Ol' .38 is quite interested in joining the fun via a 100 year old Mauser. This particular Mauser has been somewhat modified by an obscure firm named Rigby, but its military roots are clear. It is not, unfortunately, available for the usual $150. Darn.
.38 Special, are you saying you actually have an old military Mauser, albeit not a cheap one? If so, you've taken me halfway to the point I want to make. As I said earlier in the thread, the price point of milsurps do make them attractive to cheapskates and the financially challenged. However, that's just one side of the coin. For those who cross over into collecting milsurps, the price tag goes up considerably.
Like a lot of milsurp guys, I was introduced to them through a cheap Mosin Nagant and a Russian-capture Kar98k Mauser. Since then, though, I've focused on WW2 rifles and have tried to find representative pieces from several different nations that fought in the war. I've found that, even though whatever is on today's surplus market (and therefore relatively plentiful) is cheap enough, things that were imported decades ago or hardly at all can be quite expensive. Also, finding a specimen that is neither abused nor worn out (to use your words) also causes the price tag to escalate. Yet, I try to buy the best milsurps I can locate, precisely because I do not want low quality milsurps.
I guess that's my main point. Though a lot of milsurps are junk, worn-out, abused, Bubba'd, etc., those are not what I want. Some milsurps, if you look for them, are authentic, are in good condition, function fine, and are good representations of a period of history. And despite the fact that these milsurps cost the most, they are the ones I want because they are quality pieces.