Rifles I wish I'd bought when I had the chance...

[Dr T]

Two come immediately to mind.

Back when I was learning to fly, my instructor and I would occasionally take the Citabria from Denver over to Sidney, NE, to visit the Cabela's home store and grab lunch. The ostensible reason for the trip was to practice navigation and get used to turbulence. On one of these forays, I was wandering through the used gun rack and came across a full stock Mannlicher Schoenauer with double-set triggers in 30-06. And the price wasn't that bad. The reason I didn't grab it was that the stock was a bit too blonde and I had (and still have) a Ruger No. 1 International in 30-06 that is one of my favorites. I started kicking myself two days later, called Cabelas, and it was GONE...

The second rifle that comes immediately to mind: A few years back, Ruger made a run of No. 1A light sporters in .303 British. While the International is my favorite, the 1A is a close second in balance and point-ablity. And I like the idea of a classic rimmed round in a single shot. But I never managed to talk my self into it before the run was sold out. Acccch.

There are a few others, but these two hurt the worst.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

Rashid.

They were imported just before the internet was a thing, so nobody realized just how rare they were until a couple years later and prices went through the roof.

 

[adcoch1]

The one that gets me was the very first cz 527 I saw in person. Beautiful wood, perfect bluing, and chambered in 221 fireball. $500. I didn't grab it cause I was short a bit, but I've wanted that rifle ever since. They are completely discontinued now and selling for 3-4 times that much now when they pop up used.
I also missed out on a mannlicher stocked cz550 before they were all gone.

 

[dcloco]

As a young lad....as in 6/7 years old, I DO remember walking thru Coast to Coast, Gambles, & Hardware Hank. I SAW the wood barrels full of those stinky (cosmoline) 03 A3's, Mauser 98's, and many others that I did not know about.

I had enough birthday money to buy a couple of these, but, mom said no. ARGH!

 

[gotboostvr]

I also missed out on a mannlicher stocked cz550 before they were all gone.

Oh yeah, wish I would have snagged one of the 550FS's when they could be had.

Spotted a nice looking Rem700 CDL in 308, blued in a very pretty blonde stock, *with* iron sights intact. Asking price was $350 (only about 5 years ago), which I had but decided to sleep on it. Quickly changed my mind and went back later that same day and it was gone.

 

[Obturation]

Any of us buying guns in the late 90s- early 2000s remembers mosin nagants for under $100 with piles to choose from. Now they're way more. I had one and hated the stupid thing but I wish I would have bought a truckload just to sell now to buy proper guns .

Oh well. Ya don't know until you know

 

[Crosshair]

Marlin lever in 32 H&R.

Enfield bolt action chambered in 50 Action Express.

 

[Nuclear]

VZ-58, when you could buy them for not much more than an AK or AR.

Another time, walking around a gun show, a couple of Swedish Mausers for under $90 each on a table, this in the 1990s.

 

[rayatphonix]

Bergara Highlander in 280 Ackley. I have dies, brass and bullets, but no rifle. I even have primers!

I’ve gone after a handful of rifles, but never could close the deal at a price I was willing to pay.

 

[MistWolf]

There are too many to list.

 

[adcoch1]

There are too many to list.

Sadly...

 

[Ignition Override]

"Persian" Mausers (or at least many of them) were actually Czech contract rifles ! I love Czech guns, i.e my former CZ-82, present CZ PCR and VZ-58 .

By the time I read about those Mausers in the Surplus Rifle magazine in Barnes & Noble Books around 2010/2012 or so, it was only a few months Too Late to buy them..

These mint or near-mint "Persians" (with the written Farsi) had been offered by SAMCO in Hialeah FL which later went out of business.
It was the famous company where the Cuban lady with the Thick accent answered the phone.

SAMCO was also probably the last retail company selling surplus .303 Brit. ammo, by the large case. They ran out the same week after I ordered ammo for my first Enfield.

>>> An H&K P7 or P9 handgun at better prices/dollar value also would have been Extremely cool.

 

[Riomouse911]

I like the looks of O/U rifles.

A gun store south of me had a custom O/U 2-barrel set in a fitted case; Ruger Red Label 20 Gauge and .375 H&H.

Since those sets were really rare and pricy; I also missed out on the Browning Superposed .30-06.

Stay safe.

 

[BJung]

Llungman. I saw one in a gun store for $250 when I was young. My younger brother said, "that thing is ugly!" so I passed. Now when I see one and if he's next to me he says, "sorry".

 

[troy fairweather]

There aren't enough pages on this thread to list all. I'll list a few that come to mind often

1937 Winchester model 70 super grade in 7.65 Argentine, could have got from a friend's granddad for $1500, had the money and was so busy at work I'm not sure I was thinking straight.

M1918 tankgewehr, for $1100, found out from the local mauser expert at the gun show, had the money but would have up me in a tight spot the next 2 weeks, for a few years it seemed most of my bills were on the 3rd week of the month, this was October money was spread the thinnest that month.

G43 like it was made the day before, was $700 seemed higher then I wanted to pay then, there worth a bit more now.

