Unreasonable expectations?

A

Ale GOlem

New member
I've been doing some research on buying a Colt Python and from what I can tell they have about doubled in price over the last half decade. Is it unreasonable to look for one under $1,100? If not would I be more likely to find a deal at a shop or show? Online it seems to be somewhere between $1,200 and $3,000 but I'm wondering if the majority of online sellers are simply setting their prices in accordance with what they're seeing online.
 
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There are Pythons for less. Usually with holster wear and no box often without the factory grips. I am assuming by your post count and previous posts your new to firearms in general.

So may I ask why do you want a Python? What do you plan to do with it? They are not an ideal gun for beginners IMHO a new/used S&W or GP100 would be much more useful and far less painful should you make an error or encounter a breakage. I am not trying to discourage you of your purchase. I am simply trying to make you aware.

Another new member has a similar thread going 'Python advice pls'

Firstly you need to know how Colt actions work they differ from current production guns greatly, things that are acceptable in S&W or Ruger revolvers can indicate damage or wear in a Colt that if not fixed can either 1. ruin the gun or 2. make it so cost prohibitive to repair it wouldn't be worth it. This is touched on in the Revolver Checkout sticky. Also Colt replacement parts are scarce or expensive, and finding a good smith to fit those parts is even more so. Most* who have Pythons rarely shoot them or don't at all.


There are several users that a vastly more knowledgeable about Colt's then you or I will ever be, floating around on the forums. The two I have spoken to for help are GUNKWAZY and Dfariswheel. They are both great guys and you can learn alot through a few simple PM's.
 
Seeing as this model is no longer made and combined with the Python's legenardy trigger action, it has become a collectable. My LGS has one that has been on consignment for about a year, priced for $1700. No one will touch it for that price, but it is not unreasonable. Remember, you are looking for a pistol that went out of production, therefore there is an absolute number made, no new ones will be made. The result, seller's market. The seller can hold on to it and wait for someone to pay their price. And someone will one day. Good luck with your hunt, it will take time and lots of web hunting to find one for what you are willing to pay for it. But it can be done.
 
Venom1956 said:
So may I ask why do you want a Python? What do you plan to do with it?
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I've wanted one ever since I was a little kid and I'm finally in a financial position to acquire one. Once I seriously started looking into getting a pistol permit I realized that it might be better to buy sooner than later to avoid another massive price jump. If I buy one it'll definitely be a shooter and, that being the case, I don't mind one in slightly rougher shape.
 
A buddy of mine just bought a blued one at a local pawn shop for $750.00 But it did have holster wear and did not the original grips. I would rate the gun at about 75% condition wise. So yes they can be found for under $1,100.00
 
How does that go about "you push in here and it comes out there."

For a shooter, holster wear or even minor scratches and the like won't matter one bit. But if you are looking for a Python as an investment, the lower the price you pay now the lower the price you will get when you sell at least in constant dollars.

Jim
 
I think a shooter grade python can be had for your price. If you travel or look around out here in the west I see shooter pythons that are not beat for that if less. NY and NJ may be another story as when I am back there and shop prices always seem really hi or low relative to what I am used to. I am guessing the less free market there creates weird prices / supply / demand.

Frakly a well purchased shooter grade python may be a better investment now than a pristine example because there is a price cycle to just about everything and I think pythons are at about the top of theirs right now. Just one guys opinion, but demand often drops once all the guys who wanted something when they were young either have it of are no longer in a position to care.

Frankly I see no good deals on used / collector guns on the Internet.

Were I You I would hunt deals in person.
 
One of the hardest things about any out of production gun i suppose is how the current owners 'know' :rolleyes: how collectible they are... while they certainly are collectible to some degree they aren't nearly worth what the current owner believes it is. Just because its a Python doesn't mean its worth 1000+ dollars and thats what many don't understand.

I saw a guy with a beautiful 6" blued Python and a shop offered him 500 in trade. he walked away furious, later I asked him to see it and how much he was looking for. he said 'they are going for 1800 on gunbroker' his gun looked to be in perfect condition except for some wear on the muzzle and cylinder then on the other side there was a HUGE scratch running down the ENTIRE gun which I can only assume was from a snap or rivet on a holster. But because it was HIS python it was obviously worth 1800... :rolleyes:

Honestly your best bet is to find on on GB or at a show that is a bit worn and shoot it. You'll probably over pay a little but such is life.
 
