Blue Book fo Gun Values states they were made from 1972-89, but my catalog collection shows it disappearing after the 1987 model year. Up until 1985 the catalogs specifically stated case colored frame, but after that there's no mention in the verbage about the frame finish and I can't tell from the photo's in the 85-87 catalogs if they're still case colored or if they went to a black finish like they did on the SxS shotguns and Model 24's. It's not terribly old or what I would consider a prized collectable as of yet, but it's still collectable as they weren't a high volume seller like the bolt-actions and semi-auto's were.
As for price, $199 isn't far off the mark - especially if you factor in that the Stevens Favorite has been discontinued for a couple years now. If you like it and want it I wouldn't sweat the $25 difference in your opinion on what the price should be.
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