About · the house rules
About GunSerials
GunSerials is an independent collector reference for dating firearms by serial number. It exists because this information is scattered across forum threads, out-of-print books, and a dozen lookup sites that quietly copy one another — and for some guns, the sources disagree by years. We wanted one place that gathers the published records, names where each figure came from, and shows the disagreements instead of hiding them.
How the site works
Every date range on this site is transcribed from a published record — the factory ledgers at Cody, George Madis’s tables, and manufacturers’ own lists — validated for internal consistency, and cited to its source on the page. When sources conflict, we show every figure side by side and say plainly where they differ instead of arbitrating. Where enough factory letters exist, we test the tables against them and publish the score, whichever way it comes out.
The tables are estimates, not certificates. Winchester applied serial numbers out of order, records were lost, and reference authors filled gaps with arithmetic. For documentation of a specific gun, we point you to the archives that hold the original books — we don’t compete with them.
What this site is not
GunSerials is not affiliated with Winchester Repeating Arms, Olin Corporation, or any manufacturer, museum, or auction house. It does not provide legal advice: whether a particular gun qualifies as a pre-1899 antique — a gun made before 1899 — is a determination the owner must make, and for serials in a disputed range we say so plainly rather than picking the convenient answer.
It is also not infallible. The tables are transcribed and organized by people, from sources that are themselves incomplete, and despite our checks a range can be wrong or a serial can fall outside the pattern its year predicts. Nothing here is a warranty of a gun’s age, authenticity, or value. Before you buy, sell, insure, transport, or make any legal determination about a firearm, confirm its date with the archive that holds the original records.
Corrections and contact
Found an error? The data behind every page is versioned, and corrections with a citation are taken seriously — the site’s only asset is being right about what the records say. Write to hello@gunserials.com with the model, the serial range, and the source you’re citing. The version stamp in the footer tells us exactly which data you were looking at.
The same address works for anything else — a model you’d like added, a record you think we’ve misread, or a photograph of a serial location you’re willing to license.