talkmagic.co.uk

Me and my nan have found a couple of guns...we believe one to be an old world war one officers pistol and another well we have no idea it is more of a rifle looks muzzle loaded with a thing on the side that snap shut when you pull the trigger...I can post pictures tommorow of the two so if anybody could identify them that would be great.

Just to let you know neither work nor have we got anything to work them with .... as I understand hey i have guns in my loft could scare a few people ...

They sound like war trophies. The pictures sound interesting.

Well one looks older then a western rifle so I fear it may justb e a re enactment thing but the first is appt an officers pistol jsut grabbign it now.(its a revovler)

Right I canr upload pictures but if some one has an email adress so they could look at them that wud be great.


There is a small makers mark on the chambers the letters are

E
LG

In like an oval shape with a crown on top. the whole thing is decorated with a sort of flowery spirals and sun shaped things.

Best post some pictures.

I cant the forum wont elt me upload any photos

you know there's guns and firearms forums out there smithy?

IAIN wrote:you know there's guns and firearms forums out there smithy?

There are indeed, however signing up to a forum and immediately asking a question as your first post can often be met with hostility, especially if you do not take the time to integrate with the "community"...

Smithy can you not upload to Photobucket or something similar? I do not have a clue about guns personally but I know UK gun law is incredibly strict, you might want to check where you stand legally for posessing them. My friend had a replica Colt .45 which he wanted to drill the barrel out of (not to rifle it and make it shootable, just to make it look more realistic) but apprently doing so would have made it an illegal firearm. Not sure how accurate to the law that is but always better to be safe than have armed police bashing your door in at 3am.

Would that be the one?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Webley

Cheers
LP

You can upload your photos on TinyPic. Just copy and paste the link in the [img]...[/img] tags and Robert's your father's brother.

http://www.tinypic.com

MagicalSmithy wrote:Me and my nan have found a couple of guns...

Possibly the most surreal statement of the year so far.

If you want to remain on the right side of the very strict laws then I'd suggest using Google to find out about the current gun legislation.

From memory, it's now illegal to own any firearm without a valid certificate even if it's incapable of being fired. For legal ownership of a replica, the gun shold have a fixed and non detatchable and brightly coloured muzzle and even then there are rules about it's use and display.

The only exceptions for replica's are when they are used for theatrical purposes and you MUST be able to prove that it is kept for this purpose. It's up to you to prove, not the authorities to prove.

It would appear that neither of your guns would be lcassed as replicas so would be illegal. I urge you to check out your own circumstances as the laws for possession are very strict now and can include a custodial sentence just for possession.

It's legal to own an antique gun without a firearms certificate, provided it's old enough that it's essentially "not functional" -- that is, you can't readily obtain ammunition for it -- and provided it's kept as a curiosity without any attempt at being fired, ever.

Anything that's muzzle-loading is considered to fall into this category automatically, so that's your rifle OK. The pistol is more problematic and really needs to be judged by an expert.

Cartridge ammunition is illegal no matter how old it is, so I hope you didn't find any with the firearms.

Your best course of action would be to contact a major auction house (Sotheby's, Christie's, one like that). Their expert can advise you on the law, how to look after them, and also their value. You're clearly not a firearm enthusiast, so unless they have great family sentimental value you'd probably do better to sell them than to keep them. Then you won't have to worry about caring for them or any future changes in the law.

For now, don't try to clean them or take them apart in any way. Certainly don't rush off to deactivate them -- deactivation can't legally be done by an individual anyway, and it will ruin their collectable value.

Remember, all firearms are loaded at all times. Even antique ones. Handle with care, and never point the business end at anyone or anything.

If you have to transport them, take GREAT care so they can't be seen in public, or you could end up arrested. I'd wrap them up in cloth (not newspaper, it's very acidic) and put them in a box.

I would like to see some pictures. The older one that is muzzle loading sounds like a flintlock, (maybe a pistol as they were long back in the 1600s) as you mentioned it has something that shuts on the side when fired. Even if this was a re-enactment weapon it will still fire and is classed as a shotgun as it is smoothed bored. There for you will need a shot gun licence and a metal gun box fixed to the wall to keep it in. Then again it could just be a non working replica of an old flintlock and I'm not sure if what the law is on them now. Photos would be good so we can at least see what they are and help guide you.

Thanks guys Ok I will look into getting photos.

Just to let you know there is no ammunition with either weapon.

Also I will work on getting some photos up...

We did not aquire these from an outside source they where both found withing my Nans property about 50 years ago when she moved in.

We fear that a friend of ours (who passed away) may have left his re enactment rifle from his days as a swestern re enactor in the cup board but for obvious reasons we are unable to ask him.

Again I will work on the photos.....if I can not sus this out could someone that knows how pm a email address and i can send them photos (ofcourse only if they would not mind).

Agains thanks for all your help.....finally is it ok to clean the pistol it looks a tad grimy....did not want to polish up and then damage it as such.

regards justen smith.

P.S it is not a webley and scott much shorter barrel with a white handle.