Gun shop visit today

[Gil Martin]

I went to a favorite local gun shop today to look around. There were perhaps a half dozen surplus military bolt action rifles sitting in the used gun racks. The best were two Belgian .30-06 Mauser rifles priced at $600 each. Both rifle stocks had been heavily sanded and had acquired varnish finishes. One rifle had a Pachmayr recoil pad which hurt any collector value because the original stock had been shortened. There was a Swedish Model 1896 long rifle also with a sanded stock and had a hang tag price of $500. The remaining military rifles were in terrible condition and very much overpriced. I am glad what I got when I got it at much better prices. All the best...
Gil

[Adam Helmer]

Gil,

I agree with you; most military stuff is over-priced to us old guys who remember British Enfields for $14.88 for Mark IIIs and $25 for 03-A3 Springfields. But, alas those days and the days of 25-cent a gallon gasoline and $1.00 haircuts are as long gone as our youth.

My last sermon addressed this matter. One old guy in the congregation lamented about the problems of growing old. I advised him the ONLY alternative was to die young.

I tell my grandkids about the great Old Days of collecting military surplus arms. I have "American Rifleman" magazines from 1933 to the present. I show them the 1960s Ye Olde Hunter ads inside the back page for their erudition. We did live the "Glory Days" that never needed to end, except for the political correctness of the politicians. Happily, I believe Trump will send the Career Politicians packing....He has upset the "Sameness" of the Washington elite; regardless who won, we got screwed. He is the Andrew Jackson of 1828, in my humble opinion.

Adam

[Rapier]

I learned a long time ago that the only items that have any real collector's value are items in an "as made" condition. If someone fools with a gun, it is then rendered into being just a shooter. Some of these store owners just do not understand that every XYZ is not a collectable XYZ. I recently walked into a store and cast my eyes upon a real badly butchered up Swede 96 that had a price tag of $250 on it. I told the guy behind the counter that it did not even have a safety, at all, (it had, had a Timney trigger with a slide safety in it that someone had removed) the bolt safety was gone and as such the rifle was a dangerous product for them to even put out the door. He picked it up looked at it, then put it back were it came from. I just walked out. There is dumb and then there is dumb and dangerous.
Ed