Antique military/western item sources?

[Deadeye Don]

I am looking for reliable sources to purchase interesting authentic, period items such as accoutrements, edged weapons and firearms.  If any of you have used companies for this purpose please let me know.  There seem to be quite a few I have found online, but of course I have no way of knowing how honest or reliable they are.  Any recommendations would be appreciated.

Regards.  Deadeye.

[St. George]

That's a simple request - but with a convoluted answer.

You find these things by going by having an extensive reference library, by going to the 'big' gun shows, by subscribing to the auction catalogs, by reading 'everything' in the field of interest, by word-of-mouth, at estate sales/garage sales/gun shows and the like.

Old West and Militaria are well-established, very high-dollar collecting fields - and they overlap, along with Native American artifact collecting, since they all view the articles as being 'complementary' to their individual collections.

Plus - the guys who collect that sort of thing have disposable incomes, and are also collecting for investment as well as personal enjoyment.

That means that once these things reach a dealer/auctioneer - their prices have risen exponentially, and it becomes a bit of a bidding war.

I've collected/dealt/appraised/supplied these sorts of things for a 'very' long time - as have several folks here - and it's a never-ending hunt.

My suggestion would be to read as much as you possibly can on the items you seek and as your knowledge increases, so will your facility with authenticity.

Also - get to know a serious collector who'll let you view and handle those sorts of things, and who can take you under his wing for tutelage, since a 'serious' guy will help a 'serious' neophyte, since he'll enjoy explaining the different aspects, and since these collecting fields have been expertly faked since before WWII - seriously muddying the waters.

Bet you thought there'd just be a list of websites - didn't you?

I'm sure someone'll chip in with their favorites...

Good Luck.

Vaya,

Scouts Out!

[Deadeye Don]

St. George, 

Yes I was hoping there would be some trusted dealers you could recommend.  However,  as always I respect and appreciate your advice.   This is a new area for me,  but I have collected most of the reproduction firearms I want at this point so I was planning to start collecting original items now.  Regards.  Deadeye.

[St. George]

I can recommend guys who deal in honest parts and the like - but when you step into this arena, unless I've dealt personally with someone - I hesitate to do so.

To be sure - there are some interesting websites out there - but there's a lot of 'stuff' that - were there no 'problem' with it - should have sold a couple of years ago, but is still being advertised.

The bane of the unscrupulous dealer has been the emergence of well-written and even better-illustrated articles, monographs, and reference books.

Before - it was easy for them to take advantage of the unwary who was armed with nothing more than enthusiasm and a wallet.

One reason I liked to give the odd NCOWS Seminar was to show folks a bit of the 'real' Old West - so they could cement that image into their memories and perhaps stumble upon something 'better' than they'd've initially thought.

Some advice that may make it easier would be to read about something 'specific' and learn what you can about it - in essence, start small.

As you build knowledge - you sharpen your radar.

If I can help, let me know - whether generally or specifically.

Good Luck.

Vaya,

Scouts Out!

[James Hunt]

Well, if you want a site that you can trust as much as anything try www.rsdmilitaria.com it belongs to R. Stephen Dorsey and he has some items for sale. Hang on to your wallet.

Actually, if you stay away from the obvious collectors stuff - guns, chaps, spurs, saddles, etc. and are interested in 19th century stuff from our period (ie a match safe) ebay isn't a bad place. I wouldn't buy that $1500 item (faking is sometimes really obvious, sometimes not) unless I had an agreement from the seller that I could send it back if it was not as he described, but I have gotten interesting stuff there. I have probably gotton a half dozen spurs off of ebay, but be careful and don't spend more than YOU think they are worth. Sometimes prices are out of this world, but sometimes items are just not moving. It is not much different than going to a show if you don't know the seller.

I know a cowboy collector/seller in Cody who regularly cruises ebay and apparently he finds the occasional pearl. Don't believe the seller, know what you are getting.

[The Avocado Kid]

St. George, 

Yes I was hoping there would be some trusted dealers you could recommend.  However,  as always I respect and appreciate your advice.   This is a new area for me,  but I have collected most of the reproduction firearms I want at this point so I was planning to start collecting original items now.  Regards.  Deadeye.

Deadeye Don.... http://www.ushist.com/ Terry Leavey is the owner and was my landlord at one time...an honest guy and a very good sutler. He supplies a-lot of movie/film companies with period correct items. http://www.quartermastershop.com/ is another honest sutler. www.jarnaginco.com/ C&D Jarnagin Company is a good sutler with a good rep. I was in the CW reenacting hobby for many years and have dealth with all the above sutlers with no problems other than some items at times were on backorder. All these sutlers carry period items other than CW but CW is a big one for them as far as business goes....incl.old west as well. Good Luck.

[Deadeye Don]

Avocado Kid,  Thank you for your response, but I am looking for Original  (antique) dealers that are trustworthy.   I pretty much know where to find all the reproduction items.   This is a whole new venture for me and I am trying not to go into it completely ignorant  .   Regards.  Deadeye.

James Hunt,   Sound advice that I also got from St. George.  Thanks pards. 

[River City John]

Deadeye Don,
just for fun here is a sampling of links which feature originals of one sort or another. They make for an interesting browse. There is a great pricing range, some more expensive than others by nature, i.e. the British dealers.

Some, like the anitque loading tool site, are more useful for informational purposes as opposed to direct sales.
For the most part any dealer tries to deal in the really desirable, high-end quality merchandise within their field of specialty. That's where the money is.

With most any ESTABLISHED antique dealer, having too high a regard for the value of their collection more often comes into play rather than, say, mis-identification or outright chicanery. (Yes, I was an antiques dealer for many years.  )

http://www.cowboygear.com/index.html
http://www.vintagetextile.com/
http://www.midtenrelics.com/index.htm
http://www.tias.com/stores/gunsight/
http://www.antiquearmsinc.com/index.html
http://www.mikebrackin.com/
http://www.oldammo.com/picindex.htm
http://www.collectorsfirearms.com/admin/show_inventory.php?catID=13&subcatID=151
http://www.joesalter.com/
http://oldguns.net/cat_fa_antique_long.htm
http://www.antiquereloadingtools.org/index.html
http://www.ocyoung.com/index.htm
http://www.merzantique.com/index.html
http://www.eugeniaantiquehardware.com/
http://www.westboundstage.com/antiques.html#Badges
http://www.wagons-wheels.com/anfawaforsa.html
http://www.antiques-in-england.com/

[Deadeye Don]

RCJ,   Thanks.  There are some in there that I had not heard of before.  I went ahead and bought a couple of items from McPheeters.  I have not received them yet, but will report how things turn out.   http://www.mcpheetersantiquemilitaria.com/

[Buck Stinson]

I don't know if this is something that would be of interest to you, but I deal pretty heavy in original 1876 Winchesters and a few pieces of vintage cowboy gear.  I do not deal in junk and everything is real.  I don't buy or sell anything that I have to make excusses for.  I do not put out a list, but can be contacted if you're looking for such items. 

Adios,
Buck

[Deadeye Don]

I had good fortune with these two sites.  I ordered from both and received the exact goods as presented.

http://www.mcpheetersantiquemilitaria.com/

http://www.rsdmilitaria.com/index.php

Buck,  Thanks for the offer.  You sure do have some nice looking old leather judging from your other postings.