recently purchased gun

Question
i recently got a stevens single barrel single shot shotgun.  it's very dirty and needs a good cleaning to get the rust off.  on one side it says nitro special.  on the top of the barrel it says pat. march 12 1913.  i can't read everything yet due to the cleaning it still needs.  can you tell me of anyway to finish cleaning the gun so i can find out what exactly it is and it's full value

Answer
Hello Josh. For starters, a Stevens single-shot shotgun is pretty low on the list of valuable guns. To clean it so as to be able to read all the writing,remove the stock and forearm then use OO Steel wool with gun oil and a lot of elbow grease. GUN SMITH ALERT!!! Do not try to fire it until you have had it checked by a competent gun smith. If it checks out OK, it will only be worth shooting or wall hanging. Full value for your shotgun is around $40.00-$50.00. I hope this answers your questions and thank you for asking for me. Charles Gage