c.1946 Marx, .45 Caliber Military Model Clicker Pistol
I could find no reference for this unusual and very colorful pressed steel Military Model .45 clicker pistol. This style was produced by Marx sometime during the mid 1940's although I've never seen an Army model before. Made from heavy gauge pressed steel rather than tinplate. The underlying design of a revolver was used which allowed the company to produce a western gun, space pistol, or in this case a military pistol using the same equipment. The frame, barrel, and trigger guard are all dark blue although the right half is a shade paler than the left. However this was reversed with the left grip slightly paler than the right indicating that the color differences were factory created, rather than faded. The grips are embossed and lithoed with simulated wood grain. Again, the right half is slightly darker than the left. The left frame half was also embossed with a five pointed yellow star inside of a recessed circle. "ARMY" and ".45 CAL" were lithoed just below it. On this same side simulated scroll work was lithoed towards the rear of the bullet cylinder, while a WWI style soldier (running with pistol?) was lithoed in front. The cylinder itself was embossed and outlined in yellow and orange. The right frame half included the Marx logo in place of the ARMY text and the circled star was replaced with a shaded button. Lithography on the cylinder, including the soldier are identical on both sides. The barrel was labeled "Military Model .45" in yellow with the underside in red/yellow. The litho on both sides of the barrel is identical, although the sight is red (on the left) and bare metal (on the right). The trigger is black. It makes a rather loud clicking sound when the trigger is squeezed. There was no delay even when squeezed several times rapidly. There is no box (that is, if one was ever produced). Size: 7¾". Sold: Mar. 2008
Price Sold: $ 90
