Interesting Facts from the December 2014 Premiere Sale

Our December 2014 Premiere Firearms Auction had a few surprises for us.  Sure, it was as successful as ever with its realized total of $11.4 million, but that success came from some interesting places.  Some of the "old reliables" maintained the grip of their popularity, other genres and models experienced a surge of renewed interest, and some were way out of left field.  Today, we'll take a look at a few of the pieces that livened up the auction and whose results may not have been entirely expected.

Read our full auction write-up by clicking here.

Highest Performing Item Overall (Based on Highest Percentage Over Estimate)

Lot 1799: Colt Python Double Action Revolver

Low Estimate: $1,200

Realized Price: $11,500

"Highest Performing," for the purposes of this article, means the item that sold the highest percentage over its low estimate.

Colt Pythons have really enjoyed upswings in both popularity and price in the last several years.  The love for these high quality, fat-gripped wheel guns has carried over to other Colt "Snake Guns" and even into large Smith & Wesson revolvers for those unable to afford the reptilian revolvers.  This particular revolver remained in near perfect condition and was manufactured in 1956, making this a second-year production.  That early production also means it bears the remarkably low serial number of 543.  Perhaps even more staggering is that this isn't even the highest price brought by a Python in this auction, a honor belonging to lot 1795, which sold for a princely $14,950.

Highest Performing Antique

Lot 175: Custom Engraved Civil War Colt Model 1860 Army Percussion Revolver with Factory Letter Shipped to the New York Arsenal

Low Estimate: $3,000
Realized Price: $19,550

This classic Colt percussion revolver enjoyed a little more attention than usual thanks to its attractive customization, but moreso because of details in its factory letter.  First off, the letter details the gun as having a "blue/brass" finish and wood grips.  It's easy to see that the grips have been replaced with antique ivory that bear a carved eagle clutching an American-style shield in its talons.  In closer-up photos, one can also tell that the revolver has been custom engraved and that the front sight is made from German silver.

While those changes will appeal to some collectors, certainly its shipping destination will endear it to a larger number.  The factory letter lists that this revolver was sold to the "United States Government" and shipped to the "Commanding Officer" at the New York Arsenal on Governor's Island, New York on June 18, 1863.  That's a pretty intriguing history on a model of revolver that already has cemented its place in U.S. military firearms lore as the primary cavalry handgun from its adoption until the introduction of the legendary Model 1873.  The combination of looks, history, and a classic arm was too good to ignore.

Most Popular Item

Lot 3787: Colt Python Double Action Revolver

This is a tricky title to give, as we're measuring it by the amount of bids an item received.  The amount of pre-auction sealed bids go a long way into consideration and are easy to calculate, but how do you measure live participation?  Numerous buyers can raise their card for one bid, but the auctioneer can only take one, so it's difficult to measure how many bids an item truly received.  Not to mention the online participation, where the same scenario could unfold and you'd never even have the chance to see additional bidders.

That said, and with some wiggle room figured in, we claim a four-way tie between four lots of Colt snake guns!  Lots 1799 (the highest performing item overall), 1797, 3787, and 3790 all averaged around 50 bidders each!  That makes these three lots of Pythons, and one containing an Anaconda and a King Cobra, the most sought after items in the auction!  The best part is, we didn't need to look at the numbers to know it.  The bids were pouring in the minute these guns crossed the block and every single phone line was occupied with a bidder waiting for a chance to win one of these revolvers.  The buzz in the auction hall told this story before the numbers ever could.

Oldest Gun Sold

Lot 3093: Highly Ornately Gold, Silver, Pearl, Coral and Bone Inlaid Ottoman Miquelet Rifle

Low Estimate: $1,400

Realized Price: $3,162

There are many that feel these ornate antique guns are greatly underappreciated.  The high level of craftsmanship, the luxurious materials, and the aesthetics are often found far under the price of what it would cost to produce such a firearm today.  This gun is a prime example of such an argument thanks to its intricate inlays of gold, silver, pearl, coral, and bone.  It is simply mystifying what people could do with what we would consider "primitive tools" by today's standards.

While we can't always determine an exact year for many of the firearms in our auctions, we can come pretty close based on several helpful factors.  This is the oldest gun I could uncover after some in-depth searching.  Our describers estimate that this Ottoman rifle likely dates to the late 17th or early 18th century.  While that qualifies it for the oldest gun in the auction, it is not the oldest item.  That honor belongs to the 16th Century Italian style, swept-hilt rapier in lot 120.

