Nova | Antique (Factory New)

Skin overview

Nova | Antique styles the shotgun as an old hunting piece, with a dark weathered barrel, a warm red-brown wood-look forend and stock, and gold inlay accents. In Factory New the gold on the pump and the butt keeps its full brightness, and the fine engraved lines on the wood read sharp and even. The aged patina on the metal is part of the design, so this grade shows the artwork exactly as intended.

Item type: shotgun. Classified is the second-rarest weapon tier, only Covert sits above it.

Custom Paint Job: hand-painted across the whole body; this is the type where wear shows most, the artwork rubs down to metal.

Other qualities of this skin: Minimal Wear and Field-Tested.

Appearance in Factory New

The barrel and receiver are painted dark gunmetal with a mottled brown, rust-like patina that gives the metal an aged look. The pump forend is the centrepiece: a red-brown wood surface covered in fine curved engraved lines, framed by bright gold inlay at both ends. The stock repeats the theme with glossy orange-red wood, thin line work near the grip and a gold-dotted inlay on the butt. On worn copies the gold trim on the forend, the butt inlay and the raised edges of the receiver lose paint first, followed by the line pattern on the wood.

The gold inlay on the forend and butt is fully intact and keeps its metallic shine. The engraved lines on the wood are crisp, and the stock has an even gloss from grip to butt. The brown spots on the barrel and receiver are part of the print, not damage. In game the weapon reads as a clean, warm-toned shotgun with bright gold accents.

Factory New wear: float 0–0.07

The whole float range of Nova | Antique is 0–0.3; Factory New takes the 0–0.07 segment (23% of the scale). The lower the float within the range, the cleaner the surface looks and the higher a copy is usually priced.

Origin of the skin

The skin’s collection is The Phoenix Collection with 13 skins in total.

It drops from Operation Phoenix Weapon Case (on sale since Feb 19, 2014).

What it costs in each quality

Among 3 skins of the Nova in the Classified grade and this quality, this skin is the most affordable.

StatTrak™ and Souvenir

There is also a the StatTrak™ version: the counter on the weapon tracks kills. Right now it is 1.7× dearer than the regular one. There is also a the Souvenir version with tournament stickers.

Which stickers suit it

Gold, brown and dark red stickers match the wood and inlay theme, and holo or gold variants echo the trim on the forend. Placing them on the dark receiver keeps the engraved forend and the stock uncovered.

What to check before buying

• Check where the float sits within the wear range, since the gold trim on the forend shows the difference first.
• Inspect the butt inlay and the receiver edges for missing paint on Field-Tested copies.
• Look at existing stickers and name tags, because they change how the forend and receiver read.
• Do not mistake the brown spots on the barrel for wear, as they are part of the artwork.

Who should buy Factory New

• Collectors who want the gold inlay at full shine.
• Sticker crafters who need a clean base for gold-themed placements.
• The choice for those who want Antique in its intended look.