Help!

U

usu

Inactive
Hi, i'm an Italian boy and I'm writing you for help.

Some days ago in my house we were set down around a table eating and we laughed with our grandmother about the possibility to buy her a gun to defend herself from new neighborhoods, when she answered us that she doesn't need it because she has got a gun yet!! I obliged her to show me the gun (you can look it in the attached file).

Can you help me identified the society that made it and its years of production ???? Have you some ideas about?

I only now that in 1932 it existed yet because near the gun there was a paper of police that certify the existence of that gun (paper dated 1932 near the cop's signature), but it could be older. My grandfather leaved in Italy and French. There is not a single number or letter on the gun. It's a caliber 10/35 (six bullet)


Thank you a lot for your time

Alberto Usubelli, Abbazia di Albino - Bergamo
 

Attachments

  • P1060975.jpg
    P1060975.jpg
    273.5 KB · Views: 177
  • P1060977.jpg
    P1060977.jpg
    246.4 KB · Views: 120
  • P1060982.jpg
    P1060982.jpg
    250 KB · Views: 98
It is most likely a French-made pinfire. I'd bet your grandfather got it in France.

It was probably made between 1870 and 1890 when pinfires were most popular.
 
French pinfire - Thank you a lot for information!

But is it normal that a gun of that pediod was made without a single indication about the society that made it? Without a number?

Do you have an idea how much this object could be worth?
 
Makers marks weren't always put on them. A lot of them were very cheaply made, and by keeping the maker's mark off them it was hoped that they might be able to masquerade as a higher quality firearm.

What SHOULD be on the gun, though, are proof marks. As far as I know, proofing was required by just about every nation in europe at the time your gun was made.

As for value, I'm not going to be much help I'm afraid.

Here in the United States guns like that don't bring very high prices, maybe 75 to 150 Euros. In Europe, though? Who knows what your gun is worth.

You do have some serious rust issues, though, and that is going to negatively affect the price.
 
Shame on you Mike, using big words like "masquerade" with the poor English speaker :D

usu, in case it wasn't clear, that's not going to be a good gun for defense. If she has ammo (bullets) for it, they might be worth more than the gun. Pinfire ammunition is very hard to find.
 
Got one simular, but its a Belgium pin fire.

Mine is 11 mm. Looks like heck but it still shoots. Not a lot though.

Problem is ammo, if you find it it will cost more then the gun.

guns%20002.jpg
 
Te pareva! Unfortunately I don't have any bullets so I have to abandon all my hopes of gain. I'll content to keep this gun into my family ... of course it has a very strange past, indeed my old grandfather was never rich so I don't understand where he took money to buy this "unnecessary" object ... I asked to my grandmother: my grandfather went in France in a city very near to the Belgian border - so you say right when you spoke about the similarity with Belgian pin fire!

(don't worry about "masquerade" - I'm not able to write in English but I can read and understand it easily)

OK thank you all again
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top