Highest Selling Colt

Lot 1270: Impeccably Documented Captain Walker's C Company Colt Walker U.S. Model 1847 Revolver

Realized Price: $172,500

Believe it or not, that six-figure price is actually a great find for the lucky buyer.  Also in the "believe it or not" category is that the contest for highest selling Colt was far from a landslide.  May other phenomenal Colt firearms were also in the running like the presentation grade, recently discovered Model 1855 revolving shotgun, a 'D Company' Colt Walker, and a Squareback Texas No. 5 Paterson with its original holster.  By the way, many companies will go years without the privilege of selling a Colt Walker - they are ridiculously rare and sought after.  To have two in one auction, and another in each of our previous two auctions, is border-line impossible.  Well, impossible for most auction houses.  For those keeping track, that's four Walkers in 2014, 2 in 201`3, and another 4 in 2012!

Highest Selling Winchester

Lot 1043: Magnificent, Deluxe, Documented Special Order, Winchester Third Model 1873 with Casehardened Frame and Factory Letter

Realized Price: $149,500

Besides being completely gorgeous thanks to its iridescent case hardening and wood that seems to glint like a tiger's eye gemstone, this gun is also extremely rare.  Just like today, if you wanted to order a gun with custom features, you were going to have to pay for it.  Also just like today, not everybody wants to spend that kind of money, instead preferring a cheaper firearm for a life of service.  This makes special order Winchesters rare and it makes Winchesters with a combination of features increasingly more rare as their list of features increases.  This particular rifle has no shortage of special order features: 1/2 octagon barrel, set trigger, deluxe 3X fancy grain walnut stock, "Style H" checkering, pistol grip (the bottom of which has an ebony inlay), gold washed beach folding front sight, rare folding 62-B rear peep sight, and the casehardened forearm cap, receiver, hammer, lever, and crescent buttplate.  It is very much deserving of its sale price.

Highest Selling Luger

Lot 1446: Extraordinary Finest Known DWM Model 1906 Russian Military Contract Semi-Automatic Luger Pistol

Realized Price: $46,000

Those pistols made for a Russian contract are the rarest of all military contract Lugers.  Distinct with their Cyrillic text and crossed "Mosin-Nagant rifles" marking over the chamber area, these Lugers easily catch the eye of discerning collectors.  This gun's rarity and "excellent" condition grade are made even more valuable by remaining all original, and having all matching numbers, with the exception of its original, nickel plated, wood base commercial magazine.

Highest Selling Civil War Item

Lot  1269: Extraordinary Deluxe Gustave Young Panel Scene Engraved, Presentation First Model Maynard Breechloading Carbine

Realized Price: $37,375

One might not associate a gun so finely decorated to be a "Civil War firearm," but over 20,000 Maynard Second Model carbines were made for Union cavalry units.  The one shown above is a First Model.  It has a fancy grain, walnut stock with a patchbox and an inlaid and inscribed silver plate.  It is in exceptional condition, and most notably exhibits delicate and flawlessly executed European  style scroll work and panel scene engraving.  The work, while not documented, was almost certainly performed by the legendary Master Engraver Gustave Young.

Highest Selling Non-Firearm

Lot 1601: Two Inscribed United States Marine Corps Mameluke Officer Swords with Scabbards, Documented to Two Navy Cross Winners

Realized Price: $4,312

The swords themselves are attractive and fascinating pieces of U.S. military history.  They have brass cross guards, brass fitted/nickel finished sheaths, etching in a Marine Corps motif, and even the rig necessary to wear the swords properly.  The history of the swords is even more impressive than their decor.

One of the swords was issued to one Col. Miles R. Thatcher.  A man who started out as a 2nd LT in 1905 and by 1946 had retired as a full Colonel.  In his tenure with the USMC he earned quite a few medals to pin to his chest: the Navy Cross, the Nicaraguan Medal of Merit, the Haitian Medialle Militiare, the Mexican Campaign Medal, and the Marine Corps Expeditionary Medal.  The Navy Cross is the second-highest military award for valor eligible to the Navy, USMC, and Coast Guard.

