Pawn shops

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I frequent a few pawn shops, none of which are in a metropolitan area. So these small town pawn shops and edge of suburban area pawn shops are pretty decent and seemingly NOT crooks at all. Prices are always set real high, but with cash in hand, the real price is usually half or less. As I understand it, if someone comes in for a loan or to 'swap', those high prices are pretty firm, to take advantage of the person who has no cash and is a bit desperate.

My favorite was "Jack's Gun and Pawn". The store closed long ago and Jack has passed away. Jack became a good friend. His store always had a lot of turn over, he was always bringing in guns from God knows where? and this was before the internet. I recall wanting a Turk Mauser (in mid 1990s) from some ad in Shotgun news (Century Arms? maybe?), I think they were $39 for hand picked and $29 for ones with cracked stock. He brought in six that had cracked stocks (BTW, all but one, didn't have cracked stocks, just major blemishes, the one had a chunk missing by the buttplate) anyway, he let me choose the nicest for that $29 price plus $10 transfer. He priced the rest at $75 and they sold fairly quickly...of course I did send a few of my friends to his store to look at them.

[Beau Cassidy]

What I have learned from police friends is you can gauge the amount of crime in an area by the number of pawn shops.

[xs11jack]

I have found 3 pawn shops around here. A funny thing, I went into one and found a saber saw in great condition marked at $30. I bought it and then looked around and the gun prices were out of sight. But everything else was reasonable, strange! The other two are run of the mill with high gun prices too.
Ole Jack

[timspawn]

I hadn't been in another pawn shop in close to twenty years. I spent a Saturday afternoon and hit about five of them. They were all full..of overpriced **** that wouldn't sell at a yard sale. Most of it belonged in the garbage. I price my stuff cheap so I can sell it. It does no good to have a shop full of stuff that wont sell. Plus it looks bad if it's all overpriced. If a tool is in really good condition, I figure it should sell for half of new price. Much more than that you might as well buy new.

[gpidaho]

We have several pawn shops in our area and my favorite has a very friendly and helpful staff. They have a large inventory of new and used guns, scopes, safes and reloading equipment in addition to all the usual pawn shop junk. They do all my transfers and I always check with them first before I put in my newest order to "Bud's" If they can put it in my hand for the price of an online purchase the sale it theirs, if not they just say so and are happy to make a few bucks on the transfer. If you ever find yourself in the treasure valley of Idaho stop in to Al's Gun and Pawn, good folks to know and your remembered by your name your next visit. Gp

[abunaitoo]

I used to go to Vegas every year for the SEMA show.
I'd go to the pawn shops there.
Firearms were way over priced.

[Char-Gar]

Caveat Emptor...Anybody that buys anything, without knowing what it is, what is a reasonable price and how to judge condition, will be bent over many times in his life. I have bought quite a few guns in pawn shops over the years and nobody crooked me. It it was not what I wanted, was over priced or in poor condition, it was not sold to me.

[RogerDat]

A "good" pawn shop doesn't want to sell merchandise they want to loan you money and have you repay with interest. The goods are just collateral for the loan. You buy a car from a reputable dealer they don't want the car back they want you to make the payments, same for a bank and mortgage. They don't want the house. No reason for that pawn shop to have a lot of merchandise on the floor because most will be in back awaiting redemption by the owner. What is on the floor is like a foreclosed house or repossessed car. A failed transaction.

A "bad" pawn shop has rates that are high enough that with compounding make it hard for clients to repay, some push interest to the end so you can't touch it until the loan is paid back by which time it has grown. Those places will have a lot of goods due to a high default rate. I think some pawn shops do a lot of buying outright instead of loaning against collateral. They buy low and sell high and will have a larger inventory. Think pawn stars, none of those customers on TV are getting loans against the value of the property. Rick just buys for a good percentage below value and sells at value to get back investment plus a return. They will ask all the traffic will bear for a price. Caveat Emptor certainly applies. Offer what it is worth and walk away if it isn't enough.

[Grmps]

Like previously stated, It depends how well you know them and they know you.
I have a couple friends that buy frequently from pawn shops and get great deals (a couple shops will call them when something comes in they think my friend would want.
I don't think The pawn shops can't be jerks to everyone and still make a living.

But what do I know

[Texas by God]

My LGS is a pawn shop too. I don't hold it against them. They provide a service to a segment of the populace that needs it.
The gun store side is wonderful, you can trade with them and talk them down on used guns or slow moving new ones. Good farming Christian folks run it and they know their stuff. They don't do xfers, though.

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[Char-Gar]

Pawn shops loan a small percentage of value of the item. When they sell, the item, they have far less in it, than a gunshop does. They ask high prices, but after a proper dicker, most will come down on the price. Sometimes way down.

It might also be mentioned that often they really don't know the value of all the items they are selling. They deal with so many different kinds of things, they can't be knowledgeable on all of them. As a consequence, I have bought guns in pawn shops at less than half of market price. If they won't come down, walk away and come back in a month or two. If they still won't come down, repeat as often as needed. I bought this Colt 1917 about ten years ago for $200.00 after they had it with a price tag $550.00 for two years. It is tight as Old Dick's hatband a perfect bore and no rust anywhere. Think I got a good deal?

