Best Gun Auction site is ?

[baileyboy]

I'm trimming my collection of rifles. Have sold several at the LGS and am now thinking of putting some on Net auction sites.

You folks with experience have any guidance on which you have had the most success with ?

[Pablo 5959]

Why not post them here?

[mikwat]

So I don't have a lot of experience selling but I have plenty experience buying online, so take all this with a grain of salt.

Gunbroker: Probably the biggest. Never sold there. You'll likely get more bidders/offers, but you'll also have more competition with similar items. Not sure what kind of fees are associated with selling there.

Armslist: Craigslist for guns. Good for setting up local private transfers, but not much more in my opinion. My experience selling on here is that you'll get plenty of lowball offers from seedy characters. Maybe that's just a by product of my location, not sure.

Proxibid: I believe they only work with auction houses, not 100% sure on that as I've never looked at selling there. Many nice items, but a lot of hidden fees.

I've believe some states have a firearms board, that may be worth looking into.

[Shawlerbrook]

Don’t know about selling , but I bought quite a few off GB. Got to believe it’s the best, because of it’s reputation and the number of eyes you will have viewing your guns. I never used armslist, but have heard some horror stories. I would be very careful if doing the ftf sale thing.

[Beerd]

Why not post them here?

good idea

[Conditor22]

Posting here you need to list a price, on an auction site people will bid the price up to where they are selling for (hopefully).

remember, you can't post here and anywhere else at the same time.

[woody1]

I've bought from Gunbroker and one no one has listed yet, Auction Arms or as it's called now, Gunauction. Both IMO good sites.

[dragon813gt]

List them here or other gun forums first. Use GunBroker as a last resort. Their fees have gone up a good bit over the years. Enough that the FFL I use no longer offers the service of selling a gun for you on GB. I realize they’re providing a service but like eBay their fees are excessive IMO.

[baileyboy]

Thanks. I don't meet the criteria for posting here and the audience is very small.

[jmort]

I have only bought off Gun Broker
But, I would sell there. I use three gun shops and they all will ship for me.
I will probably thin the heard soon, and if I cannot get enough on a forum, Gun Broker for me.

[Jedman]

If you want to sell auction style, Gunbroker is easy to get set up, post pics, and is probably followed by the most viewers. I have sold about a dozen guns on GB and have had few problems, a close friend has had some problems with people not paying, bidding and then changing there minds and complaining but there are rules that must be followed.
If you do decide to post a gun for sale there, make sure you have good pics, mention any problems and show in pics if possible, list everything that you know about the gun as you will get questions asked. I see people list guns sometime with virtually no information and poor pics, I don't see how they think anyone would even consider bidding on such a listing ?
Once you consider the fees, bother to package the gun properly, and what your absolute bottom price you would except make that your starting bid price.

If you want to sell outright for a price there are good sites with lower fees such as gunsamerica and gunsinternational. I have bought and sold guns on those sites also and have had no problems.
People will naturally make you offers less than your asking price so be prepared for that.

I have actually seen more than once where a seller will have a gun listed on gunbroker where it is listed as a auction or buy it now for a fixed price and seen bidders go way beyond the buy it now price once they start a bidding war. Doesn't make sense but I have seen it on guns that are really hard to find or in high condition.

Jedman

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Over lots of years I've both sold and bought on Gunbroker and Auctionarms, approximately an equal amount of business on each. I have heard others say, and have come to agree with them, that if you want to sell a gun, intend to price it at the going market value or higher, but are in no hurry to put it on Gunbroker. As already stated, you'll find many more guns for sale there of the same make and model you are trying to sell, so it's a good idea to do your own little survey, look at the other guns for sale on the site like your gun, and price yours accordingly. On the other hand, they say that Auctionarms is the place to sell one if you need to sell it quickly and are willing to accept a reasonable price for it.
The only (2) deadbeat auction winners I've had were on Auctionarms. One feature that Auctionarms has that Gunbroker lacks is a moving picture screen of some of the most interesting firearms listed that have auctions ending in a couple of hours or sooner. Maybe something that you were or weren't looking for, but when you see it it's irresistible. I've purchased several on Auctionarms that way.

There are several types of auctions, but when I'm selling I use the "standard" method, which is to decide what the minimum price is that I wish to sell it at, and list it at that price. As also previously stated, if the gun is exceptional for some reason, like condition of model, the bidding will often go well about the price you set. I really dislike "reserve" auctions in which the seller has set a price that is known only to himself and the auction site, and unless that reserve price is reached or surpassed the gun will not be sold. You are mostly bidding in the dark until that reserve price is reached, and if it's not known and you bid considerably more, that bid will stand as the current price, even though the reserve was much less. There's also the "make an offer" auction where you are invited to submit an offer to the owner and at the end of a stated period of time the gun CAN be awarded to the highest offer, but usually isn't. These auctions are often accompanied by a "buy it now" price, so you have a pretty good idea of how much of an offer it will take to get the gun -- but no guarantee unless you offer very close to the buy it now price.

Auctions that are actually outright sales are becoming more frequently used. For example, I recently bought a used S&W Mod. 10 on one of the auctions for $350. It had a "buy it now" price of $350, plus $30 shipping, and had been there for 10 days without any action. You'll find some of the big distributors offering new guns the same way, many with a starting bid of $x,xxx and a buy it now price of $x,xxx + $1.00. You could use these same techniques, if you wish to do so.

One other caution comes to mind --beware of the "10 minute" or "15 minute" rule that comes into play at the end of the auction. You may have posted a high bid thinking that makes you the winner, but during this last time period of the auction every subsequent bid will start the 10 or 15 minute clock running again, allowing more time for a competitor bidder to out bid you. So, during that final time period you have to sit in front of your computer screen ready to up your bid if necessary to win the item. Entirely different than e-bay, where when the end time is up, it's over. I've seen a couple of auctions run another hour or two due to the 15 minute rule, and the final bid be well above what was supposed to be the last bid.

I wish you success in your sales. I think you might consider offering your guns to the forum membership for a few days, unless you're in desperate need of selling them. You can set a certain date as an ending time, and then ask a Moderator to close your "Swapping and Selling" thread when the offer's time expires. You might be surprised, as there is a wide range of interests here. Beware-- it is true that a rule exists that if you offer them here they can't be listed elsewhere at the same time. Real problem if someone here says, "I'll take it", and it sold on Gunbroker an hour earlier.

[jonp]

I dont go near Gunbroker after a very unsatisfactory experence with them and a seller.
I have bought a number of guns through gunauction and recommend them

[shtur]

Most internet sites charge between 4 - 9% for selling your gun. That's very affordable, since most gun stores charge between 10 - 15%, and the uppity ones charge 20%. That being said, the internet sites are where you keep most of the money from the gun you sold.

Selling them on this site is good if you know the amount you are comfortable with getting for your gun.