Dosick/Fisher Berloques - Miniature Arms

Miniature Arms Journal -Winter 2001 - p. 1

The Journal of theMiniature ArmsCollectors/MakersSociety

The Worlds Biggest Miniature Arms Publication

Winter, 2001

The Miniature

Masterpieces of

Dosick/FisherEarlyAmerican

Berloques

Also InThis Issue

Plus; The HubleyCap GunCompany

Stan Blashak

Miniature Arms Journal - Winter 2001 - p. 2

Society Officers 2001PresidentCarmen Gianforte6156 Bonaventura CourtSarasota, FL 34243Tel. 941/351-9421

Membership ChairmainWilliam Adrian2502 Fresno LanePlainfield, IL 60544Tel.(815) 254-8692

TreasurerAlice McGinnis2109 Spring StreetCross Plaines, WI 53528Tel. (608) 798-2860

The Presidents Message

The MiniatureArms Journal

President .................. Carmen GianforteVice President ....................... Mal MeleSecretary ...................... William AdrianTreasurer ...................... Alice McginnisDirectors ............................. Bill Adrian....................................... Arthur Brown................................... Dr. Paul Kopsch......................................... Joel Morrow...................................... Ken WhichardCorporate Agent ........... James SchmidtPublisher ............................. David HallEditor/Art Director ............... Bob UrsoContributing Editor Ralph KoebbemanWestern News .................... Gil MetcalfMembership Chairman William AdrianShow Exhibit Director ......Paul KopschPlan Librarian ............. Roland FriestadPublic Relations Chair. .... Joel Morrow

The Miniature Arms Journal (formerlyShooting The Breeze) is published fourtimes a year for and by the members andfriends of the Miniature Arms Collec-tors/Makers Society, Ltd. Membershipdues are $25 per year for the NorthAmerican members and $30 per year inU.S. funds for all international members.For a family membership add $10 (weonly send one copy of MAJ to the oneaddress). Dues are due on the first ofthe year. First year dues and joining feesare $35 and $45 respectively. Dues in-clude the four issues of The MiniatureArms Journal. New members will re-ceive all available back issues in the cur-rent volume. Dues (checks made out tothe Miniature Arms Society) and corre-spondence concerning membershipshould be sent to

William Adrian2502 Fresno LanePlainfield, IL 60544Tel. Tel.(815) 254-8692

Prez Message for Jan 2002

Now that things have kind of slowed down after the holidaysit's time to turn our attention toward the New Year. Our member-ship numbers increased last year in part due to our participationin a greater number of shows across the country. I hope that wecan continue this trend.

If there are local shows that you would normally attend, thenwhy not rent a table and show some miniatures. Do a little showand tell and maybe, you might just pick up a new member.

This past November Ken and Coral Whichard & Bob andAlice McGinnis hosted 2 tables at the Las Vegas show. Comingup this February is the CADA show being held in Clearwater,FL. The Houston show will celebrate its 10th anniversary thisyear. Our annual Meeting for 2002 will be held in conjunctionwith the NRA Annual Convention in Reno NV. The NRA Col-lectable Show will be in Albany NY.

Also let us know what you are doing. What project are youworking on. Keep those cards and letters coming. And.... Don'tforget to thank Bob Urso for all his continuing efforts on ourbehalf.

Carmen


The Presidents Message ................................................... 2

Letters & email ................................................................. 4

MAS at Las Vegas Show ................................................... 6

New Mini Artillery Book.................................................. 8

News ................................................................................ 9

Yvon Vachon ...................................................................11

The Miniature Masterpieces ofStanley Blashakby Bob Urso .................................................................... 14

Thinking Caps:Hubley Gunsby Dr. Brad Maxfield ...................................................... 20

Kebby’s Korner:by Ralph Koebbeman ..................................................... 22

An American EnigmaDosick and FisherEarly American Berloquesby Derek F. Dredge ......................................................... 24

Two SuperbCombination Weaponsby Antonio Rincon ......................................................... 30

Cannon Corner:Joy’s Cannonby Ralph Koebbeman ..................................................... 31

Wired ............................................................................. 32

Websites for Mini Collectors .......................................... 33

Shop-r-Swap .................................................................. 34

The Cover. Flintlock Dueling Pistol Set from the Art Brown collection.

In This Issue

Greetings to all

As many of you know, I’ve re-cently returned from two months inItaly, where I was on sabbatical leave,painting and drawing. Lots of land-scapes and lots of naked people.What a tough Life. Well I’m nowpaying for my pleasures, catching upon gun orders, getting out this issue,and continuing to paint.

I think this is a great issue withtwo major articles and lots of gun pic-tures. A special thinks for this issuegoes to Derek F. Dredge, and Dr.Brad Maxfield. As always Kebby isa big help. These issues would notbe possible without the articles, let-ters, phone calls, notices and imagesthat you all are sending in. Whetherit’s a six page article, or just a pic-ture of an interesting gun you recentlybought or made, send it in and shareit with your fellow members. We allappreciate your input.

I’d also like to put out a call forsuggestions. What articles wouldyou like to see in the Journal. First,I’ll probably ask you to write it forme, but don’t feel pressured, I or oneof my faithful associate editors willbe happy to take on the task. But wedo need your ideas for articles.

Bob Urso1806 Samish WayBellingham, WA 98225Tel. 360/[email protected]*NOTE this NEW email address

Fromthe

Editor


Letters

&connectionsHi Bob:

I noticed in the last Issue that mye-mail address had not changed yet.So It must have gotten misplaced. Sohere goes for- Lewis Callahan, Mye-mail address is now

[email protected] .

Dear Miniature Enthusiast,

I currently have a ½ scale flint-lock rifle for sale. It is a direct copyof an original Albright rifle. Picturesmay be seen on our website:http://www.ostermanminiatures.com.

It is a very elaborate miniature.Relief carved stock, brass and. Ger-man silver inlays, curly maple. 31and ½ inches long.

This miniature is the cream ofthe crop when it comes to a classicAmerican piece. It is my favorite andI do not think that a better one can befound anywhere. Comes in a velvetlined wooden case. Price -$7,500.00.It can be shipped within 48 hours ofreceiving payment. Call me if youwould like to talk about it at (541)998-1503. I can directly email youmore pictures if you would like.

Osterman Albright rifle available

Right: This mini Smith & Wessonis among the latest of the

Osterman Mini’s.

Below Working on theAlbright Rifle.

Below: The model trebuchet made bymember Antonio Rincon.

It has been changed for sometime now and if anyone has tried toe-mail me and I didn't respond, Iapologize for not getting it straight-ened out sooner. Please make thatamendment to the "Wired" sectionof MAS journal.

Thank youLew Callahan

Thanks...

Dear Bob:Thanks for the pub-

lication of the wheellock miniature. I wasfascinated reading the“A Change of Heart?”article (by R.Koebbeman) so I de-cided to send you onephotograph of atrebuchet that I made 15

years ago. The measurements are;length 31 centimeters, by 25 centi-meters.

Best RegardsAntonio Rincon


MINIATUREFRENCHFLINTLOCK TAPACTION PISTOLS :

The two pistols above recentlyshowed up on an online auction, andwere described as a;

SUPERB PAIR OF MINIA-TURE FRENCH FLINTLOCK TAPACTION PISTOLS : In nice condi-tion. 4 inch overall length. Absolutelygenuine. The work of a talented 19thCentury craftsman. The two pistolsactions are fully functional but notbuilt to fire any projectile. French St-Etienne 19th Century proof mark onright side of the actions. Fine origi-nal walnut grips. Nice metal show-ing some very minor superficial oxi-dation in areas. An outstanding pairof miniature pistols!

ED. I found these guns at the sellerswebsite, available for $2400.www.antiquefirearms.com/210.htm

Closeup views of the side of the pistol,and the primer powder chamber.

Above: The two pistols, with a quarterfor size comparison. Note the lever onthe side to select which barrel is to befired.

