Gun Prices are Headed in the Right Direction: DOWN

I just surfed through Bud's Gun Shop for the first time in a long time and noticed that prices are indeed falling on many firearms. The Windham Weaponry R16M4FTTCF1 R16 M4 Flattop for $399.00 seems like an especially good deal: https://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog...y+R16M4FTTCF1+R16+M4+Flattop+Semi-Automatic+2

It's nice to see gun makers dropping their prices due to lowered demand after cutting such fat hogs for the past 8+ years. Gun have been a cyclical business since at least the end of WWII -- boom and bust. Now they are also highly political. I wonder how low they might go?

I know many on these forums that said there was no way to buy a good AR for under $1,500.00 That number continued to drop and drop. Then it was $1,000. Then $750.00 Now it's half that I'm sure.

DMK said:

It's definitely a buyers market right now. Prices are actually getting back to where they should be on both guns and ammo. Unless something politically drastic happens I think prices will stabilize right where it is now, with the occasional good sale pricing here and there.

I hope to never again see that nonsense we had in the last eight years. I'm glad I was able to weather that out without needing anything at those stupid prices.

Click to expand...

I agree very much. There is still some fat to be trimmed if politics remain stable, but must of it is already gone. The AR15 has had a remarkable impact on the pricing of long guns. Because it's a great weapon, and because the barriers to producing them are so low (it's a modular, highly knocked-off design), once politically driven demand slackened (which actually drove the building of great capacity), competition has become fierce and prices low.

I think the next big break-through is someone like Hi-Point or a newcomer to firearms production is going to offer something like the G17/G19 for a MSRP of $199.99. It that happens, just watch out as other companies will be forced to react.

Teachu2 said:

I hope we can maintain a long view of our situation. We need existing companies and dealers to survive, not diminish capacity for the future. This pendulum can, and probably will, swing back in the coming decade.

As far as political, California continues to lead the nation down the toilet. If Navin Gruesome is elected, we will sink faster.

Click to expand...

It depends. The fierce competition surrounding the AR-15 platform rifle is sure to keep prices low unless too many of the makers fail. If a real breakaway low price happens on polymer handguns, fierce pressure could really drop prices further.

DMK said:

That's already been done by Smith & Wesson.

You can get an SD9VE or SD40VE for just a little over $200. You can get a 9mm or 40 cal Shield for just a little over $300.

Click to expand...

Really? Bud's is just a bit over $300.00 for the SD9VE: https://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=SD9VE+

browningguy said:

By the time the next election comes around I think quite a large number of manufacturers will be bankrupt, It's hard to see more than 1/2 of them staying in business at the current retail prices.

Click to expand...

Could be. Keep in mind that that all it takes today to become a manufacturer is an FFL license, a connection to the Internet and the ability to assemble and test an AR-15.

I do feel sorry for one local shop here in CA. At least 90% of their business was ARs. They sold complete guns, uppers, lowers, stripped lowers and blank lowers. With a change of the law they are struggling.

hdwhit said:

In active, competitve segments of the market where a significant portion of the demand was driven by fear of gun restrictions/gun bans, like ARs, entry-level bolt actions, small polymer-frame handguns, the surplus of supply and the need by manufacturers and over-stocked distributors to monetize their investment will cause prices to briefly nudge or even go below the direct costs of production until some end up exiting those markets or going out of business entirely.

Click to expand...

We're not seeing anything being sold at a loss right now. Not even close.

hdwhit said:

Of course one thing to watch out for that we saw when the civilian-produced M-1 Carbine market collapsed in the 1980's is that as companies encounter financial difficulties but the need to continue to ship product out the door remains, quality can dramatically decline. That $299 AR from a manufacturer operating under Chapter 11 supervision may not turn out to be much of a bargain.

Click to expand...

People try to make the price/quality connection as a means to justify higher prices (particularly higher prices they personally paid) but I don't think that's realistic in today's gun market. Try to sell garbage ARs for $299 and people will buy quality units for the same price.

There was a huge amount of fat in the gun-making market driven by politically-driven demand. Some (particularly Ruger it seems) charged as much as the market would bear. That's fairly short-sighted in the long run. They took the money, when the money-taking was good but in least my eyes they created a greedy reputation for themselves.

Actually analyze a number of firearms today in search of understanding their pricing. It's certainly not based on the cost to design, manufacture or sell. It is (or was) based on what the market (an artificially constrained market) would bear and that's dramatically changing today.