# Refinish or not?



## truckman (Feb 5, 2009)

I have a Pieper 12 gauge SxS that was stamped July - 1881 It is not rusted up or anything, but the stock is kind of bad. has not been fired in about 20 years. Barrell and receiver are dull and have some scratches on them. Not really concerned with the metal. Will probably never shoot it again. I have been thinking about having the stock redone. What do you guys think?


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## gtparts (Feb 5, 2009)

I would do the furniture, but like any resto - remod project, whatever left undone looks like Fido's fanny. I guess the question is closet or display, if you are not considering firing it. Your call.


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## germag (Feb 5, 2009)

Do you have any idea of the value? If the gun is valuable, I would not refinish it. A refin will normally reduce the value of a collectible gun regardless of condition of the original finish.


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## TROY13 (Feb 5, 2009)

germag said:


> Do you have any idea of the value? If the gun is valuable, I would not refinish it. A refin will normally reduce the value of a collectible gun regardless of condition of the original finish.



I agree with germag, if it is not gonna be a shooter I would leave it like it is.


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## truckman (Feb 5, 2009)

*12*

I don't have any idea what the value is. Does anyone know where I could take it to find out? I don't really plan on doing anything with it but passing it on to my son to have.


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## redlevel (Feb 5, 2009)

truckman said:


> What do you guys think?



No.  Don't do it.


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## hawgrider1200 (Feb 18, 2009)

*none of my business*

really, none of my business, but, I saw on Tv some antique "expert" talking about the very thing you are. He said an antique should have a patina and if you remove that patina by refinishing or other wise you decrease the value of the antique.


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## obadiah (Feb 19, 2009)

I would leave it too.


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## polaris30144 (Feb 19, 2009)

hawgrider1200 said:


> really, none of my business, but, I saw on Tv some antique "expert" talking about the very thing you are. He said an antique should have a patina and if you remove that patina by refinishing or other wise you decrease the value of the antique.



I saw the same show. The biggest mistake people make is refinishing an old gun (not talking about an older current production gun), it always decreases the value. People think making an old gun shiny makes it more desirable when in fact collectors see it as just the opposite. Do some research, see how old it is and if it may have any collector value before attempting any refinish.


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## Twenty five ought six (Feb 20, 2009)

> The biggest mistake people make is refinishing an old gun (not talking about an older current production gun), it always decreases the value.



As a general proposition for a DYI project, what you say is true.  However, a professional restoration of a collectible gun can add substantially to the value of the gun _depending on the condition of the gun to be restored._

Referring to the OP,  Pieper may have substantial value (and it may not).  I would have it looked at by a knowledgeable SXS expert, or at least take some pictures, and seek online advice at the Doublegun forum http://www.doublegunshop.com/forums/ubbthreads.php, or Shotgunworld.com, http://www.shotgunworld.com/bbs/index.php


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## bankwalker (Feb 20, 2009)

Collectors generally want "original condition", so if you refinish the gun you automatically knock those people out as potential buyers. That might be okay since a fool's money spends just as well as anyone else's.

I see guns listed on the swap/sell forum where people brag about having the gun refinished, and no doubt some fool jumps in to buy thinking they have an excellent condition collectible.  WRONG!  What they have is a gun that is properly valued at the bottom of the working collectible spectrum (fair)- a 'shooter', as they say.  If the gun is in such a condition that it isn't worth putting on display, then you probably aren't hurting the value.  Even old junk is still junk.  I believe this is what 25-06 is referring to when he says you could possibly add to the guns value.
That's just my $0.02.


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## Bounty Hunter (Feb 20, 2009)

I couldn't locate your gun in my reference book, but wanted to give you a little history on your gun before you decided on re-finishing. ... I have more info, and will forward by pm if you're interested. Didn't want to include all of it here.... it's way more than is pasted here..... and this is a lot ... 

PIEPER, HENRI & NICOLAS
Liege, Belgium
Originally founded by Henri Pieper in 1859, the company was
reorganized in 1898 when his son, Nicolas, assumed control.
The firm is perhaps best known for a series of semi-automatic
pistols that are listed below, but Pieper also manufactured a
bewildering variety of drillings, combination guns, cape guns,
rook rifles, salon rifles and even volley guns. These guns must be evaluated on their own merits, and their value is strictly a function of what the market will bear.

Most Pieper firearms are stamped with the "ELG" proofmark that indicates Belgian origin, and often with other proofs as well. In addition,
Pieper marketed firearms not only under his own name but under the following trademarks: Bayard; Eagle Gun Works; E.Leroy; Modified
Diana; Diane; The Leader; Bayard Arms Company; Pieper Arms Company; Premier Arms Company; Damascus Compound; National Arms
Company; Henry Arms Company; Royal Gun Works; Le Rationnel (sometimes seen as "The Rational"); Pieper Top Bolt; Schutz Marke; E-K;
Eclipse Company; Metropole; Pieper's Compressed Steel; Monarch Arms Company; and probably many other trade names as well.
Although Henri Pieper held 69 Belgian patents, much of his firearms production was based on existing designs such as the Flobert rifle, the
Warnant rifle, the Remington Rolling Block Rifle, and the Nagant revolver. I have also seen copies of the Stevens single-shot Lord pistol that
bore the Pieper name, and it seems fair to say that Pieper was primarily a firearms maker and only secondarily a designer. After an all-too-brief
lifetime of churning out hundreds of thousands of sporting arms and military weapons, he died (probably from overwork) on August 23, 1898, at
only 57 years of age.

The Pieper company was subsequently reorganized as "Etablissements Pieper" and continued for a time under the direction of Pieper's son
Nicolas. The strain of diversification, particularly in the area of automobiles, brought the company to its knees, and in 1905 the board of directors
invited Nicolas Pieper to take his hat and go. The company was once again reorganized, this time as "Les Anciens Etablissements Pieper," and moved to an entirely new factory in Herstal in 1907. The thrice-born company
concentrated solely on the manufacture of weapons and sporting arms; it's estimated that
at its peak, Les Anciens Etablissements Pieper was turning out 60,000 shotguns, 30,000
automatic pistols, 30,000 rifles and 12 million cartridges a year! This may explain my we
find so many Pieper guns floating around. Les Anciens Etablissements Pieper actually
survived both world wars – no mean feat when you're headquartered in Belgium – and
continued making arms of nearly every description before winking out for good in 1956.


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