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by John Sexton

Q: Can you tell me what this CSA plates by Sydney Kerksis
buckle is worth? actually shows this displayed
as being unknown as to
JS: This particular CSA buckle whether it was real or not.
was made in the early 1960s for This buckle has been
use on reenactors’ cartridge boxes fooling collectors ever since.
during the Centennial of the As a novelty, they are
Civil War. The 1974 reference usually priced for about
A reproduction buckle made for book on American accouterment $10-$20.
reenactors, $10-$20. The back of the reproduction buckle.

Q: John Sexton, I would be grateful if you could give me some sort of idea .38 caliber. You can view some conversions by searching past auctions to
of what I have. I have done some research myself, and I found conflicting see the original and reproductions offered. The “Colt” stamping by the
information. I purchased this from an elderly man who said it was his two-line patent on the frame is not seen on originals, as far as I know.
grandfather’s, and there is no one in the family to forward it to regarding
a family heirloom.

Perhaps a replica or an “update”
conversion of an 1860/1861
Colt pistol, changing the firing
JS: I have looked at the photos, and I am not sure what this conversion method from cap and ball
Colt is, or if it is not, then a replica of some sort. There are many to firing metallic cartridges.
conversions of Colt 1860, I am guessing this is a .45 caliber or an 1861

Q: Hi John, I came across your name on the internet. I was hoping you firearm with roots to early German immigrants in Pennsylvania.
could tell me a little something about the rifle I have and perhaps its value? Early examples made in the “golden age” of 1750-1790 with relief-
It has “Josh Randall Warranted” etched on the plate. carved stocks fall into the market of fine art and can sell for many tens
of thousands of dollars. Golden Age guns are the exception. For every
JS: Your rifle is a classic American long rifle, commonly known as a few hundred guns like this, you might find one valuable one.
Pennsylvania rifle or Kentucky rifle. It appears to have been made in Among collectors of long guns, this is known as a “poor boy,” which
the 1820s or 1830s, originally as a flintlock, but it was upgraded in the is very simply made without frills or a patchbox, just a tool. The
late 1840s-1850s to a cap-and-ball with a screwed-in, bolster-through- lock maker’s name doesn’t add value. The lock was the most difficult
flintlock vent. The flintlock components (cock and frizzen) and a new component to manufacture, and this “John Randall” English or New
percussion hammer were added. These are parts that every local gun- England trade lock is just one of many names you will find that
smith would have in stock. supplied gunmakers not making their own locks. Gunmakers, if they
Every rural American home signed these rifles, will sign on top of the barrel flat. In the general-line
would’ve had such a rifle. They antique trade, complete percussion conversion rifles similar to this can
were used to protect the cabin or be found for $400-$600.
hunt small game; they were a There was an auction in Fairfield, Maine in mid-May 2021 at
required tool in early America. This Poulin Auctions (poulinauctions.com) where I cataloged about 50 or
is the only truly American-designed more American long rifles of every quality level and configuration.
That catalog would definitely be a learning platform for this genre in
“Josh Randall Warranted” was the lock American history.
maker’s name.

An American flintlock long rifle from the 1820s or ‘30s that was upgraded to cap and ball, $400-$600.

John Sexton is an independent appraiser and expert of Civil War memorabilia. He is an accredited member of various appraiser
organizations. He can be contacted at 770-329-4984. If you have a Civil War item for him to appraise, email a photo and a
description to mclwriter@gmail.com.

44 Journal of Antiques and Collectibles