"American Gun" Collection

[holdencm9]

Merry Christmas Eve everyone!

So I just finished the book "American Gun" by the late great Chris Kyle. It is a very good book for the casual history buff, or any firearms enthusiast. It basically walks you through America's history, with 10 different guns as the backdrop. It is full of fun stories related to each firearm and explains how they helped change the outcome of various battles in history. Although it likely won't be used for any serious academic historical research, it was a good read and I learned a fair amount.

It got me thinking though, if you were to buy every gun on his list (which of course is just his opinion and others may differ about the 10 most significant guns in US history) how much would it cost?!? Just for fun. Here are the guns:

1 - Kentucky Long Rifle
2 - Spencer Repeater
3 - Colt 45 Revolver
4 - Winchester Lever
5 - Springfield 1903
6 - Colt 1911
7 - Thompson Submachine Gun
8 - M1 Garand
9 - .38 Special Police Revolver
10 - M16/AR

For now let's just assume replicas and modern/legal equivalents are allowed, especially for 1-4. For me at least, I am more interested in the evolution of gun design, rather than having a true antique.

Link to book, if interested

 

[OldBrownDog]

Just from a quick Google -

1. Pedersoli Kentucky rifles run $675 at DGW.
2. $1600 through Taylor's
3. Colt SAA's run ~$1500. Italian clones closer to $500
4. You can find original M94's from turn of the century for ~$500
5. ~$700-$900
6. Colt M1991 - Say about $850-900.
7. Legal FA version - $25,000+. Semi-auto clone from Auto Ordinance - $1400
8. $625 from the CMP
9. Going to assume S&W Model 10 - used ~$300
10. Assuming Colt 6920 - ~$1000

So assuming you spring for the FA Thompson - about $33,000
With just the Thompson clone - about $9,000.

You definitely would have one heck of a nice, and a very useful, collection.

 

[holdencm9]

OldBrownDog, thanks for doing some of the ol' legwork for me! You are right it would amount to one awesome, historical but also useful collection.

I bet a few folks on THR have pretty close to the full "American Gun" collection. So far I have two of the ten...a 1911 and an AR. I have been thinking for awhile I need to add a lever and a revolver to the collection, but an M1 is just soooo tempting. I suppose one at a time, spread out over a couple decades, and I'll get there!

 

[PapaG]

Too bad he didn't have a good editor. Way more errors than in American Sniper.
Ex. Referring to the 1911 as a "revolver". Seconds delay in firing of flintlock.
It was a good read and pretty historically accurate and it is a darn shame that we lost him. His wife is carrying on his legacy well.

 

[holdencm9]

PapaG,

I agree it is a shame that he wasn't around to finish it himself, with the help of an editor, and work out some of the kinks. There were a couple cringe-worthy mistakes, but I chalk it up to the circumstances and his wife and the new editor just trying to finish the project relatively quick.

Some people also probably won't like the conversational style in which the book is written, or think it doesn't go in depth enough, but I guess it is just personal opinion. I think if you want a dense history book, written very formally, there are about a million other options to choose from. So, overall a good quick easy read.

 

[Doc7]

This book and American Rifle are both fantastic reads on the history of firearms in America. I read this one on the way to my honeymoon and in the 5 hour flight I was more than half done as I was so into it.