Finding revolvers

[RsqVet]

We talking new or used? New I just order what I want, few shops stock much and offten I am looking as a less common item so it goes.

For used I reccomend pawn shops, more pawnshops and some other pawnshops. Not uncommon at all to find a decent gun at a non gunbroker price here.

Time and patiance are your friend. If you set your sights on a given model and expect instant gratification you will be disappointed. If you just shop on a regular basis it is suprising what comes across the table.

I too agree many nice wheel guns changed hands in the various gun buying panics.

 

[Bultaco]

Pawn shops

I make a habit of frequenting pawn shops in about Feb.-April. Many pawned handguns from the Christmas money bunch are coming out of pawn after not being redeemed.
Gun sales are slow then and pawn owners would like to get the money invested in the revolvers back out on loan.
Through the years I have picked up a 3 screw Mdl 27. A Ruger Blackhawk convertible .45 and a very clean 586 at prices that make people think I am not truthful.
Most recent example was the 4" 586 in exc. condition for $285. The pawn shop owner is a big Glock guy and had little interest in revolvers. I was there the day it came out of pawn and tried not to run while going out to my truck for the check book.

 

[osbornk]

Semi-autos are fun to shoot and collect, but at heart I am a revolver guy. Like other revolver fanciers, I am annoyed to see row after row of plastic semi-autos at most of the LGS's and only a few revolvers.

As I am typing this there are 12,923 revolvers for sale on GunBroker. Many are overpriced, but there are some bargains out there if you know what you want and are very patient.

In the past couple of years there were certain revolvers that I decided to purchase: an old-fashioned S&W 38 and 32, an old-fashioned H&R 32 magnum, a Rossi Model 720 44 special, and a couple of others that I haven't found yet. In each case I decided on a bargain price that I was willing to pay, then checked and bid on GunBroker and GunAuction for MONTHS until I got what I wanted for the price I wanted.

S&W pre-Model 10 38 special from the early 1900's - $150
S&W Hand Ejector 32 long from the early 1900's - $125
NEF (H&R) 32 magnum stainless steel - $150
NEF 32 magnum blued - $115
Rossi Model 720 44 special - $330

I didn't bid unless the seller was "established", meaning that they had sold hundreds or thousands of guns and had good reputations that they did not want to damage by shady dealings. I spent many months looking and lost many, many bids. But in the end I got what I wanted for very reasonable prices. It took time and effort, but it was kind of fun and worth it in the end.

Here is the S&W 32 long. I just wanted good shooters, not guns with perfect finishes. It locks up tight, is accurate, and fun to shoot. $125 well spent, IMHO.

Since most of my 68 years were spent in dealing with used cars or as an Insurance Adjuster, I cannot bring myself to buy used mechanical stuff without seeing the item in person. I heard so many lies over the years and I don't trust any stranger selling anything. That includes cars, motorcycles and guns. I've driven 200 miles one way to look at a car I found on Ebay and 500 miles to look at a motorcycle I found on Craigs list. I bought them both but I felt good about them because of the conversation I had with the owners who had owned them for a long time. I'm like Ronald Reagan when it comes down to it. I'm a "trust but verify" before I spend my money.

 

[DaleA]

It took time and effort, but it was kind of fun and worth it in the end.

Good attitude. IMhO that's what makes this hobby tick.

Here is the S&W 32 long.

The cylinder looks way better than the rest of the gun. Was it replaced? If not any idea why it looks to be in so much better shape?

 

[tallball]

I am not sure if the cylinder on that 32 was replaced or not. Next time I have it out of the safe I'll look at it more carefully.

Perhaps I'm incorrect, but I don't think it would help a high-volume GunBroker business to try to deceive customers to make a few extra dollars here and there. The customer satisfaction rating is more important. From my experience I believe that the sellers I am most familiar with describe each firearm accurately and succinctly, include a good picture, and let the chips fall where they may. They couldn't have such a high approval rating if they were being deceptive.

If they are selling several hundred used or surplus firearms every month, they don't even have to make a profit on every one. They can make a hefty profit on some, a decent profit on the vast majority, and can afford to make little or no profit on a few. I think that is what happens with some of the high-volume sellers who start all of their auctions at one cent. My goal is to scrounge around and run across the occasional "perfect storm" - a firearm that is on my wish list, but ends up selling for an unusually low price because the picture is funny, or the auction ends on a Monday morning at 7:00AM, or it is right before Christmas and everyone is concentrating on buying gifts, etc.

Also, I would be very hesitant to buy an expensive used firearm sight unseen. But the vast majority of the ones I've purchased have cost $200 or less. I haven't risked very much. Out of the two dozen or so bargain-priced used or surplus firearms that I have bought in the past five years, only two of them have ended up having mechanical problems. One was a Taurus and the factory fixed it for free. I paid $150 to gunsmith to fix the other one. All in all I have saved substantial amount of money, and more importantly, have gotten a lot of enjoyment out of hunting for firearms that I really wanted for ridiculously low prices.

Here is the pre-model 10. I have had a LOT of fun shooting it. And finally winning a bid on one for $150, after months of trying, was just as much fun as shooting it has been.

 

[FITASC]

Georgia's just a little state so you can't be that far away.

I just drove N to S today - about 5 hours on the interstate

That aside most are way off the Interstate and trips can be long for nothing.

OP - try looking in your local pawn shops as well as on-line. Bud's has S&W turn-ins as do other on-line folks.

 

[BigJimP]

Older S&W revolvers, in very good shape, are getting tougher and tougher to find....at any price / let alone whatever one considers reasonable.

My buddy has been looking for a model 66 ( .357 mag in stainless ) in a 2 1/2" for over a year now...in a no dash or a dash 1 version..( because he wants it to be pinned and recessed. The only one's either of us has seen...have had significant wear and or timing issues ( they were not treated very well by previous owners ) and prices are still up over $ 750....

shopping on gun broker ...is not a bad idea / but I think you need to be careful because with used guns - evaluation on condition is in the eye of the beholder. I've bought new guns ...from dealers with brick and mortar operations ...but I've always been reluctant to buy used guns online.. / I've seen some guns that were not as advertised ...and returning them became very difficult for the owners.

Just keep shopping locally...make it a routine.../ all of us "old guys" will eventually give up our collections...because my kids and grandkids don't want the revolvers in my collection...

 

[Jeff #111]

I'm forty-seven. I started my shooting career in 1980. My father started me on his department issued S&W Model 65 and his Model 36 Chiefs Special (his backup piece). But it was the start of the 1980's and I was soon smitten with semi-auto pistols. I blame "Miami Vice". Then came the Army and through the 90's I was all about semi-auto pistols. I became a police officer in 2000 and continued with my focus on pistols.

But in 2003 I was walking through a local gunshow and came across a P&R Model 28 w/6" barrel. For reasons I still can't figure out that old N frame spoke to me and I bought it. I now own four pistols (one of which is my duty Glock 19) and eighteen revolvers. I manage to buy one or two a year. I have found a few local Local Gun Stores that carry a healthy inventory and I give them my business. They know me by my first name and in the past couple of years I've graduated to being on their call lists. I love second hand revolvers and I've seen prices go up dramatically over the past decade. About five years ago my area saw an increase in second revolvers for sale. I figured it was a combination of the poor economy and many of the Depression/WWII Generation dying off and their descendants liquidating the revolvers. That has since dried out and the search is more demanding, but fun.