Best place to value handguns?

[littlejack]

My cousin contacted me and wants to get the values of some handguns. Her husband passed away last year, and she wants to liquidate his guns. Great guy, didn't buy any junk, and took exceptional care of his firearms. I believe the firearms to be in probably very good condition. She's in the process of taking pics to send me and wants me to price them for her. I know there are many variables in a firearms value. Every day Joe wants the best for the cheapest price. Collectors will pay top dollar for something they want, or do not have. Then there's the folks that want to buy dirt cheap, because what you have isn't that popular. But want to sell sky high because now they own it. So, what's the best source for a decent value? Would you look at a few that have sold, and take an average. On gunbroker, some firearm prices are all over the place. We're talking a couple Dan Wesson 357 revolvers, a S&W 1955 N frame, a Ruger SS Redhawk 44 magnum, a S&W 629-4 3" and a Ruger Super Blackhawk SS 44 magnum 6". Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[Battis]

A friend of mine is going through the same thing. His father passed and left approx 130 guns - rifles, shotguns, pistols, revolvers, some of the same guns that you mentioned in your post. I bought two - a 45 acp and an old shotgun. I got good deals, but not great deals. He has a friend who is putting prices on them, based on GB and this site (you have to pay to join):
https://gunvalues.gundigest.com/
Several cops bought guns.
I think he's at the point where he'll just take them to a gun store and take the financial loss. His mother just wants them gone.

[dverna]

I have found GunBroker useful.

[Dekota56]

Yes, I agree GunBroker is the place to click on to get a idea of what the it could worth.
I use it a lot, when I go to gun sales or to a gun shop. To have an idea. Good luck.

[contender1]

I agree that Gunbroker is a good resource IF,, IF,, you use the "completed auctions" section and CAREFULLY study the details. The Blue Book is also a good reference guide.
But remember,, correct GRADING is critical. The Blue Book has a section on this subject.

[Remiel]

I agree that Gunbroker is a good resource IF,, IF,, you use the "completed auctions" section and CAREFULLY study the details. The Blue Book is also a good reference guide.
But remember,, correct GRADING is critical. The Blue Book has a section on this subject.

I second the blue book of gun values,

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk

[bisleyfan41]

A friend of mine is going through the same thing. His father passed and left approx 130 guns - rifles, shotguns, pistols, revolvers, some of the same guns that you mentioned in your post. I bought two - a 45 acp and an old shotgun. I got good deals, but not great deals. He has a friend who is putting prices on them, based on GB and this site (you have to pay to join):
https://gunvalues.gundigest.com/
Several cops bought guns.
I think he's at the point where he'll just take them to a gun store and take the financial loss. His mother just wants them gone.

This is the problem. With all due respect, this dude left his wife and son with 130 guns that they now have the hassle of disposing of them. Valuing them, pricing them, marketing them somewhere, shipping them (a supreme hassle in itself). This has worn them out to the point they just want em gone.

The lesson is, are you prepared? Or are you leaving your family an overwhelming burden? Some have fewer than 130 guns, others have many more. Which only magnifies the problem. Honor your loved ones who'll be left behind by making a plan.

[Mk42gunner]

You might contact or at least look t the website of some of the gun auction sites like Morphy's or Rock Island.

I have no idea what kind of commission they charge, but it may be worth it.

Robert

[schutzen-jager]

jmho - the blue book is useless in many localities + does not reflect most current, actual values - i have found the [ truegunvalue.com ] site to be most useful + user friendly -

[ascast]

Blue book is not the most up to date and they extrapolate for the odd ball models that may be worth many times what they guess. GunBroker is current -see completed auctions. Condition and details is everything.

[Battis]

With all due respect, this dude left his wife and son with 130 guns that they now have the hassle of disposing of them.

I see it differently. I did not know the "dude", never met him, but it seems like he was a guy who lived in the moment and didn't worry about dying. He died at a relatively young age (60s) and basically he died due to a medical screw-up, nothing he could have planned on.
Guns, cars, houses, tools - we're all going to leave things behind that will have to be "disposed of." So what?

[rintinglen]

As I see it, there is no one source that is optimal. GunBroker completed auctions are useful, but just looking at GunBroker gives one an inflated view of what guns are worth. An awful lot are priced 10-300% high by sellers who seem to think that if a rare model of a gun owned by a famous person sold for X dollars, their plain jane similar gun ought to be worth just as much. Such guns get relisted, time after time, looking for a sucker to buy, but time out with zero bids.

