Investment firearms?

[Trey Veston]

What available firearms would you buy that will not decrease in value, but actually increase in value over the years?

I inherited a couple dozen firearms a couple of years ago when my father passed. He had great taste and was a connoisseur of fine rifles and shotguns. He loved pre-'64 Model 70 Winchester actions and his nearby friend, Al Biesen, built a number of rifles for him over the decades. I have two Al Biesen rifles and one was built for $464 in 1974. Today, it is worth around $10k. His Jack O'Connor Browning Superposed shotgun cost him around $500 in 1974, but today is worth around $30k. Same with a Winchester Model 21 shotgun Skeet model in 16ga. No idea what he paid for it, but I am selling it for $16k.

The only guns that I have personally bought that have increased in value were a Glock G24c that I paid around $500 for in 1999 and is now worth around $800. The other was a Ruger M77 All-Weather Rifle in .30-06 that cost me about $400 in 1999 and I sold it last year for $750. Oh, and a used JM Marlin 1894 in .357 Mag bought used in 2007 for $425 and sold in 2012 for $1100.

I rarely sell firearms and really don't consider them an investment, as I think the stock market will easily outperform 99% of firearms in value increases over the years.

But, I am considering a mint used Les Baer 1911 Concept III in .45 ACP for $1700. Not very rare, and not a premium model. In fact, at a current new price of $2500, it is one of the cheapest Les Baer pistols you can buy. But what will it be worth in a few years? I have never considered a firearm's resale value when considering purchasing it. I assumed that I would lose money on it if I didn't like it and decided to sell it later. But when considering shelling out $1700 for a range toy, the value of said range toy in a few years is a valid concern.

Curious as to what "investment" firearms other folks here have purchased and how it turned out. And what firearms folks here think might actually increase in value in the next 20 years.

 

[herrwalther]

Right off the top of my head...M1 Garand. Thinking of buying one myself but not quiet for investment reasons.

 

[Nasty Canasta]

The future of gun collecting values looks a bit uncertain to me as the folks that have the money & appreciate the historical significance of them is rapidly dwindling. I buy what I like and many of my acquisitions have maintained or gone up in value & while that’s nice there are better & more liquid investments available. Who knows what the future of selling collectable firearms holds?

 

[Armored farmer]

Most guns will hold their value over time, as long as you take care of them.
I think old Colts like SAA, Snake guns, Mustangs....are worth more than money.
Winchester 42, 21, 70, 94, even 12s would be good.
M1, M1 carbine. ....anything Wartime military marked.

 

[lightman]

Your Dad did indeed have good taste! I've enjoyed seeing the pictures that you have posted.

Which firearms to buy for investments is anybodies guess. Fads and politics can change very quickly. I think you are right about the stockmarket out preforming the gun market.

 

[MarshallDodge]

Firearms aren't great investments. Take the Ruger in the original post "The other was a Ruger M77 All-Weather Rifle in .30-06 that cost me about $400 in 1999 and I sold it last year for $750"

Yes, it appreciated with inflation, but if you put $400 into the S&P500 in 1999, it would be worth $2600 today.

If I remember correctly, a new Les Baer Premier II sold for around $1,700 10-15 years ago.

That said, you can't have nearly as much fun with your money sitting in the market as you can shooting it on the weekends

Then there is supply and demand. Who knew that Winchester and Marlin would be out of the lever action market for a few years, a pandemic and TV show happened, and the prices skyrocketed. Sometimes you can get lucky.

 

[AlexanderA]

It seems that you can't go wrong, financially, if you buy a gun (almost any gun) and hold it for a few years.

That said, if you develop a taste for the aesthetics and historical significance of certain guns, you'll do even better. This goes hand in hand with having a theme for your collection. If you have a theme (such as U.S. military guns, or Colts, or Winchesters), you'll become expert in that field, and be able to identify the "keys" (rarities) in the series that will appreciate the fastest of all.

And that's assuming that you don't "win the lottery" and have a windfall resulting from an unforeseen event such as the Hughes Amendment.

