Gun Show Score - selling!

[FISH4BUGS]

I went to the Manchester NH Gun Show this past weekend. Lots of junk and very few really nice collector's stuff. What WAS there for collector's stuff had outrageous prices on it....so what else is new?
Tons of AR stuff...I don't know about you but I am kind of AR'd out.
I DID take a couple of my safe queens to the show for trading material just in case something caught my eye. A 1943 made H&R 999 truly unfired new in the box ( a surprisingly high quality 22 revolver) with all the papers and a 1968 made Colt Officer's Model Match 38 in 99% condition.
In talking with dealers they always asked "...what's in the bag?" I showed them and they were always interested. When they asked how much I wanted I figured I would ask the same stupid money that they ask for their collector's stuff.
Much to my surprise they dickered a bit and I sold both guns for double what I paid for them. Cash money.
I guess I must have sold them too cheap - but the dealer said there was still a little "....meat on the bone" for him to turn them over and make a profit. Reminded me of Pawn Stars. He also said the OMM was already sold.
But hey, I'll take doubling my money any day!
Now to turn that cash into gold or silver.
A good day by any measure.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Ahhh Fish! You've become a "goldbug". Been there myself, but wealth, like glory, is fleeting. I read a very interesting article in a gun magazine many years ago about gold, guns, and suits of clothing. Like I said, many years ago, and the exact values have escaped me, but that doesn't matter and I've seen the subject touched on in later years, although not as thoroughly as in the first article. The theory of the whole thing was that at the time Col. Colt invented his revolver one cost $XX, gold was worth $XX per oz., and a fine suit of clothing was worth $XX. The writer then went on to compare the prices for these three items in following eras right up to the time at which the article was written, and the values remained very close given the economy of that era. And today? What is the cost of a new Colt SSA, the value of an oz. of gold, and the cost of a tailored suit of quality clothing? Still much the same. Oh, sure -- there are those who will argue that they can get a suit for well under $2,000, but the general populace is moving away from formal wear toward practical wear. Just visit one of the online outfitters and price a set of clothing from head to toe, and don't forget those very expensive boots.

It is entertaining to consider a time in the future, perhaps not too far fetched, when such items will be in short supply and necessary for survival.
Clothing can protect one from the cold, and although a tailored suit would not be the best choice in a time of practical necessity, some of the modern outdoors and hunting type clothing is quite expensive and would be the thing to have. Firearms could prove to be a source of both protection and food, and how does one place a value on survival? Gold, on the other hand, might prove great for obtaining other things IF, and I repeat IF, the other party wants it and will accept it. If you had 10 gal. of dry beans and 10 gal. of dry rice, but that was all you had stockpiled for the foreseeable future, would you barter or sell some of it for a Gold Eagle? You can't eat gold, and it's only worth what someone is willing to trade for it -- if they will trade. They might give you some food for a firearm, and might give you some for an insulated Gortex jacket.

Then, there is the investment aspect. Gold always follow inflation upward in value. If you hold it long enough you'll make money on it (timing is everything in buying and selling), and as long as you forget that you have it you won't lose money. Firearms increase in value, but must be kept unfired and N.I.B. Once used, the value declines dramatically. Clothing retains little value in normal times.

If you're going to buy gold, consider smaller denomination/size coins. When you want to buy some beef from Farmer John and he says the price is $200 in gold, he may not be able to make change for a Gold Eagle worth at the time $1,200 (?) and you'll have to give him an Eagle or be hungry. This is where silver coins make some sense.

My advice: Having some gold and silver on hand in reserve is a good idea. Having some good firearms for trade might be an even better idea. Don't get rid of all of your best ones to buy gold, it's putting all of your eggs in one basket, and it's impossible to predict what variation of "hard times" may lie in the future and to what severity.

DG

[FISH4BUGS]

DG: all sage advice....and exactly what I am doing. The US Mint is still pumping out the $1 and $5 coins, and they are the real thing. Not easily faked.
I am not worried about the coins as an investment....although if they go up all the better! I am putting it away as currency. Remember Germany in the 30's....
Don't worry.....as far as the guns go, not a problem. Food? 2 freezers full. Components? Set for life. I have enough to trade if all falls apart......if it doesn't fall apart, all the better. But if it does.......

[MT Gianni]

I think you did great. I would have a hard time keeping either of those guns in unused condition, but neither has a lot of spare parts in circulation.

[FISH4BUGS]

I think you did great. I would have a hard time keeping either of those guns in unused condition, but neither has a lot of spare parts in circulation.

I had the hardest time to keep from shooting both of these. The H&R was a surprisingly high quality gun, and what can you say about the Colt? I'm not one that spends a lot of time punching holes in paper.
I shoot everything I own and these two were just taking up safe space.
They represented dollar value that now i can turn into something else with value.
I'll miss them....for about a week or two.