Philip E. Crocker,1936 - 2001

ED: Bill Adrian Sent in thefollowing obituary for Philip E.Crocker, with a note that Phil wasa member since 1989 - neither amaker nor a collector (he had afew US Historical Society Colts,and a few mini knives). He justenjoyed reading about the sub-ject.

Philip E. Crocker, Age 64,died August 21, 2001 (in Lan-sing, MI). Born November 14,1936 in Lansing.

Mr. Crocker after graduatingfrom Lansing Sexton in 1955,joined the Air Force-Medic Ad-ministration, serving for 4 years.He was employed with GeneralMotors as a Test Driver atMilford Proving Grounds and re-tired In 1997, after 41 years offaithful service. Phil had a pas-sion for motorcycles of any makeor model, and also enjoyed hunt-ing and fishing. He was precededin death by I son, Philip S.Crocker on November 30. 2000.Surviving are his wife of 37years, Gracie (Samons), one son,Jason M. (Heidi) of Potterville;2 grandchildren, Dalton andTrevin Crocker, and 1 brother,Howard “Mickey” (Orene)Crocker of Fairfield, CA;


Above: Bob Mcginnis, Zavier Kucer, Alice McGinnis, David Kucer, Kenneth Whichard, Coral Whichard, Marybelle Metcalfand Gil Metcalf all help man the MAS tables.

Marybelle & Gil Metcalf talk to Lydia Morrow the realbrains behind Imperial Miniature Armory

The Beinfeld Antique Arms Show in Las Vegas, No-vember 1-3 included a significant number of MAS mem-bers, and an attractive display of miniature arms. TheBeinfeld shows are well known and respected in the fieldof antique, collectible, and fine sporting guns. The equallywell known and respected show director Mr. WallaceBeinfeld graciously provided two tables free of chargefor our Miniature Arms Society. During the show Mr.Beinfeld came to the MAS tables to pay his respects andmake us feel welcome.

We understand that Carmine was not feeling well,so Ken and Coral Whichard came to organize and helpwith the MAS display and representation. At their sidewere Bob and Alice McGinnis. Many other MAS mem-bers helping from both sides of the tables made it a veryactive miniature arms area, and many show spectatorsand exhibitors made very favorable comments.

Joel and Lydia Morrow were there with a huge dis-play of miniatures offered by the Imperial MiniatureArmory. Victor Kouznetzov had a table with an impres-sive display of miniature arms from Russia. RonWeingarten also had a table on which he displayed a

MAS at Bienfeld Show in Vegas


Kopp Book in second printingThat’s right, we sold

out the first run of 50 cop-ies, and have just receivedthe second printing of thisnew book on HerschelKopp’s work. Here’s achance to see the beauti-ful guns sketches, andwritings of one of thefounding fathers of theSociety, Herschel Kopp.

This 96 page, softbound book costs $20 percopy plus a shipping and handling charge per bookof $3 for USA, addresses, and $7 outside the USA.Checks made out to the Miniature Arms Society,should be sent to

Carmen Gianforte6156 Bonaventura CourtSarasota FL 34243All proceeds go directly to the Miniature Arms

Society, and to fund a new award to be given inHerschel’s name

Bob Mcginnis (back to pic) with Gil Metcalf, Tim Olson, andDavid Kucer

Victor Kouznetzovexamines a full sizeRevolver.

Photos by Bob Mcginnis

number of very collectible minia-ture arms. Ron has always had aspecial ability to locate some ofthe rarer miniatures.

Among the members attend-ing, in addition to those mentionedalready, were: Art Brown, MalMele, Jerry Tralins, Gary Lowe,Bill Rudich, Charles McMannis,Tom and Gwen Guinn, and DaveKucer with his son Zavi. Pastmembers and friends of MAS:Herbert Ratner, Lewis Drake, Jim

Sornberger, and Tim Olson. There may have been oth-ers, but the list was lost.

Our editor Bob Urso is scheduled to return from Italyon 12 December. By the way, many members had goodthings to say about Bob. He is very much appreciated.

Gil & Marybelle Metcalf

Maning the MAS Booth

Mini Book Now Available.A miniature

version of “The Artof Miniature Fire-arms”, is now a re-ality. Despite be-ing a 1/2 scale ver-sion of the original(1/4 the volume)Mini Book is stillsurprisingly read-able. All proceeds from the sale of book go di-rectly to the Miniature Arms Society. The costof the book is $50 per copy plus shipping. Toorder your copy contact

Alice McGinnis2109 Spring StreetCross Plaines, WI 53528Tel. (608) 798-2860email [email protected]


The author of this book, RalphKoebbeman, has been editor of theSociety’s news magazine for twelveyears and is now an associate editor.He has been collecting miniature can-nons for the past twenty five yearsand has what he considers to be thebest and largest collection of minia-ture artillery in the world. He decidedthat he would publish a book aboutthem and this is the result.

While not all of his models arepictured, (There are 110 photographs,all in color, in the book) 98 are chro-nologically set forth to show the his-tory of artillery starting with the sadstory of Oog, and his futile attemptsat making the first Stone Age can-non and ending with Hitler’s “Dora”the huge 5 story high monster thatshot a shell 30 inches in diameter and

17 feet long!The book chronicles the some-

times slow and sometimes rapidadvances in the art and science ofartillery, starting after Oog’s patheticattempts with his “nnon” and skip-ping the small stuff like bows andarrows until we get to the Greeks andthe Romans with their catapults andballistas. With the coming of gun-powder into common use, and bettermethods of using metals, artillerytook on more importance and im-provements became more frequent..

The book shows how the can-nons improved and gives examplesof these changes for practically eachstep of the way. Starting with themaadfas of the Arabs and the pot-de-fer of the Europeans, the book detailsthe progression from that point,

through perriers, ribaudequins, fal-cons, mortars, field guns, gallopers,naval guns, howitzers and railwayguns with many others in between.

For the miniaturist, the book is atreasure trove of information. For themaker, many of the photographs giveenough information to make a beau-tiful and colorful miniature toproudly display on the mantelpieceor coffee table.

For the person interested in his-tory, it gives an idea of the progressof the military science through theages. And for all the members, itmakes an interesting read, answeringsuch questions as: how was manureused as a weapon, how do you hit atarget you can’t see, why were Rus-sian cannons painted many differentcolors, and what gruesome methodwas used to reject a demand to sur-render and how did this change overthe years

The book is available fromKebby Industries, 4075 Kilburn Ave.,Rockford, IL, 61101

The book will retail for $59.75,but MAS members may buy a limitof five books at cost - $30.00 each.There is a $6.75 S&H fee for onebook plus $1 for each additional book.

Kebby Industries,4075 Kilburn Ave.,Rockford, IL, 61101

Write to the above address, phone at(815) 963-1466 orfax at (815) 962-3490.

Book Review

What about this new book


Museum-quality Miniature Stolenby Pat CAROME, Rockford Register Star

A working replica of a gear-making machine cus-tom-tooled in the 1930s has vanished without a clue.Thieves broke into Repair Inc. and swiped the 9-pound,11’1/2 by 3'/1/2-inch replica capable of producing a com-mercial grade 48-tooth gear.

So much a source of pride and joy and immeasur-able value for shop owner Gene Kasten, who spent nineyears chasing down the machinery, that he is offering a“substantial” reward for its return.

“It’s like finding the Hope Diamond, and it’s gone.It’s like finding the ‘Mona Lisa,’ and somebody stealsit,” Gene Kasten said at his business at 2415 KishwaukeeSt. Lansing MI. It belongs in a

museum.”

Frank Brownell (second from left) receives his award fromNRA foundation President Allan Cors (center) and JoelMorrow of the Imperial Miniature Armory as son PeteBrownell and Brownell’s Vice President (far left), look on.

