I'm in Canadaicon, have examined countless numbers of Long Branches (1942 -1950) and own a few very good examples. These were never issued with a serial number stamped on the forend or magazine. I have however seen Long Branches that went into service or sold out of service to clubs that were serialized on these components for easy of identication or kept parts from being mixed. Long Branchs transferred to NZicon are quite often serialized on the mag and sometime forend however it was done by the receiver not the source. This subject has been discuss a few times and I'm sure a few others will chim in. Ron