Current firearm collecting interests

[5thDragoons]

In the past, I collected Marlin firearms... until it turned into a money game. Then I got interested in Italian rifles. Bought a nice one for a fast $50 (those days are gone forever!) and started seeing more. I wanted to research them, but there was only a pamphlet in print at the time. So I started grabbing them and eventually had enough to write the first English language book on the topic.

I've pretty much no interest in them now except for colonial items. This is my Italian East Africa grouping. After WW1, Italy got a ton of arms and ammo from Austria-Hungary as reparations, much of which was used to arm native levies in East Africa = Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia. Most of the long rifles were cut down, but all remained in 8x50R caliber.

Top to bottom: Budapest M.95, Steyr long rifle, OEWG M.88/90, 1870/87 Italian Vetterli, 1870/87/15 Italian Vetterli in 6,5 caliber, and a
a Carcano M91 long rifle with the super scarce RE mark.

Stories vary on this, but basically, it was issued to regular army troops in the colonies while AOI marked guns were strictly for natives. Supposedly, natives found with an RE marked rifle were hanged, but that smells of a gun show story. Believe what you like.

I've heard several times a few GEW 88s will be found with the AOI mark, but I've never seen one. SW
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[5thDragoons]

Continuing with the colonial firearms idea, RTI supposedly will import another large group - mostly antiques, they claim. I've heard so much bad about RTI, I'd only buy the scarcest of the scarce from them, and then only at a discount. The guy does a lot of self promotion in the vid, but I scrolled ahead to view the various neat old guns. I am NOT promoting RTI - I just like seeing piles of old guns.

The bad part is guns like M1 carbines will be priced around $1000. But I see a big box of Italian Bodeo revolvers, and wouldn't I like to rummage through that! There are also piles of Italian Vetterlis and others that no doubt have some scarce markings. Kind of a shame they were torching the Schwarzlose MGs, but I doubt there's much of a market for them other than American collectors. SW

[5thDragoons]

More pics of colonial native levies. SW

Somewhere in East Africa, this native carries an M.95 Behind him appears to be a Schwarzlose MG.
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British native levy in Nigeria. 95% chance his Steyr was captured in East Africa.
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This pile of rifles will be issued to levies, Jewish Settlement Police in Palestine or sent to India for use as trainers, thus freeing up Enfields for line units.
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