NRA Honors Frank Brownell

Eight years ago, Mr. Brownell and his family agreedto a ten-year pledge of $250,000 to the NRA, Youth Edu-cation Endowment. and today with with two years re-maining on the pledge, The Brownell Family Endow-ment is more than $322,000 and growing

In cooperation with Joel and Lydia Morrow of theImperial Miniature Armory, The NRA Foundation hon-ored Frank Brownell and his family for their extraordi-nary leadership at The NRA Foundation reception heldin conjunction with NRA’s Annual Meetings. The fam-ily was presented with a special period 1866 Winchesterminiature rifle, custom engraved to include the Brownelllogo by master engraver Tom Hicks. The case reads,“Presented to Frank Brownell, III for Distinguished En-dowment Leadership by The NRA Foundation and Im-perial Miniature Armory, 130th NRA Annual Meeting,May 18, 2001.”

The NRA Foundation extends a sincere thank-youto the Imperial Miniature Armory for their generosiry inmaking this award available. As an avid collector of min-iature firearms, the foundation felt the rifle was a perfecttribute to honor the outstanding—and ongoing—leader-ship of Frank Brownell and the Brownell Family.

ED. Reprinted from NRA’s Traditions.


Here is a gun that member GaryLowe picked up from Jerry Tralins:

It’s a Six shot revolver with folddown trigger, cylinder turns and in-dexes, silver or nickel plated, pearlgrips. The 2mm pinfire bullets loadfrom the right side by pulling downa hinged retainer, loading six roundsand closing the retainer.

Jerry seems to remember gettingthis gun along with several othersabout 25 years ago from Hersh Kopp.Kopp did not build the gun, only hadit in his loot. Any suggestions as toit’s origin would be appreciated.

Whatzit

Above, an enlarged view of the leftside with the trigger in the foldedup position.

ED. What follows is the descriptionof this item as listed on ebay, and on-line internet auction.

What you are looking at is abrand new manufacturer built-up 1/6 scale Walther P.P packed features

It is made of steel (Gun Barrel,small pin, Recoil spring, gun body,slider, magazines and other internalparts). It has real wood grips, andcomes with brass bullets

Features include a removablemagazines, a cocking/sliding + recoilback movements like real gun. Thehammer is movable upon sliding ac-tion, as if the real gun. It is fullypainted and detailed true-to-scalemetal bullet. It can be fully dis-mantled and reassembled

Every details of the real WaltherP.P is faithfully reproduced.

What makes it Valuable?1. It is a small limited run pro-

duction by small low profile japanesecompany

2.There is no other comparble1/6 Walther P.P available in the mar-ket. Dragon’s are plastic and almostnon-functional.

3.You cannot find this master-piece anywhere else. You once couldbuy this in toymaniac.com - about 2years ago at an expensive price - andthen the item was deleted. You can’teven find this in ebay (this is possi-bly the first time and the last time)

4.It is a MUST collection forPolice/Military action figure fans, asyou can hardly find anyone who hasa Walther P.P like this If you missthis auction, you will simply regret.It is simply the highest quality 1/6stuffs I’ve ever seen.

? Another WWW Find


ED. In September member JimWhitehead called to inform me of thepassing of one of the greats in minia-ture knife making, Yvon Vachon. Theimages and text on this page are re-printed from his website. To see moreof Eves fine work visit his site ath t t p : / / w w w. g e o c i t i e s . c o m /yvonvachon/fram_vachon.html

Once upon a time there was alittle boy named Yvon Vachon whoadored everything that was miniature.His passion was such that he enjoyeddismantling and putting back to-gether the mechanism of a pocketwatch ever since the age of 9.

During his adolescence, his fa-vorite pass time was the fabricationof miniature cutlery and firearms.

Little boy having grown up, Yvonis now a “Master” of miniatures.Since 1993 Yvon has exhibited innumerous shows and has beenawarded several first prizes, notablyin Atlanta, New York and California.

It is interesting to note that his“art” is entirely hand made, withoutthe use of pantographs or millingmachines. Each functional miniaturemechanism requires his utmost pre-cision, and therefore, may necessitateup to 400 hours of work, as is the case

in the fabrication of certain “KnifePistols”, which truly function anddischarge lead at a distance of over150 feet away. Also, depending onthe model being designed, screwshaving a diameter of 0,0105 inches,must be fabricated in order to achievethe exact scale which varies between1/6 and 1/3.

Leading collectors in the UnitedStates, France, and all the way to Ja-pan, have acquired Yvon’s creations.

Yvon Vachon

Here is an unbelieveable mini Hubertus. Closed, itmeasures only 1” in length. The bolsters are in Nickel/ Silver and The handle is Snakewood.

Above: This 1” Swiss army knife hasTortoise Shell handles and 20 options,including; a round hole punch; needle;flat screwdriver; leather punch; metalfile with nail file; reamer punch;corkscrew; button hook, 3 separatefolding blades, scissors; 2 separatefolding blades, gimlet, folding blade,saw, pocket watch key, tweezers withearwax spoon, and toothpick.

Right: Here is anotherbeauty of a Swiss army

knife with Red Synthetichandles and 33 options.

It’s closed length is amere 1 in.It was offered

in a limited series of 5

Right; a favorite amongcollectors are Yvon’s

miniature switchblades.


PLANS???

Hello BobGreetings from Minnesota! I was reading your ar-

ticle on the other Kolibri's back in the January 2001 is-sue of the journal. I would like to take a crack at build-ing a model 3.

I was wondering since you have built this model ifyou would have any drawings you would consider sell-ing? I'm also wondering if you would have drawings ofany of the other models that I would be able to purchase.I look forward to hearing from you. Keep up the greatwork on the journal. I always look forward to the nextissue.

Thanks,Jon Hintz

ED. After getting this email from Jon, I sent him somedrawings I’d made, and thought a few of you might liketo try your hand at a Kolibri Model 3, 2mm rimfire. Sohere are the plans and some notes I made to myself as todrill sizes for each of the holes. To see this gun com-pleted, visit www.boburso.com

A complete list of available plans was published inthe January 2001 issue of MAJ. These can be purchasedfrom our plans librarian

Roland Friestad.Tel. (309) 343-0629.email [email protected]

Would You Believe 1/9th Scale?

ED. This note and photo’s from the Bottliks was sent toBill Adrian, who passed it on for all to see.

Dear Bill,Just a quick note to keep in touch with everyone.

We recently returned from our “tour of duty” (working)in Alaska and that was great, but it is much better to befinally home in Arizona enjoying this beautiful sunnyweather!

I’ve enclosed a photo of some of my work, hope ourfellow members enjoy seeing them. Now that my hobby/miniature shop is completed and I have free time on myhands - AND if I can only get my wife to let me in! - Ican continue my min. gun projects and will send photoswhen finished.

Happy and safe holidays,Andy and Liz BottlikP.O. \Box 1286Dolan Springs, Arizona 86441-1286

Above: a M. 1921, .45 caliber, Thompson, submachine gun.It’s only 1/9th scale and in working condition.

Above: This 1/9th scale, High Standard, .22 mag, Derringerfunctions, but due to it’s tiny size is not a shooter

Above: A 1911 Colt .45 and a Ruger .22. Both are in 1/9thscale, working condition, but non shooters. The fiveminiature knives at the bottom of the picture all havedamascus blades and gold fittings. The third and fifth haveIvory handles with micro scrimshaw by Andy’s wife LizBottlik.



Above: This cased pair of 1/4 scale,Dutch, Maastricht, flintlock pistols aretypical Stanley Blashak’masterpieces.They show his skills as gun maker,artist, engraver, and scupltor. Thestock is Ivory, with beautifully carvedheads at the butts. The furniture is allengraved silver, as are the fittings onthe beautifull powder horn.OAL 8”

Stanley Blashak was a quite manwho let his work speak for him, andwhat they say is that Stan was a trueRenaissance man. He was a mecha-nist, an artist, a sculptor, and an en-graver. Most of the skills he neededto make the finest of miniatures, hetaught himeself.

Right: Here is an image from 1979showing Stanley at work in his well

equipped basement shop.

StanleyBlashakby Bob Urso

TheMiniature

Masterpiecesof


For 25 years Stan was a machin-ist. During those years he also madeKentucky rifles for shooters, restoredantique guns and engraved guns.

