Taken from a hardcover 1966 Vol.114 of American rifleman. Of course, nobody really wants them old army rifles, do they? 
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Old prices - get your order in now!
- Thread starter kjohn
- Start date
At one time or another I've owned at least one of everything on that page. Many of them came through International Firearms in Canada then were distributed to Canadian/US brokers and dealers such as Ye Olde Hunter and Lever Arms.
That Norwegian really brought back some memories. They never did come in significant quantities. Many were without any finish and had seriously pitted bores. Some even had what appeared to be Waffenampts.
I bought two. I was lucky enough to be in the International warehouse to pick through a bunch for the cleanest and of course best bores. They were slathered in grease but a quick patch through the bore cleaned them up enough to check bore condition.
This was the amazing thing. The Norwegians were ANAL about matching numbers one every part on the pistols. The only parts that I couldn't find numbers on were the grips and grip screws. Every other component had a matching number.
The two pistols I bought were OK shooters but definitely not any better than a US 1911 in similar condition. They were also about twice the price of a US 1911 at the time. I sold them a decade later. I don't think I shot 20 round through either of them.
The one pistol on that page I do miss is the Astra 400.
Those were incredible times to be able to pick up and learn the differences between the handguns issued to different nations.
One thing to keep in mind, those prices represent a pretty substantial portion of a weekly paycheck at that time.
Another thing, a lot of those firearms were not nearly as nice as those in the pics.
That Norwegian really brought back some memories. They never did come in significant quantities. Many were without any finish and had seriously pitted bores. Some even had what appeared to be Waffenampts.
I bought two. I was lucky enough to be in the International warehouse to pick through a bunch for the cleanest and of course best bores. They were slathered in grease but a quick patch through the bore cleaned them up enough to check bore condition.
This was the amazing thing. The Norwegians were ANAL about matching numbers one every part on the pistols. The only parts that I couldn't find numbers on were the grips and grip screws. Every other component had a matching number.
The two pistols I bought were OK shooters but definitely not any better than a US 1911 in similar condition. They were also about twice the price of a US 1911 at the time. I sold them a decade later. I don't think I shot 20 round through either of them.
The one pistol on that page I do miss is the Astra 400.
Those were incredible times to be able to pick up and learn the differences between the handguns issued to different nations.
One thing to keep in mind, those prices represent a pretty substantial portion of a weekly paycheck at that time.
Another thing, a lot of those firearms were not nearly as nice as those in the pics.
Well, I think most of us older shooters understand that the prices are relative to the times. I posted this page just to show what was readily available in those days. Some of those guns are now quite hard to find nowadays. I bought a couple of refurbished CZ rifles in 8x57 at Army and Navy for about $39.95 each in 1965. I was making $200 a month, plus room and board.
In 1968 I had a chance to buy a nice M1903A4 Springfield sniper rifle for $100. I was making $450 a month and that was big money. But hey, there were other priorities like female companionship and the like, so I passed. I finally got an 03A4 in 1996 and I think at a good price relative to the one I passed on back in '68.
