Vintage firearms

[rmyoung1]

By a weird stroke of luck, I’ve come into a situation where I could acquire some firearms that would be of some interest to some collectors out there. I know enough to be dangerous, so I thought I’d reach out to the community here to get your take. I know guys like @Ben Lamb have forgotten more about guns than I know. What are these things worth? Which ones would get you excited?

1) Colt Single Action Army .38 special - manufactured 1940 - really nice condition w/ original box - serial #357629
2) Colt Single Action Army .357 - manufactured 1970 - again, really good condition (no box) - serial #53586SA
3) Winchester Model 64 in 25-35 - This was a working rifle and has been fitted with a model 330 Weaver Scope - serial #1166623
4) Winchester Model 54 in 25-3000 Savage - serial #40133A

 

[rmyoung1]

1)

2)

3)

4)

 

[rwc101]

Don't know anything about it, but that Winchester Model 64 in 25-35 sounds neat.

 

[Nick87]

Don't know anything about it, but that Winchester Model 64 in 25-35 sounds neat.

Agreed

 

[marksjeep]

Neat. Those Colts look darn near new. No one has buggered up the screw heads, case hardening is purdy, bluing is perfect. I have no idea what they are worth, but thanks for putting up the pics.

 

[Ben Lamb]

Hey,

Just checking back in after the holiday.

I don't kow much about the pistols, but generally speaking, the pre-war Colt will be worth more than the 1970's vintage, but both north of $1K in their condition. I'd defer to a Colt collector though, as various pistols have their own following and criteria for pricing. It's a complex world (Colt collecting) and I've never gotten into it.

The WInchesters are both fine pieces. The 54 is rare, and I'd venture it would be in the $1 - $1500 range without doing any research in to it. If it's all original, then possibly 20 - 30% more. The 64 is unique and has a great patina & look to it. As a working gun, and since it's modified, I'd say probably around $700 - $1000 depending on where you are. Maybe @BrentD knows more than I?

 

[BrentD]

Maybe @BrentD knows more than I?

No he doesn't. Revolvers are greek to me, though I own a few. The 64 is nice, but I'm more of a Marlin person. Extrapolating to Winchesters is hard, but I think it might be worth a little more than you have it for, but again, I'm not an expert, or even particularly knowledgeable.

 

[ismith]

#1 would be most desirable (and north of $3000)
#2 is next ($1500-$2500)

 

[Ben Lamb]

#1 would be most desirable (and north of $3000)
#2 is next ($1500-$2500)

Thank goodness someone who knows what they're talking about came along!

 

[ismith]

#4 would also be in the $1500-$2500 range pretty easy.

 

[rmyoung1]

Thanks, gents! So... I gobbled up the Colts. They set me back a bit, and I didn’t leave with the others. The 1st gen Peacemaker in 38 special is just really cool. Bluing is near perfect. As I understand it, that caliber was a rarer offering.

So... @ismith ... @BrentD ... @Ben Lamb ... how do I go about finding Colt collectors that might want to make me an offer?

 

[ismith]

The Colt forum would be a good place to start. https://www.coltforum.com/#/forums/56

 

[BrentD]

I don't know the specialized forums for selling Colts. I would google around a bit and see. They should be easy to find.

But honestly, I would 1. Surf Gunbroker (sold guns only) and Guns International to see what they are going for and then pick a somewhat smaller number and put it on Gunbroker with an opening bid of my minimum acceptable price. The lever gun would sell to some silhouette competitors and the best way to reach them is in the steelchickens.com forum. Put a note in both the classified and the lever gun forum. I don't think there is any charge. Keep in mind the competition people will want to know about the condition of the bore and muzzle (among other things), and they are a relatively small bunch (a few thousand I suppose) of which only a small proportion watch that site. But is the best I know of, followed by Paco Kelly's Levergun.com at https://www.levergunscommunity.org/index.php. They also have a classified and is a fairly well used website.

