Poll: How much is an "Expensive rifle" to you?

How much is an "Expensive rifle" to you?

  • $500

    Votes: 13 6.2%

  • $1000

    Votes: 100 47.4%

  • $2500

    Votes: 78 37.0%

  • $5000

    Votes: 15 7.1%

  • $10,000

    Votes: 5 2.4%
  • Total voters
    211
T

TXAZ

New member
Simple question, if you were buying a rifle, at what price point do you consider it to be an "Expensive rifle".

If one of the selections below doesn't meet your criteria, please list your answer below.

CLARIFICATION: The price is “all in”, rifle, optics et al, aka ‘out the door’ price’.
 
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I've never bought a rifle that retailed for more than $1400. I've wanted rifles that were more expensive, and I could afford a more expensive rifle, but I just haven't gotten around to it yet.

I chose $2500 because right now that's about where I'd draw the line if I was interested in getting a new rifle.
 
I said $2500 as well, because when a production rifle exceeds $1000 I think it's time to look at building one. I have quite a few in the $900-1200 range.
 
I just dropped $2800 on a Pedersoli 1874 Sharps but won't do it on a precision rifle, here is why. A few months ago while getting ready for deer season I decided to check my zero on my 30-06 at 200 yards. This nice gentleman set up next to me and takes out this beautiful rifle with carbon fiber barrel, not a Christiansen. The rifle scope is bigger than my spotting scope. It's a 7mm magnum, he shoots several rounds gets dialed in than shoots an impressive 3 shot group at 200 yards. Though the bullets did not touch they were very close and inside the one inch square. So it shoots sub Moa at 200. I ask him how much was the set up as his company makes them, rifle and scope $9000. I than shoot mine and my 3 shot group is sub Moa but a little larger than his but all shots inside the one inch square at 200 yards. I said my set up is $900 dollars I was using a Tikka T3 lite and Bushnell scope. Some how more money does not make it a better shooter...just expensive.
 
If it's $1,000 or higher, it's expensive. As a state slave, I can't afford to drop more than 2/3rds of my paycheck on a rifle with a family to feed. I get lucky with good deals every so often, but generally I won't buy something over $600 or more unless there is a really good reason.
 
I'm cheap so $1000 is expensive to me.

The most I've ever spent on a rifle was $1600, but that was with scope, case, and other extras.

(Sorry, I can't see the poll using Tapatalk.)
 
The most expensive rifle I would be willing to buy if I didn't have one is a model 70 Winchester. I would like to have an 1886 Winchester Extra-light in 33 WCF, but I can't afford it and can't honestly say that I need it. I don't collect guns; I just have the few that cover the reasonable bases. I voted at $1,000.00, which is well more than I have ever paid for a firearm.
 
Some time back I started looking at the cost of things in a different way; a way I wish I would have started earlier.

Regardless of the item, I look at the cost of it in two ways. First in terms of how long I need to work to pay for it. Second in terms of how well it retains value. Looking at my purchases in that way led me to change my mind about how I spend my money.

For me $1000 is a lot of money, regardless of the item. Some things are inherently costly, but for me that is beside the point. Certain things are a good value for $1000. Other things may not represent a good value at $1000. But both are expensive.

I voted $1000.
 
I said $1000, but for me that does not include the cost of scope and mounts and sling, magazines, etc....

I got a good deal on an AR-10 style .308 ...... but by the time I got done with the above extras, I had dropped 1/2 again what I paid for the gun itself .....
 
That is one hard question to answer. I'd have to say depends on what kind of rifle, My match rimfire Anschutz was north of $2,000.00, while my favorite hunting rifles (mostly bought used) all came in under & 1,000.00, while several of my antique American military riles are more in the $3,000 to $4,000.00 area.
 
Depends on the action. I would say over 1800 is an expensive rifle. Over 1000 is a costly rifle and would take a lot of thinking before I bought one (I haven’t, but want, a Montana Rifle which will run over a grand for sure).

But a nice $1,500 rifle isn’t “expensive” it just isn’t a budget model.
 
I voted for $1000.00 because for me anything over it is very expensive. The only time I spent over that is when I bought my Springfield M1A and SAR-8, those were a special purchase for me.
 
Depends on what it is. For An AR-15, I'd say anything over $1500 without accessories is expensive. For a bolt-action hunting rifle, without optics, I'd say over $1K is expensive. For a shotgun, $700. For a non-AR semi-auto, it varies.

I don't like including optics, because you could have some guy out there with a $2K rifle with a $200 optic, or a $500 rifle with a $3K optic!
 
That describes me.

The rifle I currently spent the most time with cost me $399. The scope and mounts are close to three grand. I want the best optics I can get.
Having both would be nice. However with a somewhat limited budget, my money goes for optics and the rifle is secondary. Many plain jane production rifles shoot very good. Cheap optics don't do it for me.
 
Wow!$ for me $600 is a lot of money and I can get a good rifle for less. Most expensive rifle I ever bough was a mod 70 Feather Weight new, just under $800, Lot of money to me. The only reason the price's are so high is because a whole lot of people are willing to pay it!
 
I had a rifle made from a Remington 700 action in 358 Winchester and "out the door" it cost me $800.
That was an expensive rifle but that was more than 15 years ago. I managed to pick up a matched set of Browning A-Bolts in 257 Roberts with matching serial numbers One a youth model and the other an adult model for $15. I then spent $50 for hard cases and $120 for scopes. $185 for two rifles out the door. Then I spent $700 for an AR15 with two mags and scope. So, the most expensive is still my custom made 358.
 
I went with $2,500.
But, as others have mentioned, it can be a situation-dependent kind of thing.
I'm in to one of my ARs for about $1,800. And although it has a lot of high end parts and shoots as you would expect for an 'expensive' AR, I'd never be able to sell it for more than maybe $800. It was 'expensive' because I wanted a very specific combination of parts. But its market value is much lower than my investment.

My father's .450 Nitro double rifle? Expensive.

A Ruger 77 Mk II? Not expensive. Just not cheap enough for many people to be able to justify, when looking at racks full of modern budget offerings.


Some things are just comparatively expensive, especially when 'custom' comes into play.

I have at least $1,400 into a Marlin 444 that I built on a 336 action. For a run-of-the-mill 336 or standard 444, that's expensive. (And would have been easily $4k+ if I had a 'smith build it.)

Sticking with Marlins, I have a .30-30 336 that is nearing completion. It started as a sub-$200 basket case that was left to rot. Every part of that rifle has been modified, replaced, tuned, polished, or built from scratch -- or will be before it is finished. The sights are one-off parts. The fore-end tip cap was a custom design. The magazine tube is a one-off. The mag tube plug is completely custom. The lever is a one-off. Magazine and barrel length are non-standard, with a custom crown. Etc, etc. Even some of the screws had to be custom made.

Not even counting prototype/proof-of-concept parts or 3D printed test parts, I've already spent well over $2,500, and still have some expenses to go (such as possibly redesigning and remaking the as-yet-untouched custom butt plate). For a .30-30 Marlin 336, that's damned expensive.
...But, as Scorch put it, that's just 'entry level' for most customs. The only reason I can afford this project, amidst everything else I'm working on, is because I'm doing 95% of the work myself, and specifically designing the one-off parts that I can't make myself to be easily machined (reducing costs). If I sent the rifle to a custom shop for the whole job, I imagine it would easily hit $5,000 with refined factory or aftermarket parts in place of some of the one-off parts, and over $10,000 if all of the one-off and custom parts were included.

Certainly an expensive rifle, by most standards. Very expensive for a Marlin .30-30.
 
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