[dangitgriff]

Get the gold. And some silver. But mostly gold.
Gold has been used to store wealth for over 5,000 years. It is a hedge against inflation. When the U.S. dollar collapses you will be glad you converted your worthless paper to hard currency.
Skip ahead to 4:30 in this video for more:

https://youtu.be/78rYXUSZ730

[FLINTNFIRE]

Funny how I tend to figure gold is flash and women like it , and some people have to adorn themselves with it , but in times of little better to have stored food , lead for bullets and the like , yes good clothing , practical like wool , for wet cold weather . Tools that one can make things with , stuff to make needed items with , freezer food needs electricity , as for when the dollar collapses it will be a madhouse , I do not keep safe queens , if I have a firearm I want to shoot it , may put it up for storage and use at a later time .

Gun shows I have not been to in a long time , no more private deals here all have to go through the so called instant check or better known as delay and waiting period with a record kept somewhere , I remember though that most of the every show had a table folks wanted top dollar and more but never wanted to pay anything for what any one else came in with , titewads mostly with a few good honest folks mixed in who were salt of the earth types , willing to pay what something was worth and give good advice , some shows were good though back some years ago , but went to one of the bigger ones up north and you could see the difference the city and liberal mindset that ran it , never wasted time going to it again and when the liberal part of the state voted in the ffl transfer on all sales the writing was on the wall and here it is more fees more background checks and waiting periods with more laws promised .

[Ed K]

Great that you were able to get your price. I have about given up on the local shows here. Sure, as an enthusiast it is nice to go but the prices...

On the PM subject - we are quite the old school bunch on the forum. However I am finding it is not so easy to unload gold these days. Even locals that hang out at the local country store bad-mouthing the IRS won't even consider an exchange of gold for firewood, etc. Sure, maybe in harder times things may be different but if the dollar crumbles and PM takes off it is going to be really difficult to buy anything with a gold eagle. Speaking as someone who has this stuff in hand and has for decades - not as some bitcoin fan johnny-come-lately.

[justashooter]

a minty 999 solid rib is around 4 bills now.

[popper]

Hmm, gold as currency? Naw, primary use is/was as a storage device for wealth. After the 'nasty' is over, your hoard will come in handy. Easily moved, hidden, safe from fire and moths. AFTER the currency system fails and then is beginning to work, cash in. Look at the US when gold was coinage - quarter (2 bits) was part of the coin. Didn't depend on 'bank' issued notes which depended on the 'bank' to stay in business. Confederate $ were worthless after the war as were german marks.

[RogerDat]

That comment on "two bits" is important to consider. Out west people moved wealth with them but that generally meant larger denomination currency. In order to have smaller denomination coinage they cut a silver coins into pieces like a pie.

Spanish-American silver issues based on the real system in denominations of 1/8R through eight-reales. The most widely circulated of these was the piece of eight, which, when supplies of smaller denomination coins dwindled were chopped or cut into smaller pieces to make change. Thus, one eighth of eight-reales became one bit, one quarter two-bits–the equivalent of our present day quarter-dollar. One-half is four-bits and three quarters are six-bits. Many believe these expressions to be slang, yet, history suggests they are perfectly good nomenclature.

If one is considering gold and silver as a means of trade one needs to consider how that will work in actual practice. Buying a bag of apples, a couple of pounds of salt etc. Might be that small denomination silver coins would be desirable.

Myself beyond a prudent amount of savings for the proverbial "rainy day" I tend to want money to provide me with something of actual value. Food that I can eat, tools and materials that I can use. I can't see much value in those pre-packaged long shelf life foods beyond a small amount if I lived in hurricane or wildfire impacted areas. I would rather buy and store food I will eat every week, then replace it in order to have food on hand.

Storage for wealth? Precious metals can do that. Timing the sale to be above purchase price in value does require taking into account that key metric "value" as in how much ammo, or how many suits, or Big Macs can one buy for an oz. or pound of gold. If gold is up $100 a pound when you sell it how does that compare with the "value" of the things you could have purchased when you bought the cold.

Personally I'm more inclined to keep a couple of hundred dollars in cash on hand in case a power outage hits the local ATM machines or card scanners. The gas station can pump gas on their generators but can't reach the remote card authorization systems. So no cash no gas.

[FLINTNFIRE]

The gold and silver for barter always makes me laugh , food on hand ys money in pocket cash is king , in times of chaos or runaway inflation maybe gold or silver have value ... To me lead has value , easy to melt easy to cast with fire if need be , bullets . There is value , I can hunt I can defend what is mine , gold and silver make nice pretty dinnerware or jewelry , not what I will want , but there will be those who do.

Most gas stations here can not or do not have generators , and last time computers and such were down no gas ,no grocery , no electronic scanners no service , sad but truth is be able to do it yourself and feed yourself or do without , bad times ahead .

Look at the hatred the democrats are throwing out today and they are wanting their way or no way , it is one step short of a complete all out fight , they hate the Constitution and the bill of rights so bad , they speak of due process but that is only if they can run their scams and news feeds without true due process or the rights that are god given , the hypocrisy of the left today . I do not invest in gold or silver , I do not believe in the stock market or in any item that I can not use and or barter and I believe there is a day when we will all wish to have stored a little more of food and ammo . Anyway I am glad you did good on your sales and we each believe in some things as worthwhile and I believe to each their own , Here is wishing all on this site have a safe and good year this coming year.