Antique Flintlocks Harder to Find

I think there are fewer out there & with the Canadian to U.S. dollar, you have more U.S. collectors in the market as well.
 
Many of our best guns have been going south of the border for years. More and more people looking, less and less guns available as more collectors grab them and squirrel them away never to be seen again or sell them south for the Yankee dollar. The low quality stuff floats around but now that high quality antique guns are fetching some serious coin Canadian buyers are scarce, our American neighbours appreciate the good stuff too and that's where the market is today. We get to play with the culls. I refuse to sell any scarce, historical or high quality piece out of the country, period.
 
Hanging to those antique is a no brainer, shooting my 69 caliber flinter 8 inch hand cannon is exelerating. YMMV
 
I think part of the answer is also that antique flintlock guns are at the older end of the spectrum to start with. I see relatively few compared to percussion guns, at local shows

cheers mooncoon
 
I'd like a nice longer barreled rifled percussion pistol in a modest caliber for target shooting. Just can't seem to spend what they go for at auction lately though.
 
Had some luck collecting at the start of the year but lately antique flint gun availability has completely dried up.

How are you other flint gun collectors doing ?
 
Loyer said:
Had some luck collecting at the start of the year but lately antique flint gun availability has completely dried up.

How are you other flint gun collectors doing ?
Click to expand...

It was never good to begin with ... probably in part not a lot of Canadian (British!) gun makers about in the 1700s ... mostly armorers who took their pay cheques and headed back to England when their contract was up, and in part the US market is 10x the size and they gobble up everything especially if it has a known maker's name (the maker doesn't even have to be that good!!)

You are probably not gonna get what you are looking for on the internet (IMO) - you will probably have to do some legwork and get tucked in with some of the collectors and well known builders...

That or .. look South :(
 
I saw at least 20 flintlock pistols at the last Orangeville Gun show, but none were cheap. If you are willing to pay the price they are not that hard to find.
 
Does anyone know how much the Joe Salter "parts" Brown Bess sold for ? It went within minutes. I saw it an hour after posting and JS hasn't returned my email question .
 
The supply is finite. Loss through fires, export, etc.
Don't know that much is being found in attics anymore. Most are in collections - surface occasionally, estate liquidations.
Good stuff is priced appropriately. Auctions and dealers sometimes have decent pieces.

Watch the big American auctions - the number of items is remarkable compared with what turns up on this side of the razor wire.

Occasionally you get lucky. My best find is a James Wilkinson & Son single 16 bore shotgun dating to September 1822. Probably the only English "best" I'll ever own.
I'd love to find a fine flint double, that isn't priced like a good used car...
 
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