Two old pistols

C

Countryboy45683

New member
So I got 2 old revolvers over the weekend. My dad gave me his dad's old pistol and his grandfather's. They are both .38 special iver Johnsons. One is from 1907 it is nickle plated with single action, and black plastic grips with owls on them. The other im not sure on the date it is blued with a wooden handle little bigger than the other one, it is double action/single action. The nickle plated one is a little rough, the plating is coming off. I was wondering if anyone knows where I could go to get it replated and for a reasonable price. The other gun has a little surface rust but I think that i will reblue it.
 
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They are basically "wall hangers", Iver Johnson made a runnin' ton of these little "pocket revolvers". There might be some collectability value, so refinishing them is not wise, and the replating job, will most likely cost more than the little revolvers are even worth?
 
The collector's value of those revolvers, as described, is about nil. Sorry.

The sentimental value, however, sounds plenty high enough to me to justify a full restoration.

I'll see what I can find re: re-plating.

BTW - the blued sounds like one of the 60s-80s Iver Johnson/H&R top-break beaters. Great, dependable revolvers, ugly, but durable and accurate. Cheap, too.

If they shoot; shoot 'em. If not, hang 'em on the wall. Either way, I'd fix 'em up.
 
VAnimrod- Please let me know what you find out about replating the one. The blued one is in great shape, other than a little surface rust, which i will clean up and reblue.
 
VAnimrod, I have my grandfather's old pistols as well. One is a S&W .38 short and is nickel plated (worn) with an oversized set of walnut grips. The other is a Foreman (.38 Short) that once was blued and originally owned by one of our early police chiefs. They ordered them at the same time and had a gentleman's agreement that whoever died first, the other would get the pistol. The last patent dates on them are 1882 & 1887.
Years ago, I checked into having them refinished and was advised against it. The cost was high and then I got to thinking about all the wear that they displayed by use and the fact that I would be losing part of my grandfather's identity.
They still have a treasured place in my guncabnet and thanks for bringing them back to the front of my mind. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
 
I don't get it. Leaving a gun in disrepair or with a rough finish increases the collectability value? If you wanted to keep a gun for collectability and future value wouldn't you store it in a dry place, unfired? People buy cars by the dozen and put them up, and sell them sixty years later for their investment. Other people buy an old clunker and restore them to original condition and sell them for four or five times what they were worth when they were new. Wouldn't it be the same for a gun? When you buy a gun, you buy it to put it to work, whatever work that might be. I could see if it belonged to a famous person like Daniel Boone...Ya, Daniel Boones beater, which would probably be worth a lot of money in any state it was in.
I just got six of my father's guns after he passed on, one of them is a 1926, .455 Webely. It's been through World War 1 and changed hands a couple of times before my dad got it. The gun has worked hard for eighty years. I can count the repairs on it. The numbers on the cylinder don't match the frame, the front and rear sights have been replaced and the original grips are gone and replaced with homemade plastic wood grips. The gun has gone by and will never be anything other than what it is now, but it is a 1926, .455 Webely, eye candy to look at and it's fun to shoot. When I got the guns I posted a thread here and one of the replys was from MJM, who said something like "Use your dad's guns as he intended them to be used and you'll keep his memory", and I do.
Fix em if their broke, refinish them if you got the money, then put them back to work. Good luck, Joe
 
OT;

You're right, on firearms that have any considerable collectors value, a refinish will destroy that.

But, and no offense to Countryboy, but the old Iver Johnsons are just not collectable at all, even in NIB conditions. What they are is still great using/hunting handguns.

Countryboy, I'm PMing you the info I got re: the nickel refinisher that another fella I know uses. He refinishes almost every handgun he gets, and the work is GOOD, and relatively inexpensive.

Good luck.
 
I reblued the one pistol and it looks new. I shot 50 rounds through it last week. Shoots pretty good. I am still looking into what to do with the nickle-plated gun.
 
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