The other was issued to a Gilbert Durnell Hatfield, a Marine enlistee in 1915 who would eventually retire as a Lieutenant Colonel.  Hatfield earned his Navy Cross for his "coolness and military way of handling the situation."  What situation, you ask?  He was serving in Nicaragua when Augusto Sandino, a bandit and later namesake of the Sandinista National Liberation Front, launched a pre-dawn raid on his camp with a 5:1 troop advantage.  When Sandino sent a messenger to Hatfield requesting his surrender, Hatfield replied, "Marines don't surrender.  Go to hell."  Well put, Marine.



Well, there you have it.  Whether people spoke en masse or with their wallets, those were some of the most desirable items in the auction.  Far from an exhaustive list of items that performed well, we thought it would be interesting to show some items that you made into highlights.  This list wasn't created by RIAC, it was created by enthusiastic and passionate collectors and investors,  If you'd like to see this type of lists after other auctions, leave us a comment below and let us know.  Also, if you have an idea for a "highlight" you'd like to see after subsequent auctions, feel free to put that in a comment as well.  We can't thank you all enough for a fantastic 2014!  See you all in February for our first ever FOUR DAY AUCTION taking place February 19, 20, 21, & 22, 2015.  Stay tuned to this blog and our social media pages for more details as they develop.

The Unsung Trapdoor Rifle

Trapdoor Rifle Prices

Click here to see ALL the Trapdoor Rifles Available in our December 2013 Premiere Firearms Auction!

In terms of American military long arms very little attention is given to a predecessor of the much heralded M1903 and M1 Garand, the Springfield Trapdoor.  The Springfield Trapdoor was produced for over 20 years and would experience many changes throughout its life.  The rifle would take its place in history just after the Civil War, despite the justifiable hesitation of many military personnel who were all too aware about the superiority of repeaters and magazine fed rifles.  It would kill buffalo by the thousands as America expanded westward and would also play a role in the wars against the Native Americans.  Militarily it represents the watershed transition for U.S. forces from the musket to the rifle.  Today we find out a little bit more of this rifle, its origins, the question of its performance, and its role in history.

Lot 3507: Rare Early Springfield Armory Model 1873 Trapdoor Rifle with Rare Metcalfe Device

Origins
After the Civil War, the War Department wanted a breech-loading rifle.  To be specific, they wanted a breech-loading rifle that would chamber a self-primed, metallic cartridge.  This led to the formation of an Army Board who, in 1865, would host trials of different rifles by makers both foreign and domestic.  The idea of the Master Armorer at the U.S Armory at Springfield, Mr. Erskine S. Allin, was to take the existing Civil War muzzle-loaders, of which there were thousands, and convert them by adding the now well known "trap door" to the receiver.

Lot 3512: U.S. Springfield Model 1879 Trapdoor Rifle

This appealed to the Board for a number of reasons:

1. It used existing materials, thereby saving money and manufacturing time.
2. Money was even more important with the War Department's newly slashed budget.
3. Single shots were viewed as more reliable and rugged than repeaters or magazine rifles.
4. It looked like proven guns of the past, especially with its pronounced hammer.
5. Their priority on long range accuracy over rate of fire.
6. Single shot rifles were thought to force a more efficient use of ammunition

Lot 3101: Civil War U.S. Springfield Model 1861 Percussion Rifle-Musket with Bayonet

The Springfield Model 1861 percussion rifled musket was the most used rifle by the Union in the Civil War.  It is not difficult to see its relation to the Model 1873.

The Board adopted the National Armory's (a.k.a. the U.S. Armory at Springfield, later just "Springfield") design, now referred to as the "First Allin."  However, this "adoption" was more of a test drive than a final acceptance.  As reports came in from the field in subsequent years, the rifle would be adapted, redesigned, replaced in the field in small numbers.  This went on for about 5 years from National Armory's Model 1865 to their Model 1870, until on September 3, 1872, the Board of Army Officers held another trial.  This trial was designed to find a rifle with more in line with their preference toward range and power than the Model 1870 being "test driven" by soldiers in the field.  The Board, now known as the "Terry Board," was headed by Brigadier General A.H. Terry and requested roughly 100 different breech-loading rifles from various makers to put through trials.  They again received both foreign and domestic submissions from some of the most prominent firearms manufacturers of the day such as: Winchester, Remington, Springfield, Sharps, Spencer, Whitney, and others.  All but 21 were rejected almost immediately and only two of those were modifications of the current .50 caliber trap door

