December 6-8, 2023 Firearms & Militaria
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 12/6/2023
For the consummate early machine gun collector enthusiast this gun needs no introduction. One glance, even at a distance, is enough. An Argentine brass Maxim as made in the late 19th century. This is only the 14th such gun manufactured by Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabriken (DWM) in Berlin under contact for Argentina in 1898. The first 50 were manufactured by the Maxim Nordenfeldt Company. This specimen, like all this cataloger has observed, was initially delivered to Argentina and fielded into service, and then later returned to DWM in 1909 for the sights to be converted to be graduated for the modernized 1909 7.65 mm Argentine cartridge. One can see the slot still present in the brass plate on the top cover where the original "tall" rear sight had a tab which fitted into this slot when the sight was down. The Argentine contract Maxim guns were imported into the United States over 60 years ago and sold on the collector market. Visible numbers, exclusive of the barrel (123) are matching on this gun, including the wooden roller feedblock, fusee cover, and lock which is marked "64 A". Original Carl Weiss optic sight (#1147) in original leather case is included with this lot. Water fill and drain caps are present with brass chains and drain cork present and serviceable. Brass steam hose fitting on water jacket present and serviceable. Original muzzle cover, also matching "64" is present. An unnumbered shoulder brace which attaches to the gun on 2 studs on the lower left sideplate is also present. Original tripod with barely discernible "2 9 " at the front of the brass socket and matching "64" hardware is included with this gun as is the leather tool pouch to strap to the tripod, and a brass water funnel. The wheeled carriage and wooden carriage ammo boxes are being offered in this auction as a separate lot. Electronic NFA registry indicates "MAXIM" as the manufacturer and "1909" as the model. CONDITION: Overall appearance and finish is extremely fine to near excellent refinish with some very light pitting visible at the lower right sideplate just forward of the rear tripod attachment stirrup and a bit of light pitting on the lower part of the rear sight ladder. Hardened steel parts have slight plum color. Original wooden roller in feed block is extremely fine with some dings. Internal parts of gun are near excellent. Shoulder brace is extremely fine with a 2" crack near the top above the steel insert. This does not affect serviceability and a good wood restorer could mitigate this. Bore of copper washed barrel is near excellent, shiny and bright. Mechanics are crisp. This is a Full-Auto only machine gun. Tripod is extremely fine and serviceable. Leather of tripod seat is flaking and cracking but consider it is over 100 years old. This is one of the most eye-catching machine gun models ever produced, and this specimen presents exceptionally well. The combination of blued steel and brass calls out to any observer that "this is the quality of manufacturing when hand fitting and human pride of workmanship were the order of the day". Brass jacket Maxim guns surface for sale very rarely. When someone decides to part with one they usually are purchased privately and do not make it to public sale. This extremely early DWM manufactured brass Maxim would make an outstanding addition to any machine gun collectors collection, or be the absolute centerpiece of attention in some corporate office (not a bad tax write off either). THIS IS A NATIONAL FIREARMS ACT ITEM AND REQUIRES BATF APPROVAL PRIOR TO TRANSFER. THIS ITEM IS FULLY TRANSFERABLE ON AN ATF FORM 3 OR 4 AS CURIO & RELIC ELIGIBLE. JWK 2023-12-26
This is not a standard shippable item and will require 3rd party shipping or pickup arrangements to be made.Accessories
Tripod, Shoulder loop attachment, muzzle cover