Whats your opinion ?

[Boaz]

About 3 months ago I thought about getting a Springfield Compact 9mm Range Officer for my daughter . Didn't have the (around) $800.00 to spend so thought I might do a little trading . Took a CZ 82 and 1903 Colt pocket model to trade in . The CZ was nice , had shot it quite a bit and put walnut grips on it plus still had the old ugly soviet grips to put it back original . The 1903's condition was an honest 70-75% cosmetically speaking , made in 1918 showed blue loss at the muzzle and heel of the grip . Mechanically is was tight and cycled perfectly , ran a lot of 32 cal through it myself .

It was a relatively new gun shop and all I saw were 'black' guns , nothing with any wood on it . After looking quickly at the trades I brought the owner exclaimed that he in all good faith not resell them as a shooter . More or less classified them as wall hanger material because of their age, they were a danger to shoot . I thanked him for his time and left .

Do you think he was correct in his assessment ?

[Old Scribe]

Get another opinion!

[EMC45]

Sounds like he was trying to get them from you cheap. Barring any visible damage (cracks in frame/slide, abuse) those 2 guns should be fine. The 1903s were hand fitted and they are fine pistols, and the CZ was a military gun, which would speak to it robust nature.

[str8wal]

Get another opinion!

What he said ^^^

[Earlwb]

Yes get another opinion.

[jmort]

Go to a real gun store. I want a full-size 9mm Range Officer for myself.

[Mk42gunner]

I don't like patronizing retail establishments that denigrate trade-ins. Without knowing the shop or where you are, I will say that either he wanted to give next to nothing and make a huge profit or he knows nothing except the new "tacticool" stuff.

Sadly, the old time gunshops where you have a decent chance at finding anything other than the black plastic stuff are going away rapidly.

Robert

[rking22]

He probably had no idea what they were. In lots of those shops ,they have no interest in fine classic fiearms, probably due to their intended market. I'd rather have the Colt than the Springfield 9mm , just sayin :)

[Hickok]

Boaz, if you get a chance to handle one, the Glock 43 Single Stack 9mm is nice. My daughter just bought one for concealed carry. (Wish I could get my S&W Airweight back from her!)

Some like Glocks and some don't, just sayin'......

[Boaz]

Boaz, if you get a chance to handle one, the Glock 43 Single Stack 9mm is nice. My daughter just bought one for concealed carry. (Wish I could get my S&W Airweight back from her!)

Some like Glocks and some don't, just sayin'......

I really don't have a problem with Glocks and will check out it our on your recommendation . Becky is 4'. 11'' and is about peaked out for height , small hands . I had her handle a Range Officer compact before Christmas and the single stack grip fit her well . Looking for a 'forever' pistol to give her , got to be a good one (I can afford,lol) . She has 4 years to go to get her carry license and want it to fill that need . If it were for me I'd go with the full size , heck she could shoot it , she shoots full size pistols often . The compact is relatively easy to concealed though . Someone her size has trouble concealing a full size .

[Boaz]

Go to a real gun store. I want a full-size 9mm Range Officer for myself.

I agree jmort , I'd take the full size Dang it ! I got enough 9mm brass to last forever I think !

[lefty o]

sounds like another gun shop idiot.

[Boaz]

Well actually I know what the retail would be on both . The CZ ought to bring about $350.00 and the 1903 should bring about $400.00 to maybe $500.00 in the shape they are in . I have traded A LOT in my lifetime . I have been randomly collecting the 1903's since the 80's .

I was kind of asking opinion on why a shop wouldn't even make an offer to work a deal (not even a low ball offer) and tell me they are dangerous to even shoot . My best guess is lack of knowledge and ignorance of any kind of value . A lot of new shops only know about.......WHAT IS HOT these days . No interest in history or collectables just........$$$$$$$$$ !

[hp246]

I'm starting to see this in my area too. Some of the newer gunshops are catering strictly to the "black guns" as you call them. They don't have a wood stock or grip in the entire shop. Take the to a real gunshop or check out one of the sites like ARMSLIST.

[9.3X62AL]

Any particular reason that Becky couldn't use the CZ-82 for CCW? There is not a whole lot of difference between a full-potential 9 x 18 Makarov and some of the Lawyer Loads in 9 x 19 Luger sold in the USA of late. Now, a Euro-strength 9 x 19 Luger load in a Glock 43 or the Range Officer you mention would be a couple notches better, but the 9 x 18 is already in hand. Just my 2 cents.

