Found pistol. Is it real or a toy ? Conclusion to story.

MustangFrank

MustangFrank

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This pistol was found buried after being found in a tree many years ago near the Fraser River. The metal looks like pot metal by the corrosion which would make it a toy, but the expensive looking bakelite ? grips suggests it could be real plus the folding trigger. I did a lot of cleaning since it was so caked in dirt and rust. I wasn't concerned about collector value to to the condition. The cylinder moves a little but everything else is rusted together. Any thoughts ???? There are no markings at all. The pistol is 6 inches long at the most and the cylinder is around a .22 callibre size.

 
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Circa 1850 - 1870 pin fire with a folding trigger. Grips are gutta percha. Was always an inexpensive gun.

I would coat it with warm wax (ie: shoe polish) to stabilize it against further corrosion and use it as a cool paperweight on my desk.
 
It was an octagonal barrel.

Thanks for the info. Now I have a direction for my research. I only wish it had been left in the tree instead of buried, but who knows, the tree might have grown around it. It was most likely carried by someone traveling up the Fraser during the Gold Rush era or the 1850's-60's. It was found near Yale B.C.
 
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Nice! I am imagining that an old timer felt that he was packing too much weight and decided to cache the pistol in a tree but then forgot about it.
Then, some one you knew of, found it in the tree while climbing in it and decided to bury it to hide it from his parents, right? And then dug it up many
years later and gave it to you.:d
 
Every time I hear about guns on the street in Surrey, I go out and look in vain. I'll try the riverbank next time.
A bit of sandpaper and 2 grand on the EE. Just don't post pics :).
 
Robert Nicholson said:
Nice! I am imagining that an old timer felt that he was packing too much weight and decided to cache the pistol in a tree but then forgot about it.
Then, some one you knew of, found it in the tree while climbing in it and decided to bury it to hide it from his parents, right? And then dug it up many
years later and gave it to you.:d
Click to expand...

I will be going back to talk to the old timer to get as much of the story as possible. I think he is in his 90's but still has a sharp mind.

The age of the piece plus the fact that ammunition is not commonly available would render it an antique and a non firearm relic. Or something to that effect. It is not loaded.
 
I know ! So cool. I knew nothing about pinfire revolvers before yesterday. The small size and folding trigger was a favourite for women to carry in their fur hand muffs (no jokes here) or men as vest pocket pistols. They were also carried by men on bicycles to scare off dogs. There were paddle wheelers travelling up the Fraser river all the way to Hell's gate so I'm sure there was the odd card game taking place during the long trip from Vancouver.
 
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