Restoring a reasonable Crest (not faking) a Military Rifle or Pistol

[Eaglelord17]

The biggest reason people in the collecting community have to be concerned with trying to make items 'correct' or 'restoring' firearms (and replicas etc.) is that you might know what you did, does the next person? It is also bubba'ing in its own way as you are still removing the history of that particular rifle. In the case of the Spanish mauser the crest was removed in service, putting a crest back on it is removing the actual history of the rifle for what you 'think' the history should be.

Say you go and figure out all the things required to make a Lee Enfield sniper. Get some authentic parts, learn about the proper ways to attach them etc. and the end result is a rifle which is very close/near exact to a real enfield sniper rifle. You sell the rifle and pass on it as a reproduction. The next guy gets it and he might not be so honest, maybe they learn a couple points you missed and makes it even closer to the real thing and then sells it off as a original. Maybe you die and when it gets sold off someone thought it was a original and sells it as a original, whoever buys it is then convinced that it is one especially after paying such a large sum of money for it.

You asked question, just because you don't like the answers doesn't mean they are wrong. Collectors are concerned with preserving history, not re-writing it. What you want to do is re-write the history of the firearm, at which point you might as well call yourself a firearms owner not a collector.