 

[ismith]

The best way to sell that 1st Gen Colt would be to put it on gunbroker for 14 days and start at a penny. I’d get a letter from Colt and make damn sure I had some good pictures though.

 

[ismith]

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/833892710
Here’s one on GB for 6k and it has German proof marks which is a detractor.

 

[rmyoung1]

Thanks for the help, guys! I really appreciate the input!!!

 

[rmyoung1]

I wanted to send out a follow-up to my original post because I thought you guys would find it interesting, especially those of you who chimed in earlier (@ismith @BrentD @Ben Lamb @marksjeep ) I received my Archive Letter from Colt and the pistol, though manufactured in 1940, wasn't shipped until 1954. Apparently, there were 400 of those old, Gen One Colt Single Action Army pistols that Colt put together and sold after the war as a last run of the Gen One. Apparently, many were snatched up and presented to political figures or war heroes. (J. Edgar Hoover received one as did Gen. Douglas MacArthur.) The one in my possession (pictured below) was purchased by a man named Robert Stevens. Mr. Stevens was the chairman of JP Stevens, the successful textile company. He also served as Eisenhower's Secretary of the Army from 1953-55. Mr. Stevens had a ranch near Two Dot and hired a local, named Louis Brannin, as his ranch manager. When Louis retired, Mr. Stevens hired his son, Stanton Brannin, as the ranch manager. Stanton managed the ranch for years. He never married or had any children. When Stanton died, his will stated that his niece, Kim, would be the executor of his estate. Kim is the mother of my brother's wife. I knew she was liquidating Stanton's extensive gun collection and was interested in seeing some of the firearms. She brought a car load with her to our Christmas gathering. It was there that I saw the guns above and purchased the Colt SAA. Of course, I had no way of knowing then the gun's history. But it's all pretty cool. Apparently, Mr. Stevens really liked his ranch managers and would buy them nice gifts, from time to time, and ship them to Two Dot. Apparently, this limited-run Colt was one of those gifts. And the Brannins kept it in the original box (also shown) for decades.

Pretty cool. Here's the pistol again. Looks pretty nice for 80 years old, huh?

 

[marksjeep]

That's outstanding! Being able to tie that detailed history to the gun and having it all documented. Great old gun, thanks for sharing!

 

[BrentD]

Yes, outstanding, spectacular, and just plain awesome to have a gun with such a well known history. Write that all down on good ol' analog paper and tuck it in in the box. Whomever become the next caretaker will thank you for it. That is a cool treasure.

Will you shoot it?

What were some of the other guns in Kim's car?

 

[rmyoung1]

Yes, outstanding, spectacular, and just plain awesome to have a gun with such a well known history. Write that all down on good ol' analog paper and tuck it in in the box. Whomever become the next caretaker will thank you for it. That is a cool treasure.

Will you shoot it?

What were some of the other guns in Kim's car?

Thanks guys! Yeah, it has been a pretty fun couple of days piecing everything together. I am not going to shoot it, and I'm not selling it now either. For now, I'm going to keep it in my possession. I'm sure one day I'll feel like I should pass it to someone who cares deeply, but for now I'm going hold onto it. As for the other guns in Kim's car... the Model 64 and Model 54 Winchesters (pictured at the top) were pretty cool. Stanton had a bunch of Browning shotguns that he purchased at DU shows over the years. She has quite a few of those from the late 80s. She had another newer revolver and then the 1970 Colt SAA, which I also purchased.

The interesting thing was that Stanton also owned some really, really old Colts. One was manufactured in the 1890s and was the pistol carried by his grandfather, I believe, who served as the first sheriff of Sweet Grass County if I remember correctly. There was another early Colt that was owned by Louis Brannin. But those ancient Colts aren't with Kim any longer. I think they are being transferred to Sweet Grass County Historical Society or some such entity. I never even saw them. That stuff didn't filter down the family tree very far. Truthfully, I'm pretty surprised these remaining Colts fell to me. Pretty interesting.