Any old revolver experts out there?

[Bobby Ricigliano]

Hi All,

I inherited these two nice revolvers from my Grandfather. I have no intention of ever selling them, but if anyone could tell me if these have any sort of collector interest or value I'd really appreciate it!

First is a Colt Army Special .38. The serial # begins with '434'. It has the original grips and no rust, just a nice patina and some wear from age.

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The second one is a J.C. Higgins Model 90 9 shot .22LR revolver with a serial # starting with 583. This one is all original too with no rust and very little wear. If anyone has any knowledge or experience with either of these revolvers I would appreciate their input. Thanks for your time.



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[John Browning]

The Army Special was made in 1919 and in well used shape, so grandpa must have been an active outdoorsman, LEO, shooter and/or gun lover. The grips are correct, but the front sight was filed down at some point. I'd say you're looking at $200 on a real good day for that one.

I don't know as much about the J.C. Higgins, but I'd bet it to be worth under $100.

[Bobby Ricigliano]

Hey Thanks Scobun. The low value is actually a blessing because if they were valuable I'd be somewhat tempted..

We've shot the .22 for years and it is a hoot to shoot. I've never shot the .38 but I guess it would be safe for low powered .38 loads since it is mechanically sound.

Again, thank you for the information.

[626Tony]

if you are in the LA area make it to Bain and Davis in San Gabriel they know a LOT about these guns. They can also clean them up real well for you in case you want to put them away or take them on a trip to the range! food for thought.

[dfletcher]

The JC Higgins was actually made by High Standard, High Standard did alot of work for Sears under the Higgins brand, I believe about 1962 it switched over to Ted Williams brand. Look up High Standard Durango and I think you'll see similarities. I'm guessing the 22 is a nine shot.

Question I would have on the Colt is whether it's been refinished. Most Colts have a blued trigger, in the white hammer sides. I don't know much about this model, it may be different than the New Service, D frames and OM revolvers and the blued hammer is correct.

[sofbak]

The .22 was made by Hi-Standard, and except for some cosmetics, it's the same as their "double-nine" models. There were many variants of these, such as the Durango, the Longhorn, and the Marshall. It is identical in function to the HI-Standard Sentinel line as well, and when those come up on the for sale board here, they don't stay there long. Double nines are rather scarce here in the PRK, so the value may be a little more than you think-even with the J C Higgins brand name. I don't ever recall seeing a double nine advertised on these boards for sale, so you may have a lot more value than you think.

There is a Hi-Standard collectors group. Mr. Stimson is usually very prompt on requests for manufacturing dates and serial number questions, so he can give you more info on it. Go here to learn more..

http://www.histandard.info/

hth