Navy magazine with blued body ?

[lfid]

Norm,
bright light and magnifier and various angles for about 30 mins , with my best near vision glasses and before the doze ...

I think serial is more likely 8031 than 3031 , since the top curl of the first digit is not as tall as the top curl in the clearer 3 3rd digit , and it doesnt seem likely they would have used number dies with that much variance for the same digit

I dont think the base has been changed out on this mag - the base pin is tight and looks aged like the lower mag body and has no tool marks on pin or mag body

please add to the orphan navy list as could be either number ( assuming 3031 and 8031 are in the range of valid navy serials )

are these large font serials running down the back plane of the base actually correct for a 1916-17 Navy ? or more likely for a 1906/1908 Navy ?

regarding my second mag that looks very similiar but with standard unnumbered base, I now think it has a partial proof mark on the base - did dwm proofmark unnumbered mags ? looks maybe like small crown over a C with a toupe between the C and crown

anybody have ideas on valuation for this Navy mag ? and also the similar standard base mag ?

thanks !

[Norme]

Hi Bill, Thanks for the serial number. Large numerals running lengthwise are correct for Navy magazines. Navy magazines in decent shape run from $300.00 to $500.00, however that cracked base really hurts. I'd guess $150.00 or thereabouts.
Regards, Norm