I enjoyed milsurps beginning back when $15-20 was a bargin price and $75 was for the pristine "collectables". Well before anything was available from behind he Iron Curtain. Of course, if I had been smarter then, I'd be better off now...
The era of the surplus military rifle is about over. The era of the
cheap milsurp is long over. That being said, nice ones are still out there, and they don't have to cost you an arm and a leg, BUT you won't find many of them, if any of them still in the hands of the people who deal in surplus arms.
What dealers have today is the bottom of the barrel stuff that no one would buy before (but at today's high prices), and a handful of really nice prime collector pieces, at prime collector prices.
The Shotgun News might still be a worthwhile place to look, I don't know, I stopped reading it some time ago, a combination of my lack of interest (collection mostly filled) and difficulty finding what I was looking for (80%+ AR/AK stuff in the ads).
What you need to do, is check your local want-ad papers (if you live somewhere personal sales are still allowed). Go to the yard sales, (I know.., 98% will be a waste of your time, but you might find a diamond in all that mud) One friend of mine found a couple rifles at a yard sale, a semi .22 ($100) and an "old army gun" for $40. The old army gun he bought, was a 1903 Springfield, apparently a match gun from the 50s...and no, he wouldn't sell it to me for $40!, some friend
Of course, go to the gun shows, just be prepared for sticker shock.
And, make some friends...make some new "older friends". I recommend Veterans, and vets who were gun collectors are the best!
They can tell you a lot, teach you a lot (some will even be true!!!) and best of all, sometimes they "clean out their closets", either by choice, or sad necessity.
One Vet I met (husband of a co-worker) got stuck in the VA crap, get rid of your guns (bows, swords, etc) or we won't treat you. Sad thing all around. I gave him 25% over market value for the one rifle he had, (a VZ24 in prime condition) because at the time, I could, he needed it more than I did.
I found a pair of milsurps in the Giant Nickle, a Moisin M38 and an SMLE No.4..
$150 for the pair. Older fellow, getting rid of stuff he was never going to use in his retirement...both of them look brand new.
Had a collector buddy clean out his safe a bit (to make room for other stuff), sold me 3 1917 dated guns (Swede Mauser, SMLE, & a Webley Mk VI) and a 1942 SVT 40 Tokarev for $425 cash some years back. About half the market rate at the time...
I think its great your 9 year old wants to shoot and shoot these kinds of guns.
DEFINATELY consider handloading. Not just for the money, but for the ability to actually have ammo, and ammo tailored for what you want.
My 14yr old daughter really enjoyed shooting an 8mm 98k with light cast bullet handloads. She didn't care for the military ammo much, it kicked more than she liked for just fun shooting.
You are looking for decent condition "shooters" right? Would be nice if they are good collector grade guns too, but not at the collector cost, right?
They're still out there, but most of them are off the mass market these days. What you want to find are the good ones bought 20,30, 40+ years ago, and well treated since. Good Luck! They're out there, but its a bit like prospecting, you look at a lot of rocks before you find the nugget.
The Japanese rifles (other than "last ditch) are well made Mauser style, but use proprietary ammo. I've got a couple 7.7mms and remember well the days when if you wanted ammo, you had to make it yourself. Today, you can get new brass, even ammo, sometimes. Not cheap though.
I would recommend staying away from the Italian and French guns, Carcanos, because of the ammo situation, mostly, and French guns because...they are French..
There's another kind of milsurp "value" you can sometimes find, one that "survived Bubba". These run from the guns butchered by "Bubba", but possibly restorable, to actual good condition refinishes done by people with professional (or near) level skill. One of my Arisakas has a nice blue, and nicely finished wood, done by the kid who last owned it, as a project. Full military trim (parts all there, uncut, etc), but refinished, so no histiorical value to a collector.
I agree with the advice to NOT EVER pass up a good deal on one of these guns, Its not like it used to be, and a good one, at a good price is slipping from uncommon to rare as we speak.