His career as a miniature gunmaker spanned nearly half a century.His first a one-third scale ArmstrongKentucky Rifle was made in 1954,and that was followed by nerlyr 100other guns over the next 25 years, His1979 MAS fact sheet shows that atthat time, he’d already made 20 Ken-

tucky rifles in 1/2 and 1/3 scale, 25Kentucky pistols in 1/2 and 1/3 scale,6 Scottish pistols in 1/2 scale, 7 1/3and 1/4 scale Maastricht Pistols, 7flint blunderbuss guns, 5 1/5 scaleFlint Dagger pistols, 10 3/4” to 3”Bowie knives, and 12 1/4 to 1/2 scalepowder horns.

After his retirement Stan wasable to devote full time to makingminis, and his production jumped

Below: This unusual set of duelingpistols with two large pistols for theduelers and two smaller pistols for theseconds won Best of Show at the 1994Houston Miniature Arms Show. Theyare 1/3rd scale, with curly maple stocksinlaid with silver wire. All furnishingare engraved. This highly accessorizedset was handsomely cased by ArtBrown.

This dagger-flintlock combinationweapon is beautifully engraved, andhas ivory slabs.

Continued


dramatically , and for the last 25 yearsof his life he produced between tenand fifteen guns a year. Consideringthe complexity of decoration on aBlashak gun, this was a phenomenalrate of production. But making min-iatures was what he enjoyed doingbest. Stan preferred working at nightand often would go down to his base-ment workshop after supper and notcome up until dawn.

He had natural artistic abilities,and taught himself the skills neces-sary to produce his minis. After Stanretired, his son bought him a presenthe would put to good use, an ICS (In-ternational Correspondence School)course in art.

As you would expect of a retiredmachinist, his basement shop wascomplete. It included a 12” lathe withmill attachment, a 7” shaper, drill

Above; a pair of 1/4 scale, earlyAmerican, flintlocks. OAL 5” Withivory grips, steel barrel and lock, and anicely engraved silver butt plate.

Left: A 1/2 scale J. Kunz Kentuckyflintlock pistol. The stock has abeautiful tight grain. The mounts areengraved, sterling silver. It is .28 cal,with a deep rifled bore

Above: A 1/4 Scale, 17” OALKentucky flintlock prifle. It has carvedscrollwork on the stock, and an inlaidsilver patchbox.

Above: This 8” Matchlock Musket withintricate silver wire and ivory inlay wasa silver medal winner at an NRA Show.

Continued


Above: A cased set of 1/3rd scale,Flintlock, dueling pistols, withengraved silver butt caps. Allaccessories are totally functional,including the bullet mold. Box andCasing by Art Brown.

Left: a 1/2 scale all steel set of ScottishHighlanders Pistols. The Grips arebeautifully engraved. OAL is 7” In a1979 fact sheet, Stanley mentioned thatthis was one of the most difficult gunshe’d ever built, and that he’d spentover 400 hours making them.


Above : Ivory stocks were alwaysa favorite with Stanley. This Ivoryand Silver Blunderbuss, rifle is 51/4 inches long.

Left: A 1/3rd scale brass barrelBlunderbuss, pistol, withrosewood stock, and brassmounts.

Below: a 1/4 scale Blunderbuss,rifle. OAL 7”. Cased withPowder horn, cleaning brush, andscrewdriver.

Above; A pair of 1/4 scale Dutch Maastrichtpistols with carved ivory stocks. The gold plated,helmet, butt caps make these extra special.


press, band saw, belt sander, gaswelding equipment, and hand tools.Yet despite his background as a ma-chinist, and his well equipped shop,Stan decided to specialize in minia-tures of older guns, feeling that hisshop was not quite what he neededto do the more complex machiningnecessary to produce automaticweapons.

Blashak guns are often marked“Stan Blashak, New Castle, Pa” in1/32” letters on either the frame orthe back of the lock.

His guns were highly prized andwere collected by Sam Weill, HershKopp, Dick Young, Bob Williams,John Goloweyco, Art Brown, Ken

Below; 1/4 scale, Grenade Launcher. Withengraved brass barrel and fittings, and steellock. Included in the case are fused grenadesand a brass powder horn.

Whichard, Joel Morrow, RalphKoebbeman, to name a few.

Stanley Blashak was born onDecember 18, 1914 and died, in hisshop, working on a miniature, onMarch 21, 2001. Despite the excel-lence of his work, and his prodigiousproduction, there is little writtenabout Stanley Blashak. For the mostpart, he did not seek out publicity, nordid he travel to MAS get-togethers,to meet and talk with other makers.

Those who did get to know him,however, all have the same thing tosay. He was a gentleman, a crafts-man of the highest order, and a per-son who will be missed.

Stanley and his wife of 63 years, Ann.

The gun above is a full sizeColt, but is included here as

another example of how wellStanley taught himself to

engrave and carve


Introduction:

Greetings MAS members, myname is Brad Maxfield. I’ve been aMAS member for a few years nowand I’m a regular contributor to theJournal. This I owe to Bob Urso, whointroduced me to the club after ob-serving my particular buying habitson eBay a few winters back. Bobpolitely encourages Journal contribu-tions from his recruits and I haveobliged him in the main focus of mycurrent collection, toys.

I have collected miniature toyguns and miniature cap guns for over20 years and have over 1000 items.They run the gamut from CrackerJack toys and metal charms to vin-tage miniature cap guns by Marx andArmodelli. They are displayed inframes, cases, a 10 drawer flat file,and piled in closets around my house.I’ve also archived 1000’s of imagesof items sold on eBay.

“Thinking Caps” will be a shortregular column. Each installment willfeature a maker or model of toy gun.I’ll include pictures and as much infoas I know. If you want to see and hearmore about any toy guns in your col-lection I’d like to do request topicsor Q&A. If I don’t know it will be agood excuse for me to bug other long-time toy collectors like Tom Malia.

I’d like to kick off “ThinkingCaps” with some rare miniature mod-els by Hubley. Hubley is a very fa-mous name in vintage cap guns andtheir “full scale” cap guns are someof them o s tsought af-ter collec-tor items. They un-fortunately madeonly a few models inminiature. Two modelsare classic western re-volvers in 1/3 or 1/4

Think ing

A column forminiature toy gunenthusiasts.

Capsby Dr. BradMaxfield

scale. The first is modeled after a Coltfrontier 44-40 single action revolver.It was sold as the “Frontier”. The sec-ond, The “Remmington 44” is mod-eled after a Remmington Navy re-volver. Both were diecast and fin-ished with bright chrome. They areusually seen with black plastic grips,but I have seen grips in white. Theywere sold in a paper display box witha fitted plastic tray. Both featuredremovable cylinders and tiny plasticbullets for loading. The triggers arevery small so Hubley used the entiretrigger guard to drop the hammer.

Hubley also made some nice halfscale Colt models. A .45 semi-auto-matic and .38 snub nose revolver.These were made in cooperation withColt and bore the Colt trademarks.The automatic featured a removableclip and loading plastic bullets. The.38 also had loading bullets and a re-movable cylinder.

Contact Dr. Brad Maxfield at(414) 525-1587 or

[email protected]

Above: A Colt .38 Detective.Note the licensed name andlogos on this half scale model.

Above Left and Right; The Hubley Frontier 44-40is just over 4 inches long but loads scale bullets.


Above Left and Right; The Remmington 44 and Frontiersingle action models in their attractive original packaging.When collecting antique toys remember, the toys may have

been built to last but most of the boxes were trashed assoon as they came home from the store. Original boxes canadd 10-100% to the value of a toy gun.

Left: A Colt licensed.45 automatic withremovable, bullet-loading clip. Like the.38 Detective it isroughly half scale.

Right: Diaperguns, were a

popular novelty inthe 50s. This tinyset was made by

Hubley andfeatured real

leather holsters.The guns are tiny,with a simple spur

trigger andhammer. Two

quick safety pinsand little junior

could be “packin’iron” before he

could walk.