The Blue Book is out of date by the time it hits the bookshelves, and fails to reflect regional differences. Ideally, you would have a knowledgeable friend who will help value them for you. But watch out for him lowballing guns he wants to buy himself. Several years ago, I had to value a fairly large collection that a friend's father had left. One of her "friends" had gone through and given her prices on them, but she was smart enough to get a second opinion. I found that all the routine stuff was reasonably priced, but all of the top end stuff, including a mint Colt Python, a boxed S&W 57, and an encased Browning Superposed, were all grossly undervalued. Her "pal" would have given her about 1800 dollars under the low market value for those guns. Despite there being a couple of guns there I would have liked to have, I declined to buy anything. I didn't want her "buddy" to challenge me for doing what he had done.

However, you go about it though, I'd strongly advise against just dumping them in a gun shop. They'll get them out of the house all right, but they'll leave a ton of money on the table that way. I watched an arrogant widow screw herself out of 3,000 dollars on a small collection of fine firearms that way. By my best guess, she got about 40 cents on the dollar selling them that way.

If they do decide to go to a gun shop, look around to see who will take them on consignment and what the fee is. 10-30% are the extremes with most in the 20-25% range. Consignment fees are almost always less than the discounted price a gun dealer can pay.

[littlejack]

Thank you all for your input. I've been looking on GunBroker. Some prices are reasonable, and some are IMO, way over priced. I guess it goes back to what the buyer is willing to pay, and are happy with what they payed. I don't think I'm going to recommend dumping them at a LGS. That would be almost as bad as dumping them at the local pawn shop.
A couple years ago, I bought a Ruger SBH Hunter in .41 magnum for 750.00. I was very happy with the price and purchase. Great revolver.
I'll keep lookin around and decide what I think is a fair price. Thank you all again for your input and ideas.

[Oregon_Dan]

I would cast a vote for GunBroker "Completed Auctions," but with the caveat that you need to be looked only at those that were actually sold. That will give you a good idea as to what folks are actually willing to pay, rather than throwing the folks that are asking the moon for their guns into the pot. You obviously also need to check for guns in similar condition to those you are trying to sell.

Good Luck
Dan

[Ed K]

Go to gunbroker "completed auctions" and sort by the number of bids an item received in descending order. Starting from the top scroll down until you reach the first item finishing with "0" bids. The price on everything to that point is for an item that actually sold so those prices are real. Of course if some Bozo bids $100K for a Glock and fails to complete the deal then that would be an exception. You could probably sort that out by looking at the bidder's feedback.

[JWT]

Having the same issue myself. I've got a batch of rifles and shotguns from my dad here in Michigan that I need to sell for mom as well as a batch of rifles, shotguns, and handguns in Montana that I need to sell for my mother in law.

[Tall]

This is the problem. With all due respect, this dude left his wife and son with 130 guns that they now have the hassle of disposing of them. Valuing them, pricing them, marketing them somewhere, shipping them (a supreme hassle in itself). This has worn them out to the point they just want em gone.

The lesson is, are you prepared? Or are you leaving your family an overwhelming burden? Some have fewer than 130 guns, others have many more. Which only magnifies the problem. Honor your loved ones who'll be left behind by making a plan.

I think they will have my funeral at noon and my estate sale after the funeral. What happens after I am gone is not my concern.

[Tall]

I see it differently. I did not know the "dude", never met him, but it seems like he was a guy who lived in the moment and didn't worry about dying. He died at a relatively young age (60s) and basically he died due to a medical screw-up, nothing he could have planned on.
Guns, cars, houses, tools - we're all going to leave things behind that will have to be "disposed of." So what?

Agree completely. So someone got a windfall - the dead guy is still dead.

[lar45]

I handled a sale for a friend of the family. A lgs came and offered 700 for the stash of guns. I cleaned them all up , put an add in the paper and got them closer to $3000

Gunbroker in the completed section would be a good starting point.

[reddog81]

Gunbroker completed auctions on that actually sold and similar condition. That will be relatively easy and pretty accurate.

Of course going down to the LGS and expecting them to give those amounts won’t work out. And similar guns can sell for a $100 difference just based on who the seller is and the quantity and quality of pics.