[merlin101]

We have a few around here, I bought my wife a new engagement wedding ring set at one (yeah, I know what your thinking) we took it to a jeweler to have it sized and cleaned ectara. and was told we got not only a great deal but a real great deal! I r3ecently bought a Dan Wesson pistol pac at another one here in NY ( its the only pawn shop in NY with a FFL) he had it listed for $1800, I ended up getting it for $1000 plus a trade in worth 300-500.
I've also picked up a few silver Eagles at some of them.

[Petrol & Powder]

A "good" pawn shop doesn't want to sell merchandise they want to loan you money and have you repay with interest. The goods are just collateral for the loan. You buy a car from a reputable dealer they don't want the car back they want you to make the payments, same for a bank and mortgage. They don't want the house. No reason for that pawn shop to have a lot of merchandise on the floor because most will be in back awaiting redemption by the owner. What is on the floor is like a foreclosed house or repossessed car. A failed transaction.

A "bad" pawn shop has rates that are high enough that with compounding make it hard for clients to repay, some push interest to the end so you can't touch it until the loan is paid back by which time it has grown. Those places will have a lot of goods due to a high default rate. I think some pawn shops do a lot of buying outright instead of loaning against collateral. They buy low and sell high and will have a larger inventory. Think pawn stars, none of those customers on TV are getting loans against the value of the property. Rick just buys for a good percentage below value and sells at value to get back investment plus a return. They will ask all the traffic will bear for a price. Caveat Emptor certainly applies. Offer what it is worth and walk away if it isn't enough.

/\ True.
Pawn Shops make loans and hold property as collateral AND Pawn Shops buy property outright.

I can't say what the percentage is of loans (pawns) to purchases but it appears that outright purchases are the bulk of most pawn shop business.

[richhodg66]

About six months ago, I swung through a relatively new shop which deals mostly in tools, but has a few guns, usually cheap shotguns and .22s. One stood out so I asked to see it and it was a well-sporterized '93 Mauser which he said was a 7x57. I've wanted a 7x57 sporter a long time and have had a few, all of which hit me wrong in one way or another and went down the road. The rifle has a laminated Herters stock, a commercial barrel, nicely turned down bolt and Beuler or similar safety, plus it had a good Weaver K4 on it. He was asking $269. I wasn't sure it really was a 7x57, and couldn't tell by looking so I asked him if I could come back and check. I brought in a sized and unprimed empty .270 case the next day and asked if I could try to chamber it and he agreed, it wouldn't chamber, I was satisfied it was a 7x57 and offered him $250 out the door which he readily agreed to. It is rapidly becoming one of my favorite rifles, shoots cast pretty well and I've been shooting it more than most of my others put together since.

I don't think I got treated unfairly at all. I didn't even know this guy like I do the other two in town. I've had good luck with pawn shops around here and in Topeka and Leavenworth too.

[gwpercle]

In 2015 a Pawnshop in Kingman Arizona received a Ruger Blackhawk stolen from me in 1995 , they ran the serial # and it came back as a stolen gun , they called local police and turned it over.
The RBH was returned to Baton Rouge PD and they brought it back to me . The officer who made the original stolen gun report , returned it to me at the same office , after 20 years ...
I don't know the name of the Pawn Shop in Kingman , there are at least three , but evidently one of them is honest and I thank them for returning my first revolver purchased in 1972.
Gary

[rl69]

Ours or ok; they just don't have enough competition

[gandydancer]

I worked at one in Waterbury Ct for about a year in the gun dept. Items they no longer sell. They gave in to the nay sayers. It was run up and above board at all times. The manager and assit manager where both top notch. and they purchased all our meals seven days a weak what ever we wanted two shifts a day. I would still be there but I moved out of state.

[Boaz]

I use to make the pawn shops regularly years ago . It was interesting if nothing else , everything in the world that could be bought , traded and sold . Shops back then wanted to have a high turnover on the merchandise to keep folks coming in to see what was new . Hobby items , antiques , guns , tools , musical instruments , old pocket watches , collector coins , or just literally anything . I have bought a lot of guns . We had three pawn shops that were second generation businesses and knowledgeable .

I don't even go to pawn shops now , basically they are limited , too high to buy , and uninteresting to look in .

[richhodg66]

In 2015 a Pawnshop in Kingman Arizona received a Ruger Blackhawk stolen from me in 1995 , they ran the serial # and it came back as a stolen gun , they called local police and turned it over.
The RBH was returned to Baton Rouge PD and they brought it back to me . The officer who made the original stolen gun report , returned it to me at the same office , after 20 years ...
I don't know the name of the Pawn Shop in Kingman , there are at least three , but evidently one of them is honest and I thank them for returning my first revolver purchased in 1972.
Gary

That's a great story. I love a happy ending. What are the odds of that happening? Congrats.

[marlin39a]

Several pawn shops here in my area, but I've never found a gun worth buying. Mostly overpriced Junk guns.