Selling off my collection - trying to "cut the cord"
- Thread starter wojownik
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About the only hobby I ever got out of was boating. Sold everything I could including a 32' boat, 15' inflatable, 8hp outboard and all the little doodads / accessories that came with them.
Don't miss boating one bit.
Guns, on the other hand.....I can't see myself ever getting tired of this hobby. Been doing it for decades and still love it.
My next great adventure in firearms will be reloading.
Don't miss boating one bit.
Guns, on the other hand.....I can't see myself ever getting tired of this hobby. Been doing it for decades and still love it.
My next great adventure in firearms will be reloading.
ohioshooter
Member
I have thought about thinning the herd. I have two boys that are 10 and 7 and they love to shoot with me and they've already staked claim on the ones they want. (no arguing cause they both chose different types of guns) so I'll only keep them because they want them. I don't get to shoot as much as I use to and even as a 43 yr old I find it hard to find time shooting when my kids play summer sports, so I've got a few that I'll always keep (Coonan .357's in the 4 and 5 inch models) and pretty much everything else I could get rid of and probably not have any regrets. I'd just replace it with another hobby i'm sure.
Legionnaire
Contributing Member
I haven't read the whole thread, but skimmed through. Sounds like a lot of us have downsized at one point or another.
I've never fancied myself a collector, but several times over the years I've found myself running short of space in the (one large) gun safe, usually the result of multiple episodes of "Wow, that's a really good deal on that used firearm." So I go through cycles of downsizing, generally making a few bucks in the process and (you guessed it) reinvesting the proceeds in the same hobby.
Parallel to this, I have narrowed the range of cartridges I shoot in both rifles and handguns. That happened when I got into reloading. I'm down to four primary rifle cartridges and the same number of handgun cartridges.
Right now I'm getting ready for an interstate move, and have started downsizing again. I'm even thinking (haven't decided) of selling my large safe on this end and buying a smaller one at the far end. As I think about my family's future, I expect I will be investing less time in this hobby in favor of more time in other activities. So probably best to cut down my "holdings" to those pieces that I will use regularly--plus a couple held for other reasons (for example, the loaner rifle I have for guys interested in getting into hunting and the youth-sized 20 gauge for introducing kids to clay birds).
In my experience, I have put off downsizing until it was the obvious thing to do, and have never regretted the exercise (although I will admit to minor seller's remorse over a couple that got away); I am at a stage of life that I have the resources to purchase any gun I really need or want, but my needs are simple, and there is nothing I really want that I don't already have. Perhaps my next phase will be a commitment to sell something before buying something.
But I'm still a sucker for a "great deal" that I know I can eventually flip at a profit.
I've never fancied myself a collector, but several times over the years I've found myself running short of space in the (one large) gun safe, usually the result of multiple episodes of "Wow, that's a really good deal on that used firearm." So I go through cycles of downsizing, generally making a few bucks in the process and (you guessed it) reinvesting the proceeds in the same hobby.
Parallel to this, I have narrowed the range of cartridges I shoot in both rifles and handguns. That happened when I got into reloading. I'm down to four primary rifle cartridges and the same number of handgun cartridges.
Right now I'm getting ready for an interstate move, and have started downsizing again. I'm even thinking (haven't decided) of selling my large safe on this end and buying a smaller one at the far end. As I think about my family's future, I expect I will be investing less time in this hobby in favor of more time in other activities. So probably best to cut down my "holdings" to those pieces that I will use regularly--plus a couple held for other reasons (for example, the loaner rifle I have for guys interested in getting into hunting and the youth-sized 20 gauge for introducing kids to clay birds).
In my experience, I have put off downsizing until it was the obvious thing to do, and have never regretted the exercise (although I will admit to minor seller's remorse over a couple that got away); I am at a stage of life that I have the resources to purchase any gun I really need or want, but my needs are simple, and there is nothing I really want that I don't already have. Perhaps my next phase will be a commitment to sell something before buying something.
But I'm still a sucker for a "great deal" that I know I can eventually flip at a profit.
AR-15Nutt
Member
so, where are you going to sell them off ?
i would be interested in knowing what you are going to sell.
any old Winchesters or Colts ?
AR-15Nutt
Member
AR-15Nutt
Member
what the hell was that all about ? stolen gun ?
elaborate please.
