Resale value of your firearm?

Y

YahMan

Inactive
Has anyone had bad resale offers to sell your firearm from a department outlet store for example: Gander Mountain?

It seems like to me these department stores mislead so many customers as too the actual resale value of your firearm. They mark up your firearm 30 percent, when they sell it. But when look up the gun resale value in the Blue Book Gun Values publication (a very reputable company publication since 1980) is a lot higher than the department store's mark up value.

In my opinion...they actual rip off the customer trying to sell or trade their firearm. :mad: What do you think?
 
You have to remember that they are going to give you cash right there on the spot. They will put your gun into the case and it may or may not sell quickly. They have overhead. The bigger the store the higher the overhead.

So they will take your LNIB firearm rate it at 90% which is the high end of what they can sell it at. They then take off the % which equals their overhead + their profit margin. 30% to 50% give or take is the final markup. That is what they offer you.

It is almost like they have broken it down to a science. :D

It is more than fair but it is not the best deal for the sell unless they need cash right now. IMHO
 
You almost never get what you should if you sell a gun back to a shop, for a very simple reason. They want to re-sell it, and make a profit. You know what? They have a right to do so.

Sell your gun privately if you want to get the full value.
 
I have never attempted to sell to any private party or retail establishment. I once put up a pistol at a local auction in which no one could find an extractor. I let the defect be known to the auctioneer. It sold for an extremely low price, but I was happy since I did not want a single shot pistol. (basically a parts pistol)

I have read and heard where pawn shops are even more cautious about the price they offer to a seller.
 
The lgs I frequent most often gives you 80-85% of the value of the Blue Book Value for trade (partly depending on your history with the company and the condition of the gun) and that means store credit on any item. This is Kittery Trading Post and they have a huge selection of items so you can take that trade and use it for bikes, clothes, etc. When it comes to cash they give you 60-65%. I can usually sell sell it on consignment elsewhere for more, but the trade is pretty close.
 
Selling guns directly to a shop is no different than selling anything to a pawn shop, for the most part they are going to offer you 50%-60% of the value of your gun. If I cant find anyone through a private sale I will often sell guns on consignment at shops and on average they take about 15%-18% out of the sale price.
 
I rarely sell or trade with a shop, as you rarely get even close to what the gun is worth, and for reasons already listed. 50% on average if youre lucky.

Consignment is really the best way to go, as the shop is now motivated to get as close to what its worth, if not more, as they get a cut. Works out good for both of you. They get more guns to fill their shelves, and at no cost to them, and they get a percentage of the sale. You get a ton of exposure, without having to deal with selling it, and usually make out pretty well money wise, and a lot better than the trade would have brought.
 
I just bought a copy of the 2013 Blue Book. Looking at the listings and valuations for a few of my own firearms, I'd say the book is close on a couple, fairly low on a couple, and WAAAAY high on a couple more.

I was also dismayed to find that they don't even list a couple of Colt 1911 models I have actually held and fondled, and they DO list a couple that I know don't exist.

In short ... don't believe the Blue Book prices. They are -- at best -- a starting point for negotiations. That said, they represent selling prices. Any gun shop that takes in a gun for resale has to buy it low enough to make a profit.
 
Facebook is the answer to all the used gun sellers prayers.

Last 3 or 4 deal I've made buying and selling have been on local BST FB groups.


Of course also shopping it around to your friends works great as long as you don't sell lemons. Lemons are for pawning off at Retailers like Gander.
 
Just like it is with selling anything, a private sale is going to give you higher prices.

Along with the overhead and turn-over rate other people mentioned, there is also the convenience factor as to why they can give you a lower offer on your gun. Sure, you could get $50 more out of it if you waited a month or two until an individual came along and saw your ad, or you can take their cash on the spot.
 
First, the value given by Blue Book or The Standard Catalog will be the RETAIL price, the price a dealer will want to sell it for, not what he will pay for it. He can't buy at that price and stay in business.

Second, for a modern gun, a gun shop is not going to pay you more than what they will pay wholesale from a distributor. Any shop that gives a customer 70 percent of retail is either making bucks on a trade or is going to go out of business pretty quickly.

One possibility, other than a direct sale or trade, is consignment, but not all shops will take consignment sales. Basically, you tell the dealer what you want for the gun (be reasonable) and he agrees to sell it for you and pay you that amount. He gets the difference between what he sells the gun for and what he pays you. The problem is that you don't get paid until the gun sells and, depending on what it is and the price you want, that might be a while.

Jim
 
:) YahMan, have you ever tried to sale your used car to a dealer for what the blue book lists it. They won't even talk to you,
 
Any shop that gives a customer 80+ percent of retail on a trade is either making bucks on the new gun or is going to go out of business pretty quickly.
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Depends on the shop. The shop I frequent comes very close, but has thousands of used guns and more retail business besides guns. Giving you store credit assures you're spending that money back in the store, and if you bought the gun from them in the first place then they're making a profit twice. As for giving you straight cash, yes from a store you won't get a lot.
 
Facebook is the answer to all the used gun sellers prayers.
Click to expand...
Care to elaborate on that a bit?

I wasn't aware FB had a buy/sell section.
------------------------------------------

Ok - never mind....well, unless you have some tips to add.

I went into FB and searched for Ohio sell & that brought up a few groups.
I narrowed it down even more by searching for my local town and a couple near by and sending a request to join the group.

I'm glad to hear you had a positive experience.
Both Ebay and Craig's list have gotten - "stale".
They keep cutting back on what they allow and don't allow, and most of what's left is so grossly over priced it's ridiculous.

I've been looking for a decent place to buy/sell items & if FB pans out, I owe you a beer!
 
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Retail stores aren't ripping anyone off. Not unless they threaten the customer with physical violence unless he/she sells them their gun. With a tiny bit of effort and no more than an hour of research, any competent person can know about what the value of their gun is. If they choose not to go through this minimal effort, they got what they deserved for their gun.
 
I adhere to the gospel of CHEAP SHOOTER , I like to trade at times but rarely sell, then only to friends,, and occasionally get paid. My motto is "buy high and later give away". Sometimes you then find a friend who will stop by to visit and not expect to take something home with him, others are quite obvious in their intentions....but life is fun !
 
A couple of years back I broke the "never sell a gun" rule to liquidate 3 as new pistols that had not been out of the safe for 10 years.

I took them to the biggest gun store in Columbus, OH (usually so busy you take a number and wait your turn) and I was offended when they offered to take them in trade at less than 50% of retail towards a new CZ 75B they had in stock.

When I told them they were far out of line they replied, "Yep, we are, but we have a hundred people selling us guns every day that need to put food on the table, and they will take what we are offering".
 
I've only attempted to trade in guns a few times in my life. In one case, I got a fair deal trading a Marlin 60 with a broken stock in on a Ruger 10-22. I then traded the Ruger back to them, now with a broken extractor, for a Ruger Single-Six. Also a fair deal. In one case, I took three guns to a pawn shop to sell them. All three were decent guns and one of them was a 20ga. blued Ruger Red Label choked Sk/Sk. They offered me $300 for all three. I don't do business with them at all now since I feel like they really tried to cheat me. I took that Red Label to a different shop and they gave me $600 just for it. Since I only had $400 in it, I felt like that was a great deal.
 
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