Lot 1476: Rare U.S. Springfield Armory Model 1875 Officer's Model Trapdoor Rifle, Late Type II

Breech from above of the Officer's Model 1875

At this point, a "sidebar" study was held by the Terry Board.  It was a separate, yet related, study to determine which combination of caliber, powder charge, and bullet weight would provide the best performance.  They tested .40, .42, and .45 caliber bullets, powder amounts from 65-80 grains, several rifling variations, and bullet weights from 350-450 grains.  Each variation had its own barrel and was tested with 20 shots at 6 targets 500 yards away.  The winner would be barrel #16 with the #58 ammunition, which would be the 45-70-405 cartridge.  We know it better as the .45-70 Government.  The round was deemed so effective that Colt would be making Gatling guns to utilize that round later that same year.  It is surprising that both government and private manufacturers took so long to realize that by increasing powder and lessening bullet weight, they could produce rifles with much greater range.  The development of this round and its subsequent rifle, literally made for each other, would mark the American shift from muskets to longer range rifles.

By the time the .45-70 was decided upon, the Terry Board had further narrowed the field of long arms to six possible candidates.  Each was altered to use this new cartridge and tested further.  In the end, their bias to an older style of warfare and rifle won out and the trap door action was selected.  The preference for a powerful rifle that would be accurate at long distances also implies interesting things about the state of American conflict at that time.  The Civil War having ended a short 7 years earlier, the thought was to again select a weapon that would perform nobly in a similar type of conflict.  The thought of fast-moving battles against Native Americans may have been a secondary priority at that time, hence the lack of urgency to adopt repeating and magazine based rifles.

Lot 1482: Extremely Rare Martially Inspected U.S. Springfield 1892 Dated
.30 Calibre Experimental Trapdoor Rifle Number "I"

Same rifle in full.

Use

It is known that trapdoor rifles were not developed until after the Civil War and through Springfield's manufacturing records one will find that the first 1,940 Model 1873 carbines and 2 rifles were not made until the final months of 1873 with an additional 6,521 weapons ready by March 31, 1874.  The Model 1873 was the fifth improvement of the Allin design.

The Spanish-American War would not start for another 24 years.  Until that time the Allin System longarms would be used in the American plains for two purposes: killing buffalo and fighting American Indians.  As a buffalo killer, the weapon was apt.  Its muzzle velocity of 1,350 feet/second would allow it to penetrate 17 inches of white pine at 100 yards, certainly enough to kill a buffalo.  This power when combined with its long range accuracy also made it an excellent hunting rifle for other large game of the prairie and coyotes.  The classic cowboy song "Home On the Range," was first published in 1873 with its now well-known lyrics of buffalo roaming while deer and antelope play.  Little could author Brewster M. Higley have known how much the Springfield, developed that same year, would affect those animals.

Lot 3515: Desirable Custer Era U.S. Springfield Model 1873 Trapdoor Carbine with Indian Markings

The Allin System's performance in the Indian Wars is much debated.  Often cited are the "large number" of empty cartridges found at the Battle of Little Big Horn which exhibited signs of malfunction.  Such examples were found, however, they are a small percentage (2.7 - 3.4% by some counts) of the thousands rounds that were fired in that conflict.  The  concern over jamming weapons in the Indian Wars is not a modern one.  Even at the time, it was a known concern among soldiers.  This was due in large part to the use of a copper alloy ("Bloomfield Gilding Metal") in the manufacture of the ammunition's case.  Copper was prone to expanding in the breech upon firing and could also prevent the extractor from properly functioning.  This often required the user to pry the cartridge from the breech or to push it out by using the ramrod.  Such a remedy was not an option on the carbine version which did not include that valuable tool.  This brought about the use of brass cases to reduce  expansion, a material still in use to this day.

The Springfield Model 1873 carbine was the standard issue longarm of all U.S. Cavalry units from 1874 to 1896, but the rifle would be switched out in 1886 for the improved Springfield Model 1884.  The Allin system would not be replaced as the standard U.S. rifle until the adoption of the Krag-Jørgensen (a.k.a. Springfield Model 1892-99) which would also be produced by the Springfield Armory from 1894 to 1904.  For those paying close attention to dates, this means that the Krag, using its smokeless ammunition, was the primary rifle used in both the Spanish-American War as well as the Philippine-American War, though the sheer number of available trap doors inevitably meant that the outdated black powder guns would still see use.

