High-grade L.C. Smith are some of the best-looking doubles ever made in America. Check out this 16g Crown grade to see why.
The Hunter Arms Company made the Crown from 1912-1950, and when it was first introduced it to replaced the company’s No. 5 grade. Crown grades were available in four gauges – 10, 12, 16, and 20 – and in .410. Hunter Arms built 862 Crowns, and 68 of these were in 16 gauge.
They were all made-to-order shotgun, so the specific subject of the engraving patterns, the barrel lengths, and stock measurements could all be dictated by the buyer. That being said, most of the Crowns I’ve seen have had 28″ or 30″ bbls.
This 16g was made in the mid 1930s. At that time, A. F. Stoeger listed an L.C. Smith Crown like this at $292.50, a whole lot more than a basic Winchester Model 21 ($73.40) and a just little more than a Parker CHE with a single trigger ($267.50).
LC SMITH CROWN GRADE 16 GAUGE: #149XXX 28″ IC AND MOD 2 3/4 HUNTER ONE SINGLE SELECT TRIGGER EJECTORS SPLINTER FOREARM PISTOL GRIP NEAR NEW ORIGINAL CONDITION 6LBS 11 OZ X 2 1/4″ X 1 1/2″ X 14″. Price: $29,500.
BTW: I would like to thank the LC Smith Collectors club for a lot of this info. If you want to learn more about Elsies, you should check out their site.
