August 2017 Newsletter
This Newsletter Goes to Over 20,000 Firearms Collectors,
Enthusiasts, Historians and Professionals Worldwide
Over 5000 Vintage Gun Catalogs, Books and Manuals from the 1840s to the 2000s
Inside:
Parts Suppliers, Gun Makers, Brands & Models, Appraisers
Serial Numbers by Year for your Gun |
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Back issues: you can view the newsletter on our website. For a downloadable copy of our catalog of reprints or manuals this will take you there. Also, we have Interesting downloads at our website. Please forward this letter to your friends.
Judging by the saddle style, this unidentified cowboy was working in the late 1870s or 1880s. In his holster, he carries a Colt model 1873 single action revolver with hard rubber grips, and he has looped his left arm around a Winchester model 1873 carbine in a saddle scabbard. On the back of the photo is the light pencil inscription “Indian fighter.”
Hoops had to be removed before taking your seat in a carriage and then they were hooked onto the back of the carriage. We wonder how all that played out in the street.
thanks to Dick Salzer
Half of Detroit’s 8 mayoral candidates are felons
This sounds tasty doesn't it?
Fake news has been on Maggie Farley's mind further back than 2016 when President Trump brought the term into the vernacular. Farley, a veteran journalist, says we've had fake news forever and that "people have always been trying to manipulate information for their own ends."
So one day she says an idea came to her: build a game to test users' ability to detect fake news from real. Voilà, Factitious. Give it a shot. (And take it from us, it's not as easy as you might think!)
The game's interface mimics the dating app Tinder, which made swiping famous. On a phone, players swipe left when they think the article in front of them is fake, and right when they believe it's real.
What's That Up Your Sleeve, Pardner?
Hot off the Press! A Brand New Complete study of the Historical antique .41 Rim-Fire cartridge black powder round in this attractive hardcover 8.5x11. This new study reveals the "accurate" truth regarding the real potential and potency of this early Old West derringer round. A comfortable and easy reading book with clear and focused photo's that depict a clear understanding and transition of the .41 rim-fire history that spans over 140 years of manufacture. Don't miss out on getting your copy. Available on Amazon.com. for $24.95.
No, this isn't a paid plug. Rob
Wisdoms
- My goal for 2017 was to lose just 10 pounds. Only 15 to go.
- Ate salad for dinner. Mostly croutons & tomatoes. Really just one big round crouton covered with tomato sauce. And cheese. FINE, it was a pizza. I ate a pizza.
- How to prepare Tofu:
- Throw it in the trash
- Grill some meat
- I just did a week's worth of cardio after walking into a spider web.
- I don't mean to brag, but I finished my 14-day diet food in 3 hours and 20 minutes.
- A recent study has found women who carry a little extra weight live longer than men who mention it.
- Kids today don't know how easy they have it. When I was young, I had to walk 9 feet through shag carpet to change the TV channel. OK, we didn't have a carpet.
- Senility has been a smooth transition for me.
- Remember back when we were kids and every time it was below zero outside they closed school? Me neither.
- I may not be that funny or athletic or good looking or smart or talented. I forgot where I was going with this.
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Last Month - As many of you have noticed it is summer, and it is hot. So, with a load of outdoor chores to do I have done darn all in the way of preparing new books, catalogs and manual reprints for this newsletter, sorry. Instead we noted some of our favorites and show how to use some website links.
A Long Time Ago: After the Navy I was in Florida dating Abby. I had rejoined the Civil Air Patrol and used Air Force aircraft to move about for my job. It wasn’t strictly by the book, but I got to know some of the pilots and they were willing to let me sneak on. One Sunday evening I drove Abby’s Austin America to Ft Lauderdale or Miami airport (I don’t recall which) and boarded a Military Air Command C-130 to Jacksonville. As we were taxiing out to the runway some fellow passengers shouted “there is a girl following us yelling and waving her arms” like a scene from Casablanca. We got the pilot to stop. Of course it was Abby who, completely out of breath, gasped that she wanted her darn keys back so she could get home. Very embarrassing.