KEB

BY

’S K

OR

NER

byRALPHKOEBBEMAN

What Is The Opposite OfSinecure?

One of the definitions Webster gives for“sinecure” is a job with no work but whichprovides an income. I am a firm believerthat this type of a job is one that 98% ofthe population devoutly wishes they couldhave, especially if the income is on thegenerous side. The opposite, of course, (and Idon’t know the word) is a job with a lot of workbut with no reward in the form of filthy lucre whenpayday comes around.

Well, folks, I’m here to tell you that the Min-iature Arms Society is one place where the sec-ond type of situation is quite plentiful. Now, I’mnot casting rocks at you, Mr. Average Member,but face the facts, your main duty as a member isgoing into your shop to work on a model, dust offyour collection, read a model magazine or checkthe mailbox for the latest issue of the MiniatureArms Journal. Fortunately for the well-being andfuture of the club, there are a few misguided in-dividuals who are willing to take non-sinecure(What the hell is that word!) jobs that keep theShip of Miniature Arms afloat and under full sail.While giving a doff of the Kebby fedora to allthe hard working officials of the club, let me lista few of the main ones.

First comes our president, CarmenGianforte who schedules the clubactivities, gets and disposes of

practically all of the mail, (and thereis quite a bit), rides herd on theboard of directors and worriesabout the directions the clubshould go in.

The rest come in no particular or-der, starting with Bill Adrian, the sec-retary/membership chairman. Heanswers all applications for member-ship, keeps the membership list up-to-date, keeps dues payments noticescurrent, furnishes addresses for the magazine andworks to increase the membership.

Then there is Alice McGinnis, the treasurer.She handles allthe money forthe club; keepsthe accountsfor the club andall the booksales gothrough her.

Bob Urso, the editor of ourmagazine, has possibly the mostarduous job of anyone on the listand he does a magnificent job.(I should know, because Istruggled with the task for along time.) After Bob getsthrough with making up themagazine that of course hedoes four times a year, hesends it to be printed

.Dave Hall then

calls the family to-gether and he, to-gether with hiswife, Sandy, daugh-ter Jessica and son

Alice with husband Bob

Dave and Sandy Hall

Your humble editor.

Bill Adrian

Carmen Gianforte


Jacob proceed to stuff magazines into envelopes and af-fix labels, also four times a year. Dave then takes thebatch to his shop where he puts the postage on and putsthem in the mail.

Dr. Paul Kopsch, one of thefounders of the club is in chargeof the show exhibits at the annualwingding of the National Rifle As-sociation. It is his job to see thatthe club gets a choice location forour display of miniatures, which,incidentally is one of the prime ex-hibits of the show, takes care ofthe paperwork for prizes and over-sees the set-up of the display, allin all, a large task.

Joel Morrow,who is the ownerof the ImperialMiniature Armory,travels all over thecountry displayinghis wares and indoing so has achance to meet alot of people inter-ested in miniatures.He puts these meet-ings to good advan-tage for the club bysigning up a goodlynumber of members every year. Just by displaying hisgreat items for sale, he gets the Big Gun people inter-ested so they become Little Gun people and thus inter-ested in the Miniature Arms Society.

Last but not least, there is our planlibrarian, Roland Friestad, who stores, catalogs and dis-penses our stock of plans for miniature arms.

These are just some of the people who make up ourhardworking group of people who help make the Minia-ture Arms Society what it is today. There are others thatI did not mention, the corporate agent, and the reportersfor the various sections as well as a tip of the hat to mem-bers who write in to tell us about machining tips, newproducts and other items of interest. In closing, may Isay that if you are more interested in fame than money,you can start here, We will gladly put your name in our

Joel talking up miniature arms withNRA Foundation President AllanCors, at the annual meeting

pantheon of letters and you will be on your way to thetop!

Stop The Presses!Important Announcement!

Ralph Koebbeman

In case you aren't familiar with printer's jive talk."Stop the presses" means just that, that something hothas just come in and must be inserted in the Journal."What." you may ask, "Is so important?" Well, it is theformation of a new group, "The FOR Group", the FORstanding for "Friends Of Ralph" Group.

As you have read elsewhere in the journal, I havewritten a book, "The Wonderful, Wacky, Terrible WorldOf Artillery In Miniature" which is going on sale at$59.75. Because I think it is an important book, I amdoing this - all the members of the Miniature Arms Soci-ety have just been inducted into the FOR Group.

Because I have been active in the club for so longand because I think the book is informative as well asbeing very readable (my opinion) I am making this offerof letting all of the MAS members buy the book at mycost of $30.00. I am setting a limit of five books permember and there is a $6.75 S&H fee for one book. Ifyou order more than one book, add one dollar shippingfee for every additional book. I'm prejudiced, but I thinkthis is a delightful and informative book to read. Also, ifyou are interested in making cannons, this book couldbe a big help. So take advantage of this offer and get acopy. I hope that you will think that the FOR Group is agreat deal.

Ralph

Dr. Paul, and MaryKopsch


This is the story of the Early American Berloques,the Fisher Firesure and the Dosick. The controversy sur-rounding these two early Berloques is as fascinating a taleas a Sherlock Holmes Murder Mystery.

Here we have two, seemingly unconnected Minia-ture working 2mm Pinfire “Watch Charm” Pistols. Theyare almost identical in design and of a design never be-fore seen. They both had applications made for Patentswithin 10 weeks of each other and both had their Patentsgranted within two months of each other. Both “inven-tors” were “living” in close proximity to each other, justacross a County line. Did one steal the idea from theother, who knows the truth? This cannot be just a coinci-dence.

When attempting to piece together the events andfacts that are 70 to 120 years old, you do face certainproblems. It is even worse when one is also 3000 milesaway and on a different continent. The Internet has beenthe most valuable of tools in this research. I also havehad a lot of help in piecing the various elements together.I therefore would like to thank Susan Roe, who has beenresearching the Chilson Family History of Massachu-setts for many years and MAS member Cyrus Kemp, for

their hard work, thoughts, ideas and insight. Specialthanks go to the Attleboro Librarians for providing mepress clippings from the last 100 years for the JM FisherCompany.

Fisher Firesure

The J. M. FisherCompany, one of the old-est jewelry firms inAttleboro, BristolCounty, MA is the majorplayer in this story. JohnMelatiah Fisher andCharles R Harris formedit in 1879 as the jewelryfirm of Harris and Fisher.They began business inthe first brick factory onRailroad Street, the old“Bailey Carriage Shop”When Harris retired in1885, the firm became

Dosick and Fisher ,Early American Berloques.

By Derek F Dredge

AmericanAnEnigma


known as the JM Fisher Company.By 1894 it’s annual output of charms was between

40 and 50 thousand dozens, employing around 50 work-ers. In 1910, the year after it was incorporated, it movedto the Leach and Gardner Building on the corner of PearlStreet and James Street. Following retirements from theBoard of Directors in 1914, Lewis S Chilson and SamuelM. Holman Jr. the tw0o sons in laws of J. M. Fisher,purchased stock in the company. Holman became VicePresident and Chilson Treasurer.

The company made its third and final move in 1956to their own large purpose built factory of 10,000 sq feet,in the East Street Industrial works. They were still em-ploying 50 people but with modern methods of produc-tion, they were producing some 4000 different styles.

The first mention of the Fisher Firesure, “They usedto make a miniature pistol which sounded off when thepowder was fired”, appeared in the Attleboro Sun, Au-gust 1 1956

John Melatiah Fisher was an influential figure inAttleboro. He was active in the campaign for prohibi-tion and in 1990, was nominated for Governor of Mas-sachusetts. One of his last acts before his death in 1920was the building of the Sanatorium at a cost of $500,000.It is now the La Salette Seminary.

The Firesure part of this story starts in the 1880’s.Lewis Shepard Chilson, another of the major players inthis little scenario, was born on Jan 10 1887 inAttleborough, the only son of Jonathan Draper Chilson,the owner of a jewellery business from as early as 1880;they were living in Attleborough, MA (known as thebirthplace of the jewelery industry in New England.).