Lot 1488: Excellent U.S. Springfield Model 1884 Trapdoor Rifle

Previous gun's breech as seen from above

Variations
It's hard to see how any troops could complain about the Springfield trap door.  With a new variation out almost every year of its production, any issues could be dealt with rapidly and remedied in subsequent variations.  The only issue that could not be fixed was that of its relatively low rate of fire, a quality inherent to its loading method.  I will not cover the vast number of variations here.  For an exhaustive list of the changes and varieties in all their minutia, please consult what many consider to be the Bible of Springfield Trapdoors, Robert Frasca's The .45-70 Springfield.  With his list of all the parts that were altered from 1873-1894, it is difficult to imagine one piece remaining throughout all 20 years of production.


Not only did the Model 1873 miss the major conflicts of the 17th and 18th centuries, it was also vastly overshadowed by the iconic Winchester repeater and Colt revolver released that same year.  It was a rifle languishing in the past by a population in the throes of the Industrial Revolution and hungry to adopt the new technologies that accompanied it.  The Model 1873 was relegated to ill-chosen government contracts, slaughtering buffalo, and killing Native Americans. Outdated in its loading system before it was even adopted by the government and lacking the celebrity of a military conflict, the Springfield Trapdoor plays a quiet role in the story of U.S. military arms, yet remains a highly desirable collector's piece with its unique loading system, endless varieties to collect, and aesthetically pleasing components like the lockplate, hammer, and sweeping breech block.  Even a highly dedicated collector would stay busy for decades happily collecting this long arm of the American plains.

In fact, one collector did just that, Dr. Richard Branum.  Our upcoming December 2013 Premiere Firearms Auction will have over 50 trapdoor rifles at all levels of collecting!  Dr. Branum's collection represents a lifetime of collecting and has resulted in the most comprehensive and academic collection of trapdoors.  Represented will be rare, experimental variations, extremely high condition models, unusual calibers, accouterments, and many different years of production.  The collection possesses every caliber of manufacture: .58 rimfire, .50-70 government, .45.70 government, the rare .45-80 long range cartridge, and .30-40.  It also contains every barrel length and every variation of the ramrod bayonet.  It is a living history lesson to view all the chronological variations in this fantastic collection.

If early American militaria and rifles are your passion, the Springfield Trapdoors alone will be enough to get you champin' at the bit.  There will also be nearly 70 Civil War pieces that help make up the nearly 1,000 antiques available in this auction.  And we all know why antiques can be so nice.  Stay tuned each and every week for more fascinating and laudable firearms.

-Written by Joel Kolander





Note: This article incorrectly referred to the rifles in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem "The Arsenal at Springfield" as trapdoor rifles.  We were notified by several readers that those arms would have pre-dated the trapdoor rifles and that trapdoor rifles would not have even fit correctly in those massive and impressive racks.  We regret the error and those references have since been omitted.





SOURCES:

Frasca, Albert J., and Charles R. Suydam. The .45-70 Springfield: Springfield Caliber .58, .50, .45 and .30 Breech Loaders in the U.S. Service, 1865-1893. Springfield, OH: Frasca Pub., 1997. Print.

Stocks, Bonds, or Barrels?

Ask any firearms collector if guns are a good investment and you're bound to receive a response in the affirmative. It's not exactly an unbiased answer, but it is still drawn from sound personal experience. Besides, wasn't the economy's most recent low spot in 2008? Haven't such indicators as the Dow Jones and the S&P 500 recovered nicely since then? What about gold? I keep hearing about its value skyrocketing.

These are reasonable questions from someone debating on whether or not to invest some money into firearms versus other more traditional investment vehicles. Of course, we're not talking about the stocks of firearms companies as investments (although those are doing quite well for themselves currently), but the firearms themselves. Are guns a good investment? Aren't all the "good ones" taken? Not so fast. Here's some information that might make you think otherwise.

1.  Values Are Up

Gun values are up and it's not just some bubble in the market. Yes, modern sporting rifles (a.k.a. "assault rifles") saw a recent price bubble, but over the last five years the vast majority of guns in their usable life have seen and maintained an increase in value. Guns past their "useful life" and in their "collectable life" have been largely gaining value for decades.

