stevens model 87A

[tahunua001]

hello all, a friend of mine recently was given a pair of guns that had belonged to his grandfather. one is a handgun so is the subject of a different forum but the other is a stevens/savage model 87A. I have been trying to do some research for him but i'm finding a lot of conflicting information from site to site so I was wondering if I could get some coroberating information on TFL.

I was wondering what period this gun would have been manufactured?
is it a stevens with savage stamped on it?
is it a savage with stevens stamped on it?
how much would it be worth(we'll say high ball and lowball prices)?

it is showing a little surface rust and the stock is dinged in places but it's in very good condition for sitting in a closet for 6+ decades.

thank you all ahead of time for your help.

 

[shurshot]

Oh yes, I have one, an 87 Stevens, belonged to Gramps. he put plenty of meat on the table with it, and might have even taken a deer or two with head shots. This was LONG ago, mind you and during hard times. His Family had to eat, so PLEASE don't judge him by todays ethics and Politicaly Correct world. He always said, if he only had ONE gun, and he had to head for the hills (today we call it a "SHTF gun"), it would be a good .22 rifle (his, the model 87), as they will drop ANYTHING with proper shot placement. .22 Ammo is very cheap, and light weight. .22 semi's shoot VERY fast, great for game or self defense. As a kid, I watched him shoot a BIG vicious dog (that had attacked his livestock), with this .22 Stevens, 2 quick head shots, .... game over, "BANG, BANG", that quick,... dropped right in it's tracks. The cattle were fine after that. Me, I got to dig the hole in the hot sun!

My 1949 Stoeger catalog lists it for $27.95 MSRP. Stevens or Savage, no matter, it's the same gun. Savage bought out Stevens in 1920. Back before 1968, guns could be ordered by mail, and many Mom & Pop stores and most Hardware stores, "Jobbers", etc. sold guns and ammo, so I'm guessing Gramps didn't pay MSRP.
Depending upon condition, as you described, without seeing it...$75 to $140 or so, perhaps more, at least in New England. Remember, Condition is everything! Steel wool and sewing machine oil and light buffing will remove the rust you speak of. These are good little shooters and Numerich Arms (or whatever their name is now), have parts if needed. He should clean it up and keep it, use it, and enjoy it. They don't make .22 rifles like that anymore.
I still use mine for small game on occassion. I refinished it about 15 years back. I took the pic along with a few of Gramps other things. Yes, he was an old school 40's / 50's survivalist / backwoodsman. A very cool guy. I was blessed to have learned about hunting, fishing, guns, etc. from him. Damn I miss the WW2 generation!
Here is my 87A, Gramps old vintage Cold War era "SHTF" rifle...

 

[OcelotZ3]

A fun rifle, very accurate. If you have feed issues check over at rimfirecentral.

I really like the one I inherited from my father.

 

[Scorch]

Oh yeah, the 87, the old "single shot semiauto". If you hold the trigger to the rear, it holds the bolt open after you fire. It came from an era when semis were considered wasteful and you needed to control your fire. They made them from sometime in the late 1930s to well into the 1980s.

 

[shurshot]

Yes, they function as a single shot (with bolt pushed in), bolt action repeater, or in semi=auto form. And they sold for considerably less than the Remington semi-auto.