Don't throw out that old air gun - a collector just might snatch it up

A firearms collector might have a fine air gun or two in a glass case, but most bbguns are used and then discarded or tucked away in storage and forgotten. There have been cases where antique and vintage airguns have been sold for several thousand dollars, but it's rare. An expensive antique air gun usually represents some turning point in the market. For instance, a First Model Haviland and Gunn Air Pistol is worth about $7,000 at auction. So don't throw out that any old bbguns!

At the world’s biggest air gun auction of all-time (in 2003), about 1,200 vintage guns were auctioned off in Illinois. The most expensive of the bbguns sold is mentioned above ($7,000), but many others fetched comparable prices. For instance, the Super Sheridan Intermediate Model A/B, a rare gem of an air gun, sold for $4,000.

Air gun collectors and the best antique bbguns

This same 2003 auction was also full of surprises. Some kinds of later air gun models ended up being more valuable than earlier models. For instance, Webley Mark II Target Pistols were sold for more than the Mark I models, regardless of condition in some cases. Also, many bbguns that were considered treasures were found to be made of components from different firearms (fakes, if you will).

Air gun collectors at the 2003 auction took home such valuable bbguns as the pistol form of the Eisenwerke Gaggeneau Model 2 Columbia air rifle ($4,900) and the famous Parker Air Pistol ($3,750). Who knew an old air gun could be such a collector’s item?

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