50 Years Ago Last Month- McCain and the Forrestal Incident. There has been an email circulating claiming, among other things, that John McCain was responsible for setting the fire on the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Forrestal in 1967 resulting in bombs and rockets exploding on the flight deck and the deaths of some 134 men. While it is true McCain was in his aircraft on the flight deck during the event, he could not have caused the explosions by making what was called a “wet start”. A pilot showing off could cause a wet start by dumping a bunch of raw fuel into his afterburner then starting his engine. This causes a belch of flame out the back end and is pretty impressive. McCain was flying an A-4 with no afterburner (reheat) and the tail was pointing out to sea so he could not have been responsible for the explosion.
Back in the Fifties: My dad, Bob Mouat, was picking up someone at New York’s, La Guardia airport in the fall of 1957. It was raining and foggy so by not asking directions and forging ahead as was his style, he ended up on the active runway in his bright red Oldsmobile 88 convertible that my mom called Ethelred the Unready. My dad was hunched over the wheel wiping the inside of the windshield with a rag as the pneumatic wipers ineffectually moved rain to and fro on the outside. Bob was startled when a four engine DC 6 passed very close overhead. Unperturbed, he followed the aircraft to the terminal where he got an earful from the Captain. He found his way off airfield with his passenger who got, what I guess you might call, “ramp pickup service”. I gather both driver and passenger left rather embarrassed.
Years later I was talking with a TWA pilot and told him what I thought was the greatly exaggerated story. To my surprise, he said, “That was your dad? He could have killed a whole planeload of people you know!” I chuckled because I never really believed my dad and here was the proof. Today he would have been chased by a battalion of Special Forces and sent to Guantanamo.
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Flintlock Revolvers???
Ben Nicholson and Frank Graves have collaborated on an intensive study of one of the most iconic of all early firearms, the Collier Revolving Firearms. This study addresses every known survivor and presents an amazing number of variations of this rare weapon.
The article appeared in the June issue of Arms Heritage Magazine and can be read in the Archives section of the magazine along with the hundreds of other articles published over the last six and a half years.
A mere $19 gets you a year of new subscriptions but also access through the archives to 6 1/2 years of the best research and most interesting articles in the collector world. Check in at Arms Heritage Magazine
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Here are some of our favorite publications:
Oh, please buy through our website. We like the auction sites but that costs commission money and every buck helps keep us in business. Thanks!
- Military weapon collectors will find scores of manuals and descriptions all in one place here:
We offer website categories to give some broad divisions of origin (under the four main categories are a couple of our favorites):
- British and Commonwealth The above will take you to a load of British publications as well as those of Australia, New Zealand, S. Africa and Canada
- German, Austrian and Swiss We do a load of publications from German speaking countries, many printed in German.
- ALFA Arms of the World (German - Eng, Sp, Fr, Eng text) 1911 Gun Catalog Wonderful book of main line and unusual guns from around the world- swords, ammo, accessories and all sorts of oddities like two pages of palm guns, see the index. Egypt, Argentina, Belgian, Brazil, Chili, Bulgaria, China, Denmark, England, France, Greece, Italy, American, Austria, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Serbia, Spain and Turkey you name it! One of the greatest catalogs of arms and outdoor living ever published.
- WUM 1932 (German- Eng, Fr, Sp, & Ger Text) Gun & Sports CatalogAnother milestone catalog even bigger than the 1911 Alfa, again check the index for more things than you can imagine.
- Waffen und Schiesstechnischer 1943 Leitfaden fur die Ordnungspolizei (color) Wartime catalog a must for German military collectors. Also available in B&W- see the website.
