ILION'S ARCHIVES: Remington 550-M ??????????

[usabaker]

Is there a listing of the Remington firearms that have been part of the museum and ILION'S ARCHIVES? I've collected a database of more than 1024 Remington 550 series rifles, and I have seen a lot of interesting rifles, but one that has just been put up for auction on Gun Broker has really put my brain on overtime.

This one is listed as a Remington 550-M. It doesn't have the 550 buttplate, the crown is flat, and the rifle is outfitted with Redfield target sights. I first thought someone just took a tool and made the "I" into an "M" and made their own custom 550 rifle. But then in the text it says the rifle is from the "ILION'S ARCHIVES"

Is there a way to validate this?

I'm in the middle of writing a book on the Remington 550 series of rifles and this definitely raises some questions

[Raynman]

I purchased several rifles from Gunbroker seller gunrepaircenter in Jacksonville FL. that came from the Ilion Archives.

Yes they are real, the seller will send an authenticity certificate with it but the real proof is that red tag on the trigger.

I studied several other auctions including a Model 25 that was serial number 82 an M had been hand stamped in front of the 82 after bluing from what i can discern from the pictures. My best guess is "MODIFIED" and suspect that is what you would see if you inspected that rifle pictured. There is a modification to the rifle somewhere and it was never to be sold to public. Again just a wild ass guess on my part.

The auction was and is kind of a grab bag sale, never really know what you got for sure and the pictures were not great.

It seems like the liquidators did just that...... liquidated assets, little info, no history except the hang tags. I got a Model SIX pump rifle that i believe is a test bed gun which was listed as 270 WIN that is actually 280 REM and it bears only the serial number, not another mark on it anywhere except the cartridge head sunk into the block in front of the receiver which is 280 REM and the serial number which was hand stamped. No barrel pressure test proof mark or assembler marks, whats crazy, Remington never offered that model in 280 REM.
Good luck with the historians here and that is where you need to check for info. I guess the liquidators trashed all the old paper records.
Join the society, ask the historians, I am sure there is a 550 person here or several that know a lot about that model but the stuff that was hidden in a back closet at the Ilion factory for 50+ years may not be traceable to anything but just that.

Raynman

[usabaker]

Rayman, thank you for the help and all of the information. It appreciated.