High End Handguns

Don't you have one of those 475 Wildeys there 44 AMP ?
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No, sorry. My Wildey is .45 Win Mag. Does all I need, and then some, brass is slightly more common than unicorn's tears (though not a lot, :rolleyes:), and uses standard .45 bullets. Also it shares ammo with my LAR Grizzly. :)

I made a deliberate choice decades ago, to avoid the larger bores, (.475, .50 etc) for logistic reasons. While I do have to invest in separate stocks of brass, all my 44s and 45s can use standard 44 & 45 bullets, and having nearly a dozen various 45s and half a dozen 44s to feed, that is no small matter.

Nothing wrong with the bigger rounds, if that's what you want. My only real gripe about them is that other than powder and primes, what you need for them only works, for them.
 
I’ve had the pleasure of shooting a few Nighthawks and a Couple Wilson Combats, but I don’t think I’ve ever shot a Les Baer or an Ed Brown.

What I can say is that, while they were nice looking guns that felt good and were easy to shoot well, they didn’t feel as nice or consistent as my Dan Wsson Valor 1911. I HONESTLY prefer my Dan Wesson over any of the Nighthawk or Wilson combats that I’ve shot. I’ve also shot 2 other Dan Wesson’s and felt the same about them.

Dan Wesson’s are forged and hand fit for final assembly, and they are every bit as good as these high end custom guns from my understanding but they tend to cost between $1200-$2000 vs $2500-$4000.

As a result of my personal experience, the idea of a super high end super expensive custom 1911 no longer takes up much space in my world of wishes.

When spending that kind of money it can be a hard choice to make! Good luck.
 
44AMP said:
Nothing wrong with getting high end guns at all, just don't confuse a high price with high quality. They aren't always the same thing.
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Absolutely true! Hype and fluff often costs big bucks. NOT saying all high end guns are hype and fluff... just saying many things that cost 2 or 3 times the run of the mill basic gun are not necessarily that much better quality, as 44 said. They may have features that you may be willing to pay much more for, but they may burn out just the same as the cheaper one.

Anyway... the bottom line here for ME is... there are two things I've tried to do, and succeeded quite successfully over the years...
1)Don't tell somebody how to raise their kids
2)Don't tell somebody how to spend their money

Keeps things civil :D
 
While this is often the observed result, it's not due to inherent "quality" or time, alone. It's a matter of USE.

Everything mechanical wears with use. Cycles of operation. Mileage, Round Count, however you measure it.

Guns seem to last lifetimes, generations even, because with very rare exceptions, no one owner actually uses (shoots) a gun enough to wear it out.

Just to pick a number, lets say 100,000. Lets say that at 100,000miles your car is worn out, and at 100,000 rounds your pistol is worn out. (not any relation to reality, just a number to work with)

A person might take 10 years to put 100,000 miles on their car. Another person might do it in 2-3 years. It might take several generations of shooters to put 100,000 rounds through a gun. Or it might take high volume competition shooter just a single year.

I remember an article from the later 80s (or so maybe the early 90s..) forget who the interview was with, but he was one of the very top "action" shooters, and he said he wore out 3 1911s a year in practice. (and worn out means the FRAME is worn out, to the point it can't be fixed).

The interviewer asked how much he shot in practice every year, and he said "about 80,000". Interviewer askes "80,000 rounds?", and he said, "no, dollars..." think about that, 80,000 DOLLARS worth of ammunition is quite a bit..

Nothing wrong with getting high end guns at all, just don't confuse a high price with high quality. They aren't always the same thing.
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All else being equal (and it almost never is) bigger bullets tend to work better.
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Do you recall what brand of 1911's he used? I doubt they were Rugers. Lets say .45 ACP bullets cost 25 cents a round, I know they're a bit more but for sake of discussion Im rounding down. For $80,000.00 that would be 320,000 bullets. Even if you were to put 320,000 rounds through a Ruger I don't think that would wear down the gun to the point where the frame is damaged beyond repair although you most likely would have to replace some of the internal components, but I doubt you would have to scrap the gun. Not with a Ruger. A Rossi or a Glock it might be a different story but Rugers are made to last and yes as you said everything mechanical eventually wears out from use but with a Ruger I don't think a person in their lifetime could use it to the point where it becomes scrap metal.
After all, guns used in war see heavy use and as it is there are muskets and rifles that were used in the Revolutionary War that are still functional even today.
 