[bedbugbilly]

If that guy's opinion is right . . . then I guess most of my hand guns are "wall hangers". LOL Funny thing, they shoot just fine including my old Colt Army Special that is 106 years old! LOL

A couple of years ago, I stopped at a new gun shop that opened up near us in MI. Cases were all filled with black plastic as were the rifle racks. When I inquired about "used" handguns - in particular S & W revolvers . . . they guy said that they "didn't deal in used guns" and many of them were "un-safe" and besides, they didn't have a gunsmith on staff who could check them out - therefore - they couldn't "guarantee them" like they could their "new guns". I then asked about reloading supplies - powder, primers, etc. and his reply was that they were not going to stock them as many people did not know what they were doing and reloaded ammo could therefore be "dangerous and blow up a gun". I had all I could do to not roll on the floor laughing but I restrained myself and left . . . chalking it up as one gun shop to never return to.

Oh . . . did I mention the shop only lasted about nine months? :-)

I have had one opportunity to handle a Springfield Compact 9mm Range Officer and it was a nice hand gun - but it was already sold. I also looked at the Glock 43 that Hickok speaks of. I have never shot a Glock but I did like the 43. I was looking for a single stack 9mm for CCW for a little more capacity than my normal Smith 36 J frame. The gun shop I haunt had one that was already sold but the salesman I usually deal with wanted me to take a look at it. It was nice and felt good to me but at the time, delivery was slow and long on them so I went with a S & W 9mm Shield which I really like - it eats a steady diet of lead boolits and never a problem.

[Lonegun1894]

The guy either doesn't know his butt from a hole in the ground or was trying to rip you off. If you're really looking to sell them, I would say post them here, or even an auction site, and get a fair price for both you and the buyer, and then use that money to get her the pistol you and she picked. But I applaud you for not giving them away to that thief.

[Boaz]

Any particular reason that Becky couldn't use the CZ-82 for CCW? There is not a whole lot of difference between a full-potential 9 x 18 Makarov and some of the Lawyer Loads in 9 x 19 Luger sold in the USA of late. Now, a Euro-strength 9 x 19 Luger load in a Glock 43 or the Range Officer you mention would be a couple notches better, but the 9 x 18 is already in hand. Just my 2 cents.

CZ is plenty good for carry , I have carried one myself using a shoulder rig . Full size , steel frame , fixed barrel, low recoil , a good solid platform to launch those 9x18 rounds off . Chrome polygonal rifling , 15 round mag.....better than many new carry guns in my opinion . A couple I buffed out and re gripped .

http://i1097.photobucket.com/albums/g353/chuckr1952/100_0374_zps9850f4d4.jpg (http://s1097.photobucket.com/user/chuckr1952/media/100_0374_zps9850f4d4.jpg.html)

http://i1097.photobucket.com/albums/g353/chuckr1952/100_0370_zps82d4a8ee.jpg (http://s1097.photobucket.com/user/chuckr1952/media/100_0370_zps82d4a8ee.jpg.html)

Really just wanted to get one a little more concealable and quicker to handle with small hands .

[Virginia John]

Boaz, I agree with your retail price estimates and also with the lack of knowledge on the part of the shop owner. I too had a similar experience with a gun shop that I no longer go into. With your knowledge of the retail pricing, I would try to sell them myself.

[Boaz]

Selling the new guns are simply a matter of reading stats and promotional material coupled with a set percentage mark up . With older or collector firearms you have to have knowledge and history , desirability . You have to set the offer to trade or buy based on experience , many shops now seem lacking in the willingness to gain experience and simply go with the easy stuff .

[HB0708]

The sad thing is that guy is spewing his ignorance to people who might not know any better, or who might be convinced just because he's "in the business." Whether the dude was trying to rip you off, or really was that clueless may be unknown, but this much I do know, I'd be directing everyone I knew away from his store unless they were looking for the specific stuff he deals in, and even then, I'd tell them to proceed with caution.

[w5pv]

Wish I could advise but I had a S&W bodyguard 380 that had a pretty hefty recoil with just 2.0 grains of titegroup under a 102 grain lrn.Shot good and did a good job on the critters up to coon size.She may consider this when settling on a gun.

[g17]

I'd get another opinion for sure but unless there's unknown damage to either gun, they should be fine. I'd check on the gun auction sites to see what a Colt like yours is bringing as it might be close or enough to get you that range officer.

[Hickok]

I have always thought a S&W J frame revolver in .22 Magnum would be nice packing revolver. For the ladies it would offer low recoil and muzzle blast.

The .22 Magnum is a nasty cartridge.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Selling the new guns are simply a matter of reading stats and promotional material coupled with a set percentage mark up . With older or collector firearms you have to have knowledge and history , desirability . You have to set the offer to trade or buy based on experience , many shops now seem lacking in the willingness to gain experience and simply go with the easy stuff .
No doubt this is true. That shop is probably just a "retailer" of new guns ...I'm assuming you didn't see any used guns there?

