Tracking down my grandfathers guns (Update 1/8/22)

[natking52696]

My grandfather was an avid hunter and when he passed away his hunting guns were given to my aunt, my mother and my uncle. I always grew up with the notion that these guns would be mine one day. I found out recently that my aunt had sold these guns many years ago due to financial issues. All though its a very tall order I am trying to locate these original guns or an equivalent piece to try to regain that family history. There were three guns:
1. Savage 24D O/U. (22LR over .410) S/N 0914286
2. Browning Auto 5 Trap Lite (12 ga) S/N 10145
3. Remington 760, 30/06 with weaver scope S/N 540720

These guns were sold to New England Sportsman Inc in Fairhaven, MA but this store has since closed. I have the serial numbers for each gun but I am looking for any information on that store or how one could possibly try to track down guns or if anyone has tracked down guns for themselves? Or if anyone purchased these guns from this store in the last 30+ years?

Update 1.8.22: Found out information on the last owner of these rifles, who had passed away in 2016. Didnt want to post his name here out of respect but he owned East Haddam Sporting Goods in CT and was an avid hunter himself as I read in his obituary. Using white pages I reached out to potential family members from the CT area with no luck. I believe his son had mentioned that he didn't have any information for me or even where his fathers guns ended up. My suspicion is that they were probably sold or gifted. I reached out to as many sporting clubs and stores as I could in the CT area close to East Haddam with no luck so far but I am still hoping. These are who I reached out too:

CT GUN LLC
CT Gun Broker
Lock N Load Firearms
Silver City Firearms
Encore Guns
Hoffmans Guns
Newington Gun Exchange
Primo Adventure
Lionheart Militia
Jeremiah Johnson Trading
East Haddam sporting club
Moodus sportsman club

Has anyone been to these clubs or these gun stores that may have some connection to the previous owner of east haddam sporting goods ?

 

[Uzi2]

Not sure if serious.

If so, good luck in your search. I suspect and predict it will be unfruitful and expend a lot of time and effort for nothing.

 

[one-eyed Jack]

Your only remote chance here would be to go GREEN and do a WTB listing the S/Ns. Jack.

 

[76Too]

My grandfather was an avid hunter and when he passed away his hunting guns were given to my aunt, my mother and my uncle. I always grew up with the notion that these guns would be mine one day. I found out recently that my aunt had sold these guns many years ago due to financial issues. All though its a very tall order I am trying to locate these original guns or an equivalent piece to try to regain that family history. There were three guns:
1. Savage 24D O/U. (22LR over .410)
2. Browning Auto 5 Trap Lite (12 ga)
3. Remington 760, 30/06 with weaver scope

These guns were sold to New England Sportsman Inc in Fairhaven, MA but this store has since closed. I have the serial numbers for each gun but I am looking for any information on that store or how one could possibly try to track down guns or if anyone has tracked down guns for themselves? Or if anyone purchased these guns from this store in the last 30+ years?

Good luck with your search.

 

[quinnjalan]

Good luck in your search. Aside story. I emigrated in 86 and went home to Ireland many times over the years. Each trip I would take my dad's shot gun out, oil it and put it away. When his health went down hill my mom gave the gun to a local gun dealer to mind. So when I went to visit after that point I'd stay at this house as he had a B&B and he's always take out the gun and we'd sit around talking about all the rabbit hunts we wend on. I was lining up the paperwork to get it exported from Ireland when the IRA held up the gun dealer. They tied him and his wife up and completely cleared out his shop. He and wife took it very bad and my guess is the fright finally did him in. Needless to say my dads gun is gone forever. I have wondered over the years was it ever but to good use if you get my meaning or like when my dad had it, it spent most of its life propped up in the corner of the coat closet with no lock and the cartridge's sitting in my mother good baking bowl on the shelf right above it. In any event I hope you find what you are looking for.

 

[Broc]

If you have the SN, it could be a ton of work and yield nothing or it could work:

You will need to offer some sort of reward for the rifles. Maybe offer to buy them for more than the market value or offer the replacement with the same rifle.

- join every forum, I mean EVERY FORUM and post the serial numbers.

- print flyers for every gun store and ask them if they will let you post them. This will include a lot of driving.

- maybe let every single pawn shop know.

 

[looser38]

Definitely a "needle in a haystack" scenario, but I understand and admire your drive to locate your grandfather's gunz.
Be very patient, and good luck

 

[amb]

Agreed on posting serial numbers--I'd edit the original post and add them. It's a long shot, but if you grab people's curiosity there's a chance. If I owned any of the above I'd go check mine! Also, yeah, be willing to pay a premium.

I would also haunt the web pages of gun shops that put their inventory online. If you look at Four Seasons for instance ( https://used.fsguns.com/ ) they post redacted versions of serial numbers. Sure there are three digits missing but if it's the right gun at the right end of the right state the odds are... not as awful as they could be, maybe.

At one point there was an NES group buy of M91/30 rifles fresh from the crate ("grab whichever one you like") and nobody (at least at first) realized that the bayonets were serialized to go with the rifles, so people mostly had the wrong bayonets. Kind of a small tragedy as these things go, but annoying. People who cared posted their serial numbers and I got a note a long time later (well after I'd given up hope) from somebody with "my" bayonet to trade to me. Weird things happen.