Walther dsm 34 training rifle, gander mountain had it, don't think they knew what it was. I had to be at work I was doing my 22lr check for the week like a lot of us were doing them. Gun was $325 and didn't have time to do a check or layaway. Should have called work saying I had a flat or something.

Resent on, g33-40 sporter, made into a nice little mannlicher in 7x57, shop wanted $550 I looked at it a few different days but stock had some wrist cracks and needed a new horn but plate. Still don't know why I passed it up, I've been looking for a 33-40 action for years to build a mountain rifle.

There's many more but these I think about often and bugs me thinking about.

 

[Ugly Sauce]

Any of us buying guns in the late 90s- early 2000s remembers mosin nagants for under $100 with piles to choose from. Now they're way more. I had one and hated the stupid thing but I wish I would have bought a truckload just to sell now to buy proper guns .

Oh well. Ya don't know until you know

In the very beginning, you could buy them by the crate, which priced them at about $25 or $30 each. Some friends and I went in on a crate, and I got my first MN, a "SA" rifle, for $30 bucks. They were $80 apiece for a long time after that at the gun shows.

 

[earlthegoat2]

There are very few rifles I buy that I intend to keep long term. As such, missing and regrets never need to enter the equation.

After these years of experience with the market though, I find myself with a lingering forbiding that if I don’t buy a certain gun soon, even if only for short term, I may never be able to afford or find one again.

Disposable income has decreased over the last 2 years for various reasons but thankfully not because of financial difficulties.

A few that come to mind:
Big Horn Armory lever gun
My custom 450 BM Rem 7615 I want to have built
454 Casull BFR
480 Ruger Blackhawk Bisley
480 Ruger Rossi 92

among many others.

I guess I had better get crackin.

 

[MedWheeler]

Ruger Mini-14. Think I remember them being at or under $200 at Woolworth's at one time, mid-eighties. They also had K98s for like $70 at the time. I finally did get a Mosin in 2015, I think, for $150, and an SKS for $265 in maybe 2018.

 

[Walkalong]

Ruger Mannlicher stocked .308, a long time ago, still think about it now and then.

 

[1948CJ2A]

I remember when Bass Pro had new Remington (Zastava) 798s and 799s in various chamberings with laminated wood stocks for $300. That was maybe 15 years ago. Now you can barely find them anywhere. I would have liked one of those mini-mauser actions to build something custom and fun.

 

[FL-NC]

I had to pass on a Ruger #1 in 243 for $250 in the 90's cause I didn't have $250. Also should have bought more SKS rifles and put them away when they were like $75- and a pallet of x39 ammo.

 

[Newtosavage]

I had to pass on a Ruger #1 in 243 for $250 in the 90's cause I didn't have $250. Also should have bought more SKS rifles and put them away when they were like $75- and a pallet of x39 ammo.

I think a lot of the "regret" we sometimes have over guns is a product of having the means today that we didn't have then. If we still earned the same amount we did then, those numbers would look just as far out of reach as they did to us at the time. I know I sold a M98 Swede back to the dealer who I bought it from, still in Cosmoline, for the price I paid for it. A whopping $115. But at the time, $115 was a LOT of money to me and my wife. I think we had a combined income of less than $25k that year AND we had two kids already.

So when I think of it that way, I don't really have any regrets. I earn enough these days to afford any rifle I really want. I don't have expensive tastes though, and I'm not a collector. Just a hunter. So given the chance, my safe would probably contain the same rifles I have now. And that's a good place to be, I think.

 

[Chuck R.]

The one I'd wished I'd bought that got away:

In 1994 I was transferred out to Portland, OR for an assignment as an ROTC instructor. At that time I didn't have "woods" rifle and was looking forward to Elk hunting in WA and OR. A couple of scouting trips later I was convinced I was NOT going to carry either my long barreled 8x68S or my M700 in 300 Win Mag through some of the chit around St. Helens. So I started looking for either a Savage 99 or BLR in .358 Win. No luck. Did some research and ordered a Rem M7, with the Mannlicher stock from the custom shop in .350 RM. I was told about a 4-6 month wait, plenty of time for load development etc.

In the meantime I checked out a couple gun shows. At one show I found THE, perfect North-Wet, timber Elk rifle for just over $500. Someone (a genius really) had taken a Rem 760 pump in 30-06, bored the barrel out to 35 Whelen, chopped it to 20", added a receiver sight and Leupold 1.5-4x , put on a plastic stock and forearm, and had the thing hard chromed with a satin finish.

Only problem is the recently ordered Rem M7 for $900. I should have just sucked it up and bought the 760 anyway. So now I scour gun shows and have alerts set on Gunbroker. I don't really need a "perfect North-Wet, timber Elk rifle" anymore, but I can justify one for deer drives.

 

[foxtrot1]

Ran into a guy who had a sporter martini Henry single shot 45/70. Hi quality work with a walnut stock with alot of figure. He wanted $450 for it. I hadn't made it to the truck before I was asking myself why I didnt buy it.

 

[AlexanderA]

I wish I had bought more than one Daewoo K2 when they were being imported. Initially they were being scoffed at because of their low price.