Stevens (?) 520-30 Trench Gun, Pt. 2

[mtrpdw]

Additional photos attached as original Thread couldn't handle them.

[bigskybound]

Dunno, but it is way cool with that CD mark engraved on it. Perfect for keeping order when supplies in the public fallout shelter start to get low and claustrophobia sets in. Looks like original markings buffed off prior to Parkerizing.

[mtrpdw]

Thanks for the reply.

I thought of that, but I doubt the original markings were "buffed out". You would have to remove a pile of metal to eliminate any trace of factory stampings. Plus, all metal edges/corners are sharp, including the serial number on trigger guard tang - buffing will usually round these out.

[bigskybound]

Was it maybe a Wards or Sears? But they still have markings higher up on the left side. Definitely a redone riot gun, though. Lots of WWII stuff was repurposed in strange ways for Civil Defense. Hand guard is original, which is a shame with the park over the blue and plumb.

[scosgt]

Fake.

[SPEEDGUNNER]

Fake.

+1

[mtrpdw]

"scosgt" and "SPEEDGUNNER", thanks for your replies, but a fake what?? Trench Gun, or Civil Defense gun? This shotgun was never held out to be a legit Trench Gun, as my description of it in Pt. 1 bears out. When I purchased this over 20 years ago at a local gun shop, it was just another shotgun on the used gun rack. And this was long before my interest in combat shotguns.

What I was hoping for was some insight on why, other than the serial number and "12-gauge" info stamped on the barrel, there is a lack of factory markings, i.e., "520-30", "J. Stevens", Montgomery Ward", etc.?

And why would anyone take the time to fake a "CD" marking?

Cheers!

[scosgt]

This is what always happens. Someone comes on line with a totally, totally wrong gun.
So we tell you it is fake, meaning that whatever it is now, it is not the way it started life.
And now you start to rationalize the gun, as in "who would make fake CD markings".
Next you will start cursing us out, because your gun is not what you want it to be.
It is a fake phony put together "trench" gun. It is nothing.

[p246]

No one will ever be able to answer your question for sure...Its a conversation piece now if you like it enjoy it for what it is...a mystery to some and fake to others.

[bigskybound]

I think scosgt is being overly harsh. It is clearly a curiosity and the OP has some good questions, whether or not the purists like them or not and is not seeking validation. One of my collecting areas is Atomic Age and Civil Defense. And although I have no guns in this collection yet, I have seen numerous repurposed military shotguns modified for CD use. I think it is a legitimate line of research into what happened to guns transitioning from a "hot war" to the Cold War.