 

[Sparkey]

The exact guns will be hard if not impossible to find but replacements shouldn’t be to hard as they are all fairly common guns.
If you posted serial numbers I would check I have a Savage 24D and A Remmy 760 in 30-06

 

[greencobra]

i seriously hope you find your unicorns and bring them home. if that happens the first thing i'd do is go out and play lotto.

 

[Mtn_Guy]

Your best bet is to contact the ATF… provide them all of your pertinent information, everything you know about the guns and let them do the search for you. They are very helpful.

 

[one-eyed Jack]

Your best bet is to contact the ATF… provide them all of your pertinent information, everything you know about the guns and let them do the search for you. They are very helpful.

View attachment 556517

Your best bet is to contact the ATF… provide them all of your pertinent information, everything you know about the guns and let them do the search for you. They are very helpful.

View attachment 556517

Your best bet is to contact the ATF… provide them all of your pertinent information, everything you know about the guns and let them do the search for you. They are very helpful.

View attachment 556517

 

[MisterHappy]

Anything is possible, go for it.

I was at a State Shoot, and a guy saw I was using an A5 - He wanted some info about his. I compared serial numbers, and it was produced the same, or one day off either way, from mine! In 99 years of production!

 

[one-eyed Jack]

Your best bet is to contact the ATF… provide them all of your pertinent information, everything you know about the guns and let them do the search for you. They are very helpful.

View attachment 556517

Really? Good luck with that. They will trace guns for LE if requested. That's about it. Jack.

 

[40 Creedmoor fan]

2. Browning Auto 5 Trap Lite (12 ga)

Browning Shotguns - A5 for sale

Browse all new and used Browning Shotguns - A5 for sale and buy with confidence from Guns International.

www.gunsinternational.com

Remington 760

https://www.gunbroker.com/All/search?Keywords=remington%20760%2030-06&Sort=13

Savage 24D O/U. (22LR over .410)

https://www.gunauction.com/shop/savage/24

Just a few places you can search and keep an eye on until something pops up. None of these guns are "special" in MA's AG so any FFL will be able to handle them.

 

[CRSIII]

I hear vampires usually can’t come in unless you invite them.
Just saying.

Edit for sp.

 

[Mtn_Guy]

Your best bet is to contact the ATF… provide them all of your pertinent information, everything you know about the guns and let them do the search for you. They are very helpful.

View attachment 556517

For emphasis?

 

[one-eyed Jack]

For emphasis?

Screwd up. Sorry. See post #14. Jack.

 

[Mtn_Guy]

Really? Good luck with that. They will trace guns for LE if requested. That's about it. Jack.

It’s called sarcasm…

 

[namedpipes]

If you have the SN, it could be a ton of work and yield nothing or it could work:

You will need to offer some sort of reward for the rifles. Maybe offer to buy them for more than the market value or offer the replacement with the same rifle.

- join every forum, I mean EVERY FORUM and post the serial numbers.

- print flyers for every gun store and ask them if they will let you post them. This will include a lot of driving.

- maybe let every single pawn shop know.

Bah. Just report them stolen. ATF will trace them for you. You'll have them back in a couple days.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

I would also haunt the web pages of gun shops that put their inventory online. If you look at Four Seasons for instance ( https://used.fsguns.com/ ) they post redacted versions of serial numbers. Sure there are three digits missing but if it's the right gun at the right end of the right state the odds are... not as awful as they could be, maybe.

Just type in the full serial number in the "consignment sellers check here" box at the bottom of used.fsguns.com. I think it will also find the shop owned guns that match.

 

[one-eyed Jack]

It’s called sarcasm…

View attachment 556553View attachment 556554View attachment 556555

Sometimes hard to tell here on NES. Megan.

 

[natking52696]

The exact guns will be hard if not impossible to find but replacements shouldn’t be to hard as they are all fairly common guns.
If you posted serial numbers I would check I have a Savage 24D and A Remmy 760 in 30-06

Thanks! I just posted the serial numbers to the original post.

 

[one-eyed Jack]

Another VERY long shot, but I know of one FFL who closed up shop but made and kept copies of the Bound Book before sending his stuff to ATF. Those copies may or may not exist if this was done. You would have to spend big bucks on someone who does this kind of "investigating". Jack.

 

[Mountain]

Good luck in your search! It is good news that these are relatively common guns and not highly sought collectibles that someone would search for from across the country then have shipped. Most likely they did not go far. Perhaps post at local gun shops and all the nearby clubs? Something might pop up.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

Another VERY long shot, but I know of one FFL who closed up shop but made and kept copies of the Bound Book before sending his stuff to ATF. Those copies may or may not exist if this was done. You would have to spend big bucks on someone who does this kind of "investigating". Jack.

MA cartells PI licenses to retired LEOs (indirectly, via the investigative experience requirement), so using a PI may include renting his/her LE connections.

 

[GaryO]

 

[Broc]

Really? Good luck with that. They will trace guns for LE if requested. That's about it. Jack.

Are you having another argument with yourself?

Guys, whos turn was it to watch him?

 

[Broc]

Could be smart to type the SN in the thread title, thsr way they come up if someone ever searches the SN.

 

[one-eyed Jack]

Well, I hit "Quote" and then "Reply". Sometimes I can reply and sometimes not. I think that Megan has been screwing around with this POS DELL. Works fine for two years and now this. Jack.