Buying wall hangers. Worth it? Would you?

H

HillBilly Willy

New member
The same place I bought my "wall hanger" coach gun, has a couple more wall hangers for sale. Im beginning to think this guy just thinks anything this old shouldnt be shot.

Only, these look like they are in a whole lot better shape n what I bought. What do you think?

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One is an 1863 Springfield trapdoor conversion. $200

The other is a Powell percussion side by side shotgun. $250
 
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Why not. People don't mind buying their way to every other goal with phony "wall hanger" trophy. Deer heads they shoot over a pile of corn they been buying all year or on a hunt they paid someone to hold their hand through. Turkey their guide called in for them or they shot off a limb or off a corn pile.

Why not a pretend "Grampa's gun" they can take a picture of and show around the water cooler.
 
Make him an offer, he won't refuse !!!

Only, these look like they are in a whole lot better shape n what I bought. What do you think?
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Well, by now you know what I'm thinking !!! …. ;)
Offer him $375.00 and if you have to, walk it up to $400.00 for both. By my measure, they are "just" worth what he's asking. You are a good customer. !!

Good luck and;
Be Safe !!!
 
I think the Trapdoor has been messed with more than just a "conversion". It's in pretty rough condition too. Not convinced I'd part with any money for either of those.
"...anything this old shouldn't be shot..." Needs a proper smithy with lots of original BP firearm experience to determine that. Had a real TD Carbine long ago(do not shoot those with 70 grains of BP. It hurts.) that worked just fine. Still does as far as I know. Buddy of mine used(d) it for CAS with smokeless loads.
The Powell percussion probably has Damascus barrels and isn't safe to shoot anyway.
"...shoot over a pile of corn..." Illegal in most places.
 
250 for a percussion shotgun isn't a wall hanger price. It looks to be in good shape so I'd probably go for it. Get the barrels checked out by somebody that knows what they're doing and it will be a good shooter. I have an 1850ish Belgium made SXS that is an excellent shooter. I paid 68 bucks for a wall hanger SXS with rabbit ears and it too is one of my favorite guns after I fixed the locks and tightened up the stock.
 
I have never bought a gun that I couldn't shoot until I bought the "wall hanger" coach gun a year and a half ago. Something about that gun just tickled my fancy. I'm not even going to call it a wall hanger any more, from now on it will just be the "coach gun", aka "flamethrower", now that I have shot it.

Anyway, not knowing anything about old percussion guns, I had to ask in case there was a chance they are worth more than just a wall hanger. The only time I ever see guns in the wild like that is at gun shows, and at gun show prices.

I'm going to pass on them. They didn't really "do it" for me anyway. I hadn't stopped there since I got the Coach gun, and I had really hoped he had another flintlock I could check out, now that I've got a bit of the black powder bug.

Thanks for all the replies.
 
The shotgun looks better than what I started with 60 years ago.
Just last week we (gunsmith and I) returned a 1860 Army (1862 build) to service for the owner.
The nice thing about muzzle loaders is you can load them light and still enjoy them.
 
That TD is either an 1866 or 1868 Allin conversion .50/70. It might be a shooter with BP only. I think it is easily a $200 gun.
 
Not sure if I was looking at all the right pictures, but there was some percussion lock and metal I was looking at that looked pretty pitted.

But from the pics of the whole guns, they didn't look that bad. Wood looked pretty rough on the trap door, but the shotgun had some beautiful wood on it!

I've always considered having a couple guns around that nobody would bother trying to take or shoot, but that could be pressed into service if needed. Of course both of those would be kind of a "roll yer own" deal.
 
T. O'Heir said:
I think the Trapdoor has been messed with more than just a "conversion".
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After looking at pics of trapdoors, I can see you are correct. There's a whole part at the top of the lock that is missing, and been cobbed up.

T. O'Heir said:
"...anything this old shouldn't be shot..." Needs a proper smithy with lots of original BP firearm experience to determine that. Had a real TD Carbine long ago(do not shoot those with 70 grains of BP. It hurts.) that worked just fine. Still does as far as I know. Buddy of mine used(d) it for CAS with smokeless loads.
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Yes, and the guy selling is neither, I suspect.

T. O'Heir said:
The Powell percussion probably has Damascus barrels and isn't safe to shoot anyway.
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Descriptions with pictures of this exact same Powell model for sale on auction sites mentions Damascus.

Tactical Lever said:
Not sure if I was looking at all the right pictures, but there was some percussion lock and metal I was looking at that looked pretty pitted.
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Yeah, you went too far into the album. there's only 4 pictures of these guns. I've now fixed the links to just display the actual pics, which I couldn't do from my phone when I made the original post.

Tactical Lever said:
But from the pics of the whole guns, they didn't look that bad. Wood looked pretty rough on the trap door, but the shotgun had some beautiful wood on it!
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Yes, the wood was nice on the shotgun, and the wooden rod was intact, which a lot of those don't have, or are in rougher condition. I don't think it was used much.

I opened the trapdoor on the Springfield to check the rifling and it looked ok, maybe a bit worn but not a rusty mess.
 
There's nothing wrong with shooting old guns or damascus barrels as long as they're in good shape and you use proper loads.
 
The rifle conversion isn't a Springfield conversion. The lock is British Enfield in style. May be an old parts gun.
 
I’d have to see the trapdoor in person but the shotgun looks like a shooter from where I am sitting... I’d spend 200 on that one...
 
My two cents

I am one who has bought several old pieces and knew I was paying more than they were worth, but didn't really care.

I knew I was never going to try to make any money on them, since I can count on my left thumb the number of firearms I have sold.

For me, the deal has as much to do with emotion as it has to do with anything else.

Obviously you have to know what you want and what it is worth in general terms. And HBW's approach is IMHO spot on. But if I went into that store and saw that rabbit ear, I'd have a tough time walking away at the prices HBW mentioned.

Wouldn't be interested in the trapdoor in that condition at nearly any price. But that is an emotional decision too. Already have two and need a third like a turtle needs seat belts.

Just my personal thoughts.
 
Looks like you're getting ready to open a cracker barrel.

BTW, there's a book on Confederate Shotguns. Only $100 plus postage.

First shotgun featured in the book is the one Marshall used to shoot Col. Elmer Ellsworth (Ellsworth entered Marshall's boarding house in Alexandria to remove the Confederate flag. When Ellsworth was descending the stairs, Marshall shot and killed Ellsworth. One of Ellsworth men immediately shot Marshall. Ellsworth studied law under Abe Lincoln and was a personal friend of the president. His body lay in wait at the White House. If you go to the spot today, you'll see a plaque by the SCV honoring Marshall for defending the flag but no mention of Ellsworth.)

https://www.confederateshotguns.com/Home
 
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