"but if you've got the cash I see nothing wrong with getting a high end handgun if that's what you want to get."

I see no problem with buying high end handguns either. However, I still have to believe that I am getting "good value" for the price. While I can appreciate and admire a Korth semi-auto 9mm, I just have a hard time seeing that you are getting good value for your $10,000.

I could have 100 million of dollars, but I don't think I would part with $10K for that pistol, even though I would really want one! Sounds weird, doesn't it. But, part of buying, and even collecting, guns is me thinking that what I purchased was a good value for what it is. Finding a nice Sphinx AT2000 for $1,300 would mean more to me than paying $10K for a Korth 9mm.
 
Do you recall what brand of 1911's he used? I doubt they were Rugers
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I have no idea what brand of 1911s he used, but a can say with pretty fair certainty that they were NOT Rugers, because at the time of the interview, Ruger 1911s simply didn't exist. Nor did S&W, or Sig make a 1911 style gun in those days.

And don't bother to calculate $80k worth of ammo using today's costs. It was the late 80s...

After all, guns used in war see heavy use and as it is there are muskets and rifles that were used in the Revolutionary War that are still functional even today.
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Generally speaking, the guns that see heavy use in war don't come home to be heirlooms very often.
 
"A Rolex gives it’s owner pride of ownership, the owner of a Timex could care less about it"
Rolex watches, over all, will outlast Timex watches. Plus, Rolex movements can be serviced and last for many generations. There is actual value in this, beyond simply status. And, while I own a number of mechanical Swiss watches, I do not own a Rolex, so I am not saying this because I'm partial to Rolex.

A fine quality handgun is similar to a nice watch. Reference Colt Python, 1970's Colt Gold Cup, T-Series Hi Powers, Sphinx AT2000. These guns will be around for quite some time. People take care of these guns and pass them down to relatives for a reason.
 
but if you've got the cash I see nothing wrong with getting a high end handgun if that's what you want to get."

I see no problem with buying high end handguns either. However, I still have to believe that I am getting "good value" for the price. While I can appreciate and admire a Korth semi-auto 9mm, I just have a hard time seeing that you are getting good value for your $10,000.

I could have 100 million of dollars, but I don't think I would part with $10K for that pistol, even though I would really want one! Sounds weird, doesn't it. But, part of buying, and even collecting, guns is me thinking that what I purchased was a good value for what it is. Finding a nice Sphinx AT2000 for $1,300 would mean more to me than paying $10K for a Korth 9mm.
Skans is offline
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I’ve got multiple Korth 9mms. I agree $10K is steep, but if they’re worth $15-$20K in the next decade, it’s a good value. :cool:

Also, let me know when you find a Sphinx AT2000S for $1300. Actually let me know when you find one at all. ;)
 
The only high end handgun I would consider purchasing would be for hunting. But then I can say the same thing about a shotgun or rifle.


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The high end guns can be a reasonable investment. No it's not your 401K, don't be silly. Point is high quality and high end guns often gain value over the years.

Much like the difference between a Rolex and a Timex, in 20-30 years the Timex will be worth nothing. In 20-30 years the Rolex will be worth more money than you paid for it if you did not overpay when purchasing it.
 
The biggest problem with big dollar handguns is that its very easy to get spoiled. They tend to make other guns feel inadequate.

...and since there's some pics posted, here's some from my collection for your viewing pleasure. :cool:










 
Bac1023, pardon my ignorance, but what are the make/models of the first 3 pistols, in the final photo of post #53?

Amazing collection!
 
"I agree $10K is steep, but if they’re worth $15-$20K in the next decade, it’s a good value."
And, you are will probably be right about that. I doubt you will lose any money on those Korths.


"Also, let me know when you find a Sphinx AT2000S for $1300. Actually let me know when you find one at all."

I'll let you know AFTER I've purchased it!
 
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