I have trimmed down to what I will use. Some of the guns I owned did not make the cut because of ammo/reloading components being in short supply. I never shot them. Too many people knew I had them and not all were honest. I outgrew the "Rambo Fantasies" so prevalent in today's gun culture. Others I got and just didn't like.
Lex Luthier
Member
It was one of the best actions I have ever taken. I would rather have fewer weapons I know completely and can operate flawlessly. There was no practicality for me to have so many choices when I only shot a few of them anyway. It's not about being in "the game". It's about being a reasonable and mature shooter.
Some guys "need" a houseful. Some shooters have more life interests than just guns and shooting. Jussayin.
Some guys "need" a houseful. Some shooters have more life interests than just guns and shooting. Jussayin.
Ash
Member
I once had quite an impressive WWI, WWII, and Finnish collection, plus semi-auto 7.62x54r and handguns. I had a library with 14 foot ceilings and floor to ceiling book shelves on two walls. On the other two walls, I had about 70 rifles of various kinds occupying the top 4 feet. The lower sections I had swords from the late 1700's into the early 1800's (mostly Napoleonic or 1812). In the safe I had an NDM-86, PSL, SVT-40, The Firing Line edition M14, rare CZ pistols, Colt revolvers, Swiss pistols (including a true Swiss-made CZ-75), pristine Webley Mk VI in .455, you name it. In looking across my great great grandfather's Colt pocket pistol, the one he carried at 14 at the Battle of Atlanta, I realized that we own nothing in this world, serving merely as caretakers for the brief time we haunt this planet.
At the same time, I came across an antebellum house on 4 acres of land in the middle of nowhere on a lane-and-a-half road with only a handful of people on the entire road - and all of them farmers, preachers, and one retired FBI agent. I sold my collection at auction, never putting two of the same kind of thing on at the same time. God blessed me and many of my auctions took in twice or thrice what I expected. With the pile of money, I got the house.
It needed work, mostly tearing out sheet rock, replacing some crappy louver windows and ugly steel doors, and painting, but has new wiring and plumbing (and I have learned to love pex). The best part is, I own the house. It is mine, free and clear. It is my weekend and summer project - like Gibb's boat - and I go and swing a hammer. It has blueberries, figs, pears, and a pecan orchard already on site. Water is close to the surface (close enough to have a hand pump if I want one) and the road gets perhaps 20 cars on it the whole day. The nearest Walmart is 30 minutes away. The nearest interstate is 45 minutes. The nearest major city is an hour and a half away.
For two years I have worked on this house, taking my time, doing it right. It is just about ready - all I have to do is paint and finish one room. I spend the night there with the kids regularly. The current job I have is to finish building a barn on the foundation of an old dairy barn.
What I have left in my collection are some real high-quality arms. LRB m14, Czech VZ54/91, Finnish M28/76 with original scope and mounts, an X marked Inland M1 Carbine made by Saginaw Steering gear, plus lower-value but utterly useful arms like a Mini-14, Ruger Police Service Six, etc., and some family pieces like a Mossberg 183 .410 that was my grandfathers, then my dad's, and then mine, or said Colt 1849.
There is not a day that passes with me feeling regret on letting those arms go. I can say I have owned them, shot them, and have knowledge of them. Indeed, in some ways, it was liberating, like Bilbo Baggins letting go of the ring on his own. I still have the swords and a Brown Bess for the library, will probably keep them (particularly the spadroon I used to kill a rat with, the only blade I have drawn blood with!).
I am debt free, have two houses (the city one is about to be for sale - it was the house of Bill Walker, the founder of Bill's Dollar Stores), and land in Mississippi and Florida. I drive a beat-up but low-mileage 1978 Ford F100 at the new place. I write books. I smile a lot.
At the same time, I came across an antebellum house on 4 acres of land in the middle of nowhere on a lane-and-a-half road with only a handful of people on the entire road - and all of them farmers, preachers, and one retired FBI agent. I sold my collection at auction, never putting two of the same kind of thing on at the same time. God blessed me and many of my auctions took in twice or thrice what I expected. With the pile of money, I got the house.