 

[roval]

if LB closes shop then maybe it will increase in value relative to inflation but if it is a common model such as premier 2 ( not sure how common the concept is) i doubt it will increase much. maybe their less common models such as heavyweight monolith, their long slide, wadcutter guns etc...

buy it if you think it is a good value for you but as you mentioned there are far better investments. you are buying it to shoot it right? so it should depreciate more. the best you probably could hope for is you buy it now, use it for several years and then sell it for the equivalent of $1200 in inflation adjusted dollars. for me that is a good value to use something for several yrs for $500 or so.

 

[jmorris]

What available firearms would you buy that will not decrease in value, but actually increase in value over the years?

When I have wanted to invest money to make money, I don't pick firearms.

That said, almost all of them have gone up in value. My 6" stainless Python was $565. The single six Ruger was $139 with two cylinders. MAC 10's on a form 4 were $150, this one is over $9k now with 4 days left.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1096317491

A stroke of a pen could eliminate the value instantly though. But wouldn't it be great to Form 1 any machinegun you wanted...

I am not sure if any of them go down in price. I have buddy that keeps a Jennings pistol, I guess for something to cuss at but I bet even it would sell for more that it cost new.

What current gun prices are lower now than they used to be? AR's have had much higher prices than many command today.

I remember regular ones going for over $1K in the 1990's, when the mini 14 was a cheap alternative to one.



If you stacked them like cordwood back then, waiting to cash in on a ban that grandfathered them, you are still waiting...

 

[Mark_Mark]

Buy Guns You want and Enjoy them! it pays dividends in Joy & Stress relievers

Investment… But Costco 1 once Gold bars. Guarantee real. buyers are easy to find and usually take 1-3% of market value

 

[Jimfern]

look at the values of stamp collections and coin collections. I have seen family members can't even give away the stamps and only the rarer coins are holding value beyond the melt value. I would say to plan for your guns to probably hold their value with a few exceptions. The other thing I've seen is when someone dies, their family members are very overwhelmed and aren't necessarily worried about getting top dollar for stuff, they just want it gone and don't have the time or interest in going beyond the minimum. You could probably do some planning and discussion with family members to avoid that, maybe.

I have a Baer Thunder Ranch Special but it ain't special to anyone else in my family so it will probably be sold on consignment when I'm gone, hopefully with the box/paperwork, but who knows what my remaining family will actually do?

Just enjoy the guns and family while you're still here.

was on Benchmade reddit, saw this post wrt "finding a knife" and how it was found and it's just another example of someone's surviving family and their concern for the stuff of the poor sob who died (again the family already have a lot to deal with is my point so I don't blame them):

"The owner of this is unfortunately passed away. He was a very avid fisherman and let’s just say he collected way too many things. When he passed he left his home full of things to his neighbors. They were going to dump it all in a dumpster and get rid of it. Luckily a customer of mine was at the house looking to buy it and told me about all of the fishing gear. I own a tackle shop and the owners said we could take everything, so we took all the fishing stuff. The people that have the house now were thankful and told me to take everything I wanted, including this knife, so it’s now in safe hands!"

 

[reddog81]

It's impossible to guess. Generally the good investments are small production items that aren't very popular during their time and then become popular decades later. Anyone buying Pythons as an investment in the 90's would have been considered a fool. Without knowing what is going to be popular decades from now it's hard to know what to invest in.

Gun shops couldn't give away Colt Pythons in the 90's and 00's and then the Walking Dead came out, demand spiked and prices doubled in a year. 20 years ago milsurp stuff was dirt cheap and everywhere. Once supply dried up prices doubled.

