Hi Everyone

Whilst visiting my Aunts over Christmas, she showed me this collection of miniature replica pewter guns that she bought from the local Antique store. It appears to be a Franklin Mint product that includes a booklet identifying each piece a giving a short history. The display case measures 21.5" x 13". My Aunt bought it (for about $100 USD) purely as a display item and not as any sort of an investment. During her brief research, she believes that the collection was circa 1985.

My Aunt thinks this collection might have been bought as individual pieces as a type of subscription package (perhaps coming with a magazine). At the end of the subscription, customers were then offered the opportunity to buy the case.

Has anyone seen anything like this before? Any ideas on what it may be worth if located in the USA?

Cheers
Moo Moo

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These minatures look the size that they would fit the 1/6 GI Joe Action Figures.

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Funny definition of "Guns that won the west"! The lower 5th from left, is a Flintlock Blunderbuss. I've seen lots of them and all were English and for ship use! Just because Lewis and Clark had one with them, doesn't mean anyone else used one out west!

Ivan

I have no idea on their value other than to say I recall a TV story on commemorative silver coins. The reporter took the coins to a shop to sell and the dealer offered melt value for the silver. When the reporter questioned why they were valued much less than they cost the dealer pulled out a bucket of similar coins and said he’d sell them at melt price. Probably a charge of some kind for the transaction but basically they were worth the silver content.
The value is in the fact that the buyer likes them for what they are.

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Who are those guys?

I never saw the Duke with one.

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Who are those guys?

Collectables are generally a dead market. Franklin Mint really hypes their stuff to the susceptible public in hopes that they buy it. Have never seen any of it go for anywhere near what the owner originally paid for it. Have a friend in a Coin & Stamp Shop a long time ago. Unless the coin was really a good piece it did not bring much, unused postage U.S. stamps no matter their age brought 80% of face. He would then sell the stamps at face value. We got it for what he paid for it to use as postage for our snail mail.

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

Started to say worth Silver Content then I saw Pewter on the Booklet.
Franklin ‘Mint’ is noted for aggressively promoting overpriced ‘Collectibles.’
Buy what you like! But don’t expect it all to increase in value!
We do have actual private Mints-
Like the Scottsdale Mint.

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NRA LIFE MEMBER

I suggest you rewatch The Comancheros.



After Duke kills Lee Marvin he recaptures Regret and they stop off at a grain farm, where for some reason there is an entire company of Rangers, and the wife is having a baby. The Comancheros attack the farm, to steal grain, horses and cattle. During the fight the older child - looks to be 10 or 11 - takes a blunderbust down off the wall and shoots at the Indians with it.

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I always take precautions

I had a business associate that also dealt in "Postal Stationary". Often he bought whole collections to get a few pages of stationary. He paid 10% of face and sold it at 50% of face value! Whenever he mailed anything, it had about 20 stamps on it. He would give $10,000 face value to Charities and get the full value as a tax deduction! (Businesses don't want cheap postage, it is too expensive to use it! Even the Post Office gives a discount for using the machines in large quantities!)

Ivan

I was talking reality! However, the gun that probably every Homesteader and farmer had was a percussion musket! That after the Civil War, that was the cheapest form of shotgun available!

Ivan

They were in regular use during the King Phillip's War era around 1676. I'm not sure if that qualifies as a gun the "won the west" but you can make an argument that it was the start of westward expansion. Lewis and Clark also had an air rifle.

I seem to recall on one of the "GUN" tv shows that the most common homesteaders firearm was the double barrelled shotgun.

I've never seen that set of miniature guns before, but I know it's really old because nobody -- NOBODY -- would market anything in this day and age using the phrase "won the West"...

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Where Law Ends, Tyranny Begins

JR has a bunch of little green army men that could use those.

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

Franklin Mint closed a number of years ago, the site of the mint on Route 1 near Media, Pa is now being turned into a real estate development. When they were in business they turned out all sorts of stuff, including lots of miniature cars. I’ve got a very nice Franklin Mint model of a 1931 Model A.

My old partner had all sorts of Franklin Mint stuff. His State Police barracks was right next to the Franklin Mint, and he bought a bunch of stuff from them. He had Civil War chess sets, pocket knives, cars, and I think he had one of those guns that won the west sets. He sold it all years ago at yard sales, it didn’t bring very much.

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Wheel guns are real guns.

Regardless of worth, that's a pretty cool little display. Franklin mint made a ton a pewter stuff. Somebody out there collects their stuff. I'm too lazy to look, but I'd bet a dollar there's at least one forum for Franklin mint stuff.

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Waiting For The Sun.

Was the kids name Duke?

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Who are those guys?

In the gun world, things made to be collected generally aren't worth collecting.

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I've still got it made.

Will concur with that statement. I collect/accumulate firearms related stuff. Ammo boxes, oil cans, powder tins, etc...... Most of which was never meant to be collected.

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USMC 69-93 Combat Pistol Inst.

To address your question of value..... I have seen the sets change hands just under $100.00. They can be found on eBay with quite a wide spread in asking price, but the sets that 'sell' are not over $100.00.

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NRA Endowment Member

I know there is at least one Franklin Mint item that has risen in value over the years. They sold a replica of Wyatt Earp's Model 3 in 1993 for $79. 30 years later, recent sales indicate prices paid are $200 to $300, mostly because it is an extremely detailed replica. Also, design, weight, and action were all done very well. Appreciation was 3X return in 30 years before excluding a 56% deflation of the dollar over that time, but better than most Franklin Mint collectibles.

I bought 2 of them several years ago to display in an old-west leather rig. They look impressive in the holster and on the wall. I believe I paid $50 for one and $75 for the other one. They are now often sold as a "rare" replica, but a quick search shows at least a dozen for sale now from $190 tp $440!!

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Gary
SWCA 2515

Franklin Mint, Bradford Exchange, Knives an watches in magazines, the buffalo double eagle clad in 14mg of .9999 of pure gold, all junk, at 10% of the stated value. Like collecting Avon bottles. Buyer beware IMO

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Pete
I ain't no fortunate son

'Winning the West" means the United States finishing taking the land away from the people who were here before we arrived, circa 1890 with the killing of Sitting Bull and the Wounded Knee Massacre. Then we moved on to Hawaii and the Philippines in 1898.

My wife and I attend estate sales regularly and she does re-sales. NONE of the "collector" sets of anything sell for even what they were purchased for originally.

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