Original boxes?

[2ndAmendmentNut]

Personally I will not buy a used handgun without the original box with the exception of a very cheap price or particularly rare/old gun.

When it comes to used rifles and shotguns I personally really do not care if it has the original box. With the exception of a cased over under shotgun the original box almost seems like a nuisance that I feel obligated to find room for in a closet.

How do you all feel about used guns and their original boxes?

[DerekP Houston]

Oooops. Well to be fair I don't have a whole lot of "investment" guns mine are just shooters. I generally toss the boxes :D I only have so much space.

EDIT: I suppose if it was a fancy wooden box or a nice decorative one I would keep it. All mine have come in cardboard or plastic boxes.

[jsizemore]

I've never had a box make a gun shoot better.

[Ithaca Gunner]

The only ones I've ever kept were the presentation boxes that some S&W's came with. Otherwise, I don't care a bit.

[sparky45]

I've still got the box for my Ruger Single Six (old 3 screw I bought new in 1968) . I don't know if its worth keeping or not.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Yep, I like the boxes. I save 'em all. I have room.

[runfiverun]

it depends.
the ruger revolvers come in nice somewhat stackable plastic cases I keep those. [and usually keep the revolver in it too]
i'll go out of my way to buy boxes for Dan Wessons, even just the Styrofoam ones or a cardboard sleeve if I find it.

most rifle/shotgun boxes don't last more than once or twice of being in the way, but I have a few kicking around.

[bedbugbilly]

If they have the box . . fine . . . if not, it's no biggie for me. My main interest is "vintage" revolvers . . i.e. Colts, Smiths, etc. . . . but I also buy them to shoot. If I were to hold out for only those that had the original boxes . . . I would have missed out on a lot of good handguns and good shooting.

I do have the boxes that my new guns came in - some cardboard some tupperware . . and to me, those will never make the handgun more collectible for most people - they are generic and not labeled with the serial # to the handgun.

Long guns . . the only boxes I ever saved were for some Winchester rifles . . their 1966 Centennial, Gold Spike and Canadian . . . I liquidated them a few years ago and I really don' think the buyers were that interested in the boxes but they got them anyway.

I can see "collectors" wanting them though . . . . . but a lot of "collectors" aren't shooters . . . at least with their pristine specimens. Some of the boxes themselves are pretty interesting and I can see that being of interest to a collector.

[Love Life]

I offer less with no box for handguns. Some boxes have a value that could buy you a new handgun.

I wouldn't let the lack of a box stop me from buying a handgun, but it will influence my offer.

[Rick Hodges]

I have never cared about the box unless it was a hardcase/plastic. Storage space is at a premium here.

[tygar]

I used to be a big collector with many collectible in box & NIB rifles, pistols, revolvers, & shotguns. Was on the Win, S&W, Browning & Colt collector lists with my own number for all the "new" collectibles coming out. Also, Pre64 Wins, Pre67 Brownings, SAAs etc. & without the box it greatly reduced the value of all of them.

After doing that for 20+yrs, sold most all that stuff that I couldn't shoot because it would loose "value" if you shot it.

Now I always keep the boxes when I buy a gun with one, just for the ability to store it or ship it, but for an everyday shootin iron, who cares.

[fouronesix]

In most cases, a used gun in a box is no more than an artificial symbol of higher value…. a market buzz selling point with little merit. The only way that works is if the gun is of high quality and high cost to begin with and has never been fired. Then the box may add a small premium. Of course a very old box will have stand alone value. But then again I'm reminded that to some, the early Ruger revolvers are a type of real old valuable antique. :shock:

[MT Gianni]

It is great if they have them, if I want the gun it isn't a deal breaker. Very little of what I want was made after 1990.

[oldfart1956]

In most cases, a used gun in a box is no more than an artificial symbol of higher value…. a market buzz selling point with little merit. The only way that works is if the gun is of high quality and high cost to begin with and has never been fired. Then the box may add a small premium. Of course a very old box will have stand alone value. But then again I'm reminded that to some, the early Ruger revolvers are a type of real old valuable antique. :shock: Excellent post. I think all too often a lack of a box is used to beat a sellers price down. I'm not playing that game. Find a speck of rust or some other minor dent/ding and we'll dicker but don't bitch about the box. I do like the new plastic boxes with the foam padding and keep them to store the handgun in so it doesn't get beat up in the safe. Now if said box is a wooden presentation case with all the accutrements for an unfired original Colt/Smith/etc. from a bygone era...that's different. Just my opinion of course. Audie..the Oldfart..

[dragon813gt]

I'd rather have the owners manual than the box. I buy very little to collect. If I'm not going to shoot it then why have it to begin w/? That being said I keep the boxes for everything I buy new.

Any paperwork that comes w/ one is stored properly in a filing cabinet. In the case of a handgun if it has a fired case that's stored w/ the paperwork. I don't sell what I buy so I'm not sure why I bother keeping anything besides the owners manual. If I didn't have the space I would toss the long gun boxes in a heartbeat.

[bubba.50]

as others have said above, I've never had a box make a gun shoot better & space IS an issue around my house. so, price and/or how much I want the gun determines it for me.

[AK Caster]

The box usually goes in the dealers dumpster but I will usually keep a couple of rifle boxes on hand for shipping out rifles I sold.

[Mod42]

I like the box, if I need to start a fire it burns real well.

I used to save all the boxes when I was working gun shows every weekend, but I can not really say that I ever got any more money for one of the guns I sold because it had a box. The only time that a box has any REAL value is when it is for a very old and very collectable piece. Any other time you are just fooling yourself.

