Shopping for well-priced used guns

Yes, it's trial and error in my experience. There's a nearly infinite supply of fish willing to overpay, so lots of folks are fishing.

I lived in town for 5 years before I discovered the single (of 30+) pawn shops and LGSs worth walking into. None of the rest are worth the price of parking. . .and parking is free.

I've since bought about a gun a year from Dewey's Pawn, and they've bought out a local LGS that was much too proud of their stuff.

You have to put the miles on and keep checking around. The deals don't last long while the crap stays there for months. Some of my best firearms deals have been on gunbroker.com

That used to be a favorite pass time of mine but it's just not worth the effort anymore. Used guns are few and far between in my area. There are two shops that I can find a rare bargain in and I do mean rare. Both owners tell me that people just aren't turning loose of anything anymore. Of the four others close to me one dosen't do anything in used and the other three always want higher than new unless the offering is real junk and then it isn't cheap. I've quit wasting my time in those three places.

I am pretty lucky. Here in Utah we have both utahgunexchange.com and utahguns.com. Just like everywhere else, there are sellers that seem to think that the fact that they owned a gun makes it more valuable than buying new but there are also some great deals out there.

I'm not sure what other people see in their areas, but I have never seen a deal in a pawnshop worth springing for. Either the price is almost what a new firearm would cost or they are trashed.

rpenmanparker said:

I find LGSs to be a bit too proud of their used gun stock. Pawn shops would seem to be a better resource, but there are so many of them in a town like Houston. And some have a handgun focus, but some don’t. How do you find a really good source of well-priced, quality, used handguns? Is it just trial and error?

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Armslist.

Yes, many people put stupid initial prices on there, but you can always make them an offer. Many gun and pawn shops also list their used inventory on Armslist, and will usually ship. As with all things in life, buyer beware and everything is negotiable.

Agree on Armslist. Sometime's it's like dealing with Craigslist people, but typically it's pretty good.

Also in Houston here.
The few Pawns I've visited were 'used at new price or higher'.
Co-worker indicates he gets best deals in Pawn located in a smaller town outside of H, but what you end up with may not be exactly what you had in mind when you went inside. (Best to not be looking for anything specific)
I prefer Gunbroker.

I have found one pawn shop around me that I really like. They list their guns at fair prices, and they've been willing to negotiate with me every time I've been there. I think a lot of people avoid them because they have a self-imposed day wait period on firearm purchases. It sucks, but they are only about 5 minutes from where I work so it's easy to stop in during lunch and pick up my purchases after the waiting period.

Some places around me have used guns priced like 2-5 percent below retail and somehow seem to stay in business. Others have slightly better deals. There’s one shop relatively close by that slashes used gun prices by like 40 percent off retail but they can only do that because they move very large volumes of inventory.

It also depends on rarity. Plastic guns get resold for peanuts because there are so damn many. For some reason revolvers tend to stay pricy. I think you just have to stop by a few shops and hope you run across that days deal. After a few visits you’ll find out which ones get good inventory with good prices, and which ones have boring inventory and high prices. You’ll find a bunch in between the extremes as well.

I've found one pawn shop here that I like, and I've bought maybe six or seven guns from them in the two or so years I've been going in there. I've also had transferred in about as many, as they're inbound fee is the lowest around.

The used case at the "big" LGS here (the one made known for turning down the Orlando nightclub shooter) has a used-gun case that is widely-variable, but has stayed well within reason the last few years. I can't count offhand the number of guns I've bought there, but only one was bought new.

Another LGS I went on once many years back, I walked quickly out of because, like it was put above, it seemed proud of its inventory. However, I gave it another try about a year ago, and found it to be much-adjusted toward reason in its pricing. Even left there with a gun. Went back a few days later considering buying another I'd seen, but it was already sold.

A new pawn-n-gun has opened a lot closer to my house than any of the above. I haven't checked it out yet.

Pawn shops are always a risk. If you want a large selection then go to a gun show. I believe Houston used to be a big one.

Before anyone starts in on how show dealers are crooks. Dealers are all independent operators. Just like pawn shops. Some good, some not.

The advantage of a show is that you don't have to drive across town to check out the next dealer. Just walk a few feet to the next table.

With a gun show the seller does the traveling, not you.

IronHand

You said in your other thread that you are a 9mm guy and right now 9 mm guns are hot. If you were willing to look at .40s you would probably find a lot of used police trade ins at very low prices

In order to really know if a shop is selling decent guns at decent prices, one needs to know guns and their value. One also cannot be afraid to dicker. Many LGS price their guns high with the hopes someone will buy it at the high price, but also to give them wiggle room to come down. I enjoy just looking at guns and seeing what asking prices are, every time I go into a LGS or big box store. Many times I will haggle, just to see how far a shop will, if at all, they will come down. It's a continuous learning curve as to what is readily available and what things are actually going for. No different than buying a used car.

Gunbroker. There are tons of good deals there if you are patient. I bought a Ruger and two Berettas within the past year for around $225 apiece. IIRC they were all police trade-ins.

rpenmanparker said:

I find LGSs to be a bit too proud of their used gun stock. Pawn shops would seem to be a better resource, but there are so many of them in a town like Houston. And some have a handgun focus, but some don’t. How do you find a really good source of well-priced, quality, used handguns? Is it just trial and error?

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The price is what the buyer is willing to pay not the what’s on the tag, as for a source of good used guns, LEO trade in.

rpenmanparker said:

Story of my life. But I don’t see how buying what you don’t want can be considered a good deal.

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Are you buying a gun for a specific purpose or are you just looking for a good deal?

Gun Shows are OK. Been a couple times where I found a few things with a better price than I could find elsewhere, but as a whole, I've walked out empty-handed far, far more times than not.

Probably 'in the hole' all said and done with my purchases after you figure in all the gas and admission fees I've paid. (Oh well, it's something to do/get out of the house,,,)

Gun Shows have 2 'main attractions' for me. First/foremost is seeing/fondling a wide variety of handguns.
2nd,,,, Just a general curiosity of 'unique to me' and historical. Not buying, just looking/learning.

rpenmanparker said:

Um, not exactly. What the buyer is willing to pay AND the seller is willing to accept. You can't make a deal without mutual satisfaction.

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Not really you can just walk, unless it’s something very rare don’t fall into the trap that you have to make a deal.

I’ve found some decent deals in local pawn shops. You have to visit regularly and know your prices. And remember cash is king!

Around here well price quality used guns are a crap shoot. I have a number of places I like to check out regularly and when one appears that I really like it's pay the man and and have a new toy(?).