[todd allen]

Originally Posted by edgarspencer

The table holder, presumably the owner, had an entire binder full of provenance supporting the authenticity of the gun. The Wells Fargo markings on the gun were not done much later than the Parker Bros. top rib markings, and they are the ones hardest to fake. If this is a fake, I'd have to say, it's a 100 year old fake. I have seen a few of the $100K fake Colts coming out of Mexico, and as good as they are, after enough time examining one, you can point to something that isn't right. On two visits back to the table, and a half hr of looking, I came up empty. The seller made the observation that the hand that engraved the watch was most certainly also the hand that engraved the silver crest on the buttstock of the Parker, and I had to agree. Every detail of the engraving indicated the same person.
There was another Wells Fargo gun at the show; a Hopkins & Allen. It, too, seemd to real not to be.
It's worth mentioning that the table holders at this show are not the average one or two show a year type. When you see a few 1851s in presentation boxes, along side a few high dollar SAAs (my other specialty) you get the sense the seller isn't going to dabble in fakes too.

I posted before I read your post. Your description of the seller makes it sound possible. I would love to hear more about a find like this. (with lots of pictures, of course)