the early to mid 1970s in the area I grew up in, north of the twin cities of Minneapolis/St Paul, MN. My dad would shop and I would drool on the guns. Until he started hunting geese, perhaps mid to late 1970s, he never needed anything but a Standard A5, but, would allow me plenty of time to pester the help behind the counter. I never saw hang tags on any guns, except the new Remingtons, when I was a kid. I’ll bet every single gun had them, but, they often didn’t make it out the door with the new owner. He got sold a slip and perhaps a box of ammunition, and that was that. Box, papers went in the trash. I saw that a few times, and when I bought my 1100 12 gauge from Woolworth’s sporting goods counter, (remember them?) I had to ask for the box and paperwork and wait around for the guy behind the counter to find them. My dad and the dude seemed mildly annoyed that 19 year old me even wanted them. But, I did.
Anecdotal, for sure, but, not reading the directions was a thing, once upon a time.
Best,
Ted