Honestly, giving the shop keeper the benefit of doubt, that he wasn't trying to denigrate your antiques to get them for cheap, His answer to you, was probably the best info he could offer. Those of us with experience know they have value, but he probably didn't have a clue, nor the interest.

anyway, Best to look elsewhere.

[Boaz]

No doubt this is true. That shop is probably just a "retailer" of new guns ...I'm assuming you didn't see any used guns there?

Honestly, giving the shop keeper the benefit of doubt, that he wasn't trying to denigrate your antiques to get them for cheap, His answer to you, was probably the best info he could offer. Those of us with experience know they have value, but he probably didn't have a clue, nor the interest.

anyway, Best to look elsewhere.

You pretty well nailed , he didn't even try to trade . And no , there were no used guns at all in the store , all new stuff . Didn't really blame him for not being interested but how many folks is he telling that because a gun has some age on it that it's dangerous . I find that a little troubling .

[9.3X62AL]

Jon B and Boaz make good points--by the shopkeeper's lights, he gave the info from the viewpoint he held. That his viewpoint might be diametrically opposed to my own is neither here nor there--I could as easily be regarded as a Luddite for my antediluvian arms preferences as the shopman could be considered an uber-modernist for his dishwasher-safe sidearm fixation. My own views previously given reflect my wistful recollections of having carried that East German Makarov for several years quite comfortably--until it got DQ'ed by the follow-on (expletives deleted) from HR 218's passage. Tell ya what--if you could buy lawyers for what they are TRULY worth--and then sell them for what people THINK they are worth--the profit margin would be considerable. Real speed-bumps on the Autobahn, more often than not.

Ahem.....I have done my best to get along with the sub-compact Glocks and SIG-Sauers, and their grip lengths are just too short for my big ol' paws. The Glock 43 or the SIG P-239 might be just the ticket for someone with smaller hands than mine.

[Boaz]

I enjoyed your sesquipedalian narrative/response . I'll check out your recommendations . Thank you !

[snoopy]

I've been slobbering for an RO for awhile now, but that dude didn't know squat.

[runfiverun]

I'm pretty sure I have a 365 sizer and a 100gr mold about that same size here.
for some strange reason I have no 9X18 gun..

[WRideout]

Selling the new guns are simply a matter of reading stats and promotional material coupled with a set percentage mark up . With older or collector firearms you have to have knowledge and history , desirability . You have to set the offer to trade or buy based on experience , many shops now seem lacking in the willingness to gain experience and simply go with the easy stuff .

If the store employees are under fifty years of age, they probably don't know anything about vintage firearms.

Wayne

[Bigslug]

There are different kinds of gun shops out there. There are those that are run almost entirely for the latest and greatest crowd - the 20-30-something clientele has little to no interest, appreciation, or knowledge of products from the blued steel and wood age, and the staff doesn't want to delve into acquiring what amounts to a history degree to become effective at selling them. Sounds like that's what you were dealing with. Think for a minute about what it takes to properly authenticate the various sub-types of Lugers or Peacemakers and you'll get what I'm talking about. Easier and safer for those shops just to pass on such things. Having spent a considerable amount of time in the retail gun biz, I can't say as I fault that approach - it's pretty easy to end up with a lot of money tied up in inventory that doesn't move if you don't know what you're doing. Nothing wrong with that kind of business, but it's not the place to hock your old Colt Pocket Models.

I'M the place to hock your old Colt Pocket Models!:bigsmyl2:

[roundgun]

A dealer with a list of collectors may be your best bet to get a fair price for your pistols.

[snowwolfe]

You found a gunsmith with an employee who didn't know much about guns.
Common experience. Find a different gunshop or sell the items yourself. We all know you would be much further ahead if you sold them outright to begin with.

[Frank46]

Definitely find another shop. The cz82 is a great little semi auto in the mak cartridge. I have one and been shooting it on and off. Hornady makes a self defense load for it although either silver bear or brown bear have a hollow point loading. There was a young kid at our range and he kept looking at the little auto. I told him bring his dad over and ask him if he could shoot it. Dad came over and I introduced myself and asked if his some could shoot it. Dad said yes so loaded a couple rounds and explained how it worked. Bang bang and two shots very close to each other. Loaded up the 12 round mag and told the boy to take his time. Put all 12 rounds in a 3" group. The smile on his face was priceless. Dad went next but junior still outshot him. Frank

[Boaz]

I have 3 CZ 82's . I my opinion for a 9mm they are a good all round handgun . User friendly , highly and dependably functional . Mag capacity is adequate , I like the fixed barrel and enough weight to reduce recoil .
Many simply consider them a cast off military antique .