Lewis Chilson’s education was at Bryant and StrattonBusiness College, Providence, Rhode Island. He did somemilitary service with the Massachusetts State Guard for2 years and ended up as a Corporal. His primary Occu-

Above: Some examples of the quality work produced by theJM Fisher Company

Above: The final home of JM Fisher at the East StreetIndustrial works - circa 1956.Below: A printed piece with an image of the plant.

Above; In 1910, the year after it was incorporated, JMF C.moved to the Leach and Gardner Building.


pation was as a Jeweller; he held po-sitions with several companies, lastlythe J. M. Fisher Co. where he wasVice President and Treasurer. He wasa spiritual man and was a regular at-tendee at the Attleboro Second Con-gregational Church

He married Gertrude HortonFisher in 1913. They had two Chil-dren. Robert Fisher Chilson, b. April24 1914 and Howard Fisher Chilson,b. September 20 1918. Both of whomworked for the JM Fisher Companyin later years.

Lewis Chilson had some of theprivileges of being a Son in Law ofthe owner, firstly by becoming thecompany’s Treasurer following hispurchase of stock in 1914 and even-tually becoming the company’s VicePresident.

On the August 6 1929, he ap-plied, as assignor for the J.M. FisherCompany for a patent for a“Berloque” Revolver styled Pistol.The title used for the application was“Toy Pistol”. This was sold as theFisher Firesure. A US Patent, No1,794,364 was granted on March 31931.

There were several versions ofthe Patented Fisher Firesure. Nickelwith Black Plastic Grips (the mostcommon), with White plastic Grips,with Bone Grips, with Ivory Gripsand with Mother of Pearl Grips.

Lewis Shepard Chilson died inAttleboro in December 1966

The Enigma.

Samuel Dosick, the final playerin this real life saga, is perhaps as bigan enigma as the argument about which came first, theFisher or the Dosick? His age is unknown. No one seemsto know where or when he was born and where or whenhe died. There is no documentary evidence so far pro-duced to give any credence to him whatsoever. SamuelDosick, whose personal history and in fact his very ex-istence is unsupportable by any facts whatsoever with

Above: Chilsons patentfor the the FisherFiresure

Right: The Firesurewas packeged in

a small cardboardbox along with a

clean-out rod.


tol, which is almost identical to theFisher Firesure. The title SamuelDosick used was “Pistol Charm”. USPatent No 1,805,080 was approvedand granted on May 12 1931.

The Patent states that SamuelDosick was from Providence, RhodeIsland, which is less than ten milesfrom Attleboro. Is has been supposedthat perhaps he was a jeweleryworker of the J M Fisher Companyand left sometime prior to applyingfor the Patent. Again, there is nodocumentary evidence to confirm ordeny this.

The Pistols

There are some interesting factsabout the patents and the pistols. The patents have someremarkable similarities, one of which, is the formationof the F in the word Fig (indicating a particular part ofthe design). The Barrels and the Chamber are both markedwith the same number on both Patents, another coinci-dence?

the exception of a Patent. There are no records of a So-cial Security number, no birth date (could he have beenan immigrant, perhaps an illegal?) There is no record ofa marriage or even his death. All my searches have beenin vain.

A “Samuel Dosick” certainly applied for a Patent onOctober 23 1929; for a “Berloque” Revolver style Pis-

Left: the Dosick PatentBelow: A rare Dosick instruction sheet.


There are some minor differences between the earlyFisher pistols and the patented ones. The lack of a fore-sight on the barrel, the slight curvature to the body justunder the Patent Pending stamp (this is more reminis-cent of the Dosick) the trigger looks shorter and the ham-mer is more curved. There are several deliberate changesto the Patented Fishers and they are not as per the Patent.

The only real difference between the two Patents wasthe design of the closure spring. Cyrus Kemp reasons,“If you look at the closure spring that Chilson patentedin his patent you will see that spring is not what the FisherFiresure uses”. “I have some very early ones and theyall use the flat closure spring that Dosick Patented”.

Cyrus’s wife works in patent law and she said thatthe flat closure spring that Dosick claims in his patent isprotected. That if the Fisher Firesure was legally usingthat closure spring than there would have to have beenan assignment made by Dosick to allow the use of hispatented closure spring in the Firesure. There could be asearch done for an assignment, but that will cost somemoney. Cyrus thinks that solving the mystery of the clo-sure spring is the most important fact surrounding theseguns. I tend to agree with him.

The early “Patent Pending” (Pat Pend) Fishers usedthis arrangement and I can find no records of any Patentchallenge or Court proceedings taken out against this ob-

vious infringement. Another mystery? Why was a pat-ented idea, and probably the most important aspect ofthat design, allowed to used on a competitors Pistol, with-out recourse?

Conclusion

Did Samuel Dosick actually exist? his Patent cer-tainly does. Did he steal the idea whilst a worker for theJM Fisher Co and try to pre-empt their plans?. On theother hand, was Lewis Chilson the unscrupulous Boss,stealing a workers design to further his own ends? I thinknot. Although they are senarios worthy of a true indus-trial espionage story, I doubt both of them. Alternatively,I believe that the Dosick was a very clever marketingploy by a company entering a period of economic de-pression and eager for sales to boost their balance books.Therefore was Samuel Dosick, a made up person, maybeeven a nom de plume of Lewis S Chilson and was thePatent and subsequent pistols called Dosick’s all madeby the JM Fisher Company? A little “friendly competi-tion” would ensure their complete domination of themarket in this area and would capture a market lead overthe European imports. This latter theory is becoming myfirm favourite, mainly as no information can be foundon Samuel Dosick whatsoever.

The other strange thing to have come from all theinvestigation and research is that no advertisements haveever turned up on either of these guns. That coupled withthe fact that the country was entering a great depression.It is surprising that these guns were even made and sold.There is no trace of anything being sold or produced underthe name of Dosick.

Although the JM Fisher Company was a very bigcompany, like so many of the independent jewellers inAttleboro at that time, they simply did not advertise.Adverts are seen however and these usually date fromthe post WW2 period. The J M Fisher Company’s lastannual report was February 24 1988 it is therefore as-sumed that they stopped trading in the same year.

I leave the readers, to form their own opinion, as tothis little mystery. Or does someone out there know theReal Story?

These bottom views show the barrel springs.Top: this is a Dosick, note how the frame is not solid,but a stamped piece of thin metal that wraps aroundthe barrelMiddle and Bottom: These two are Fisher Firesures,Note that the barrel inserts into a solid piece of metal.The Middle image has the earlier flat spring, thebottom has a later curved spring.

Dosick withflat spring

Fisher withflat spring

Later Fisherwith springcurving up

A rare, early, “PAT.PEND.J.M.F. CO.”marked Fisher Firesure


How to Tell aFisher Firesurefrom a Dosick

1. If your gun is marked with the PAT (or PATPEND) mark along with JMF, it’s a Fisher Firesurefor sure. However, not all Fisher Firesure’s weremarked. So on umarked guns;

2. If the piece the barrel is attatched to is solid, it’sa Fisher Firesure (see the bottom two guns in thephoto on the previous page). If the piece aroundthe barrel is a folded piece of thin metal, it’s aDosick.

3. The hammers on each gunare distinctive.

To the right is the fatter ham-mer of the Dosick.Also not the curved top of thehammer.

The hammer on the FisherFiresure is thinner

It also has a long thin ham-mer and thumb grip.

The presence of rivets on the side of the frame,just above the grips does not necessarily mean it’sa Dosick. Some Fisher Firesures did not have theirrivets filed down. If unsure check the hammer asin 3 above.