 

[Mark_Mark]

Gun that don’t really go up in value are commemoratives and “1 of 500’s” and these should be shot & showed off till the value is GONE

like this Colt that just came in will be wearing & shooting the snot out of it. Pure Consumption gun


If gun investment is your goal. Buy Used guns at CHEAP CHEAP prices and hold on to them for a few years.

like this Sig 320 for $350, only factory fired


or this Marlin 30-30 for $400 JM stamped, and safe queen

 

[theotherwaldo]

I bought examples of most of the military shoulder arms of the World Wars back when they were around $100.00 or less each.
Some, like the '03s, 03a3s, Carcanos, Arisakas, Mausers, Mosins, Lee Enfields and Lee Metfords, I bought in multiples.
I bought them for fun, but I doubt that they are going down in value.
Even the Winchester Garand that I bought here from a forum member has more than doubled in resale value - that is, if I sold guns that I'm still shooting...

 

[shafter]

In order for something to be a good investment it needs to more than just go up in price, it has to increase more than the value of the dollar decreases.

 

[BreechFace]

-WWI/WWII firearms probably the easiest bet is any wartime serialed M1 Garand or Carbine that is $1k-1.5k right now in good condition as these are still fairly affordable for what they are and the historical nature.
-Older Marlins, Winchesters and probably even Remington's now. Caveat these would need to be blued and steel to get the greatest appreciation as those are dying traits of firearms. Extra value with a glossy/blued scope to match.
Expensive short run or imported pistols
-Older revolvers of US Make, especially rich blued ones.
-Russian, Bulgarian, Romanian, Polish, Chinese, Finnish, etc AK's.
-SKS's

Pretty much anything that has scarcity currently on it's side or we are seeing the beginnings of the end of their commonplace.

I don't buy firearms for investment (that doesn't turn out so well in light of other investments), but rather buy firearms of historical value that I would like to pass down generationally. It just so happens that many of those firearms do pretty good over the years with their value.

 

[Mars5l]

Full autos

 

[mm93]

Many years ago I decided to sell off most of my firearms that were not antique, and switch my collecting to strictly pre 1899 antique guns. My thinking is that antique guns are not restricted by ATF rules, so they are treated like muzzleloaders or air rifles for sales in almost all states. I can freely buy them anywhere, and sell them almost anywhere with nothing more than a proof of being 18 or older.
I was already collecting and shooting mostly pre 1899 cartridge rifles, and pistols, so letting most of the 1899 and newer guns go wasn't tough to do. I do still have some modern firearms for shooting, and collecting, but they make up less than 2% of my firearms now. I think antique firearms are always going up in value, and easier to sell should you ever want to move your collection on.

 

[Mark_Mark]

I bought examples of most of the military shoulder arms of the World Wars back when they were around $100.00 or less each.
Some, like the '03s, 03a3s, Carcanos, Arisakas, Mausers, Mosins, Lee Enfields and Lee Metfords, I bought in multiples.
I bought them for fun, but I doubt that they are going down in value.
Even the Remington Garand that I bought here from a forum member has more than doubled in resale value - that is, if I sold guns that I'm still shooting...

selling them is another stage of investment. I can not make a profit from my buys here, because used guns are sold cheap here and abundant. But If I moved to Arkansas, I could at lease break even.

 

[Mark_Mark]

Full autos

YEP!

 

[Riomouse911]

Like many here, I just buy them to shoot them. None that I own are true collectors guns, so they’ll probably never sell for top dollar when I finally pass on.

Stay safe.

 

[tarosean]

The only guns that I have personally bought that have increased in value were a Glock G24c that I paid around $500 for in 1999 and is now worth around $800.

Your 800 dollar Glock is actually losing money when you account for inflation.

The LB won’t make money either. I’ve owned and sold a number of them at a loss.

 

[tarosean]

In order for something to be a good investment it needs to more than just go up in price, it has to increase more than the value of the dollar decreases.

So many gun owners seem oblivious to inflation.

 

[Madcap_Magician]

So many gun owners seem oblivious to inflation.

It's kind of mind boggling that anyone who has paid for anything since 2020 could be oblivious to inflation, but still...

 

[Riomouse911]

It's kind of mind boggling that anyone who has paid for anything since 2020 could be oblivious to inflation, but still...

Or bought a house before 2005.

Folks like to live in the now.

Stay safe.