I guess I'm not normal
I like to go to the gun shows in my area ( I've never been to an antique or collector show though ) I also buy a couple tables to
sell at one local show every year... I highlight "sell", as I don't have much money for more guns, though I consider myself a "collector" I go to the shows with intent to "sell" most of what I brought ( I mostly sell gun stuff, ammo, etc. & rarely sell actual guns ) & then use my new funds to buy more guns, or gun related stuff that I actually need or want...
since my funds are limited (mostly because I have other hobbies, & a "real life" outside the gun hobby, I started a collection of early pocket revolvers several years ago... the lower cost of H&R's, Ivers, Hopkins & Allen, & to an extent, early Smiths, I was able to collect about 3 dozen different & functional examples, mostly chambered in 32 & 38 S&W ( both of which I now reload for ) so all my examples are fully shootable... along the way, I've picked up several I think of as prizes, for good values...most of my purchases were made off of Gun Broker, but I find that I get some pretty good deals ( as a seller ), buying or trading at the show I sell at...
some of these old gems have some pretty interesting features... antique Iver "bicycle" guns with trigger safeties... early Hopkins & Allen safety police models with a unique hammer block feature... top break auto eject revolvers, top break manual eject revolvers... the introduction of the loading gate...
