Old shotgun

[MörserKarl]

Hey folks,
I was at a shop the other day and stumbled across this old shotgun. Its a 14 gauge side by side, tag said "made in Birmingham marked Archibald Reed 5 Fountain Place City Road London. The seller claimed great condition, which it seemed to be, cosmetically. It appears to have twist barrels that have been re-browned. The stock also appears to have been re finished. It has nice checkering on the stock. The bores were very dusty and looked to have some minor pitting. They certainly were not bright and flawless, but looked okay none the less. The tag claimed working order although it would definitely need to be proofed before firing even with the lightest loads. The locks were very tight in both half and full ####, they also appeared to be matching. There were some nice engravings on the locks and hammers as well. The rib was solidly attached to the barrels and there were no cracks or major dings in the stock. This gun must have been restored at one time. I did ask the clerk to let me pull the barrels off which I did. The barrels were marked with standard English black powder proof marks. I could not find any information on the maker Archibald Reed. Any one have any info on him? The seller wanted $545 for it, is this reasonable for a gun that might just be of collector value and not a shooter? I do have another muzzle loader that I shoot with light loads and it is also a twist barrel, and I still have all my fingers. Anyone with any info on this maker please chime in. I'm not a photographer so don't mind my lousy camera work.[URL=http://s854.photobucket.com/user/MorserKarl/media/IMG_0377_zps830b675d.jpg.html][/URL]

 

[gunsaholic]

Really need better pics but I think the price is a bit high in this country. I have bought nicer, or as nice a guns by well known makers for between $350.00 and $450.00. But all depends on how bad you want it. It's probably not too far off value. Just a lot of people won't pay much for an old damascus barreled muzzleloader. As far as shooting, a really good inspection of the bores is in order along with barrel wall thickness measurements.

 

[smellie]

What's the current selling price on a Citori or a Red Label 16- or 20-bore?

What will it be worth in 175 years?

Far as I am concerned, if it comes in my door, it has been 'collected'. I have collected some of the damndest junk, but also a few very nice specimens. The nice ones bring their condition, the not-so-nice ones bring their experience. This is a gun from the pioneering era of OUR country.

"What it's worth" is up to the purchaser and the seller.

Bit of clean-up and it will look good hanging on the wall.... or out in the field.

As always..... your call.

 

[gunsaholic]

Yes, actually there is more to buying these old guns than besides price. As smellie said, history is a big part of it if you are at all interested in this aspect of the firearm. It is from a by gone era and we certainly know no more are being made. Don't buy it with the hope of cashing in for some type of a profit. Buy it for what it is and why you want it. If you look at those facts, then value is whatever you want to pay to have a piece of firearms history. That being said, did you find out if the asking price is firm?

I could find no mention of this maker either which to me means he possibly wasn't very well known or else it is the name of a retailer and the gun was made by someone else. As I suggested in another thread, there are many vintage double gun enthusiasts on doublegunshop who might have information on the name. I would ask on that forum as they are quite willing to answer questions.

 

[mooncoon]

The price does not sound completely out of range for a gun in shooting condition and from your description, the gun sounds like it is probably shootable. I would suggest replacing the nipples with new stainless ones and keep in mind that the current ones probably have a thread pitch of 26 per inch rather than the north american standard of 28 per inch. You want the nipples to be a good fit and not go in loose and flopping around until they come up against a shoulder. That may meaning making them on a lathe. Also you want the threads they screw into to be in good condition and not rusted away

cheers mooncoon

 

[gunsaholic]

Looking at your pics, I notice there is no checkering on the forearm. Maybe it didn't have any but if the wood has been refinished I would look really close to see if it was sanded away when refinished. To me that would have a bit of an impact on what I would pay if the checkering was removed. All mine have checkered forearms. But, that doesn't mean this one did but just something to look at if you are considering purchasing.

 

[MörserKarl]

Thanks for the advice fellas, if the thing is still there next time I'm in the area I will take a look at it again. Just so dang hard to get a really clear look at the barrels on the inside without the breach plugs out and all the dust in there. I did drop a small penlight down on fishing line, which I bring when I plan on inspecting bores. As for the point gunsaholic made about the checkering possibly being sanded off, good point.