L.C. Smith Ideal Grade .410 – 1928, VERY RARE 1 of 22, LM/M, 6LBS 1OZ

Ideal grade guns are not hard to find; they are very recognizable with their unique oakleaf and acorn line engraving pattern, and the maker’s name stamped at the front of the locks. There were 26,686 Ideal grades made in all configurations. There were only 232 made in .410, 110 of those had 26-inch barrels, and ONLY 22 Ideal grade .410’s had a beavertail forend.  You could conservatively surmise that there may only be 10 or so made in this exact configuration.  Mechanics are excellent on this sweetheart of a shotgun.  The ejectors are strong and timed properly.  The barrels have 95% of their original blue, and two white beads. There is a slight blemish on the right barrel near the muzzle, evident in the photos.   Bores are bright and shiny. The trigger guard has floral scroll on the bow and 70% original blue. This gun was made with double triggers, auto ejectors, and non-auto safety.  Frame has roughly 60% light case color, with robust color remaining in a few spots, especially under the lever, which is set just right of center. Buttstock and forend are very good as professionally restored, with a small sliver of the wood missing on the right side of the forend at the iron, otherwise the wood is sound and has nice grain, color, and finish.  The buttstock is finished with a capped pistol grip, Hawkins recoil pad, and point checkering pattern. With modern dimensions, light 6 lb 1 oz overall weight, and balance directly on the pin, this little shotgun will be a joy to shoot, or a prize for any serious collector.  Congratulations to the eagle eyed amongst our viewers if you spotted the now ancient error- the serial number on the barrel flats reads 107762; the gun is FACTORY CORRECT but the employee just picked up the wrong stamp, the 0 should be a 2, its what make these old guns so unique, they were made by humans! L.C Smith Collectors Association Letter is Pending. Thanks for looking!