Lyman Alaskan manufacturing date

[JAYFMT]

Any known website where I can check the serial number of a Lyman Alaskan to see when it was made?

[madsenshooter]

No, but I have some idea based on serial #, and whether of not it has adjustment covers. The ones without covers were only made from 37-41 and there were less than 4,000 of them made before they switched to the All Weather. Other features can date them too, for example the shape of the ocular bell changed when they went to two lenses in the mid to late 1950s.

[JAYFMT]

The two I have are serialed 11119 and 43037 if that helps.

[madsenshooter]

42-44 on the 11119 and 43037 ought to be mid to late 50s production, it should have the larger ocular bell, but that's not always the case. I think Lyman waited until Norman Ford was about under before they went to that, so they didn't have anyone claiming they copied it. The Norman Ford has better optics than the Alaskan with a single ocular lens, in my opinion.

[JAYFMT]

Thanks for the input. The 43037 does have the larger bell and I just replaced it with the 11119 on my 03A4 as it has the post and cross hair reticule which I like better. The 43037 has the standard cross hair reticule.

[madsenshooter]

An 03A4 would be such a wonderful place for an Alaskan with a Litschert booster! I used to use one on my Krag, but had to sell it during hard times. It looked pretty nice on there. Glad to help, I got into the little things for awhile and researched them quite a bit.

[Johnny in Texas]

I would date the scopes at '45-49

[madsenshooter]

Too late for 11109, they made around 4000 in 4yrs, but production ramped up with the start of the war and they continued the serial #s from those early exposed turret models. Too early for the larger ocular bell, it didn't make it until the 50s. According to Bob Bell in The Gun Digest Book of Scopes and Mounts, it was in the 1950s that the length of the Alaskan was increased from 10.5" to 11.25". The majority of, if not all of, that length came from the longer ocular bell.

[Col. Colt]

Lyman Alaskan 2815x (x= serial number place holder) measures 10.5" with the bell cranked all the way in for focus. So the bigger bell would seem to have been adopted some time after 28,000 units. Or did Lyman mix them up?? I would think not, if they got matched sets of lenses from Bausch & Lomb for each scope.

Does anybody have a boxed Alaskan with the original, dated sales recipt to match to a serial number - or the same for a rifle that was bought with a new Alaskan? CC

PS - This scope has a tapered Post, without a crosswire. It came mounted in a set of Redfield vertical split, blued rings. CC

[madsenshooter]

Col. Colt, I can only guesstimate that your scope would have been produced in the late 40's or early 50s, before Lyman began using the longer ocular bell. What you're asking for in your second paragraph would sure narrow down the approximate start of production for the longer scopes. Never know, someone might have what you're seeking. I have swapped short and long bells on my scopes, not much difference that I could see, perhaps a wee bit clearer with the longer bell. I don't have any Alaskans left to play with now, but I do think the Texan with its two lenses in the bell is clearer than a short belled Alaskan.