It needed work, mostly tearing out sheet rock, replacing some crappy louver windows and ugly steel doors, and painting, but has new wiring and plumbing (and I have learned to love pex). The best part is, I own the house. It is mine, free and clear. It is my weekend and summer project - like Gibb's boat - and I go and swing a hammer. It has blueberries, figs, pears, and a pecan orchard already on site. Water is close to the surface (close enough to have a hand pump if I want one) and the road gets perhaps 20 cars on it the whole day. The nearest Walmart is 30 minutes away. The nearest interstate is 45 minutes. The nearest major city is an hour and a half away.
For two years I have worked on this house, taking my time, doing it right. It is just about ready - all I have to do is paint and finish one room. I spend the night there with the kids regularly. The current job I have is to finish building a barn on the foundation of an old dairy barn.
What I have left in my collection are some real high-quality arms. LRB m14, Czech VZ54/91, Finnish M28/76 with original scope and mounts, an X marked Inland M1 Carbine made by Saginaw Steering gear, plus lower-value but utterly useful arms like a Mini-14, Ruger Police Service Six, etc., and some family pieces like a Mossberg 183 .410 that was my grandfathers, then my dad's, and then mine, or said Colt 1849.
There is not a day that passes with me feeling regret on letting those arms go. I can say I have owned them, shot them, and have knowledge of them. Indeed, in some ways, it was liberating, like Bilbo Baggins letting go of the ring on his own. I still have the swords and a Brown Bess for the library, will probably keep them (particularly the spadroon I used to kill a rat with, the only blade I have drawn blood with!).
I am debt free, have two houses (the city one is about to be for sale - it was the house of Bill Walker, the founder of Bill's Dollar Stores), and land in Mississippi and Florida. I drive a beat-up but low-mileage 1978 Ford F100 at the new place. I write books. I smile a lot.
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These days we have GPS all you have to do is save the coordinates in a safe place (your mind would be the safest otherwise write it someplace.)
Just a thought
Well, I finally got around to reading thru all 3 pages of this and --
It seems that most of you are just kids, some say in their 60s, and I wonder what you are going to do for a hobby for the next 20+ years if you sell your guns???
I am 79, I've been a gun nut since I was very young. Got my first one, a 22 Remington at 12. By the time I was 17 I had added a Colt Thunderer revolver & 2 shotguns (all gifts from my dad), a couple of P.38s, several K98ks and G 43s, a Thompson and a couple of MP 40s. And Yes, prices were a lot lower in those days, for example the P.38s and K98ks cost about $20 ea as did the first MP 40. At the same time I was working in the hay fields for .50 an hour.
I currently own somewhere over 200 rifles, pistols, shotguns, SMGs, MGs & Mortars. Been a long time since I did a head count as how many doesn't matter - just that I have what I want. If not then I'm still looking for it.
I have my collection and then I also have my shooters and the 2 catagories do not mix!
I will Not sell my collection! Someone gets to do that after they plant me!
A few items will go to friends & relatives and a few to museums. The rest will be sold.
Everything is listed with current values - which I update periodicly - so they will know what the values are.
Sarge
It seems that most of you are just kids, some say in their 60s, and I wonder what you are going to do for a hobby for the next 20+ years if you sell your guns???
I am 79, I've been a gun nut since I was very young. Got my first one, a 22 Remington at 12. By the time I was 17 I had added a Colt Thunderer revolver & 2 shotguns (all gifts from my dad), a couple of P.38s, several K98ks and G 43s, a Thompson and a couple of MP 40s. And Yes, prices were a lot lower in those days, for example the P.38s and K98ks cost about $20 ea as did the first MP 40. At the same time I was working in the hay fields for .50 an hour.
I currently own somewhere over 200 rifles, pistols, shotguns, SMGs, MGs & Mortars. Been a long time since I did a head count as how many doesn't matter - just that I have what I want. If not then I'm still looking for it.
I have my collection and then I also have my shooters and the 2 catagories do not mix!
I will Not sell my collection! Someone gets to do that after they plant me!
A few items will go to friends & relatives and a few to museums. The rest will be sold.
Everything is listed with current values - which I update periodicly - so they will know what the values are.
Sarge
nebraska_farmer
Member
I just sold four of my handguns...
XDM 5.25 9mm - Bought myself a Glock 34 and found I liked it better, so I had no use for the XDM, sold it.
