Desk Drawer Find

[GaryS]

I received a call from a friend of mine yesterday. A mutual acquaintance had been cleaning out his late father's desk and found two guns. He called a friend who looked at them, did some research on the Internet, and then called me. I went over today, took a look some some photos, and am posting here for opinions and advice.

One gun, which I won't waste much time on, is a Llama .380 patterned after the 1911. It's a cheap *** imported by Stoeger arms.

The other is a .32 Safety Hammerless 1st Model. His father probably got this from his father, but we don't know for sure. My acquaintance didn't even know his father had either of these.

My friend figured out the locking mechanism and opened the cylinder. The piece had five rounds of .32 that are who knows how old.

The big question is what is this worth? The owner has no interest in guns and it has no sentimental attachment given that he didn't even know it existed.

The second is, when was it made? That's important in regards to whether or not it qualifies as an antique and thus no FFL is needed.

I suggested a factory letter, but then I realized I didn't know if the records went back this far. If they do, my thought is that they will give this antique provenance for collectors.

Lastly, who can we bring this to in New England who will know what it's worth?

The pictures aren't the greatest and I'll try again later in the week if I can get over there. I will tell you that it barely has a turn line on the cylinder, but does have a very small area where the plating has flaked off. Or maybe it's just tarnished, I didn't want to poke around.

It's been fired a bit, but not a lot. The barrel has some powder residue in it, but that's about it.

I don't think that there is a box with it. At least it's not been found if there is.

I looked in the SCSW and it sure looks genuine. Everything matches, serial number location, engraving on the barrel, pinned front sight, etc...

ETA: Forgot to mention that the serial number is 582XX

 

[opoefc]

It's an antique , made in 1893 approximately. Value is in the range of $550 to $750 due to it's very fine original condition. Post it for sale here in the Forum for the best response. Don't disregard the Llama. If it's in as good condition as the S&W, it can bring a good price. Llamas are not cheap guns and were well made in Spain. Ed.

 

[GaryS]

It's an antique , made in 1893 approximately. Value is in the range of $550 to $750 due to it's very fine original condition. Post it for sale here in the Forum for the best response. Don't disregard the Llama. If it's in as good condition as the S&W, it can bring a good price. Llamas are not cheap guns and were well made in Spain. Ed.

Thanks. I have to take another look at the Llama. It too seems to have sat in the desk drawer. I'll go back, take some pictures, and probably post in The Lounge to keep this thread on the New Departure.

 

[DWalt]

Right about the Llama. For some reason, Llamas have an undeserved reputation for being cheap junk. My experience has been that is not so. I have owned three Llamas - a .38 Revolver, very similar to the S&W Model 10, and two M1911 clones. I have only one M1911 clone left, in .45 ACP (the other was in .38 Super). I don't plan to sell it, as it is an excellent shooter and well made. I am sorry I sold the .38 Super. The Llama .380 is very desirable (there are several different models, don't know which yours is), and if in desk drawer condition, would be worth somewhere in the $200-300 range.

 

[mg357]

That is a nice looking revolver.

 

[wiley]

Really nice, a plus factor would be that the fired condition seems to have been done with noncorrosive ammunition.
The Llama 380 was noted as having a locked breech, a very unique feature, till the most recent 380s

 

[GaryS]

Really nice, a plus factor would be that the fired condition seems to have been done with noncorrosive ammunition.
The Llama 380 was noted as having a locked breech, a very unique feature, till the most recent 380s

Thanks. I have a separate post in the Lounge on the Llama and will be adding some pictures shortly. I'm adding some pictures to this thread as well. I think they show this beautiful S&W antique much more clearly than the first ones I did.

 

[tjpopkin]

If you intend to sell this gun, use a gun cleaning kit with Hoppes or Shooters Choice, run a patch down the barrel and clean it. If the powder is residue from old cartridges, it is doing irreparable damage by attracting water and corroding the bore. Clean it. dry with a clean patch and put a light gun oil down the bore on a clean patch.
If the bore is really nice (no pits), I am interested in the gun, depending on price.
Email me:
[email protected]

Terry

 

[GaryS]

Thanks for the hints. I was trying to figure out if Hoppes would be OK since I have no idea when this was last fired. I don't know if I mentioned it, but it was loaded when my friend found it. I have no idea how old the ammo is, but it could be quite old.

From looking at it, it was stored in a dry place because there is no hint of corrossion. The bore is dirty, but not filthy. When I return the Llama, I'll see if I can get the Smith and give it a cleaning too.

As to a sale, that's not my decision. While I don't think that the owner has any attachment, I also don't know what he plans to do. My position is just to tell him what I've found out (thanks to people here) and give him some options.

I've come to like the firearm, but it's not the type of thing I'm interested in collecting and what it would cost can fund a fair amount of stuff that I am interested in.

Once I know what he wants to do, I'll update the thread.

Thanks again to everyone for their help and opinions. I've learned a lot.

If you intend to sell this gun, use a gun cleaning kit with Hoppes or Shooters Choice, run a patch down the barrel and clean it. If the powder is residue from old cartridges, it is doing irreparable damage by attracting water and corroding the bore. Clean it. dry with a clean patch and put a light gun oil down the bore on a clean patch.
If the bore is really nice (no pits), I am interested in the gun, depending on price.
Email me:
[email protected]

Terry