J.C. Higgins 101.7 date codes

[pawkoon]

I have a J.C. Higgins 101.7 with 311A stamped on it also. In front of the trigger guard is an oval with what appears to be 11 or II stamped inside. Under the barrels are two circles with an 'A' inside both. Gun appears to be 90-95% finish. I'm interested in finding out when it was manufactured. There is no serial number on it. Thanks for any help.

 

[pawkoon]

Closer inspection shows the tiny code in front of the trigger guard to be '8B' so I'll guess it was made in August 1950.

 

[JRH6856]

The J.C. Higgins shotguns were made by more than one maker, but the 311a pretty much says yours was made by Savage/Stevens. 8B would indicate a date of August 1950 according to my research. I have a 101.7 marked 5100 with a date code of 11A. The Savage/Stevens 5100 was the forerunner of the 311.

 

[pawkoon]

Thanks for the quick reply. That was the date that I had figured as well. Thanks for the input.