Pawn shop find: Good deal?

[Packman]

Went down to my local pawn shop just to browse today. I had never been in there, so I was curious to check it out. As y'all may be aware, I'm wanting to get a flintlock pistol to play with. I asked about them, and the guy behind the counter (who knew essentially nothing about BP) pulled a couple out.

One was a Pedersoli Harper's Ferry. It was being advertised "AS NEW", but they'd definitely had it a while. There was a little bit of surface rust around the touch hole, nothing serious. The bore was kinda dirty, but it looked like good clean metal with sharp enough edges on the lands. Lockup seemed good on the trigger and frizzen, although I'm not an expert. Based on what the barrel looked like, I'd say it has been shot before, although the frizzen had a smooth face to it. I wouldn't expect that if the gun had be shot. However, the flint that was in it was pretty chipped up, so maybe they don't chew on the frizzen as much as I'm thinking they would. Wood was nice enough, and the brass on the rest of the pistol was a little tarnished, but over all it looked to be in pretty good shape.

They were asking 180, and they clearly don't know anything about the gun at all. I left it there for now until I could do a little research on it. So, THR, what do y'all think? Should I go bring it home with me? I'd try to negotiate the price down a little, just to see if I can get it for cheaper, but from what I know, I'd be fairly happy paying 180 for that gun. DGW has it listed for 565.

 

[BHP FAN]

I'd say you were stealing it. That is a darned fair price, and if it was in my town, it would already be living in my safe... ask if you can check it for spark, smooth frizzens always make me nervous. I bought a Tower pistol once that had no spark. The former owner had ''polished'' it because it was rusty! A buddy of mine fixed it with a torch and some casenit, but it cost me a forty dollar bottle of scotch.

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

I bought one from DGW in kit form for a heck of a lot more than $180. Go for it.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

Heck its a pawn shop and they've had them forever. Tell them you'll give them $250 cash for both of them.

 

[shiftyer1]

I run a pawn shop, i'm not familiar with THAT model offhand but from your description it sounds like they don't know what they have.

That being said.....I BET U CAN DEAL A LITTLE!

 

[BHP FAN]

http://www.davide-pedersoli.com/tipologia-prodotti.asp/l_en/idt_10/pistols-harpers-ferry.html

 

[eastbank]

a very good deal,there is money in it if you wanted to sell it later. eastbank.

 

[forward observer]

Cabelas sells the same Pedersoli for $499. Even when they come up used on the auction sites they sell in excess of $300 to $350, so unless there is something majorly wrong with it---even if you can't bargain them down, it's worth the asking price.

Before the days of the internet, it was much easier to stumble across some good deals on firearms in Pawn shops. Back then it was just impossible for a shop owner to be familiar with every kind of used firearm. Especially with all the Italian repro's that were floating around--many of which simply didn't have established values.

However, now it's just too easy to Google an item or hit an auction site and eventually come up with a value. Jump on it before they do.

Cheers

 

[Packman]

It followed me home this morning. Unfortunately the guy working the counter today actually knew what he was talking about, so I ended up paying the $179.95 asking price. I was still okay with that, considering it's worth probably double that. A little bit of rust inside the bore, but it's just surface rust and will come right off. No pitting or anything.

I'm pleased with it. I'll post some pics tonight.

 

[Packman]

Got it!

Well, I cleaned her all up this afternoon. There's a little bit of pitting underneath the touch hole, but the bore looks okay. Still a little surface rust in there, but it'll clean out as I shoot it and keep working on it.

The flint that was in the gun did generate a spark after I used a little 0000 steel wool on the frizzen, but the flint is all chewed up on both edges. I'll pick up a couple more at Gander mountain in the next couple of days, or maybe order some online. I'll see if I can figure out how to knap the edge of this one too.

Any recommendations on projectiles? I see Cabelas has molds for a .58 Minnie bullet, or I can probably get round ball for it from TOTW. Seems kinda silly to shoot a Minnie in a gun that only has a front sight on it. I was thinking about buying a casting setup while Cabela's has their 5$ shipping sale going on, but they don't have a roundball mold for this caliber. Pretty sure I can get one elsewhere though.

 

[4v50 Gary]

Good deal!

Anyone tell me what that white metal band on the foreend of the stock is for? The 1803 Harper's Ferry Rifle has the same band.

 

[Packman]

I'm betting it's either decorative, or it may be so that the ramrod doesn't chew up the wood as you put it back into the ferrules. (Is that the right word for those?)

The way it's positioned on mine, it would protect the wood nicely.

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

It is a brass strip that is wrapped around the end of the stock if I remember correctly from my kit. My guess is that its purpose is to reinforce the end of the stock to prevent splitting as the wood is hogged out pretty thoroughly in that area.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

Looks awesome.

 

[Shanghai McCoy]

Good deal !

 

[[email protected]]

Packman

Read my thread, "Proper Flint Setup". and read the thread "Flintlock Maintrnance
And Tuning" Lots of information to help you and pictures. Looks like you got a
real rock brasher there. If you can buy some knapped flints instead of the sawed
one you have there. They are very hard to knapp. You will get the hang of it.
A lot more rewarding than shooting percussion. I got a decal on my car that says
"Real Men Shoot Flint". This little video might help you on sharping the flint.

 

[forward observer]

I'm betting it's either decorative, or it may be so that the ramrod doesn't chew up the wood as you put it back into the ferrules. (Is that the right word for those?)

The way it's positioned on mine, it would protect the wood nicely.

The ferrules are commonly called "thimbles".

Congrats, you got a great deal.

BTW, the Harpers Ferry pistol was used as the model for the crossed pistols that make up the branch insignia for the US Army Military Police.





Cheers.

 

[AlexanderA]

As a collector of originals and replicas, the Pedersoli Harpers Ferry flint pistol has always been very frustrating to me. Why couldn't they have gotten it right? For one thing, the originals were .54 cal. smoothbore, not .58 cal. rifled. And the proportions of the lock are all wrong.

I even considered buying one and having the barrel sleeved to .54. But in the end it just wasn't worth it.

Still, $180 is a heck of a good price for one of these things. Enjoy it for what it is.

I think there's a market for an authentic replica of a Harpers Ferry pistol. I'll bet some people would buy one for as much as $1,000 if it was a good copy.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

^ Some care about historical accuracy and some don't. In the case of this particular one, like you said it is hard to find a model that is mostly accurate.

It is similar to Pietta and Uberti making copies of Navy Colts in .44 or making them with a brass frame (which I don't believe Colt ever did). However in those the good thing is that you can indeed find them with steel frames and in the proper .36 caliber.

Not so much with these.

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

My frustration with the Pedersoli Harpers Ferry pistol is with the lock. I believe the pivot points of the hammer and frizzen are too close together so the angle the flint strikes the frizzen is too oblique instead of sliding down the frizzen for maximum spark production.

 

[[email protected]]

You can tell by the looks, it is a flint brasher.

 

[StrawHat]

delete

 

[StrawHat]

...You can tell by the looks, it is a flint brasher...

Not arguing, was the original also a basher?

From photos, the Davis replacement lock appears to have better geometry.

 

[[email protected]]

Here is a original . The angle on it looks correct.

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

It appears from your pictures that the cock is shorter and the frizzen is smaller on the original. I wonder if the change in what is produced as lock parts is the problem?