Crosman 100

[Yng@hrt]

I found a nice Crosman 100 today that appears to be in really good condition. Problem is, I know nothing about these except it's a .177 cal & has a descent looking factory peep. Wood is in very good condition as is the metal. Can anyone tell me more about it, like how are they performance wise & what a good price would be. The guy is asking $130.00.

I know the 101 & 102 are the ones folks want but I don't want to pass this one up if its worth hanging on to.

Thanks in advance

[Flint]

Isn't the 100 just the .177 version of the 101?  Not sure why it would be worth less as its the quality made gun - in fact, I think .177 guns were less popular back in the day, so there were probably fewer made in .177 so they might be worth more?? though I don't actually know this. 

[Robert Skelton]

I have a 100 and love it. It's a '49 I believe with a brass barrel. It will drive tacks and likes a variety of pellets. Crosmans, Super Domes and not pellet fussy.
I don't know what they are going for but have heard they made 10 to 1 in favor of the 101. True or not I have no idea.
I was  lucky that my wife found the ad in a local shopper magazine for sale by the original owner. She went out on her own and bought if for an anniversory gift.
He got it brand new as a teenager and had it rebuilt by an autorized Crosman repair shop. All i had to do was shoot it, got it for all of $50.00.
I see the .22's up for sale all the time but never a .177.
Of course She stole it and I would pay much more than $50.00 any day for either a 100 or 101.

[45flint]

The 100 is just the 101 in .177 and yes they are rarer.  $130 doesn't seem out of line if it's in good shape.  If it holds air and shoots that's a good price I think.  These are easy to seal though you need a tool.  I paided $185 for my 1949 Sears model and it needed a reseal.  You might want to look down the barrel to see if the rifling is good, some of these just have "ghost" rifling, just a quirk in some of these early rifles. My 101 is a great rifle, extremely accurate with the peep sight.

[45flint]

double post

[Yng@hrt]

Still trying to work him on the price of $139.95. I'll give it a couple more days. Good information fellas & I really appreciate it. At any rate I brought the Benji 397P home. Hopefully the C-100 hundred will join him soon. 

[strever]

the 100 is more rare then the 101's & 102's and that seems a good price if it is as nice as you are saying
i think i paid more then that for mine

[45flint]

Blue book value for 100 is
95%.  $325
90%.   $260
80%    $210
60%.   $160
40%.   $115

[Yng@hrt]

Blue book value for 100 is
95%.  $325
90%.   $260
80%    $210
60%.   $160
40%.   $115

Not sure where this one would rate. I'm guessing 80 percent, maybe a little more.

Here are a couple of pix. Sorry for the lousy photo's. Wasn't able to load off my phone to the pc.

[45flint]

Looks to be refinished?  But it looks well done. If not refinished it's a screaming buy, if refinished a good buy, if it holds air.

[Yng@hrt]

Steve, I think I'll head back up there & take a closer look. Can you tell me what to look for as far as tall tail clues on a refinish?

Thanks.

[45flint]

Steve, I think I'll head back up there & take a closer look. Can you tell me what to look for as far as tall tail clues on a refinish?

Thanks.

This gun would be 60 years old, so if the paint is perfect, it's probably repainted.  Look for area where they may have painted over old paint, see scales of old paint under.  The cocking knobs are blued not painted as well as the tube the cocking knob screws into. Sometimes these are painted in a repaint?  Trigger guard blued.  Whenever a gun was taken to Crosman for repair the factory would repaint, my 102 is factory repaint.  Original paint is great for a collector, but with these old guns a good repaint is not a bad thing.

[Yng@hrt]

Great info, will certainly go a long way in inspecting this one!

One last question; I know that with the Sheridan's you can see sanding marks underneath the original finish of the wood. Was this the case with these Crosman's?

[longhunter]

No. The woodwork was pretty spot-on.

[Yng@hrt]

Thank you Scott.

Looking forward to getting up there later on this morning to take a closer look. 

[45flint]

To me you can tell a stock refinish of a 60 year old gun if there are no marks etc.  My old guns all have some dents, marks in the wood.  Many want to sand those out for a perfect finish.  Also stocks originally had oil type finish.  Nothing wrong with this but I prefer just a simple refreshing with Tru Oil and leaving the character?

To your point on the wood, my 1930s 102 the walnut is right on, the 1949 elm is not as finely finished, grain more prominate, areas I might sand if I was refinishing.  They made these guns over a very long period, after the War, it became more factory like production.  A 100 would span 1940-1950 so you have the entire spectrum.  I think a prewar 101 would be higher quality?  But could depend on the gun.  Again look down the barrel. If it holds air I think your biggest risk is poor rifling.

[Gippeto]

Looks a lot nicer than the one I purchased...mine needed a complete re-work. Not complaining...IIRC paid around $60CDN...around $45US.









Al

[Yng@hrt]

Al, she sure turned out beautiful! Thanks for sharing.

[Yng@hrt]

Took a closer look & it does appear that the wood was redone. There are some factory sand marks underneath the finish so I thought maybe it was unmolested. However, you can see a couple of spots where the wood was dinged & I think they would have been more pronounced with hard edges. Maybe they were just worn down over time.

The bluing looks spot on. If it was re-blued the person who did it knew what he was doing. The only place I can see obvious paint is on the front sight & cap.

The peep appears to have been jimmied & the butt plate like the peep is minus the bluing.

On the plunger, not sure if these came with an adjustable shaft but this one has one.

Checked the riflings with a bore light & they look very good.

Biggest problem...not holding air. I can hear all the air escaping on the down stroke. I placed a few drops of 3-1 oil & will let it set over night butt down to see if there's any change. Big change almost immediately on the pumping. Much smoother. She must have been plumb dry.

On the plus side, the guy let me have her for $60. So, this will give me some wiggle room if it needs a rebuild.   

[Yng@hrt]

...5 more pix