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Personal Gun OF General Paul Tibbets

geralddodd
I am inquiring for my friend, Gene Tibbets of Alabama, who is the son of General Paul Tibbets, USAF ret. General Tibbets flew the Enola Gay & dropped the 1st atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. Gene wishes to sell his father's personal Browning, Belgium made FN, 20 gauge over & under. General Tibbets was a Colonel in the Army Air Corps at the time he flew this historic mission.
The serial number is 59681V70. It was manufactured for General Tibbets in 1970. The gun has its own solid leather presentation case. The gun has a custom stock, specially designed for General Tibbets by Brent Umberger, master stock maker. The barrels were modified especially for General Tibbets by Ken Eyster. They are ported, the forcing cone has been lengthened, & fitted for General Tibbets.

The gun will be sold with a letter of authenticity signed by General Tibbets, and will include a special limited edition copy of his book "Return of The Enola Gay". Only 1500 of these special edition were printed. This book contains a special signature page inserted with signature spots for the 4 surviving crewmembers (at that time) of the Enola Gay mission, and has all 4 signatures included. Colonel (at that time) Tibbets, the pilot, Thedore J. (Dutch) Van Kirk, navigator, Richard H. Nelson, radio operator, Thomas W. Ferebee, bombardier.
We are trying to ascertain the value of this gun and would appreciate any information anyone might give us.
Thank you
Gerald Dodd
gerald@addstar.com

Gerald Dodd
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Comments

11 comments

Date Votes
  • 1KYDSTR
    Wow! I scarcely know what to say beyond that. A great American and a man whose place in history is well cemented. With that kind of provenance and documentation, I think Butterfield and Butterfield should be contacted, and perhaps Mr. Martin of California. I fear I can give no real estimate here as the provenance is the majority of the value of an otherwise fine gun, and the market would have to be tested to see what interest it would generate. In my opinion there is no hard and fast rule to go by with this kind of item...the market will determine the value. Perhaps some of the other gentlemen on the forum would hazard a guess as I cannot.

    "When I cease learning...I'm dead"(Me)
    "Power corrupts...Absolute power corrupts absolutely"(Descartes?)
    "History is written by winners"(Patton)
    "You get a lot farther with a kind word and a gun than you do with a kind word alone!"(Al Capone)
    "There is nothing lower than the human race...except the French" (Samuel Clemens)
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  • jonk
    You may also consider contacting gunrunner in Burton, Ohio; they have a well established auction business and have auctioned some of Elvis' guns, as well as some fine pieces in the $10,000+ range. Their websight is, I believe, www.thegunrunner.com. They have also been mentioned on the History channel and A&E. However, I would also consider one of the premium auction houses.

    "...hit your enemy in the belly, and kick him when he is down, and boil his prisoners in oil- if you take any- and torture his women and children. Then people will keep clear of you..." -Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher, speaking at the Hague Peace Conf
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  • captkirk3@dslextreme.com
    Welcome to the Ask the Experts Forum: I'm inclined to agree with 1KYDSTR on this one.....You might consider placing a value upon it, and keep that price as a Hold Bid/Reserve, and place this Browning on the Auction Portion of <gunbroker.com>...if the Bidding goes beyond the Hold/Reserve Price, You come out ahead.....If the Reserve is not reached, then You'll know that its going to be of interest only to a limited Market...Best.....Captain Kirk

    Captain Kirk, Tech Staff
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  • p3skyking
    Unfortunately, the man is historic, not the shotgun. If he was putting up the .45 Paul Tibbets carried on the flight, he could probably name his price.

    I personally would put it on Gunbroker for simple monetary reasons. The fees are not nearly as high as a professional auction house. More people would see it and have a chance to bid on it.

    I would like a chance to bid on the book! Any more of those available?

    Cruelty was a rare thing in the war. Fireside folks who talk about war and read about it, they figure it's cruel more often than not, but it simply isn't so... You kill in war to survive, and not because of any desire to kill.
    Many men avoid battle not from cowardice but from fear of cowardice, fear that when the moment of truth comes they will not have the courage to face up to it. L'Amour
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  • 101AIRBORNE
    Being a friend, I suggest that you purchase the gun. As mentioned-
    auctions, etc.-I doubt that this Browning-perhaps corrected-will bring the dollar figure at this time. It is a commercial gun and well past the U.S. life saving mission that your friend participated.
    As mentioned, auction, may or may not, prove its value/association.
    Perhaps the book release, with a mention of the Browning will bring
    very high expectations? I also would like to purchase a book.
    Best, 101
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  • beachmaster73
    I'm sure the tie in to General Tibbets will add some value to the shotgun but I doubt that it would truly be an earth shattering amount. I'd guess the shotgun's worth at between $4000 and $6000. Also Captain Kirk is correct. Put a reasonably high reserve on the weapon and float it at an auction...say $5500....if it does better you come out ahead if it doesn't you still have the shotgun and all of its history. Beach
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  • Dixierider
    Has the family thought of donating this gun to perhaps the NRA museam or perhaps the ordinace museam at Aberdean Proving Grounds, MD? Just a suggetion, this gives the public a chance to see it and it's taken care of... just a thought
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  • nmyers
    To answer your question............

    There IS NO WAY to ascertain the value of your friends gun without actually offering it for sale. If we're talking about a current model New-In-the-Box Browning shotgun, sure, lots of them are sold every day, so we have a good market base to go on. But, the gun you are talking about is unique; the value is quite literally what someone is willing to pay for it on any given day.

    You got lots of good advice on how to sell it (although you didn't ask for it.) Perhaps your friend believes that if he "knows" the value of the gun, that will help him sell it; unfortunately, there is no relationship between the "known" value of a gun, & what someone will actually pay for it.

    Anyone's guess as to the "value" of the gun is exactly that, a guess. Estimates from high end auction houses are often no more accurate than those of any of us forum readers.

    Neal
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  • competentone
    I can't say much more than what everyone else has said, but I will repeat the donation option. Depending on the financial situation of the current owner, donating it could be worth more than selling it--especially if any auction for it turned out to be a "flop" (which is something you have to consider; the use of the nuclear bomb is a historical event only a small number of people will be interested in owning "a piece" of--and even that is a stretch; as already noted this gun is associated with the man who is a known "historical figure" for a very small portion of the population, not the bombing "event").

    Talk to a tax professional; a "high," but justifiable professional estimate on its value, could be worth more than the sale--especially after considering the auction fees and capital gains taxes that will come into play if the gun is sold.

    I'd also suggest that copies of newspaper clippings be included if the gun is offered for sale (I'm sure there was some write-up somewhere when the gun was presented to Gen. Tibbets) and/or documentation from Browning to further "authenticate" the gun.

    Listing it with a high reserve on GunBroker ( http://www.gunbroker.com ), as already suggest might be a good route to follow if a sale is the final decision.
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  • river
    I think you will be surprised at how low the gun will sell for. It is an altered superposed and has no connection to the actual event that is noteworthy. The book is very interesting!
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  • TRAP55
    Just my $.02, but if that was my fathers gun, It would never be for sale, not for any reason.

    "Aim small...Miss small"
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