I have often come up short at auction from Holt's. I tell myself you can not win them all and all these guns will come along again, or there are many others of the same general type. But there is one I lost and years later still wish I had won it without regular to the final cost. Just a unique gun and for not that much real money. It had a couple minor issues, being cylinder and half choke was the biggest but I even considered having it choke tubed to get a more long range choke setup. Here it is. 32", .410 hammer gun, sold for 2,500 pounds from a estimate of 500-700. If it, or it's twin returns for auction, I wont make the mistake of letting it get away. Do you have a "got away" gun?

https://www.holtsauctioneers.com/as...++1500+&refno=++145801&saletype=

One member just missed that side-lever Dickson.....

A few of them. But, I stopped at a local shop on my lunch break from work, decades ago, to stumble on a leather cased pair of R10 20 gauge guns, fitted with bretelle Darne slings. 29” tubes with swamped ribs and straight stocks. Absolutely killer condition, on everything.The workmanship was well above par for R10s, as was the quality of the wood. I put what little money I had on me down on them, called work and told them I wouldn’t be back that day, and darted to the bank to get the money.

When I returned, they were gone. Got my $25 back, and was told “ money talks”. I asked the guy to call the buyer and leave him my number, in case he changed his mind, or, wanted to make a few bucks on them.

Never heard a thing.

Best,
Ted

Reilly 27854 sold by Terry Buffum at Amoskeog, which unknown to me at the time turned out to be the Number 2 of the pair of my 16 bore side-lever SxS SN 27853. The gun is in Massachusetts someplace but the owner has gone silent.

http://www.amoskeagauction.com/110/133.php
serial #27854, 12 ga., 30" barrels with bright excellent bores choked full and full. , , ,A neat crystal indicator sidelever Reilly Ejectorgun. (17147-176) {C&R} [Terry Buffum Collection] (1500/2500) SOLD FOR $2,300.00

A Joseph Harkom 20 bore a couple years back.

Those .410 hammer doubles are sweet little things and none too common to find. 32" are long barrels for a .410. I have a little double hammer one by Stensby of Manchester. I guess there are quite a few I've missed out on over the years. I always seem to be out of ready cash when one comes along usually from just having bought something else that caught my eye. Having seen that it makes me wonder what my Stensby would fetch; although it's not for sale it would be interesting to know.

One of the cased Jules Bury 16ga. guns peddled at the Vintagers abut 20 years ago. These were the guns started before the war, hidden and finished later. Cased with all the tools. Abe Chaber told me it was one of the finest guns he's ever seen.

I tried to set up a deal to save a little money and when I returned it was gone.

A “got away” gun? Yes, there’s one. And it’s a cautionary tale. My grandfather would often say, “When I’m gone I want you to have my Winchester.” It was a lever action Model 53 (I think) in 32-20 and he had saved long to buy it and put it to good use over the decades of his adult life. I was overseas when he died and I asked my Dad to hold it for me. He came back to say that there was nothing written indicating that it was to go to me and one of my cousins already had it. That was that. Now 50+ years later it still hurts to think about it.

If we have guns we want to go to certain grandkids or others, we need to have those instructions in writing or better yet, already in their hands.

My "Holt's Regret" is a 36" fluid steel barrel Parker eight gauge hammerless GH grade, the first and only gun I have ever bid on at Holt's. My bid was ten grand US dollars and I was outbid. This was more than a decade ago when ten grand was real money. I have no idea who outbid me on a gun with a "replacement forend". My reason for bidding was that I owned the original forend for that gun and just had to put the gun and the forend back together. Oh, well.

FallCreekFan,
That is an extremely valid point, and I've already attended to it!
Karl

Consider your family will have almost no interest in your guns, or other hobbies, and no knowledge about their value, how to sell things off it up to us to leave them clear instruction how to sell or give away things. I have arranged all my real estate in trust for a seamless, almost tax free transition to my spouse and heirs. My guns have been inventoried, listed as to which gets sold or passed on to friends and family. The guns to be sold have a clear pathway to be sold by auction house and I am using two different auction companies . They will get picked up by the auction house and in about two months the family will get the money.

Of course any family member is free to select any gun in the to be sold lot, if they want it. After all, I’ll be dead and won’t miss them. Point is every gun, every reloader, every wood working tool, every piece of farm machinery has been accounted for and a direction for its sale, gift or disposal is in place with a rough estimation of expected value.