K31 advice

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dougestyle

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I was recently at gun show and saw some nice looking K31's. I wanted to get one but wasn't sure what I should be looking for. Most had matching #'s and a couple had the soldiers' name under the buttplate. They also had walnut stocks- these are aftermarket, right? Is that a good thing?The prices varied from about $280.00 to $350.00. I have read about how accurate these milsurps are and was wanting to get one, but thought I better wait. Are these good prices? And is there anything other than matching #'s, soldiers name, barrels condition, and overall appearance that I need to be watching for? My intended purpose for this rifle will be some(probably very little) shooting, to have a piece of history, and to have a weapon that might go up in value. Thanks in advance.
 
Earlier k31's were made with walnut stocks and they switched to beech later in production. If you have a C&R you should be able to guy a k31 for about $200 online, add shipping to make it $210, maybe a little more for walnut. I think $300+ is far too high for an in person price.
 
If the stocks have been refinished, make sure that the curves, angles, and kartouche of the stock have been preserved.

The original stocks came either in walnut or beech. Walnut does not imply aftermarket.

If you can get them without the ugly CAI importer marks, I consider that a big plus. They electropencil all over the gun. Yuck.
 
There were actually a lot more k-31s made with walnut stocks than beech, but its been used as a marketing angle to charge more for the walnut stocked rifles.
 
You're missing out if you don't plan on shooting it much, the K31 is a real pleasure to shoot :p

I concurr on the pricing, $250 to $300 is much too high a price. If you've got some patience, apply for a C&R FFL03 license ($30) and then make a few purchases of these rifles online.

Btw, Swissrifles.com is another great online resource for these firearms.
 
I recently bought one from J&G. Walnut stock, hand select, for $210. It was a Sarco Import. Sarco has them as well. The rifle has a few dings on the stock, but the metal is in great shape. All parts are numbered and match, including the stock and hand guard. There's no troop tag on mine. This is not important, just a curiosity that most people think is pretty cool. Marketers jumped on that and many charge extra to get a troop tag.

Took the gun to the range for the first time last weekend and put 3 rounds inside 1.5 inches at 100 yards! At 200 yards all 9 shots were on paper, but a bit all over the place. For me, this is fantastic, as i don't claim to be a very good shot. Seeing the target at 200 yards makes me happy.

So i got a beautiful gun that shoots great for $210.

What's not like? Ammo is expensive; the best i found was 50 cent a shot.
 
Best get one now. I bought one in early 2007 and I paid 110. The price has almost doubled since then.Its a nice shooter and has beech stock. The metal is great and the stock has seen better days. The way things are going you won't get one much cheaper. Just my 2 cents. Good luck, Bob
 
K31s

I won the Texas State Rifle Association Vintage Rifle Championship with mine the last two years. Thinking about taking one to Perry this year.

I just scoped the third one I have for next deer season. I like the walnut because....I'm a gun nut myself. It's a great rifle.

Shot a doe with one last year using GP11 Swiss ammo.

Xavier just put up a post about Swiss Army Bikes for sale on the internet. I'm not quite that nutty, but interesting to see.
 
They are great rifles, you will enjoy it.

Do go ahead and bite the financial bullet and buy some GP11 surplus ammo while you can. There will come a time when a few boxes of that will be worth more than the rifles :(
 
If you pick up a Shotgun news' or 'Gun Digest' You will still see the for about 180-200 bucks. If you have afriend with an FFL the you may be able to get it cheaper , plus his rates. Its worth it to ask a local dealer how much extra he/she will charge over cost.Thats how I got mine for 110. Early 07 mags I spoke of showed cost at 99. He was a friend and got a discount. I always paid 5 to 20 over what he/she said cuz they was doing me a favor.Also them mags give you dealers in YOUR area that charge no more than 50 over cost of the add you show them. We 'all gotta make a livin. Good luck, Bob
 
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