Bob Urso

1950’S PEZ SPACE GUN SUPER! THIS RARE PEZ1950’S GUN.MADE IN AUSTRIA, 5" WIDE BY 3"3/4HIGH.NO CHIPS, CRACKS OR DOG BITES! RUB-BER BAND FOR TRIGGER NEEDS REPLACINGAND THE GUN SITE HAS SCUFFS/DENTS FROMSTORAGE(SEE PICTURE NOT BAD AT ALL). SU-PER PIECE NO DISAPPOINTMENTS. HAS ALL IN-TERIOR PARTS.

Gene Autry (?) ring gun

1950’S PEZSPACE GUN

ED. Here’s a goodie I recently came across on the ebayauction site. Would you believe that this little plasticfella sold for over $700.

This ring gunhas a sparkerwheel - just like ina zippo lighter - onthe top. It was an-other ebay auctionfind, and it wentfor a mere $48.


Beautiful and Bizarre.

Several months ago, while doingresearch, I came across an article inthe January 2000 issue of MAJ aboutthe wheel lock system, written byRalph Koebbeman. He showed a dia-gram of the working parts of a doublehammer wheellock taken from awonderful book “One Hundred GreatGuns” by Merril Lindsay, and clearlydescribes the performance of thissystem. After reading this article, Ithought of the possibility of makingone of these intricate and complicatedwheellocks in miniature.

The problem was, never havingmade anything similar, I had to do alot of research before embarking onthis project. I combined a sketch ofLeonardo DaVinci, made circa 1485- from his Codex Atlanticus - andcombined it with the information inRalphs article. I was able to com-plete the lock in one month.

The second decision I had tomake was, on what kind of gun Iwould mount this lock on. I decidedto make a combination weapon, tak-ing as a model an all steel combina-tion mace and pistol, now in theTower of London Museum.

The shaft of the miniature con-tains a six-inch barrel which firesthrough the flanges of the maces’shead.

The lock has a ring-shapedwheel cover, decorated with amythological creature in gold. Theneck of the cock is decorated with achrub in gold. The side plate has onesculpture, one serpent and two fleurde lis in silver. The overall length is27 cts.

Accessories include a powderflask modeled after one from theMedici family, decorated with a me-

dusa head and venus de Milo in gold,two animal figures in gold over thecover and dose, and a box spanner,decorated with animal figures in goldand has an ivory handle, A silverplaque inside the mahogony case isinscribed, Leonardo Da Vinci - Co-dex Atlanticus by Antonio Rincon.

The second miniature is a pessi-mist weapon, a combination of flint-lock carbine, battle axe and pike. TheFiamco maple trigger tail stock hasthe slightly curved shape of an axe.The side plate is silver with foliagedesign in open work. The barrel is 3cts. long, and the overall length is

19cts.The combination weapon is per-

fectly functional. Thie red sugarmaple wood case is lined with darkvelvet with ebony partitions, and alsocontains a silver powder flask, andan ebonyand ivory ramrod

Axe pistols were common inHungary and Poland where they werecarried in processions.

Man’s ingenuity has created ar-mament of beautiful design andstrange combinations, all deadly.

Antonio Rincon

Two Superb Combination Weapons


Joy’s Cannon BarrelCANNON CORNERCANNON CORNER by Ralph

Koebbeman

Some time ago I received a let-ter from a woman named Joy, ad-dressed to the Miniature Arms Soci-ety at my address. Apparently Joyhad an old reference, referring backto when I was president. Whatever,this is one type of letter that we oftenget, asking for help of one kind oranother. As I mentioned in Kebby’sKorner, the requests are varied. Of-ten the writer asks how to join theSociety, where can he buy a 1914model of a Puma pistol made by thePanther Co., can you help me get in-formation on gunsmith Lowell C__who lived in Adobe, Arizona in 1948and so on. The requests sometimesare enough to make you feel bad -Will your members keep an eye outfor five guns that were stolen fromme on July 17? They are—-

This is what Joy’sletter was about:

“My name is Joy — and I have aminiature cannon, it was left to meby my Grandpaw, he was born in the1800’s & came from Mississippi, itis all brass & I can’t find any lettersor numbers anywhere on it, I tookthese pictures to see if you know anything about it, it is 7 ¾ inches long &2 ½ to 3 lbs. I have wondered for

yrs. About it & would appreciate anyinformation you could give me, theyear and its worth & would be sohelpful or if you know anyone elsewho would know.Thank you so very,very much!

Joy —-Midwest City, Okla. 73110

This is the answerI gave Joy:

Dear Joy:

I’m not one to brag, butI think I know more aboutcannons than anyone else inthe Miniature Arms Society,in fact, I am writing a bookabout cannons right now.

While I don’t want tothrow cold wa-ter on yourhopes, I thinkthat youshould keep your cannonbarrel as a family heir-loom coming from yourGrandpaw and treat it assomething special. Ifyou are thinking of sell-ing it, I believe that at a

gun show you would get possibly $15to $50 for it with more than likelythe low figure would be what youwould get.

I think it was made by someonewho wanted to make a miniature can-

non, complete with awooden carriage to use asa saluting cannon, to bangit off on the Fourth of Julyor just to shoot it off forfun. If he ever finished it,the barrel is all that is left.Looking at it critically, oneof the main parts of thisbarrel is the cascabel, theround knob at the back endof the barrel. This shouldbe a nicely turned roundknob about half the size ofthe present rather crudelyshaped knob that is on thebarrel. My personal opin-

ion of whatyou should dowould be tomake a little

stand or even a miniaturecannon carriage for it andput it on the mantel as afamily keepsake.

Very truly yoursRalph Koebbeman


*Fixes & Changes

Wired...

Below are members email addresses. PLEASE... be sure toemail [email protected] if your address change. Recent changes are in BOLD.

Adrian, Bill ........................................ [email protected], Robin ....................... [email protected], Alan ................................. [email protected], Yolanda ........................... [email protected], Arthur.................................. [email protected], Ed .................................................efab@mail.bcpl.netCallahan, Lew ..................... [email protected], Cranford ......................................... [email protected], Derek ................................ [email protected], Andy ....... [email protected] Friestad ..................... [email protected], Vincent ........................ [email protected], Joe ........................................... [email protected], Roland .................... [email protected], Jack ....................................... [email protected] , Paul ...................................... [email protected],Carmen ........................................ [email protected], Max ............................................ [email protected], Jon............................................... [email protected], James ...................... Business website www.jpj.comHulsen, Chris ..................................... [email protected], Randy ............................. [email protected], Cyrus ..................................... [email protected], Ralph ...................................... [email protected], Walt ................................... [email protected], Paul .......................................... [email protected], Harry David........................... [email protected], Rich........................................ [email protected], Sloan ................................. [email protected], David.......................................... [email protected], Victor V......................... [email protected], Chris .............................. [email protected], Tom ............................................... [email protected], Henry C. .................................... [email protected], Gary ..................................... [email protected], Dr. Brad ................................. [email protected], John (Ireland) ................................ [email protected], Pat ................................................ [email protected], Alice ................................... [email protected], Bob ..................................... [email protected], J. Brent .................... [email protected] Charles ............................. [email protected]

Mele, Mal .................................................. [email protected], Wayne A. [email protected], Joel .................................. [email protected], David [email protected], Ron ................................................ [email protected], Lynn ...................................... [email protected], Dr Ron ............................... [email protected], Jerry ........................... [email protected], Roger ................................. [email protected], Ron ...................................... [email protected], Robert [email protected], Chuck ................................. [email protected], George B .................................. [email protected] Tinker ..............................................TTinker4@aol.comToppel, Karl .............. [email protected], Bob ............................................. [email protected], Ron [email protected], Alan ......................................... [email protected], George [email protected], Ken .................................... [email protected], Jim ................................. [email protected], Will .................................... [email protected], Jim ..................................... [email protected], Jeff ................................................. [email protected]

Correct email addresses forLew [email protected] [email protected]

Piccolo Miniature Gunworks - Bob Urso’s site now is on anew server athttp://www.boburso.com


