Remington New Model Army 44

[SamHouston]

Awhile back I inherited the families old civil war gun. It appears to be in outstanding condition. Can someone give me an idea on it's value? What is the best way to store long term?

[dalegribble]

that gun looks just like mine which came from the battle of cabelas which was presented to me by the brown suited ups forces upon the surrender of my money.
remarkable condition for a civil war relic.

[SamHouston]

It is the real thing passed down through the years. Not in working condition but would like to find someone to do repairs. Would this hurt the value by no longer being original?

[James K]

Making normal repairs, of the type that would have been done in its service days, would not decrease the value as long as the parts used were properly made. Replacing any major parts, like the cylinder, grips, barrel, hammer or loading lever would decrease the value unless original parts were used (it is still possible to get some original parts for those) and the ones on the gun are broken or totally ruined (barrel bent or crushed, for example).

The gun does look as if it might have been reblued at some time, but it is not possible to tell without better pics. If the condition is original, it is outstanding.

Preservation would be best done using a good gun grease (Rig is one) or oil, a good cardboard box and non-acid paper, also oil soaked.

Jim

[Hawg]

If it is a reblue I'd say about 12-1400. If it's original blue I wouldn't even hazard a guess but it would be worth substantially more

[James K]

The Blue Book puts one at 95% at over $5200, and I think it would go quite a bit more. The fact is that those guns were "rode hard and put away wet" and ones in top condition are rare.

One thing SamHouston should do is try to record every person who owned the gun down through the years, back to the man who carried it in the CW. Also any references to the gun in family documents, like diaries or wills, will be of importance. When any antique (not just a gun) turns up in unusually good shape, the natural suspicion is that it is either not "real" or is not in original condition. A documented history ("provenance" is the term), even if it isn't totally solid, will not only go a long way toward discounting those suspicions but will add to the value of the item should it ever be sold.

Jim