taurus4life
New member
ok been wondering this for years but why is it used guns on such sites as gunbroker, armslist. etc.. and the small private tables at gun shows are always asking more for there used guns when i could by them new cheaper.
used guns more $ than new ones
- Thread starter taurus4life
- Start date
Onward Allusion
New member
#1 Because they can.
#2 Supply and demand in a particular area.
#3 Some guns do appreciate in value if they aren't in current production but that's not what you're talking about...
Going back to "because they can", there are a lot of uninformed consumers out there. I collect 59 series and I have seen some outrageous prices on 5906s - like $600. There was a 5946TSW in the shop and the asking price was $800!!! I'm thinking to myself, yeah nice gun and in good shape...but... Well, it was gone in about a month. There's usually someone willing to pay.
Look at Gander Mountain. They have a Hi Point 40 on their website going for $319 with an el cheapo laser on it. OMG! But someone is going to buy it. Like PT Barnum said...
#2 Supply and demand in a particular area.
#3 Some guns do appreciate in value if they aren't in current production but that's not what you're talking about...
Going back to "because they can", there are a lot of uninformed consumers out there. I collect 59 series and I have seen some outrageous prices on 5906s - like $600. There was a 5946TSW in the shop and the asking price was $800!!! I'm thinking to myself, yeah nice gun and in good shape...but... Well, it was gone in about a month. There's usually someone willing to pay.
Look at Gander Mountain. They have a Hi Point 40 on their website going for $319 with an el cheapo laser on it. OMG! But someone is going to buy it. Like PT Barnum said...
As with all goods and services, vendors look for the uneducated and unknowing. If you knew nothing about gun prices and saw a used gun at a show with, let's say a sign that said, "Gun Show Special Pricing - $999. You might thing it must be a deal and if that gun appeals to you, you buy it. However, once you get home and start to research it, you find that you could have bought a brand new one for only $569. Happens all the time and as a matter of fact saw that very example at a gun show I attended this weekend.
It is imperative in today's economy that when you set out to buy something whether it be a gun, new or used, a car - new or used, etc. you must know what the prices are before you go looking. It is a buyer beware world.
When I am in places around the world and buy things like art work, beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder and before I start to wheel and deal, I determine in my mind what I am willing to pay for that particular piece of art. If I get the shop keeper to meet my price, I am a happy camper. If he refuses to come down to my price, then I have had some fun negotiating and as they say, nothing ventured, nothing gained. I have had my fun and walk away only to find something somewhere else and play the game again.
It is imperative in today's economy that when you set out to buy something whether it be a gun, new or used, a car - new or used, etc. you must know what the prices are before you go looking. It is a buyer beware world.
When I am in places around the world and buy things like art work, beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder and before I start to wheel and deal, I determine in my mind what I am willing to pay for that particular piece of art. If I get the shop keeper to meet my price, I am a happy camper. If he refuses to come down to my price, then I have had some fun negotiating and as they say, nothing ventured, nothing gained. I have had my fun and walk away only to find something somewhere else and play the game again.
"Just think of all of the money that someone else has already invested in running rounds through this beauty!"
"Really you are saving money by buying that used gun... Heck, there is probably a thousand dollars worth of ammo already run through her, and it's only marked it up by $300! What a deal!" (The shoulder devil used by the "ventriloquist" used gun seller.)
And another nod to old P.T. Barnum, ""Never give a sucker an even break."
oneounceload
Moderator
It is only overpriced when you can't afford it, and you're always getting ripped off when no one will give you what you want fore your gun
There is NO such thing as overpriced if someone is willing to pay it, then it is priced fairly - plain and simple
There is NO such thing as overpriced if someone is willing to pay it, then it is priced fairly - plain and simple
Smilin Jack
New member
I don't know where you've been shopping but..... I've gotten some great deals on Gunbroker and like anything else it takes time to look and compare. Gun shows are pretty much "sucker bait" but I still find a deal once and a while. All in all, I can find what I need on the internet, guns included.
Stressfire
New member
Gun broker is a different story, but those
often don't ask for any paperwork (ie bill of sale). Depends on the seller, but have known it to happen.
often don't ask for any paperwork (ie bill of sale). Depends on the seller, but have known it to happen.
Alot of folks approach it like they would a used car, where the asking price is expected to be just a starting point for negotiations. If he asks 600 he really expects to get 550 in order to make a few bucks of the gun he paid 500 wholesale for.
That gun may have a 625 MSRP so he thinks he's being reasonable,
A private seller see's the very high retail prices that some shops are asking and may think that a private sale without tax or background check fees justifies charging as much for a used excellent condition gun as for a new gun.
I tend to agree, especially since many folks consider not having paperwork worth paying extra.
That gun may have a 625 MSRP so he thinks he's being reasonable,
A private seller see's the very high retail prices that some shops are asking and may think that a private sale without tax or background check fees justifies charging as much for a used excellent condition gun as for a new gun.
I tend to agree, especially since many folks consider not having paperwork worth paying extra.
New guns cheaper than used?
You get what you pay for, provided you are dealing with reputable people.