The Miniature Arms Society Site - by Brad Maxfield ...................................................................... www.miniaturearms.comPiccolo Miniature Gunworks - Bob Urso’s site ...........................................................................http://www.boburso.comArt Brown’s Miniature Firearms Museum ......................................................... http://www.MINIATUREFIREARMS.COM/Pinfire - Derek Dredge’s site .................................................................. http://pinfire.homestead.com/MiniaturePinfires.htmlPaul Gauffins has a new website “Small Arms Specialists” ........................................................... http://www.miniguns.comDavid Nelsons site about the Lewis and Clark expedition. ........................................... http://www.lewis-clark.org/index.htmPeter Dyson and Sons, England ............................................................................................. http://www.peterdyson.co.uk/D.W. Dyson - not related to Peter and Andrew can be found at ..................... http://dwdhallmark.com/miniature.htmClassic Miniature Machine Guns has a sale on now at ................................................. http://Sarcoinc.com/new39.htmlSee Dan Osterman's minis at - ............................................................................. http://www.OstermanMiniatures.comSee Lew Callahan's minis at - ...................................................................... http://bart.efn.org/ivystreet.com/gallery/callahanImperial Miniature Arms at - ..................................................................................... http://www.1800miniature.com/ure.comRobin Armstrongs guns - ......................................................................................................... www.armstrong-miniatures.comUberti miniatures at - .............................................................................................................. http://www.uberti.com/products/Yves Vachon is showing his mini knives at - ................................ http://www.geocities.com/yvonvachon/fram_vachon.htmlRichard Koury has a website listing miniatures for sale at ................................................. http://www.kouryinvestments.comFor waxes and cleaning products, check out Dennis Blaine’s Renaisance Wax site .......................... http://www.renwax.comR. Boos Miniature Knives. .......................................................... http://www.compusmart.ab.ca/arabesqu/rbminis/index.htmlPalmers Armoury mini cannon site ............................................................... http://www.palmersarmoury.co.za/Longtom.htmGuns, better than toys, but not quite true minis ................... http://www.siouxcity.com/x/ReplicaPistolsRifles/22w.htmFrench Dealer that has a page of minis .......................................................http://www.pierre-rolly.com/hten/Page4.html

Web sites worth checking out...

Osterman Miniatures has a new, expanded site at;http://www.ostermanminiatures.com.

The GERHARD GOEBHARTER Company now has a site at;http://www.berloque.com/


1/2 scale German andAmerican WWII helmets,and 1/2 scale German po-tato masher grenades andU.S. pineapple grenades arenow available.

Several single actionarmy revolvers are alsoavailable for only $395 inblack powder.

There are also 2 44S&W Russian in 1/2 scalefor $2200 each.

And Joel and Wayneare always looking for Furrgatling guns, Tippmans, andother fine miniatures.

Contact Joel Morrow at800 MINIATURE

SHOP- r - SWAPClassified ads from members ornonmembers, are free. They can be anylength - within reason, as long as theypertain to buying, selling, or swapping. Oneimage allowed per ad.Display ads must be submitted in cameraready form, and must be accompanied by acheck (to Miniature Arms Society). Ratesare as follows

Members Non-Members

1/4 page 25.00 30.001/3 page 35.00 40.001/2 page 50.00 60.002/3 page 70.00 80.003/4 page 75.00 90.00Full Page 100.00 120.00Back Cover 150.00 180.00Bus.Card Free FreeClassifiedFree Free

Satisfied with your collection? If not, try anad. To place a want ad, mail camera readycopy to Bob Urso, 1806 Samish Way,Bellingham, WA 98226 oremail your ad to [email protected]

Albright rifle

½ scale flintlock copy of an origi-nal Albright rifle. Relief carvedstock, brass and German silver inlays,curly maple. 31 and ½ inches long.Price – $7,500.00. It can be shippedwithin 48 hours of receiving pay-ment. Call me at (541) 998-1503 totalk about it. (For a picture see pg. 4)

Daniel [email protected]

New from Imperial

ED. Here’s an Item That I found re-cently at the Quality VintageGentlemen’s Collectibles website.http://antiques-internet.com/illinois/fine-olde-tyme-stuff/dynapage/PP10.htm.They also had several pistol cigarcutters.

Here is an unusual item, from thepast. It is a cigar perforator pistol.The hammer is cocked and small ci-gar is placed in the barrel, when thetrigger is pulled a metal nail is pushedinto the end of the cigar. This waspreferred by some of the old gent’s,instead of cutting off the tip, so the

cigar would draw air. It is embossed“Flock 25” and Germany”. The pis-tol is 4-1/2" long, has most of theoriginal paint remaining, and is invery good condition. Estimate age asvery early 1900’s. To check if this“Premier” item is available: Pleasecall or e-mail me

This item is part of a vast col-lection of… Fine Quality VintageGentlemen’s Collectibles. Price: $225.00

Allan H. Harris, PurveyorBuffalo Grove, Il 60089Tel. (847) 634-1303(email [email protected])

Cigar Piercer???


Tiniest GunsAvailable

I’m back fromItaly, and can shiporders for mybook “The TiniestGuns”. This is theonly reference forcollectors of2mm pinfire andrimfire berloqueand charm pis-tols. The cost is $12 post paid in theUSA

I am also again taking orders formy 2mm pin and rimfire pistols.Each is $250 plus shipping. For moreinformation callBob Urso, tel (360) 733-4406

Mini Artillery Book,Now Available.

MAS members may buy a limit offive books at my cost - $30.00 each.There is a $6.75 S&H fee for onebook plus $1 for each additional book.

Kebby Industries,4075 Kilburn Ave.,Rockford, IL, 61101

If you want to put them on your tablefor sale at gun shows, special ratesare available. Write to the above ad-dress, phone at (815) 963-1466 orfax at (815) 962-3490.

Weston, Thacker, Smith

Miniature guns-buy, sell, trade,specialize in Weston, Thacker, Smith,will trade miniature guns for guns orcars,

Rich Koury 816-229-6500, 816-836-4500

www.kouryinvestments.com.816-229-6500,email [email protected]

Belgium Miniature Firearms ofthe Nineteenth Century

by John S Cooper

This 113 page book is the ulti-mate reference book with informa-tion and pictures of some of theworld’s best examples of BelgiumMiniature Firearms; this book is in-dispensable to the experienced col-lector and ideal for the novice.

Produced in a very limited andnever to be repeated production ofonly 250 copies, each one is num-bered and signed by the Author.

These are becoming very rareand sought after.There are a limitednumber of copies held by the Authorhimself and priced for immediate sale

Priced at £45.00 Sterling Inclu-sive of shipping world-wide. Inter-national Orders Payment to be madein Sterling and by InternationalMoney Order United Kingdom Or-ders Payment can be made by acheque drawn on a UK Bank or Brit-ish Postal Order, (Cheque will haveto clear before posting). Please makethe IMO, Cheque or Postal Orderpayable to Mr John Cooper

Dr. John Cooper98A Coombe LaneWestbury on TrymBristolBS9 2APUnited Kingdom


The price for “The Art Of Miniature Firearms” is $100. per copy plus postage. A quantity discount of $60 per copyis available on purchase of a carton of 8 books.For nonmembers, the $100 includes a one year membership inthe Miniature Arms Society

Or the MiniVersionThe price for the Minia-ture version is $50 (1/2scale) for quantity rates,and postage charges oneither book, please contact;

Alice Mcginnis.2109 Spring StreetCross Plaines, WI 53528Tel. (608) 798-2860 - email [email protected]

Your Dues AreDue Again

1. Check the label onthe envelope that thisissue came in

2.If the year (in parentheses)is 2000 or 2001Your dues are due.Yes... Even if you just joined.Upon joining you receive all back issuesof the Journal for the year you joined.Come January first, however, dues are due again.

Current members can send their $25.00 check (made outto Miniature Arms Society)-$30.00 for members outside the U.S..- to

William Adrian2502 Fresno LanePlainfield, IL 605Tel. (815) 254-8692

How To OrderThe Art OfMiniature Firearms

Documents

Dosick/Fisher Berloques - Miniature Arms