Hi Tom A! An opened can of worms can always be recanned....it just takes a larger can! As I look at the example pictures above... it is clear to me, that there are two completely seperate and distinct reasons for the marks. The first is to witness or index an assembly that is factory mated... to both, show if this assembly has ever been disturbed, but more, and most importantly, to provide a reference point to which the components can be returned to if disassembled or replaced! I would have to think that the witness marks were applied in a fixture that allowed for the marks to be stamped at exactly 180 degrees, for the correct front sight base location... so, if you go for this much of my theory... you will quickly realize that all witness marks will be relatively close...if not perfectly (to the naked eye) aligned... the true telltale answer to the question of origionality of the complete assembly... is not if the marks are aligned.. but if they are of the same tool strike.... as to why they would be misaligned, we can only guess!! If I was asked to verify the origionality of the barrel to receiver marks based only on the above pictures 04 & 07, I would say they are correct, as it is evident that the same tool was used to bridge both parts in the assemblies! I guess perfect is for another discussion, at another time! till...later...GT
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