Over the years, and in most cases without really putting my mind to it, I have managed to collect more than about 50 different gat-type, (push-barrel, pop-out) pistols. A few were hard to find, like the late 1800’s models made by Eisenwerke Gaggenau, and the pre-1930’s British push-barrels from Frank Clarke, Lincoln Jeffries, and Edwin Anson, but most were just bought on the spur of the moment at arms fairs and boot sales. I personally like these toy-like guns, even though they are a far cry from the serious target air pistols that attract the most attention from collectors, and I was wondering if I was in the minority in this respect.

Does anyone else collect these humble guns, and if so, what sort of collection do you have and why do you collect them? On the other hand you might despise these “gats” as just toys and not worth the space they take up in your cupboard, and your opinion would be of equal interest. It would be nice to get an impression of the overall collectability status of these guns these days.