x

[Mich Hunter]

x

[jnyork]

Keep trying, don't give up.

[Dave]

All he can do is say "No". Why not try?

[Ysabel Kid]

You are not nuts. Most of us would do the same, if we could, to obtain a family heirloom like that.

Good luck!

[Streetstar]

Any idea what kind of rifle it is?

[Mich Hunter]

-

[Tycer]

Cool. Get it.

[TedH]

Do what you can. Good luck.

[Rusty]

I did something similar a few years ago. My brother in law had his dad's Remington 721 and he was sick. I wanted Rusty Jr. To have it and I knew if the brother in law died with it in his possession we'd never see it again. We paid a premium for it but we got it and don't regret paying double what it was worth.
I'd bet that if you called on the phone and talked to his wife, then told her the story and made her the offer she would put pressure on him in a way that you can't.

[fordwannabe]

OR POSSIBLY NOT PUT PRESSURE ON HIM IN A WAY ONLY A WIFE KNOWS. JUST SAYIN.

[Griff]

"If you don't ask, 'they' can't say YES!"

[cshold]

OR POSSIBLY NOT PUT PRESSURE ON HIM IN A WAY ONLY A WIFE KNOWS. JUST SAYIN.

+1
Being a distant relative is a big plus in my mind.
Become friends, get to know him. the gun will come along in do time.

[FWiedner]

... my grandfather traded the gun to a distant relative ...

Sounds to me like it might be an heirloom in his branch of the family also.

Seeing how you've developed an obsession with obtaining it, perhaps he's just as obsessed with keeping it.

[Les Staley]

Just a thought....most guys from Michigan would give their left leg for a guided hunt in Colorado..maybe even including license and permits...(ask me how I know..being originally from Michigan)..

[2571]

If he's from Frankenmuth he probably sold it for meth long time ago.

[Mich Hunter]

If he's from Frankenmuth he probably sold it for meth long time ago.

Naw, Durand to be specific Now if he was from Saginaw like I am, then I would agree

[Sixgun]

I say "leave out the emotion and apply common sense".

Let me tell you something that may put it all in a proper perspective. As a child, back in the late fifties, early sixties, I remember my very wealthy (not rich....wealthy) uncle having this rifle hanging over the fireplace. As a child, I remember gawking at the rifle, full of emotion, wishing that someday that this rifle, or something like it would be mine. I always asked my dad, "Let's go over to Uncle Frank's house" and it was just to mesmerize myself over his old percussion cap lock.

As I aged and started to learn about guns, I was over my Uncle Franks and looked at the rifle. It was nothing more that a contract 1861 Civil War gun that was all beat up and probably would not even fire........junk.

(Remember now, no emotion ) First, you remember the rifle as a small caliber percussion. It obviously has seen plenty of use. Probably a beat up and rusted bore condition, non functioning, small time local gunsmith made rifle that has had 50 small repairs over it's lifetime......something that you see in a wooden barrel in an antique store for $25.

Forget it...it's an inanimate tool and is probably long gone. Never let a piece of metal rule over your overall happiness....unless......it's gold from the Third Reich.

Lesson one from an experienced gun trader/buyer/whatever........NEVER offer a large amount of cash for any gun........when you offer someone a thousand dollars for a gun, well, in his mind, it must be worth 5 thousand. Always approach with the attitude that, "it used to be the families gun and it would make me very happy to have it back in the family". Let THEM come up with a value. You always get more with a teaspoon of honey than you will with a cupful of vinegar.----6

[Gascozark]

I have an heirloom situation of my own. My first cousin (6 months older, we are both mid-40's) has several guns that belonged to our grandfather and great-grandfather. There was a modest collection of guns that were split between the only 2 brothers (my father and my uncle). Fast forward to today, my brother and I have a few of the guns and my cousin has the remainder. It's a pretty even split on quantity. Here's my dilemma: my cousin has no biological children and short of surgical intervention, isn't going to have any. My brother and I both have children that will (prayers and fingers crossed nothing changes) appreciate these vintage firearms. I have offered to buy them at fair market value, but he says he's not interested in selling them right now. I explained how I'd really hate to see those guns get out of the family and would really appreciate getting the first opportunity to buy them if he ever changed his mind. He said he understood and would give me first dibs.

Now, in reality, who knows what will happen. My cousin has a girlfriend/fiancé with couple of young girls from a previous marriage. All parties involved have a pretty decent relationship. I hunt and fish some with my cousin. His girlfriend seems like a good gal with a good head on her shoulders. But in the end, who knows how things will end up. All I can do is remind him every so often that my offer to stands to let him know my interest remains and hope for the best. If we can keep the guns in the family, great. If not, they are just materialistic items that we can live without if necessary.

One of the guns in question is an 1893 Marlin takedown rifle in .30-30. It has a case colored receiver and tapered 24" octagon barrel. I'd really like to get my hands on it to take it deer hunting. It would be neat to be the fourth generation to take a deer with that rifle. I took my first wild turkey this past spring with great-grandfather's Model 12 Winchester (1924 manufacture). Hopefully, when he's ready, my son will take a turkey with it as well.

With all that said, Sixgun's advice is sound. Don't drive yourself crazy. It's just a rifle.

[KiwiKev]

Sadly, too common an issue. Causes a lot of grief in families. Happened over Grandads and great Granddads military collections. Eldest son only had daughters who had no interest. Now lost.

This is where local social museums are a good thing. All the family can enjoy things.

My wife was given a bizarre set of artefacts from an elderly woman in England.

Her elderly aunt, who never married, gave them to her.

1. An engraved pocket watch from a married Admiral she had been having a relationship with but went their own ways.
2. Passports from the 20s and 30s
3. Train tickets from Canada, 1930s.

I tried tracking down relatives in England, sadly seemed to be the end of the line.

My wife wife thinks we will pass them on to a museum.

Good luck with those rifles.

[BrentD]

If rifles and shotguns were only passed down from one generation to the next within a family, then there would be no market of old, used firearms and nothing to collect. Happily, they do "get lost" to the rest of public sometimes.

While I hope you connect with your lost relatives and maybe even end up with the sought after gun, perhaps it will make someone else happy one day. Someone you don't even know.

One day, perhaps not that far off, all my rifles will be on the open market. They do not make a huge collection but they are very nice, high-quality rifles and shotguns that I hope others will take afield and wonder about and use the heck out of - and then pass on to someone, anyone, else that will use them and appreciate them.

[Paladin]

You are not nuts. Most of us would do the same, if we could, to obtain a family heirloom like that.

Good luck!

+1

[1894c]

you're not nuts...it's worth a try... :)