The Gun Thread

[Sally PB]

As a famous man said, "A man's got to know his limitations." Applies to women too, of course.

 

[azurbanclucker]

So...

Never owned a gun in my life, but ended up with "mine" when I went to visit my folks this weekend. This one's the most interesting, I think. One of 2 pistols Dad gave me. It's a Marlin XXX Standard circa 1872-1887. Looks to be chambered in .22 short and takes a rimfire cartridge. Also came with a lead mold, but I'm not sure they're related. The mold has both a ball and a bullet mold cavity and looks to be larger caliber. Kinda also think it'd be odd for a cartridge revolver to have a mold, but I also know nothing about guns. Been in the family over 100 years according to my Mom, but no one seems to have a lot of real history on it in the family. Mom wrote to Marlin and they sent her a booklet with info to identify it and some exploded diagrams to break it down.

That's what I know. Or think I know. Enjoy.

 

[Toad9000]

So...

Never owned a gun in my life, but ended up with "mine" when I went to visit my folks this weekend. This one's the most interesting, I think. One of 2 pistols Dad gave me. It's a Marlin XXX Standard circa 1872-1887. Looks to be chambered in .22 short and takes a rimfire cartridge. Also came with a lead mold, but I'm not sure they're related. The mold has both a ball and a bullet mold cavity and looks to be larger caliber. Kinda also think it'd be odd for a cartridge revolver to have a mold, but I also know nothing about guns. Been in the family over 100 years according to my Mom, but no one seems to have a lot of real history on it in the family. Mom wrote to Marlin and they sent her a booklet with info to identify it and some exploded diagrams to break it down.

That's what I know. Or think I know. Enjoy.

View attachment 4293178

Very cool! Back in the day it was pretty common to cast your own bullets even with cartridge guns. It was a lot easier to get raw lead than it was to find packaged ammunition. You would probably want to have a gunsmith check it over to make sure its still properly timed (basically that the cylinder aligns properly with the barrel during the correct part of the firing sequence), but if it is you can find .22 short pretty easy to shoot in it.

 

[azurbanclucker]

Very cool! Back in the day it was pretty common to cast your own bullets even with cartridge guns. It was a lot easier to get raw lead than it was to find packaged ammunition. You would probably want to have a gunsmith check it over to make sure its still properly timed (basically that the cylinder aligns properly with the barrel during the correct part of the firing sequence), but if it is you can find .22 short pretty easy to shoot in it.

I know a couple. I was debating whether or not I wanted to just preserve it or make it usable. Everything else I got from dad is working fine, or was the last time we took them to the range 5 years ago. Just need cleaning. This one, though, has not seen the light of day more than twice in my lifetime. Not shooting it without having it serviced. I like my body parts where they are today. I don't need a misfire rearranging anything.

 

[tripletfeb]

So...

Never owned a gun in my life, but ended up with "mine" when I went to visit my folks this weekend. This one's the most interesting, I think. One of 2 pistols Dad gave me. It's a Marlin XXX Standard circa 1872-1887. Looks to be chambered in .22 short and takes a rimfire cartridge. Also came with a lead mold, but I'm not sure they're related. The mold has both a ball and a bullet mold cavity and looks to be larger caliber. Kinda also think it'd be odd for a cartridge revolver to have a mold, but I also know nothing about guns. Been in the family over 100 years according to my Mom, but no one seems to have a lot of real history on it in the family. Mom wrote to Marlin and they sent her a booklet with info to identify it and some exploded diagrams to break it down.

That's what I know. Or think I know. Enjoy.

View attachment 4293178

That's very cool!

 

[Toad9000]

I know a couple. I was debating whether or not I wanted to just preserve it or make it usable. Everything else I got from dad is working fine, or was the last time we took them to the range 5 years ago. Just need cleaning. This one, though, has not seen the light of day more than twice in my lifetime. Not shooting it without having it serviced. I like my body parts where they are today. I don't need a misfire rearranging anything.

Obviously its ultimately your decision, but imo guns are meant to be shot. I think that's the best way to enjoy a neat piece of history, assuming its in working order. The only exception would maybe be a one of a kind piece or a gun that has particular provenance but the same model is otherwise relatively common.

 

[tripletfeb]

So...

Never owned a gun in my life, but ended up with "mine" when I went to visit my folks this weekend. This one's the most interesting, I think. One of 2 pistols Dad gave me. It's a Marlin XXX Standard circa 1872-1887. Looks to be chambered in .22 short and takes a rimfire cartridge. Also came with a lead mold, but I'm not sure they're related. The mold has both a ball and a bullet mold cavity and looks to be larger caliber. Kinda also think it'd be odd for a cartridge revolver to have a mold, but I also know nothing about guns. Been in the family over 100 years according to my Mom, but no one seems to have a lot of real history on it in the family. Mom wrote to Marlin and they sent her a booklet with info to identify it and some exploded diagrams to break it down.

That's what I know. Or think I know. Enjoy.

View attachment 4293178

My nerdy son says he thinks it's an old Navy gun, depending on it's size. He also says that the mold doesn't go with the gun but is cool none the less. He noticed it doesn't have a trigger guard so is an old derringer style

 

[LoveMyPeepers]

Lets see...I've used a gun to shoot captured possums that killed my chickens and I am now getting revenge on and used one that doesn't really do any damage to scare wild parrots out of our pecan tree.