New Triangle Arsenal!!

[running-man]

While working through some of the backlog of photos I have and entering them into the NON-/26\ Serial/Arsenal Data Collection Thread, I came across the following arsenal stamp and quickly realized I have nowhere to file it because I had never seen one before:



The stamping is poor, so unfortunately I can't really say what it is with much certainty.  It may be a /015x\ or more likely a /016x\.  I honestly see /0162\, but there is an odd horizontal line in the '6" that gives me pause.  Probably need another example or two to be 100% certain.

From my limited search, I haven't found this stamp anywhere else (Howie's old lists definitely do not have this one). 

Full suite of photos from the auction that I have of this carbine:











At any rate, just wanted to hear opinions & discussion. 

[Greatguns]

Only stamp on file even close to it is 0408. Here are my thoughts on what it may be; 0102, 0152, 0162, 0182, or maybe 01662 (see below)

[running-man]

Could be GG, lots of artifacts in the blown up photo that may or may not be there.  That last character could even be an 8 like in 0408 as well. 

Looking at the photo with the full S/N in the receiver, I just noticed that it was stamped 23 and then overstamped with a '4'. 

Likely a receiver from year 23 (1978) that was already stamped and ready to be built, but not actually built & stamped with a S/N until very early year 24 (1979)

[Greatguns]

Given how low the SN is it is very possible. Left over from '78 and re-issued to be a '79. Makes you wonder if that is what happened to the arsenal stamp as well. Poorly scrubbed and re-stamped (also poorly) to a different arsenal number. Maybe started out as an 0408 then sent elsewhere and changed to 0130A. That could be a possibility. Those 2 arsenals over-layed could account for the faint odd indents.

[Boris Badinov]

Might the threaded barrel be a clue?

Are there any arsenals that began threaded barrel production AFTER the introduction of the pinned barrel Tye56?

Possibly this could be an updated version of the /156\ arsenal stamp?

[Greatguns]

When they picked production back up at /26\ they still used threaded barrels didn't they???

[Boris Badinov]

When they picked production back up at /26\ they still used threaded barrels didn't they???

Yes.

A handful of other arsenals also made the threaded barrel variant until the end of military production in 1984.

[Phosphorus32]

Interesting 




Well, we know there are at least 5 of them out there somewhere in the world