What should I collect?
What should I collect! I’m often asked what antique firearms people should collect; they want to start a collection but don’t know how to start! There is not a simple answer, but I can give a few pointers.
1. You should collect what you are interested in! Don’t be influence totally by what other people say you should collect. Listen to what they suggest and consider their reasons, but don’t be afraid to disregard them, just understand what you are doing. As you start collecting and you learn more, you may find that your interest shifts slightly or becomes more concentrated on one area.
2. Your main ally and friend in starting to collect is information. You can never have too much info about your area of interest. This can be classed in three main areas, historical, reference, and current market.
Read about the historical period your collection is based on, background history - political, military, and social. This will put the items you are collecting into context and may explain their development. Arms are not developed in isolation. There maybe specific reference books or websites on your subject area. Specialist books may be rare and expensive, but they are normally worth the investment and this information may stop you making mistakes in purchasing and will increase your interest in your collection.
When using the web for information, always take care and make sure your source is creditable and trustworthy. Always cross reference with another source. Current market prices and conditions can be researched by attending gun and militaria fairs and auctions. You will learn so much from these events. Never be afraid to ask questions about an item that a trader has for sale. A good trader will always be happy to talk to you and share some info about his stock. If an item is priced higher or lower than you expect, ask why. It maybe one item is a rare example and the another has a fault; a good trader will be happy to share his knowledge.
3. Set your spending budget! Decide what you can afford and stick to it. It is easy to get carried away, particularly at auctions online or in person. Items are rarely so hard to find that you must have that one, wait and another one will turn up. This is where your research will help you decide what is a good price and how rare an item is. If you don’t know these facts maybe you should wait before buying.
4. Buy the best you can afford. With most items condition is everything to collectors and a good condition item can be resold more easily than a tatty version. When I first start as a dealer, I was often tempted to stock cheaper tatty examples of antique firearms but found that for most collectors the cheap price wasn’t a draw, they were happy to pay more for a better example. It is better to save up more to buy a good example tomorrow than spend less money on a tatty one today. But buy what you like, I personally like guns that have been modified, that show their battle scars, so I buy them because they interest me, but I do understand I’m breaking my own rules!
5. Be prepared to come home from an event empty handed. When you have money burning a hole in your pocket it is frustrating to go to a Militaria fair and not find an item to buy. The temptation is then to buy something even if it is not quite right. I know this frustration, but I keep my money in my pocket, maybe spend a few quid on a book, (information is always worth having) and wait for another event. One event I regularly sell at hadn’t given me much to buy for the four previous visits but on the last visit I found four great items to buy, it was lucky that I saved my money and could afford all four!
In a nutshell – know what you like, research it well, buy the best you can afford and be patient!
So, what do I collect? To be honest I’m not a great collector! But I do have collections of items I can use for Vietnam and Wild West airsoft and reenacting. My emphasize is on things I can use at these events, uniforms that fit me, practical day to day items I can use. This means that I sometimes need reproduction items rather originals. I have developed my criteria that not everyone else will agree with, but I do try to obey my own rules.