Yard sale find 11/14

[Richie B]

Robert

The Whitney musket is I think, a 1822 US contract musket.

Flayderman’s guide

“Second contract. Signed in 1830 and extended through 1841, quantity 24000. The locks from 1830 to either 1837 or 1838 will have a branch and crossed arrows, U.S. and E. Whitney in the center and at rear N. Haven.”

Yours has been converted to percussion from the original flintlock, probably in the 1840s.

Values (percussion conversion). Good = $450. Fine = $700.

The Springfield musket is I think, a Model 1863 Rifle Musket Type 2 aka Model 1864. Quantity 255040.

Values Good = $900. Fine = $2750

So if I’m right – your $400 is a pretty good investment.

Hope this helps a little.

Regards

Richie

[billbert]

collectors firearms dot com Has an 18822 contract whitney (as in eli whitney inventor of cotton gin.. big tech upgrade back then) was 1 of 15000 contact.. I venture to say with an EXPERIENCED cleaner your might be as nice or nicer than the 1 pictured for 1895 dollars.. If it were me I might get it cleaned correctly ..sell the others..keep for wall hanger UNTIL you run into old gun collector who has a butch of that NAZIJUNK to trade for it..hope this helps.. Billbert

A wonderful piece of history from the infancy of your country.. I d keep it

Also Eli Whitney firearms in most circles is credited with the Industrial Age
first MASS PRODUCTION techniques and interchangable parts to the same kind..prior its all hand finished not interchangable parts ....

[helmetbuyers]

Thanks guys for the awesome info.

I do like the two black powder rifles for sure... and will keep them.

I probably won't clean them since I use to collect coins as a kid... and rule number one... was to leave things alone.

They also have a nice patina to them.

I wish I would find more "Nazi junk." I hear mostly stories from vets on what they had, or saw.

My favorite story came from a veteran that said he and a buddy went through a small German town in April 1945 in a jeep to confiscate weapons at the local police station.

He said white flags were up all over town and they just walked in and asked for guns.

He then said to me: "I had 63 Lugers and we tried to ship them back home, and got caught."

Luckily for him... they (His commanding officer) just tossed the stuff in the Rhein River.

[MauserKar98k]

The percussion rifles are very cool! I think that the converted Whitney musket would have been worth $400 just by itself. I wish I could find an M1863 Springfield at a garage sale. Great finds overall.

[billbert]

I wonder if the earlier one might have come home from a johny reb in the civil war.. or they both might just be bannerman army surplus..Billbert

[Rene S.]

Wow! my neck of the woods we do not find much as far as garage/yard sales go. I did however pick this up at a garage sale:
http://livingcarfree.files.wordpress...06/clunker.jpg

What I didnt know was when I purchased the garage this came with it