What guide do folks use to value guns?

[SPU]

Is there a generally accepted guidebook most use to determine relative value of a used gun?

Do you surf around and see what similar firearms have gone for recently?

I've seen several like the Blue Book and even some software to buy. What do you use?

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[74sporty]

After I decide on the guns condition I go gunbroker, then usually knock 20% off that. I also check on this forum for going rate in local market value while considering how fast it sold. Usually cheaper then gunbroker. Then i decide on how much i like it myself. Thats a lot of function and form to consider. I like a well machined all metal pistol with clean lines. Knicks? Scratches? Holster wear? But when i sell, i understand the difference between top notch appraisal and a sale price.

 

[HollisOR]

After I decide on the guns condition I go gunbroker, then usually knock 20% off that. I also check on this forum for going rate in local market value while considering how fast it sold. Usually cheaper then gunbroker. Then i decide on how much i like it myself. Thats a lot of function and form to consider. I like a well machined all metal pistol with clean lines. Knicks? Scratches? Holster wear? But when i sell, i understand the difference between top notch appraisal and a sale price.

That is pretty much what I do.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Amazon.com: Blue Book of Gun Values (9781886768871): S. P. Fjestad: Books

 

[deadeye]

Blue book is a good guide but a little high for this area so I usually use a lower grade than it actually is and also look to see what they are selling for on Gun Broker and not what is being asked. There are several sites to use as gauges for actual selling prices.

Free Gun Classifieds - Used Guns - OutdoorsTrader.com

Guns - Online Gun Auction - Guns for Sale at GunBroker.com

Guns for Sale, Gun Classifieds, Gun Auctions, Shop for Guns at GunsAmerica

http://www.e-gun.net/classifieds.asp

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Sure, Blue Book is just a starting point. As always, you get (or pay) what the market will bear

 

[SPU]

Thanks peeps, I appreciate your answering.

Deadeye, thanks for giving me more sites to check for used firearms..... I think. lol

 

[elsullo]

I like to search AuctionArms.com because it is free and does not need a registration. I run a search on the closed auctions of particular guns over the last six months to see what price bid they actually sold for. Most guns are priced too high and never even get a bid, then they just get listed over and over at the same unreasonable price, because it is free.......................elsullo

 

[deadeye]

Thanks peeps, I appreciate your answering.

Deadeye, thanks for giving me more sites to check for used firearms..... I think. lol

No problem,glad to help out another addict... I mean gun nut.... I mean collector.

 

[pokerace]

I use Gun Broker also.However I go into the completed auctions and get the actual selling price.(you have to be a member to do this)

 

[sadiesassy]

Same as Poker face
Go to Gunbroker
Sign in
Go into the advance Search feature
Only look at completed auctions - see which ones actually sold and get an idea of the age and quality of the gun.
Lots of auctions complete without being sold - The item is worth what someone is willing to pay for it.
If your gun is not inthat section

Try the firearms blue book - Go to the book store and look it up.

Last you can get an appraisal - there are some online places give appraisals ofr insurance purposes.

 

[madcratebuilder]

I use Gun Broker also.However I go into the completed auctions and get the actual selling price.(you have to be a member to do this)

+1
Tracking the "completed" auctions on GB gives you a good idea on prices, just looking at listing gets you nowhere. The Blue Book is just a guide and does not reflect actual selling prices, some are listed high and some low. Prices can vary region to region.

 

[RallySoob]

same here, cruise all the classifieds and gunbroker to get an idea what it has sold for in used condition vs new condition. When I sell my guns I usually make them about %10-20 cheaper than the going rate in hopes for a quick sale because I am inpatient. When I buy guns I usually offer the same. I never buy a gun at someones full asking price unless I find it to be fair which is an oddity lately

 

[Wenis]

If I have my heart set on a specific gun, I'll look all over the internet to get a fair assessment of what a new one will cost, as opposed to blue books. Some guns can swing wildly in price depending on legislation fears, such as the price raping on Saiga-12s right now.

 

[Misterbill]

Gun broker. Look at the highs and lows and also check forums like this one to see what they are going for locally. There are a lot of ripoffs on GB but there are also some great deals. True value usually falls somewhere in between. -I don't use the bluee book anymore because it's out of date the second it hits the shelves. Gun prices are highly elastic.

 

[lonegunman]

If you go to a gun show, it appears to work like this. Look for highest price ever asked on Gunbroker, add 20%, make up story about grandpa and a war.

If you go to a gun shop, most seem to work like this. Buy gun for wholesale, offer it for retail plus 10-15%, let gun sit on shelf for months or until tax time, then sell for 5% over wholesale.

We do have a local store than specializes in "gunbroker" sales. This is a great scam. First they have the gun on the shelf with a pricetag and they refuse to sell it to you. Like a magic lottery, when you want to see it, they flip the tag over and it says "gunbroker". If you want to buy the gun, go to Gunbroker and try like heck to buy it. The employees all have several accounts on Gunbroker and shill bid the gun up every time you bid. They then sit around the store laughing it up as they "outbid" you on the gun. Eventually, if you really want the gun, you have to email the idiot and offer a price or forget it option. They had a few guns on there for years before they finally relented and let them go away.

 

[Misterbill]

If you go to a gun show, it appears to work like this. Look for highest price ever asked on Gunbroker, add 20%, make up story about grandpa and a war.

If you go to a gun shop, most seem to work like this. Buy gun for wholesale, offer it for retail plus 10-15%, let gun sit on shelf for months or until tax time, then sell for 5% over wholesale.

We do have a local store than specializes in "gunbroker" sales. This is a great scam. First they have the gun on the shelf with a pricetag and they refuse to sell it to you. Like a magic lottery, when you want to see it, they flip the tag over and it says "gunbroker". If you want to buy the gun, go to Gunbroker and try like heck to buy it. The employees all have several accounts on Gunbroker and shill bid the gun up every time you bid. They then sit around the store laughing it up as they "outbid" you on the gun. Eventually, if you really want the gun, you have to email the idiot and offer a price or forget it option. They had a few guns on there for years before they finally relented and let them go away.

Wow, and people still shop there? I wouldn't nor would anyone I knew.

 

[lonegunman]

I gave up on that store a little over a year ago. They refused to sell a gun with a price tag. Once I decided to buy it, they refused to sell it and demanded I go to "Gunbroker" and try and buy it. It sat there for months and eventually sold for 25 dollars less than the original price I tried to buy it for, go figure?

We have another local store going the same direction, same type of store, the owner is cheap, usually broke and always looking to cheat a customer. He is going to run out of a warehouse or storage building, do gun shows and "gunbroker sales".

The Saturday loop of gunstores is getting thinner every year.

 

[madcratebuilder]

If you go to a gun show, it appears to work like this. Look for highest price ever asked on Gunbroker, add 20%, make up story about grandpa and a war.

Ain't that the truth! I just laugh and walk away.