browning sweetsixteen

Question
QUESTION: Hey Paul,
My question is about a sweet sixteen shotgun I was givin as a gift buy my
father when I was young.How can i find out the history of this gun?I know
very little of it except that it seems to have a bent barrel,bending up wards.I
cant find any markings of any sort that would suggest it had fallen to make
the barrel bent.
I do know that the serial number has a letter s in it,Does thisstand for skeet
choke? If so could this be a special skeetgun made by the factory?
It is in near perfect condition with original box with sweetsixteen
engravings,and gold trigger.Thanks for your response.

ANSWER: You can get a historical letter from Browning
http://www.browning.com/customerservice/qna/detail.asp?ID=197
You can date the gun by serial number here.
http://www.browning.com/customerservice/dategun/detail.asp?id=13

There wasn't a 16 gauge skeet model.
Letter in the serial number are model or date of production.
If the barrel is bent you should have it looked at by a local gunsmith.
If its a higher grade model it could be valuable.




---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hey Paul,OK I found the serial # it is19283.
the chart referred to this gun being made from 1903-1939?
is this correct?and if so how much do youthink it may be worth.If you cant
answer can you tell me the best way to find out? Also there is an  8s just
above the serial number any clue to what this is?
         
         THANKYOU, BRANDON  

Answer
Hi,
That when it made.
It depend on condition, grade, barrel type, and if the chamber
was lenghtened to 2 3/4 inch, if the barrel is matchs the reciever serial number. $150 to $1400 is the range of value.

DO NOT fire this gun untill you have a gunsmith check the chamber lenght.