Ruger SP101 - I liked it at first, but as time went on I found myself liking it less and less. All that weight for only 5 rounds, and shooting .357s was not enjoyable. Sold it, bought an old Smith 686 to satisfy my revolver needs and am happy.
Ruger LCR - I liked it, I really did. The trigger was great, fiber optic was nice, but the huge bulge while pocket carrying killed it for me. Sold it for a Ruger LCP, don't regret it. Someone else will enjoy it for sure.
Glock 26 - Glock 19 is my new carry gun, as such I had no real use for the G26 anymore and sold it. I may regret this one.
Now that I've finally landed on a carry system that works for me (G19 for belt, LCP for pocket), I've been stocking my safe with guns that are enjoyable for recreation.
XDM 5.25 9mm - Bought myself a Glock 34 and found I liked it better, so I had no use for the XDM, sold it.
Ruger SP101 - I liked it at first, but as time went on I found myself liking it less and less. All that weight for only 5 rounds, and shooting .357s was not enjoyable. Sold it, bought an old Smith 686 to satisfy my revolver needs and am happy.
Ruger LCR - I liked it, I really did. The trigger was great, fiber optic was nice, but the huge bulge while pocket carrying killed it for me. Sold it for a Ruger LCP, don't regret it. Someone else will enjoy it for sure.
Glock 26 - Glock 19 is my new carry gun, as such I had no real use for the G26 anymore and sold it. I may regret this one.
Now that I've finally landed on a carry system that works for me (G19 for belt, LCP for pocket), I've been stocking my safe with guns that are enjoyable for recreation.
Stephen1956
Member
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2014
- Messages
- 49
Been there myself Malamute divorce will do that had to sell some nice guns about 10 years ago and he cheap ammo you could buy then. Down to a few rifles, shotguns and one handgun. But when things get tight you have to squeeze out some how.
This thread is cathartic in that it allows one to understand how a “hobby” affects one’s psychic. Guns transcend their value as an instrument for sport or pleasure and become memories ingrained in your soul; their sentimental value cannot be purchased.
Happiness is a state of mind. We all search for it but for many it’s fleeting. For some, guns provide true happiness. It adds another dimension to the right to bear arms.
I have found that as I grow older and more secure, money is no longer a motivator. I have more guns than I probably will ever shoot and have no plans to sell any of them. I find it a good dilemma to be in.
Happiness is a state of mind. We all search for it but for many it’s fleeting. For some, guns provide true happiness. It adds another dimension to the right to bear arms.
I have found that as I grow older and more secure, money is no longer a motivator. I have more guns than I probably will ever shoot and have no plans to sell any of them. I find it a good dilemma to be in.
jcwit
member
I've sold 1 rifle in my lifetime & 2 shotguns. I currently own 0 shotguns, and rifles & handguns in the hundreds. I'm 71 almost 72, financially well off, everything's paid for. Very likely my wife will outlive me as she's much younger, she has the info as to who & how to sell the collection as is our daughter who is excutator.
I enjoy my collection just as much as I enjoy my collection of watches.
I enjoy my collection just as much as I enjoy my collection of watches.
I'm thankful my desire to pare down is more about physical space and freeing up some cash, more than anything else. Having started this thread, I'll update y'all with my new strategy to paring down my collection.
My first step to selling off some of the collection, was to buy a brand new Colt Series 70 yesterday. Screaming deal - should get it a little later this week. (How's that for compete lack of self disciplinebut a Series 70 at the same cost as a Series 80? Couldn't pass it up.).
But to offset my renewed focus on 1911s, I'm going to start by getting rid of at least enough items (like those I have not touched for 5+ years) to offset the cost of the latest 1911.
Haha! Great thread, and a lot of very interesting posts. But it turns out you yourself weren't serious at all. Good for you that you aren't in a predicament but instead just musing.
OP
OP
wojownik
Member
- Joined
- May 15, 2009
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The private messages that came my way were rather, uh, interesting too. Especially the ones anticipating my imminent demise, and helpful desire to take all my firearms off my hands to help my survivors. Guys, I'm hopefully 40+ years away from that point!
But it turns out you yourself weren't serious at all. Good for you that you aren't in a predicament but instead just musing.
Au contraire. I've already sold off about half of my collection, and have several on consignment now.
I made a decision that I can live with a couple of higher end examples. I'm just not in a position to be a real collector anymore
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