Possible Puteaux Purchase

Towed Artillery, Wanted, For Sale,(NO EBAY ITEMS) and Knowledge Base
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MosinFan42
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Possible Puteaux Purchase

Post by MosinFan42 » Mon Jan 18, 2021 5:01 pm

Good evening, first off I am a new member here looking to get into the hobby. I've been into military surplus firearms for nearly 10 years but now I finally have enough saved to get a big toy :D. I'm only in my 20's so I missed out on the golden days for this kind of stuff but I figure better late than never.

I found a Puteaux available for sale but it is in pretty rough condition. I have a nice welding setup and a lathe in my garage so I'm confident I can do some repairs myself. As you can see from the pictures this gun has been sitting outside for a number of years in Florida. I've been in contact with the owner and he is open to reasonable offers. My issue is I'm not quite sure what a fair offer would be. From what I can tell the rims on the cannon are not correct and the center leg/pedestal seems to be missing. The cannon is currently registered as a C&R DD. The seller is also including 5 live 25mm rounds.

If anyone could help me out with a fair approximation on the value of the cannon and how easily parts are to obtain I would really appreciate it. I know it's in rough shape but if I can get it for the right price I think it might be a fun project and a way to get into the hobby without breaking the bank.

Again, thanks for any and all help.

-Kurt.


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MosinFan42
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Re: Possible Puteaux Purchase

Post by MosinFan42 » Mon Jan 18, 2021 5:33 pm

More pics.
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m.miller0412
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Re: Possible Puteaux Purchase

Post by m.miller0412 » Tue Jan 19, 2021 3:55 am

Kurt,

Welcome to what will become a very expensive hobby.... The same seller told me the bore is very rough and when I asked for pictures stopped responding. The asking price of $17k I think is very high, especially for one that looks like it needs a complete teardown. For reference the last one I saw sold was back in May for around $12k (completely restored). Im currently working out a deal for one for around that price ($15k) with ammo. I would say if you can get this one for under $10k then it would be a decent deal.

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Re: Possible Puteaux Purchase

Post by MosinFan42 » Tue Jan 19, 2021 5:32 am

I've been messaging him a bit, I told him I wouldn't feel comfortable spending over 10K on it in its current state and he actually reacted positively considering his asking price of 17K. With one way airline tickets from Cincinnati to Florida running around $100 and the seller being somewhat close to the airport it wouldn't be too unfeasible for me to inspect it and make an offer in person. I also asked how the bore was and got a vague response. He said most folks that have looked at it talked about installing a sleeve to shoot .50 BMG. Having the ability to shoot .50 bmg out of it would definitely save some money but if I wanted a .50 I would have bought a Barret. I'll try to see if I can get him to send me a bore pic. I don't plan on doing any precision shooting with it so a poor bore isn't a deal breaker to me, just as long as I can safely fire it.

I've seen several years old posts where people talked about .50 bmg sleeves in their puteaux, is that a permanent modification? Is the shell still ejected after firing?

I set out with a budget of 15-20K for some kind of NFA toy. I wasn't looking for a Puteaux specifically but when I found this one I figured it might be an opportunity to save some cash to use towards ammo/accessories or maybe even another toy. I really enjoy working on projects like this but If I'm going to end up with a pretty looking gun that isn't safe to shoot I might have to pass on it.

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Re: Possible Puteaux Purchase

Post by Don Shaffer » Tue Jan 19, 2021 12:00 pm

I had both a 1934 Hotchkiss AT Gun and the 1937 Puteaux . They are nice little AT Guns My Puteaux had a ruff Chamber and the first time I fired it the Case stuck in the Chamber . I then made a 50Cal incert and fired it a lot ! 25 Brass is hard to find. When I bought my Gun Bob Landis had 8 Rd Spam cans for $100.00

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waterdawg2004
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Re: Possible Puteaux Purchase

Post by waterdawg2004 » Tue Jan 19, 2021 5:40 pm

One like this sold for $3,000 about 8 years ago. I wanted it for the parts but it was pick up in person only, Mr Naess was selling it for some one else. A complete good looking functioning gun with some ammo is worth $15,000 to $18,000. This gun may be worth $6,000 at the most unless you consider your time and effort as free. I have seen a number of functioning guns sell for about $15,000 in the past 10 years, one sold last year for about $10,000 but it had a bad wheel. Search past posts on this forum. Get a good price on it and just sell it for parts. I could use a few myself. Good luck.
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waterdawg2004
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25mm Puteaux before and after pics

Post by waterdawg2004 » Tue Jan 19, 2021 5:51 pm

Pics of my gun before and after taken by the guy I bought it from, I do not know who rebuilt it but Ohio Ordance repaired my barrel and activated it with a Form 1.
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1944 MB Jeep
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waterdawg2004
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Re: Possible Puteaux Purchase

Post by waterdawg2004 » Tue Jan 19, 2021 5:55 pm

Spam cans of 25mm ammo was selling for $1,000 for 8 rounds on Gunbroker last month. But the brass cases can be reloaded. I buy empty cases off of the internet but it has taken 6 years to get about 50, which I reload. Used cases sell for about $50.
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French 25mm SA.L Model 1937
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Re: Possible Puteaux Purchase

Post by SGT Fish » Thu Jan 21, 2021 10:07 am

isnt it funny that people leave live registered destructive devices sitting outside uncovered, when others worry about keeping their hipoint in a safe...

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waterdawg2004
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Re: Possible Puteaux Purchase

Post by waterdawg2004 » Mon Jun 21, 2021 4:39 pm

Any spare parts for sale?
1944 MB Jeep
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