2.  Increasing Gun Values Exceed Other Market Increases

The examples we list below are only the beginning. While their values have increased, and done so at a handsome percentage, other genres of collecting make these look like small gains. Through research and careful selection, one stands to outperform even such vaunted standards at the S&P 500 and even gold! Haven't each of those investments vehicles been improving since 2008? Didn't the S&P 500 just experience a new record high this week? The answer to both questions is "yes," but the right guns readily show larger gains in leaps and bounds.

3.  You Can't Shoot Stocks

OK, so this may not be an apples to oranges comparison, but it's a huge plus to investing in guns. Firearms are useful beyond their investment value. You can display them, you can clean them, you can take them to shows, you can take them hunting with your old man, you can teach a youngster about them, and they're a lot easier to trade than stocks. Truth be told, you may not want to fire a high dollar firearm into which you've invested tens of thousands of dollars as you may harm the value, but many of the other activities still apply.

Guns can be enjoyed in ways other investments cannot. You may hear one collector excitedly telling another about a recent purchase that he has chased for years; you'll never hear that from a day trader. You might hear the pride in a collectors voice as he describes his collection; the only time you'll hear financial experts talk that way about a portfolio is if it makes money. In gun collecting, there's so much more than money, like history and the pursuit. Not only is investing in guns worthwhile financially, you can use them as tools as well as for recreation.

4.  Guns Are Tangible

This section isn't meant to be some "the sky is falling" message about our government or the stability of the world economy, etc. However, there is a lot of risk present to investors today: the Eurozone, a government shutdown, debt ceilings, recessions, defaults, and so on. It is in unstable climates that investors seek stability. One only has to look at the popularity of precious metal commodities in the last several years to know that people want finances that aren't just potentially vulnerable electronic numbers in a bank or on the stock market. People want things they can touch, things that they can hold on to and guarantee its security. Collecting firearms provides that opportunity. You can hold them, they're worth an increasing amount of money, and you don't have to worry about losing them if a bank or market collapses. 

Examples

Now, we're not licensed financial planners or sages of what the future may hold, but we can speak from the experience of selling over 22,000 firearms a year and evaluate some past information in an intelligent fashion. We are not licensed financial advisors.  Please due your own due diligence or contact a professional before making any and all financial decision.  We simply have the good fortune to possess loads of data and we're not afraid to use it. All data that we used to derive the information below was obtained in the following way:

• We only used guns that are in 95-100% of their original condition

• We attempted to eliminate as many "special" guns as possible (unique history, one-of-a-kinds, etc) since they can cause larger swings in value.

• All dollar figures shown are a yearly average.

• Values for gold, S&P 500, and Dow Jones are year end figures, except for 2013, which uses October 16 as its final day.

Keep in mind, the amount that you bought/sold a gun for may not match the figures that we provide below. Our figures are averages. They take into account many different finishes, barrel lengths, grips, calibers, serial number ranges, boxes, letters, and so on. These numbers are not published to a pricing guide of any sort, merely to indicate a rising trend in value for several of the most popular firearms that we have sold in the last 5 years.

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 Last 3 years: 72.68%

 Last 6 years: 183.31%

There's more than a dozen Colt Pythons to choose from in our upcoming auction in varying barrel lengths and finishes.

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 Last 3 years: 43.84%

 Last 6 years: 52.78%

This classic piece of American firepower, called "the greatest battle implement ever devised," has also enjoyed quite the rise in value over the last several years. Patton would be proud.

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 Last 3 years: 123.52%

 Last 6 years: 107.93%

Colt 1911s have been a proven high riser for several years.  The numbers on the left don't even reflect the high dollar 1911s such as Singers, high condition first year production models, prototypes, and especially not the world record Singer than we sold in 2010 for $166,750.

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 Last 3 years: 111.89%
 Last 6 years: 79.95%


There are over 15 different high end Model 12 shotguns to choose from in this auction!  They include two engraved and gold inlaid by Master Engraver Angelo Bee, several trap and skeet grade models, and of course some of the ever popular trench shotguns.

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 Last 3 years: -9.39%

 Last 6 years: 52.24%

Despite gold's popularity and media coverage as a high performing investment, it still lacks the gain in value attached to many genres of firearms

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 Last 3 years: 36.89%

 Last 6 years: 17.24%

The S&P is finally starting to look like its old self and is actually breaking some records as of late.  However, even considering that record breaking performance the returns still pale to that of numerous genres of guns.