[Doggonekid]

I keep my guns inside and in a safe. I kept my boxes out in the garage because of lack of space in my man cave. I had a leak in my roof that ruined most of my boxes. I was sad but decided it doesn't matter because I will never sell any my guns anyway. My days of selling and trading have gone away. All of the guns I have now I will pass on to my wife when I die and she thinks there all just cheep guns anyway. LOL

I like the original box if I can get it but I don't pay extra for it. I buy the gun not the box. My guns are all shooter also. If I buy a Rolex I want the box. When I buy a gun it's not so important.

[Mk42gunner]

I fall into the "I could care less" group when it comes to boxes for handguns.

The current crop of blowmolded plastic doesn't do much for protecting the gun, most of the ones I have will let it rattle around inside, in fact.

Storing a handgun in a cardboard box is not a real good idea in humid parts of the country. In the low humidity desert parts, it doesn't hurt.

One of S&W's presentation boxes would be different, if both the gun and box were in good shape. If the gun is well used and the box like new, it doesn't make much sense to worry about it, to me.

I can see both sides of the box issue, but I would personally rather have a gun to shoot than not buy one I wanted because it had become separated from its box over the years since it left the factory. If nothing else, look at all the neat and not so neat surplus guns you are writing off because they don't have the original box.

RObert

[dpoe001]

I have the box that my Garand cane in from cmp(its not original). I also have the box that the 03 my dad bought came in.

[William Yanda]

I would rather have a holster.

[rondog]

Boxes to me are just another piece of carp that I have to find a place to put. I already have enough carp, thankyouverymuch.

[bob208]

if it has the box so much the better. yes that old three screw box is worth keeping. but if no box would nix the deal I would not have any of my lugers or broomhandles or colt's or smith's. but I do have a lot of boxes for my three screw ruger's.

I do have the box my m1 came in from the dcm. also have a 03a3 with the shipping box and label from the dcm. I never put it together shot it no need to I have a dozen other 03's.

[lightman]

I try to save the box from both pistols and rifles and even scopes, plus any paper work when I buy. Its not a deal breaker. I have a partially floored attic, so there is room for the boxes, next to the Christmas decorations!

[Ballistics in Scotland]

There is no doubt that a box can make a great difference in desirability to a collector. But take a look for "Smith and Wesson box" on eBay, and you will find a most suspicious number of them, particularly for modern classic handguns, as indeed you can for many other collectibles. Maybe S&W or some large institutional purchaser has sold a large accumulation of empty boxes... maybe. But just look at some of the other things that are being faked nowadays.

[Love Life]

There are more than few fake Colt boxes offered on the auction sites.

[FISH4BUGS]

On older collectible S&W's or Colts (primarily pre-war) the original boxes can add hundreds of dollars to the value. For instance, I have a S&W 5 screw pre model 29 44 mag with non-original grips. A shooter. 99%. Value = $2000 or so. With the original case and tools and in the same shape? $3000+.
The boxes DO add value if they are older, numbered to the gun and in good shape.

[funnyjim014]

I put all the paper work in the box and stash it in the basement rafters. Plenty of room there

[gwpercle]

If the price is right , box or no box , I'm on it. I'm a shooter not a collector , so the box it came in is unimportant. After I'm gone the kids can do what they want with my stuff....except for a few that I'm taking with me. God has assured me there is a shooting range and a reloading room in heaven just waiting on us.
Gary

[Ballistics in Scotland]

On older collectible S&W's or Colts (primarily pre-war) the original boxes can add hundreds of dollars to the value. For instance, I have a S&W 5 screw pre model 29 44 mag with non-original grips. A shooter. 99%. Value = $2000 or so. With the original case and tools and in the same shape? $3000+.
The boxes DO add value if they are older, numbered to the gun and in good shape.

Ah yes, numbered to the box is good, but I'm sure that can be forged too, and with most guns it doesn't apply. I suppose it ups the ante to criminal fraud if you can prove it, but that wouldn't be easy.

Some people buy an expensive box just to have a boxed gun, with no thought of resale value. For me the whole point is that it is a box the original purchaser opened in some excitement decades ago. My last Webley revolver came in a box showing it had been supplied to Scotland Yard in the sixties, and presumably put away unfired, as being obsolete, for several decades. Otherwise the nearest I come is the box and documentation for my 1950s left-handed Pflueger baitcasting reel.

[jonp]

the only ones I really care if they have the box is Colt/S&W, old ones, where the box itself and manuals or inserts add value. Otherwise I don't really care about the box.

My new, unfired S&W 15-4 came in the original box with the wrapping, paper inserts and screwdriver. It added quite a bit of value to the gun

"The current crop of blowmolded plastic doesn't do much for protecting the gun, most of the ones I have will let it rattle around inside, in fact."
About the only good those do are to transport the handguns if you don't have a padded case or range bag. It does make them easier to place under a seat or in a suitcase.

[Lloyd Smale]

I keep a few around both rifle and handgun in case I have to send one in for repair but other then that they get tossed.

[Tackleberry41]

Can't say the original box has ever been a deciding factor when it came to buying a gun. I rarely keep them, so hard to expect others to.

But I have been trying to hold onto them more recently, I have been doing plenty of wheeling and dealing, it does look better when you can show up with everything that came with the gun. But depends on the gun, some come in some flimsy cardboard box, others in a easy to stack plastic case. Price does not seem to have a relation to the quality of the box. I have bought sub $500 guns that came with a plastic case, and $1000 pistol that came banging around in a cardboard box. One would think at $1000 a decent plastic case would not be to much to ask.