#Collecting

Have you ever found yourself huddled over your keyboard or glued to your phone as an auction counts down on that item you’ve been coveting for days? Have you ever missed out at the last minute, pipped at the post by someone swooping in at the last second? Well there’s a new website that is making online gun auctions easier and possibly less stressful!

Two weeks ago, I published this video:

The final day of the symposium continued with more conversations about the different aspects of maintaining firearms collections among curators. More important than some of the actual presentations and talks were the conversations that followed between the people present. They were able to exchange ideas and experiences in real time during the course of the discussion.

If you have a passion for the history of firearms or collecting old guns then you will probably be familiar with Collector Grade Publications, a publishing house which has been publishing excellent, well researched and curated books for nearly 40 years. I’m saddened to say the man behind Collector Grade, R. Blake Stevens, has passed away, aged 80.

For me, one of the great joys of being a firearms hobbyist is introducing someone new to the community. I have never been a professional instructor, but I consider it a public service to give my time to a new shooter to help them safely and accurately use the weapons they own or may soon own. Besides safety and marksmanship, though, there’s also helping a new shooter to economically and successfully purchase the weapons they want and need, so they can enjoy the sport with as little regret as possible. To that end, I’ve come up with a few tips for the new gun buyer on how to get the most bang for their buck when buying new guns. It should be noted that Alex C. created a similar list at the end of last year, but his was explicitly geared towards the collector, whereas mine will target a broader audience of new gun owners. I will attempt to create as little overlap between the two as possible, and my readers should definitely click that link and take a look at Alex’s excellent advice for collecting. With that out of the way, let’s begin.

Hardcore Collectors are some of the most peculiar sorts of gun owners that we’ve all probably ran into. I mean, the guys will literally have dozens and dozens of the SAME rifle/pistol/shotgun. I mean, I’m all for a huge gun collection, but wow, diversify a little will ya? Joking aside, I do absolutely admire those collectors out there who go the extra mile in identifying and keeping the historical details of firearms alive for future generations. Especially when they are also good writers and publish the information they have painstakingly gained over a lifetime of firearms collecting experience. As one of these collectors told me, “We are just the stewards of our firearms”.

Starting a firearms book collection isn’t for every shooter or firearms enthusiast. Not everyone reads a lot these days (offline that is), and the price alone is a strong deterrent. You can’t really attach the Collector Grade Publications “ The Black Rifle II” to the rails of an AR, or jam Ian Skennerton’s “ The Lee Enfield” into your No.4 Mk II. I recently went to some used book stores in Washington state and bought over 400 dollars worth of firearms books. With that amount of money I could have bought a good amount of ammunition, a scope, or even a decent hunting rifle. So I’m not amiss when I say this post isn’t for everyone. Another big thing is that a lot of the information I have in my firearms books can be found online through the internet. But if you have a good collection of books already, or want to get into collecting gun books, then read on!

IAA Forum user PaulSmith  received several x-ray images of ammunition, and was able to take photographs: