AR price war at DFW gunshows

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dogtown tom

dogtown tom

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One effect of last winters massive rush to buy guns is the current glut of AR's. Last December & January I did dozens of transfers for AR's. Some people were paying as much as $1700 for the popular Colt 6920 (Law Enforcement Carbine)

At both the Fort Worth & Bigtown gun shows, three dealers were pricing NIB Colt 6920's for $999 or less. Kinda blows for those who thought AR's would be a good investment. They still may, but it ain't gonna be anytime soon.

Price war on Colt 6920 AR's at BigTown & FW gun shows:
http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=8&f=8&t=383784
 
Nobody told one dealer at a gun show here a couple of weeks ago. He had two "pre-ban" Colts. I'm not familiar enough with ARs to tell you much more, but one was $2800 and the other was $4000. He also had a semi-auto Uzi, priced at $2500.

The kid watching the booth was doing a lot of thumb-twiddling...
 
He just has to find one dude walking around who doesn't know about the price war and he is set for the weekend!
 
I wonder why GunBroker.com sellers aren't coming anywhere near that price? I see a couple for $1150 + S&H but many more are still trying to get $1250-$1500 with some actually asking $1700 as BuyItNow!
 
Gunbroker.com is mostly just shysters sucker fishing for uninformed people to take advantage of. Prices there are almost always 20-100% over the going price anywhere else.

Yuma gunshow last weekend had TONS of EBR's starting at 800 and up to 1100 for some models with a bunch of accessories hanging off them. Nobody buying. Same story last two gunshows I attended up in Wyoming. Tables full and groaning with the weight of the AR's on them, nobody buying. Saw quite a few walk in the door, however.
 
A gun store where I recently picked up a 870 at here in South Florida basically had a clearance sale on ARs. They were selling them all $25 over cost. When I went to get the shotgun the gun store's walls were nothing but M-4 configured AR clones.
 
Kinda blows for those who thought AR's would be a good investment.
Click to expand...

Anyone who did that needed to buy 6 months before the election, and sell 1-2 months after.
You don't hold commodities like AR's for long term profit.

You want profit? buy Ruger Old Army's 10 years ago, and sell them today! ;)
 
I remember someone on this board (I don't remember who) predicted quite a while back that the price drop was coming. He also added that many people who bought ARs as investments will see that they are not investments, and will likely sell them. This will add more 'as new' ARs for sale in the mix, and will probably drop the prices even further.

I've found prices on various things get driven up by emotion, later rational thought sets in, and prices normalize again. This was true for the stock market many times, the recent housing market, and the EBR market. You can't make smart money decisions based on emotion.
 
I remember someone on this board (I don't remember who) predicted quite a while back that the price drop was coming. He also added that many people who bought ARs as investments will see that they are not investments, and will likely sell them. This will add more 'as new' ARs for sale in the mix, and will probably drop the prices even further.
Click to expand...

Ray Charles saw that coming, and he's blind and dead.
 
Whoever was "investing" at the 1700 mark is evidently not familiar with that old "buy low, sell high" idea that most people try to apply when investing. No doubt the same guys are out there buying up all the GOLD at 1100/oz. :rolleyes: Got to be more prepared for the end of the world and all...

Now, a 6920 for $999, that is a good "investment". Are any of those guys willing to ship? I think I'd have myself a shiney new safe queen at that price.

By the way, my prediction for the next sellers' market: Summer through October 2012, when a goodly chunk of the mentally challenged may indeed have their panties in a wad over the Mayan calendar, and the end of the world will be upon us yet again.
 
It still cracks me up when people think they can add value to something that is "pre-ban", when the ban was over this made all that nonsense a moot point but some still try to make it as a "something that must add value" type of thing.
 
Clash of the titans....

The great Oboma gun scare meets the great recession...

I wonder how many guys are out there weighing a choice between selling that AR they just had to have (at a huge loss) and not making their mortgage payment.
 
"Pre-ban" still holds extra value to buyers from some states that instituted a permanent ban in '94...

But if you're from a free state they are less valuable as far as I'm concerned. Why would I buy one that is 15 years old when brand new ones are available at normal prices?
 
I've no idea why the 6920 ever had any significant price premium over any other M4-gery, as every one I've ever looked at had loose front handguards that rocked back and forth several degrees. Like AK mag wobble its probably no big deal, but it doesn't exactly suggest "quality" worth the price premium since none of the competition I've looked at did this.


I'm all for lower prices, its inevitable that sometimes after I buy a gun I see it cheaper a few months later, other times can't find it all or its significantly higher when I do.

The best advice I'd seen here was: "put your cash in a pile on the table, if you wish it was a .... instead, buy it and be happy!"


There is a positive feedback in the economy that works against stability, when prices are raising people tend to accelerate purchases as it'll likely cost more if they wait. But on the way down its the reverse, people don't buy until they absolutely gotta have more as it'll likely be cheaper if they wait.

Speculators win or lose on their timing.

Call me a "hoarder" if you want but I stocked up on ammo, primers, powder & components
over two years ago and haven't had to buy much yet, just some replacements for what I've used when I see a "good price" in todays market (pretty rare lately). Having 15,000 rounds of .22LR seemed like a lot at the time, but its the only thing I'm buying now because as the price of ammo jumped I increased my .22 shooting, $16/500 vs. $9/500 is still somewhat painful.

--wally.
 
Last edited:
dogtown tom said:
One effect of last winters massive rush to buy guns is the current glut of AR's. Last December & January I did dozens of transfers for AR's. Some people were paying as much as $1700 for the popular Colt 6920 (Law Enforcement Carbine)

At both the Fort Worth & Bigtown gun shows, three dealers were pricing NIB Colt 6920's for $999 or less. Kinda blows for those who thought AR's would be a good investment. They still may, but it ain't gonna be anytime soon.

Price war on Colt 6920 AR's at BigTown & FW gun shows:
http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=8&f=8&t=383784
Click to expand...
Thanks, Dogtown.
I picked up the 6920 at Bullet Trap. 1095, 4 boxes of PMC and two range passes.
I have to say, this forum is a great resource. Without Dogtown Tom clueing me in I would have missed it.
Thanks.
 
There is a positive feedback in the economy that works against stability, when prices are raising people tend to accelerate purchases as it'll likely cost more if they wait. But on the way down its the reverse, people don't buy until they absolutely gotta have more as it'll likely be cheaper if they wait.
Click to expand...

Well if I recall correctly from my feedback control class in college (I'm still not sure how the heck I passed that one, must have guessed well) this would be an underdamped system, and will quickly go out of control and crash. :rolleyes:

I guess that's why we have boom and bust cycles.... :D

Maybe somebody out there actually understood the class and can model up the AR sales data with some non-linear differential equations.... :barf:
 
My local gun shop never ran out and never raised the price for DPMS over $850. Rock Rivers were maybe $1000.
The paper is full of AR's and guys wanting what they paid for them $1200-$1500.
I gave $650 for my last one.
The good thing is that there are a few more million of them out there in John Q Publics hands and they like how they feel.
 
While I don't follow prices much. I just bought a Bushmaster ar-15 model xm15-e2s. It was new in a sealed box from a gun dealer at the store for $850.00. I don't know if this was a good deal a bad deal. or just a deal. It was just what I wanted and at a price that I was willing to pay. It was at a local retail store locally owned.
I am very happy with the gun and service.
 
So the people who bought up all the AR's and drove the price up with the intent of sticking it to the customer, are now eating their decision? I'm soooooooooooooo sorry.

Remember all the posts about how customers should support their local gun store? Did the local gun store help them out? Nope.
 
I only bought two ARs, well I also bought a Stag lower receiver and Aero Precision lower receiver at a gun store, neither of which for (the receivers) cost me more than $120. I bought a parts kit from Sarco inc. for less than $500 and when all the parts came in I put it together, checked for headspace, put a few mags through it, disassembled it, cleaned it and put it away in wax paper. The one AR I got was a Olympic upper in 5.45x39 with a no thrills lower for $450 essentially(and a Taurus PT92 for $250, the deals went hand in hand). The other was another Olympic Arms for $400.

I only really shoot the 5.45x39, the other one and the parts kit have been marked for the future kids. I love shooting my CETMEs and FAL kits builds more.
 
The only "price war" at gun shows has been to see who can keep their bloated prices the longest. The customer is treated as a prisoner who HAS to make a decision NOW!

Save yourself the hassle and call your local gun stores once a week and ask where ARs start and if any have been lowered.

I find it hard to believe that anyone was selling 6920s for $999. Sorry.

Yes, gunbroker has sheisters who try (emphasis on try) to sell to the ignorant, but gunbroker also has the largest gun marketplace on earth where a few searches will turn up good deals almost every time.
 
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