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Last 3 years: 32.79%
Last 6 years: 17.75%

Even at its historic highs, the mighty Dow Jones fails to match the growth of collectable firearms.

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We could list guns, pictures, and charts for numerous pages, we could also spend an entire month comprising values and breaking them down and making them as specific as possible, but this is not a pricing guide.  What we are doing is drawing trends and averages by looking back at the data from hundreds of sales of the firearms selected.  As with any rise in value there may be a few segments left behind.  Even in a bull market, not every stock gains money or even gains every year.  However, by taking a step back and looking at those trends over a larger period, it becomes easy to see that guns have been a sound investment for quite some time.  This financial benefit comes almost as an aside to most people who buy guns simply to enjoy them, use them, and be a part of that community.  It's yet another added perk to do what you love.

Best of luck in your collecting, investing, and of course, your shooting.

Outstanding Selection of Springfield Trapdoors!

Rock Island Auction Company is proud to end the year with an outstanding selection of U.S. Springfield trapdoors. This November 30th, December 1st & 2nd Premiere Firearms Auction offers early U.S. martial arms collectors the opportunity to obtain high condition and extremely rare firearms.

   

Late 18th century American-Indian Wars are represented by a spectacular collection of nearly 20 trapdoor rifles and carbines. The Springfield trapdoor was the first breech-loading rifle of the United States Army and this collection represents the many variations of a weapon that for 20 years was the army's primary long arm. After the Civil War the U.S. government experimented with metallic cartridge rifles and developed a cost effective method of converting left over muzzle loaders into single shot 50-70 metallic breech loaders. The Allin conversion was the primary conversion method. Lot 3243 is a Springfield 1866 Second Model Allin Conversion Rifle in excellent plus condition as issued and is the finest example we have offered for auction. Several 50-70 trapdoor variations were developed before the final variation, the Model 1870, was manufactured. Lot 3240 and lot 3248 are rare examples of a Model 1870 carbine. Only 341 Model 1870 carbines were manufactured and given the fact that the U.S. was entering into a period of wars with the Native Americans out West it is amazing that any survived at all. Pay special attention to Lot 3240 as this carbine is in extremely fine condition, making this highly desirable carbine a must have for the advanced trapdoor collector.

The 50-70 caliber trapdoor eventually evolved into a successful series of 45-70 caliber trapdoors which are also represented in this sale. Lot 3261 is a highly desirable pre-Custer battle Springfield Model 1873 Trapdoor Carbine. Manufactured circa 1874, these early pre-battle of The Little Big Horn 1873 carbines are scarce in today's collector market and represent the first 45-70 caliber U.S. trapdoor. For a Custer-era Model 1873 check out Lot 3263, a carbine showing true period field use. Lot 3260 is an outstanding example of an experimental Model 1888 "Positive Cam" Trapdoor Rifle. The "Positive Cam" is part of the breech locking device and was a Springfield Armory modification to eliminate the occasional failure of the locking cam mechanism. Only 100 were manufactured and issued to the San Antonio Arsenal for testing with most of these rifles subsequently issued to U.S. units in Texas, New Mexico and Arizona where they saw active service. Be sure to check out the bluing and case colors on Lot 3260! Retaining over 98% of the original blue finish and vivid case colors, with sharp stock cartouches, Lot 3260 would make for a premier piece in the most advanced early U.S. martial arms collection! Trapdoor Officer's Rifles are also represented. Lot 3239 and lot 3259 are fine examples of Model 1875 Trapdoor Officer's Rifles that would make great additions to a martial arms collection. Only 477 of these rifles were manufactured from 1875 to 1885 by Springfield and were a quality sporting rifle in the standard 45-70 service cartridge sold to U.S. Army officers. Both rifles represent different variations of the Model 1875. Lot 3259 is a Type III and Lot 3239 is a Transitional Type I/Type II.

These trapdoor rifles and carbines are a small sampling of the exceptional collection we are offering during our November 30th, December 1st & 2nd Premiere Firearms Auction. We hope this sampling entices you to visit our online catalog to see the complete collection. This collection will surely meet the needs of collectors at all levels. Our sale contains something for virtually everyone and covers the entire spectrum from antique black powder arms to Class III Items. Our catalog is available online for free, or we can ship you one today, just complete the online order form, call 1-800-238-8022, fax 1-309-797-1655, or e-mail info@rockislandauction.com. We look forward to any inquiries, and hope to see you at the sale!

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