The website has these specialty categories (among others):
Big Game Hunting (in addition to all the manufacturer catalogs we offer):
19th Century Favorites:
- James Bown 1876 & Son Enterprise Gun Works & Sporting Goods
- Fisher, Homer - 1880 Catalogue, NY, NY
- GW Turner & Ross 1883 Fire Arms Gun Catalog, Boston
- Hodgekins & Haigh c1883 Guns & Access Catalog, NY
- Curry and Bro., 1884 Catalogue, San Francisco
- A. Ross Co. 1884 Firearms Catalog, Boston, MA
- EC Meacham Arms Co. 1885 Gun & Sport Goods Catalog, St. Louis
- John P. Moore 1886 Catalog, NY
- John P. Lovell 1887 Gun Catalog, Boston
- John P. Lovell Arms Co. 1890 Gun Catalogue, Boston
- George W. Harder 1890 Illustrated Gun Catalogue, Williamsport, PA
- Fletcher, Jenks & Co. 1891 Guns & Sports, Detroit, MI
- EC Meacham Arms Co. Gun Catalog 1893, St Louis
- Ingersoll, Robert & Bros. Sporting Goods & Sundry 1894 New York
- Gemmer, JP Catalog - 1898, St. Louis, Mo
Pre-war Favorites (1900-1939)
- Dunham-Fulton Gun Co. 1905 Catalog, Oshkosh, WI
- Frank P. Hall Co. 1910 Gun Catalog, Columbus, Ohio
- Greer & Lang 1914 Gun & Sporting Goods Catalog- Wheeling W. Va.
- Hingston Smith Arms Co. Ltd. 1915 Catalog, Manitoba, Canada
- John Pritzlaff 1915 Gun & Sport Goods, Milwaukee, WI
- Galef Sporting 1925 Catalog, NY
- Von Frantzius, P c1928 Gun and Sport Catalog, Chicago, Ill.
- Oppelman 1930 Imported & Gun Catalog, Lynchburg, VA
- Bourne & Bond Guns and Hunting Catalog 1933-34, Louisville, KY
- John B. Varick Co. 1934 Gun Catalog, Manchester, NH
- Elmira Arms Company 1934 Gun & Sport Catalog, Elmira NY
- Galef, JL 1939 World's Fair Issue Gun, Fishing & Sports Catalog, NY
- Howe's Greatest Bargain Book 1939-40 Catalog, Cooper's Mills, Me
Unusual Weapons:
- Charles Osborne & Co. 1905 - (UK) Firearms & Sports Catalogue Check out the alarm guns with rockets to catch poachers! Great period catalog.
- Dardick Magazine-fed Revolver Handgun c1959 Strange triangular bullets!
- Dardick c1958 Magazine-Fed Revolver Flyer, New York, NY
- Smith & Wesson 1968 Mercox Dart Projectile Gun Catalog Tear gas, Dye Marker, Hypodermic, High Explosive... what do you need?
- Federal Gas Protection Laboratories 1934, Pittsburgh, PA Store Holdup, no problem, just gas everybody!
- Heckler & Koch/Dynamit Nobel G11 Caseless SMG c1981 - Caseless Ammunition!
- Westley Richards & Co. 1812 - 1912 Centennial Catalog Punt gun- 1" bore shotguns! Just mount this baby on your skiff and take out the whole flock! (for more punt guns, enter the word "punt" in the search bar at the website)
- WW Greener c1950 Harpoon Gun Catalog (the ultimate arrow!)
- FLOBERT - ALL CATALOGS Odd little guns that were often shot indoors at parties!
- Evans Gaming Company 1909-1910 Cheating Equipment (Illinois) "Pocket book Hold Out. A 1908 Invention. By simply laying your Poket Book in front of you... you are ready to operate. By a slight pressure... you cause the receiver to Palm your hand to bring cards at will...". Dice, cards, roulette, carni games, all of it.
- J & E Stevens 1924 Cap Pistols, Mechanical Banks, Toys Etc. Even a bank that today would not be considered politically correct.
Of course the Bannermans are the best! And we think the 1927 catalog is best year. The Bannerman company lasted for 100 years and Jane Bannerman at age 92 gave us permission to reproduce the catalogs.
Francis Bannerman was the first person to think of selling surplus war goods to the public rather than scraping them. He also supplied whole countries with weapons and had a wonderful store in NY I remember as a youth. When the City Fathers of New York discovered he had hundreds of tons of explosives stored in the basement of his store at 579 Broadway they invited him to move them. He bought an island on the Hudson near West Point and built a castle to serve as an armory. It is still there, well, most of it anyway. The catalogs sold everything you can imagine- cannons, buttons, swords, rifles, saddles... A must for any collector.