Sure, you can get a new plastic stocked Wallyworld special for less than you can buy a used gun in a lot of gun shops ...... but if you have a problem, Wallyworld can't (and won't!) help you. They will tell you to contact the manufacturer.
Buy a new gun at a reputable gun store, and you will get some customer service to go with it.
You get what you pay for, provided you are dealing with reputable people.
Sure, you can get a new plastic stocked Wallyworld special for less than you can buy a used gun in a lot of gun shops ...... but if you have a problem, Wallyworld can't (and won't!) help you. They will tell you to contact the manufacturer.
Buy a new gun at a reputable gun store, and you will get some customer service to go with it.
I went to Cabelas with my dad to look at a Browning 525 he had sent into their "library". We get there, the gun is nice and all, but they are asking $2600 for it as is, with no extra chokes or even a box. My dad keeps looking at it and thinking about it (he really wants one), so I go out and start looking at the counter at different things. There on the wall at the counter, brand new, with all the extras, was the exact same 525, for $1800!
I go get my dad and the boy whos trying to sell the other one, and go out to the counter. Is that not the same gun? Yes. Is that price right? Yes. Well......? Nothing to say.
They were also selling in the "library", a used Walther P1, with its holster and spare mag, for $575! Out in the "poor peoples" counter, they have a couple more of the same thing for $350. I bought two a couple of months earlier at Gander, for $279 ea, and they were in better shape than any of the ones Cabelas had.
Needless to say, I dont guy guns at Cabelas. Dad on the other hand.... got the "new" 525.
I go get my dad and the boy whos trying to sell the other one, and go out to the counter. Is that not the same gun? Yes. Is that price right? Yes. Well......? Nothing to say.
They were also selling in the "library", a used Walther P1, with its holster and spare mag, for $575! Out in the "poor peoples" counter, they have a couple more of the same thing for $350. I bought two a couple of months earlier at Gander, for $279 ea, and they were in better shape than any of the ones Cabelas had.
Needless to say, I dont guy guns at Cabelas. Dad on the other hand.... got the "new" 525.
Ideal Tool
Moderator
Hello, tarus. Just try to buy an original Colt S.A.A. in the same cond. as a NIB one!
taurus4life
New member
well yeah. i understand paying more for a piece of history. but im not paying more for a used kel-tec.
Some of them don't know any better. I remember seeing a beater grade M44 Mosin Nagant back when they were $70 in great shape. This guy was selling it ( it looked like it was soaked with used motor oil) for $300 since he was convinced it was some kind of rare WWI French Nazi rifle or something absurd like that.
Or, there's the used car technique. Have an absurdly high sticker price for the suckers, and being willing to haggle with a more informed consumer.
Some people are also willing to pay a premium if they can skip paperwork and a background check.
Milsurp also varies a lot in price over time. A model might dry up, prices might go way up, and some time later a whole shipload might come in and destroy the market. Why lose money on a sale if there's the off chance a sucker might bite?
Or, there's the used car technique. Have an absurdly high sticker price for the suckers, and being willing to haggle with a more informed consumer.
Some people are also willing to pay a premium if they can skip paperwork and a background check.
Milsurp also varies a lot in price over time. A model might dry up, prices might go way up, and some time later a whole shipload might come in and destroy the market. Why lose money on a sale if there's the off chance a sucker might bite?
its stupidity. sellers think that because its older, it will automatically be better quality wise then the new stuff. how often do we not have posts and articles all over the place sayin ghow good x companys fitting and finishing was in 1959? as a result anyone with an old beater from that company made in 1959 thinks its worth more then the new stuff.
Some firearms are no longer manufactured new, and the market is still strong (Colt snake guns, H&K P7 series, as examples however, there are lots of others) Have you watched the SALES prices of the Colt Anaconda (especially the 45c versions) since Colt stopped producing them? Up, up and away....
As long as the market is stronger than the supply, the price will rise. If the supply is larger than the market, the price will drop.
I know a guy who's dad owned a Lincoln dealership back in the 50's, and kept one of the dressed out 56 Lincoln Mark II's. Originally it was for sale, but then he decided to hold on to it. Never registered it as being ever sold...(like a true "NIB" gun). Many offers have been made for that car, none accepted, but you know, every year the offers go up...Market is small, but the number of never reistered 56 Mark II's is even smaller. Gun market works the same way.
As long as the market is stronger than the supply, the price will rise. If the supply is larger than the market, the price will drop.
I know a guy who's dad owned a Lincoln dealership back in the 50's, and kept one of the dressed out 56 Lincoln Mark II's. Originally it was for sale, but then he decided to hold on to it. Never registered it as being ever sold...(like a true "NIB" gun). Many offers have been made for that car, none accepted, but you know, every year the offers go up...Market is small, but the number of never reistered 56 Mark II's is even smaller. Gun market works the same way.
"Know what you want"
I have a general idea, but I can't stick to a list. When I drop by a gun store or gun show I look to see if there is an exceptional example of something. It might be a common handgun with a great trigger. It might be a rifle or shotgun. It might be some killer beef jerky.
I have a general idea, but I can't stick to a list. When I drop by a gun store or gun show I look to see if there is an exceptional example of something. It might be a common handgun with a great trigger. It might be a rifle or shotgun. It might be some killer beef jerky.