doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Basket case Lefever Optimus

No, what I mean is I have made several bids (absentee) in excess of the max estimate only to be surprised to win for less than even the min estimate.

The 12 ga Optimus did not have a broken stock.The gun has a wonderful history. It was owned by an pacific fleet Admiral named Kirkpatrick. Admiral Kirkpatrick gave the gun to Captain Tracy Cuttle <one of the Captain's in his command> when Captain Cuttle retired in 1948.I purchased it in 1999 after being notified by a friend that it was for sale. I asked Captain Cuttle why he was selling it.His answer was that at 91 he was too damm old to cock it anymore.I believe he used it most if not all of the years he owned it.It needed some TLC.The barrels had been hot blued, and the rib was loose,Captain Cuttle was a righty and instead of having the stock cast off,the checkering was sanded away on one side so that it fit.The barrels were properly redone,the internals cleaned and put in good order. The stock was a different matter. I was told to have it restocked. I didn't want to lose the original wood so I pestered D/T, and he agreed to do it.He also reset, or replaced one of the ivory pieces,and put a contempory pad on it. It came out great as you can see, a long time, but I think the Admiral, the Captain and Uncle Dan would be pleased, I am.

To bring back an old thread. The Lefever Optimus in Greg Martin's February auction brought $6,900.00 including buyer's premium. Good Deal / Bad Deal? It depends on your or your Gunsmith's level of proficiency and your/his valuation of time.

Best Regards, George

George L.

I guess the buyer saw hope. If the barrels can be saved he has a chance. If you replace the barrels, restock the gun and redo the metal is this gun going to be like King Alfred's ax? You know on the fifth handle and the head has been replaced twice, but original.

All those who saw the gun said the barrels were in bad shape. I suspect someone along the way checked the barrel wall thickness and found them too thin to save or the gun would not have been at auction. The metal and engraving is going to take a lot of work to do right. But if the winner bid almost 7K someone was not far behind him to drive the bidding up to that level. Maybe both of them are optimistic about this Optimus.

Two optimists on the Optimus, eh? Jake

Perhaps whoever bought this gun is a member here and they will reveal their plans for it's restoration.
Jim

My bet is that if whoever bought it is on here they may not want to reveal that they wanted it that bad. One can buy a pretty darn nice gun for 7K. Jake

One can buy a damn good gun for 7K...but to chat about an Optimus is priceless!

I imagine we'll see this gun again...at allot higher asking price and spouting of pristine condition.

I think the gun can be completed for under $15k even farming all the work out if the guy is diligent. I dunno what an Optimus goes for in shootable condition, but I'd bet a lot more than that.