Just ASK

My father picked these up while deployed to Spain back in 1977. They were made by "Banco de Pruebas de Armas de Fuego" in Eibar, Spain according to the certificates I have for both (see pic). Black powder .45 pistols that have never been fired. I can't find anything via Google concerning value...I'm wondering if they are worth $5 or $500. Anybody here know anything about these kinds of pistols?

AQUAINFL38

Spanish repros are low end .Some of the better ones are made in Italy.
Pistols usually go for $75-$125 ea.in new condition.
Usually poorly finished.

Orion45

Are you sure the pistols were manufactured by Banco de Prueba de Armas de Fuego? Banco de Prueba means "proof house". From what I can see from the certificate that you posted is that the pistols were subjected to a pressure of 700 kg/cm2 (9,956 p.s.i.) without bursting. The barrels were then stamped with the proof marking indicated in the certificate. This guarantees that the pistol barrel will not burst when subjected to a conventional load as the proof pressure far exceeds the pressure generated by the recommended load.

Bonsaifishrman

I possess an Italian black powder pistol and from the looks of yours, although a nice brace of pistols, they do not look very high grade. The wood does not look like walnut and the fittings look very plain. I think these would be entry level re-enactor pistols for period maritime or pirate period or even Napoleonic wars era. They just don't have an ornate look to them. They are obviously shooters and would be fun to load and shoot. You can buy the cap, powder, ball and wading from any gun store selling regular black powder items and guns. After shooting, you clean them out either with boiling water or hydrogen peroxide. The peroxide will boil out the powder, so careful. Do not worry about getting the gun wet during cleaning, when done cleaning the bore and drying it out with wiper rags, you will wipe down the whole gun then use some sort of non rusting lite oil. You will need to remove the nipple and wire/pic clean it out from time to time also. These are great fun to shoot. Loud, smoky and quite powerfully deadly on a target at 10 to 20 yards.

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Just ASK

That's what I figured, as they don't look particularly spectacular or ornate. Thanks for the info!

Just ASK

I see what you mean...they were manufactured somewhere else and then proofed. Makes sense. BTW - my father was a P-2/P-3 pilot as well...

Just ASK

Might have to get some supplies and see what kind of kick they posess. Thanks for the help!

Orion45

Are there any other markings which would indicate who made these pistols? There is a "marca the fabrica" (factory marking) on the certificate that reads 2B or 28. That might give you an idea of where the pistols were produced.

BTW, I was a Naval Flight Officer (NFO) since I did not have 20/20 vision when I joined the Navy. P-2's were gone by the time I joined...P-3A's were the oldest planes at the time. My first squadron had already transitioned to the newer P-3C's when I got there.