I inherited this rifle, it appears un-fired, it seems to have been in the original box forever but the decorative studs on the stock are really tarnished, should I try and polish them or leave them, I guess it wasn't stored in a climate controlled situation, the brown paper was wrapped around it but didn't seem to help. Thanks in advance for any advice

it wont hurt to give them a good scrubbing but I wouldnt go as far as polishing. However, it is your gun and you can do as you please!

Thanks, I'm contemplating selling it so I was concerned that it could be a bad idea, but it would look a lot better, other than those grimy looking studs, its perfect

remember when you go to sell it you can post in the marketplace here when you are a member. Only 2 bucks a month to be a member, so it would only cost that to post it. I would be interested in seeing it posted there.

If you are selling, I would just clean them a bit and leave 'em be. The buyer can easily polish them, but its impossible for the buyer to make the finish original/aged/patinad/whatever again!

clean them

if you polish them that may mess up the finish on the wood .

 

Pm me when you want to sell it I would love to see it

Unless you absolutely know what you are doing, never restore/polish any antique/valuable object. Real collectors always look for orginality and if thay wanted to they would get the work done themselves. Like my army CWO used to say; "You can't un-fu*k a woman!"

 

I would leave it AS-IS and also be sure you keep the paper it was wrapped in.

Do not fire that gun.If you do you will cut the value in half!! Do not even chamber a round.

Make sure to keep all the original stuff that came with it right down to the yellow paper.

I have a John Wayne Winchester and know the gun you speak of. They are strictly ornaments for looking and not touching if you wish to keep the value.

Thanks guys, it has been handled before, it doesn't appear to have ever been fired. My issue with selling is now, I have no paperwork showing ownership, I have the bag of certifications and assorted stuff about it, but have no idea of the original purchase paperwork. Do I assume I'm stuck with it ? I'm pretty sure my dad bought it new, but I don't think I can prove it, I'm guessing here in jersey that's a big problem

if you own it you own it, you do not need paper work to own a gun in New Jersey. You need it to buy a gun. If you inherited it then no paper work needed.

Understood..its been in a closet for years, and I've had it a few weeks, I'm hoping to sell it to buy something smaller (!) and useful, I wouldn't want to be the one who fires this beauty and ruins the nostalgia....but how do I sell it if I don't have a document showing its mine ? I looked through all of dads stuff and found nothing....if its too much hassle ill stuff it back in a closet

you and the buyer just fill out a COE (Certificate or Eligibility) and each keep a copy, if you do not have a FPID you just put N/A. The person buying the rifle has to have a FPID to buy it. You do not have to have any documentation to sell it. I moved here form Colorado and have a bunch of guns I bought legally in other states before becoming a resident of this shithole. I still do not have my FPID and I also don't have receipts for every single gun I have, but I could sell them all tomorrow to a resident with a FPID no problem.