If I was a Rich Man... YadaYadaYadaYada...

[PatMarlin]

http://www.gunsamerica.com/guns/976757270.htm

http://www.turnbullrestoration.com/dtrstore/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=74



Drool, Drool, Drool!.. :mrgreen:



...

[Frank46]

I second the drooling, beautiful work but what prices. Frank

[Doug S]

Here are a few poor-man Winchesters, they are not getting and cheaper...LOL
Personally, I don't really favor restored guns, they are pretty enough but they seem to loose their "realness"..is that a word?? I'd take that 14K and turn it into some more like below:

The 73 & 92 are .44-40 and the 94 is 38-55, all shoot well and wear there age even better..

http://www.huntingforums.com/photopost/data/500/Picture_031.jpg

Doug

[Beau Cassidy]

And if you were a really rich, eccentric fellow....

http://www.hoferwaffen.com/hofer_52s.php?id=14&lang=en

Turn up the sound and remember, if you have to ask the price, you can't afford it.

Beau

[PatMarlin]

"For those who can buy anything accept time"

That about somes Peter's world up... :mrgreen:

What increadible art. I can't even fathom what it means to have that much money.


On restorations I look at it differently...

A fine period correct restoration as DT's is like a fine- period correct restoration of an old car, or historic home. When it's down correctly, it gives you the feel and the value IMO of what it was like to own the new- real deal back at that time.

Of course a shoddy restore is a pile of dung, and a wasted oportunity.

Your Winchesters are very nice Doug... :drinks:

[Four Fingers of Death]

If the gun/rifle is in original and good condition, I feel they should be left alone, as there is not as many around now as before and they are becoming scarcer, this goes for military rifles as well in my book. However if worn, rusty or knocked around, they are improved by restoration and junker guns are fair game for customising. I know one guy who looked for years for a new/mint argentine Mauser, he ended up getting what looked to be an unfired one, real museum piece. Ripped it apart and built a nice custom rifle. I wasn't impressed, there are plently of good actions around without needsly trashing a fine old rifle. Mick.

[Frank46]

DougS. seeing those rifles brings to mind a couple of places I used to visit. One was a gun shop in honesdale penn, and another near stroudburg penn. The first placeusually could be counted on haveing about thirty or so old lever actions in their racks and dunklebergers in stroudburg had all sorts of old winchesters, marlins and who knows what else hanging on their wall. If id'a known then what I know now, man what a nice collection I'd probably have. But shoulds, coulda, woulda. Frank

[Doug S]

Pat,

It's funny that you bring up old cars, I'm looking for one to restore and as I was typing my first post I was thinking that someone would bring up restoring old cars as being the same as old guns. There is no right or wrong here, we all have our own ideas as to what is acceptable and I'm not sure I can explain my feelings but they are different when it comes to cars. I can see replacing sheet metal because of rust and a repaint-(original color only)- will help preserve the metal, but if the car has a replacment motor, it's no longer collectable to me-(the motor is the soul of the car just like the barrel of a gun)-(but it's OK to rebuild an original motor)..hard to explain and everyone is different. I'm glad Mick posted because that's about how I see it as far as guns go. While I like my guns as original as can be, I don't want anything I can't shoot, not that I shoot them all alot but they have to be functional for me to like them. I'm sure that makes other collectors cringe because there are many who think shooting them is a sin.

http://www.huntingforums.com/photopost/data/500/1873_2nd_Model.jpg

This is my first Winchester, someone cut the bbl. down to 20" and the bore could be better but it shoots good. I've often thought about replacing the bbl and mag tube or having it relined, but I stop short of getting it done. Even cut down the way it is, replacing the parts would detract from it's value-(to me)-even more. Like I said before, it's hard to explain....

Doug

[Doug S]

Frank,

I know what you mean, I'm an Old Pa. boy myself, Allentown/Harrisburg, college in Doylestown, Brother went to Bloomsburg, & etc. Some of those backwater gunshops in the NE had great finds, you often had to reach up into the rafters to see them...LOL. We had a cabin in Sulivan County and there was a guy north of town who ran a Gunshop/bait store out of the basement of a house that looked like it was ready to fall down. But, he literally used the rafters in the basement as his gun rack and one could find anything from a M-1 carbine to a Civil war musket tucked up there, and most everything inbetween. Have you ever been to Dixon's-(near Cabelas on 78)-, he has a bunch of oldies and a number of Winchesters hanging up..

Doug