Gratis too:
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(Dear Abby) scheufler pistolerevolve prussia made- Do you have any info on this firearm. barry lynn watson
Dear Mr. Watson: Our friends at Cornell Publications have asked me if I might be able to tell you some information about your inquiry. Can you send a photo of this gun? If so, take photos of both sides, and try to take close-up photos of any marks or engraved words.
Does it look anything like these guns: Notice the second pistol has no hammer. The top pistol is marked B. Scheufler, Berlin? Mike Carrick
(Dear Rob) Please cancel my order I did not realize that this is just a Xerox copy I will return and cancel VISA card purchase mmm73221 (Ebay)
Dear Ms. Moran, Nothing we do is Xeroxed, we print to order and have over 18000 positive feedbacks at Ebay over the last 10 years or so. Our project is to preserve old weapon publications for the future before they are all gone. While I admit not everything we do is perfect because we worked with over 6000 originals in varying condition and age I’ll certainly cancel your order, especially if you thought this was an original, or would you like us to mail you one of the books you ordered so you can see what we do? Cheers, Rob
(Dear Rob) Please cancel my order I only collect original Thank you mmm73221 (Ebay)
Dear Ms. Moran, (I figured you didn’t read the ad and the Xerox comment was just an insult to make us refund your money- boy, I wish I could say that, but the Ebay police would wet their pants, Rob). Doesn't happen often but it does happen. Abby will cancel the order. Rob
(Dear Abby) I have an original Lawrence Leather Goods #110. (very nice). buy my catalog? Jim Boeke
Dear Jim, We are not collectors, we are trying to preserve these old publications before they are all gone so we normally borrow from the owner and return them after we make a scan. We offer over 6000 different catalogs and manuals but we don't sell more than one a year of the Lawrence catalogs we have. That means we couldn't pay you what you probably want for your copy. Would you like to lend it to us? Cheers, Rob
Rob, You already have one of the Catalog #110 on your site so it is probably not needed to make a copy of. Thanks Jim
Dear Abby, The manuals arrived yesterday. But the quality of the printing is not what I was expecting. The printing on some pages is not straight, the texts on the bottom and the side of these pages are cut and are missing. It seems that the problem is the cutting of the pages not the printing which is perfect. I look forward to your explanations and solution. Sincerely, Eletta
Dear Eletta, Sorry, we just returned yesterday. I must have cut the manual incorrectly, I'll do another for you today. Cheers, Rob
Hi Rob, Hope you had a nice break. I don’t know if the problem was the cut. Like I tried to explain the lines are not straight and the text is not centered into the page. And I also find that the size of the manual is a smaller than the original booklet which is 5.5 inches long and 4 inches high. I am sorry to bother you but I would so much to get the same manual to replace mine which is irremediably damaged. Thank you for your help. Best regards, Eletta
Dear Eletta, I'm sorry we can't make precise copies of the original pieces we offer, not with over 5000 different manuals, books and catalogs, each with different paper, sizes and binding methods. Abby and I try hard to do a good job but there are limits to what we can accomplish given that our main interest is preserving old material. I’ll ask Abby to refund your money. Also, this may explain a bit better what we do. Cheers, Rob
Hi Rob, I am aware that I asked you the impossible, the perfect printing of the copy of the manual, and I am sincerely sorry that it ended like that. Thank you Rob and Abby for the refund. I will continue to search for an second-hand original manual. My very best regards, Eletta
(Dear Rob) Hello, I own a Winchester model 72 and I want to work on the trigger pull. I use the gun for target shooting. Nice gun but bad trigger pull. Does Winchester Model 69a, 72, 75 Complete Takedown Manual have detail info. on trigger assembly and how many pages are there?? Looking forward to hearing from you. Thanks. 1fast_428 (Ebay)
Dear fast… There is a trigger pull adjusting screw which the manual shows. It is pretty simple really so it is just shown on a half dozen pages along with detailed take-apart if you want to do that too (I would not take it apart though, I'd just adjust the pull). Rob
Dear Abby, Love the Winchester Model 77 Complete Takedown Manual. It was a big help. Many thanks. Tony wing.
Dear Abby, I am looking for a manual which explains how to disassemble and clean the H & R Reising Mod 65 .22cal semi auto WWII trainer. Albert Lind
Dear Mr. Lind, Sorry, we don’t have a manual for that weapon. Abby
(Dear Abby) Marlin 1963 Guns Catalog- Can you send a pic as to what that page looks like akhooters7 (Ebay)
Dear akh… No, we just can't do single pages, sorry. Abby
(Dear Abby) Antique guns question I have a .22 breach load single shot rifle with a patent date of Oct 7th 75.serial # 75447 Can you tell who mamufactured it - garry Sparkman
Garry, That is sort of like asking to identify a car with "four seats and an engine number". I really can't help you there. Almost every manufacturer made breech loading rifles- rolling block, lever, bolt etc. but yours with a patent date of 1875 would be the former two, if 1975 who knows? Serial numbers were given to some rifles but not all and different models by the same maker often have the same number or even repeats with the same model. Best, Abby
Hello Abby, Do you have a catalog reprint of Savage Rifles for year 1917 ? If so does it contain Savage 99 Rifles in catalog ? I have a Savage 99 rifle made in 1917 Thank You Michael Dahl
Hi Michael, We have this one which could be a 1917 but is undated so I chose "c1916". Savage c1916 Arms Company No. 60 Catalog. Cheers, Abby
Hey all, Grammer correction- I received in the mail today the book...Stevens Arms Company History by Joe Vorisek. On the back of the book is a short history of Mr. Vorisek. Please re-read the page and make corrections to repeated words. Beginning with the following sentence.. His enthusiasm for firearms began when he was... and you have repeated words. Just thought you may want to know and make the corrections. Thank you for the book I find it very interesting. Kathy
Thanks Kathy. I'll fix the typo as soon as I can make our network accept changes on the print PC! It's always something that causes a problem with computers isn't it? I'll check Joe's other books as well. By the way, fyi, grammer is spelled grammar. Cheers, Rob
Abby n Rob: Re: Question in July 2017 newsletter: Craig Fay will not find anything about the Model 1886 Winchester rifle in .33 WCF caliber in any 1886 dated catalog. The cartridge did not come out until 1903. I don't know how long it took to show up in company literature. Jim Watson
Rob, Received new pub. It's exactly what I wanted. Thx so much for working with me. Best, Craig
(Dear Rob) I was expecting a manual not just a one page piece of paper that I can barely read without a magnifying glass. Your letter in the package says you'll refund fully if I don't leave bad feedback on eBay so I am expecting a full refund including the shipping charge. I expect the refund in 24 hours. Cheers, Stephen
Dear Stephen, I asked Abby to refund your money as you requested. We don't have an inventory (we print to order) so please just keep the manual for the Stirling. I'm sorry it wasn't up to your expectations but that is all that came with the rifle. I also agree it is very small but it is the same size as the original. Personally, I hate the way manufacturers use the smallest type they can find to give directions just to save a couple of pennies for another piece of paper. Cheers, Rob
(Dear Rob) From the July 2017 Newsletter… You know that the self-driving bicycle in Netherlands film is a hoax, right? Cal
Hey Cal, Actually they come with a convertible hard top and with the Xenon based fuel running the twin electric motors they have a range of over 500 miles. Of course that is the special lightweight model with the traction control and off-road lane tracking package! That model will also follow this year's model and be available April 1st. Cheers, Rob
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Nobody said anything really stupid this month so the R&R page gets a welcome rest. I guess the dumbos are all on vacation or just plain not working... hard to tell the difference sometimes. Abby
Oh, OK, here is an old one I like:
I bot this books from you with good faith you would answer my problems with the gun I am trying to ident and I thought your books would have iit in it but it dontand I am very disapointed. I want my money back or I am going to complain to Ebay and they will take away your lisenese to do your bad business! Billy T
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Gun Model & Makers, Parts Suppliers & Appraisers
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Maker-Model Cross References:
Firearms Appraisals:
Mike Rich, owner of I HAVE THIS OLD GUN. Send Mike an email to get started. His charges are modest.
We get hundreds of calls about PARTS:
Serial Numbers and Corresponding Dates:
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