I am trying to figure out the year of manufacture for a Model 94.
The first character in the serial number looks like an L. From what I can find, Winchester did not use a letter for the leading character. Some say that such a thing is simply a poorly struck 1. The thing is, it looks nothing like a poorly struck image and nothing like a 1.
Is the "poorly struck 1" the only possible correct answer or is there something to an L as a leading character?
The number looks like L294***.
Could be 1294***. If that is the case, I believe the year would be during the 1943 - 1947 where records are not available, but likely closer to 1943.
So is it 1943 or am I maybe missing something with the L?
The first character in the serial number looks like an L. From what I can find, Winchester did not use a letter for the leading character. Some say that such a thing is simply a poorly struck 1. The thing is, it looks nothing like a poorly struck image and nothing like a 1.
Is the "poorly struck 1" the only possible correct answer or is there something to an L as a leading character?
The number looks like L294***.
Could be 1294***. If that is the case, I believe the year would be during the 1943 - 1947 where records are not available, but likely closer to 1943.
So is it 1943 or am I maybe missing something with the L?