I would keep my eyes open for one in about 95% condition or a little less which is pretty much sub-collector condition as there are so many NIB unfired Pythons around. Yes, I think you can find one for under $1200 in that condition. The short barreled (<4") ones however tend to be more expensive.

Keep an eye open on the Colt Forum as the owners there tend to be more reasonable on attaching a value.
 
keep looking i picked mine up new in box for 1499 last year. its such a nice shooting gun but took me 3 years of looking to find the one i wanted to call mine.
 
Is it unreasonable to look for one under $1,100?
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No. You're probably going to have to look hard; you may have to look a long time, or you may find it tomorrow morning. Look closely at every one you see so you can start to get a feel for the breed. Persist, persist, persist.

Best of success to you, eh?
 
When I first started shooting handguns, the LGS had one for $1K or so ..... that was when we all thought $1.50 gas was outrageous..... and before the .gov was printing dollars like it was cheap wallpaper ......

Keep the cash on hand and you never know.....money talk's bull**** walk's.
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Cash is worth less and less every day, as there is more and more of it every day. There are not more Pythons every day, or any day. Basic economics dictate that the value of a Python will continue to go up, if that value is calculated in dollars.

So may I ask why do you want a Python?
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Captain Ovious: "Because it's a Python."

I still want one, though as Venom pointed out, a gun that has repair parts readily available would be more practical for me ..... not to mention that the $1K price difference between a used Python and a new Ruger GP100 would feed the ruger for years .......

I have a Colt Revolver, and they are nice...... just not that nice.
 
They were the best revolvers ever made, they are no longer being made, and they are Colts. They will appreciate.

They are not as finicky as a luger contrary to the impression you might have after reading some of these posts. They are revolvers for crying out loud.

I bought a 6" blue in 1979 and I bought a 4" e nickel yesterday. No regrets.

Dumbass grandson threw out the box that would have netted the estate another $800.
 
I just picked up an 8" version in a private sale for $1300. There are a few spots of corrosion in the bluing, making this a shooter (I'm not into safe queens). If the gun had not been stored in one of those zippered rug things (that came with the gun) which likely caused it to corrode, it would have been worth more.:(
 
You set an upper limit of $1,100 that you would spend. I see Pythons on Gunbroker selling for up to $2,000 or so.

This is where you need to decide how important it is for you to own a Python. If you really want one, my experience is that it would be better to save up more money and pay more than you expect to get what you really want. You can skimp on other things and make other sacrifices to recoup the difference.

After a while it won't matter that you spent $900 more to get something that you really wanted. It took me a while to develop this mindset but now I focus on having the few things that bring me joy rather than a lot of low priced stuff to clutter up my house. There is a practical limit to this way of thinking because you only have so much money to spend. Just be sure that you really want a Python and you aren't just temporarily fascinated with it and buy locally if possible to be sure of what you are getting.

If you want a shooter, you will probably eventually find one in your price range. If you want an unfired safe queen, it will be over $2,000. Some people could be sending these guns back to Colt for refinishing and passing them off as original so take a knowledgeable person along if possible.
 
My theory is that you just have to keep looking and be ready when opportunity stares you in the face.

I bought a blued 4" that was pretty pristine - no wear to finish, grips, etc. - a year ago. I wanted a "shooter". Mine had no box or paperwork but I was thrilled to get it for $800 and have since then, turned down two offers for it that were each over $1,000. A month after I bought mine, I ran across a blued 6" in a LGS that they had just gotten in and they had it tagged at $800.00. Again, no paperwork or box but was equally as nice as the 4" I had purchased. Like an idiot, I hesitated and decided to think about it overnight. The next day I went back and when the clerk I knew saw me coming, he gave me one of those "you should have bought it yesterday" looks. The clerk told me that right after I had left the day before, another customer that he had seen watching me look the Python over, stepped over and asked to see it. He snatched it up right away.

In my mind, when I bought my Python, I didn't just "buy a gun", I made an investment. I've had it to the range twice since I bought it and it is a beautiful piece of machinery - an excellent shooter and very accrue. But I have to tell you, I'm a more "vintage" type person and I enjoy shooting my 1910 Army Special more - just my preference.

Be patient and prepared and you'll run across one. Good luck!
 
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