A product of the Cold War, the Deer Gun started life when the Central Intelligence Agency realized that there was a niche for a cheap, disposable handgun that could be used as deniable armament for unaffiliated groups. In other words, they wanted the FP-45 Liberator, but all the stocks of Liberators were liquidated in the late 1940s. The Deer Gun was conceived as a successor, with American Machine and Foundry tapped to manufacture a 1000-piece pilot run in 1964. Originally eyeballed for use in Vietnam, the Deer Gun suffered similar issues to the Liberator; the nature of the game in Vietnam changed from clandestine action to open war, leaving the Deer Gun without a niche to fill. The number of currently surviving examples is unknown, with most believed to have been destroyed in the aftermath of the Church Committee in 1975. Built around a single cast aluminum piece with an integral sighting groove, a storage compartment in the butt (cap and contents absent), and a spring-loaded firing assembly with a screw-in single shot barrel.

Good, showing mostly bright grey patina on the frame with some extensive pitting scattered throughout, hinting at the possibility of the gun having been hidden/stored somewhere damp, and most of the refinished blue on the barrel with some light pitting visible under the finish. The striker appears frozen in place. A scarce piece that will not be found in many of even the most extensive collections!