lever gun prices skyrocket

[farmbif]

ive visited a few gun shops in past week just to see whats what. there was a big gun show in Knoxville last weekend and the least expensive lever gun was $1000
thats for a post 64 30-30 winchester that was a shooter for sure.
at one of the gun shops I saw a little handgun I would not mind having and asked if they might want to take a trade. when I suggested maybe a marlin 30-30 the guy behind the counter got very excited and started making me offers well north of $500 without even seeing the gun. then. a little looking on gun broker the prices are way up there for everything I looked at in marlins and winchesters.
has anyone noticed this in your area?

[jonp]

I sure have. Both down south and in the North East. Levers up there were a dime a dozen not long ago and prices quite reasonable. Last year when I was home a very beat up 30-30 was tagged over $600 when I wouldn't have given over $150 for it considering the condition. I have no idea when levers got so steep which is too bad as I'd love to get a couple like a 40-65/45-60 or 405.

[huntinlever]

What do you guys think is driving it? (I mean, obviously supply and demand, but what is the underlying reason?)

[Txcowboy52]

Prices on lever guns have been thru the roof in my neck of the woods for a couple of years now. If you find a decent one for $1000.00 around here you better jump on it or it will be gone !! I wish I knew what was driving the price up.

[slam45]

guys, thanks to slow Joe our money is worthless... life in the former land of plenty is going to get real different very soon... today the buying power of a $ is melting faster than the snow...

[beemer]

That's not what the guy told me that wanted to buy my 1895ss. Prices are crazy around here too. Most anything decent is around $1000. Price a decent old mil-surp, saw a #4 mk2 in good shape for $1100. Price a new truck, it ain't just firearms. The government is trying to take what you have by inflation.

[Good Cheer]

Was wanting to try out a cast boolit .27 lever action using 30-30 brass reloaded with 6.8SPC dies, making the necks long enough to hold lots of lube grooves. Price of a suitable lever gun pushed costs over the edge and cancelled the project... the molds and dies were sold off. Heavy sigh.

[Bad Ass Wallace]

Good ones are getting few & far between. My last purchase was $AU400 for a 32/20 with no sights and no magazine and a big chip out of the forend. Fortunately after a barrel clean-up, sorceing the missing parts I have a brilliant shooter.

[Rockindaddy]

Its too bad Winchester cheapened their 1894 in 1964! They were a well made rifle but instead of raising their prices, they cheapened their product. Pre 64' 94 Winchesters are a classic and are becoming collectors items. Its just like when they decided to reproduce the 1886 Browning designed Winchester. Instead of tooling up in house and CNC machine the intricate parts of an 86', they had the Japanese make them. Having several 1886 Winchesters already and shooting Bambi for many years with them; I looked at the Mikarou 86' Winchester. Almost barfed!!!! The lawyer tang slide safety where the original model desgination should appear had an ugly useless lump! For over 100 years the half cock safety notch on the hammer has worked just fine!!! Having a working gunshop for many years I have welded up the tangs on the Japanese 86' Winchesters and recut the original markings into the tang and refinished the receivers. The owners went and dragged them all over the West Virginia and Pennsylvania woods. The Marlin is a fine rifle that allows for the mounting of a scope over the receiver as the gun side ejects. With Marlin going out of business and Ruger maintaining the high quality standards Marlin put into their rifles the price of new rifles has gone up. So the existing Marlins in circulation have now gone up. The moron in the White House who keeps printing more and more money and giving it away has not helped !!! The inflation they have caused; now we see real estate, automobiles, and guns to go up in price! Spend the money once and weep! The old lever guns will never get any cheaper.

[Kenstone]

Why...
The demise of Marlin, with Henry taking over...
jmo,
.

[scattershot]

I just looked at a new Ruger/Marlin 336 and I can tell you, it was a beautiful piece of work. Fit and finish was outstanding. $450 dollar rifle, but they want north of $1200 for it. No, thanks.

[beechbum444]

The underlying reason..1) the new group of shooters and collectors never knew the days of $300 JM Marlins and Winnys....Any market price is set with a seller putting a high price put there and seeing who will pay that price.....The new buyers are willing to pay that price and ....there you go.....at least thats my theory

[Outpost75]

What do you guys think is driving it? (I mean, obviously supply and demand, but what is the underlying reason?)

Simple fear. People are worried about Biden banning semis and high cap mags, so they hedge their bets with Cowboy guns.

Good luck confiscating the ARs. Sure recipe for Civil War 2.

[openbook]

The underlying reason..1) the new group of shooters and collectors never knew the days of $300 JM Marlins and Winnys....Any market price is set with a seller putting a high price put there and seeing who will pay that price.....The new buyers are willing to pay that price and ....there you go.....at least thats my theory

I was going more this direction on this question... Of course inflation has kicked prices on a lot of stuff up double, but the stories here are showing levers going up 4-6 times in price. I think the new shooters spend all their money on the "cool" guns and when they get tired of burning ammo at the range, they're ready to spend "big boy money" on a lever gun. And as beechbum said, they don't know that they shouldn't all cost north of $1000.

[racepres]

Its too bad Winchester cheapened their 1894 in 1964! They were a well made rifle but instead of raising their prices, they cheapened their product. Pre 64' 94 Winchesters are a classic and are becoming collectors items. Its just like when they decided to reproduce the 1886 Browning designed Winchester. Instead of tooling up in house and CNC machine the intricate parts of an 86', they had the Japanese make them. Having several 1886 Winchesters already and shooting Bambi for many years with them; I looked at the Mikarou 86' Winchester. Almost barfed!!!! The lawyer tang slide safety where the original model desgination should appear had an ugly useless lump! For over 100 years the half cock safety notch on the hammer has worked just fine!!! Having a working gunshop for many years I have welded up the tangs on the Japanese 86' Winchesters and recut the original markings into the tang and refinished the receivers. The owners went and dragged them all over the West Virginia and Pennsylvania woods. The Marlin is a fine rifle that allows for the mounting of a scope over the receiver as the gun side ejects. With Marlin going out of business and Ruger maintaining the high quality standards Marlin put into their rifles the price of new rifles has gone up. So the existing Marlins in circulation have now gone up. The moron in the White House who keeps printing more and more money and giving it away has not helped !!! The inflation they have caused; now we see real estate, automobiles, and guns to go up in price! Spend the money once and weep! The old lever guns will never get any cheaper.

Oh...IDK...there is a bunch of real estate between the pre-64 and the Japanese MFG Winny!!
I own a 1951, and a 1982-83.. I would have a hard time trading one for the other!!
tho I do Not want AE/Rebound hammer/Safety...

[MrWolf]

Noticed it for awhile now. Seen the prices on MarlinOwners? Wow. First time I saw those kinds of prices, I thought the seller was nuts until folks were buying them.
Ron

[pietro]

.

It's not just leverguns..................


The real reason is that the dollar had an average inflation rate of 3.93% per year between 1964 and today, producing a cumulative price increase of 873.66%.


This means that today's prices are 9.74 times as high as average prices since 1964, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics consumer price index.


A dollar today only buys 10.270% of what it could buy back then.


When I was a newlywed in 1965, a loaf of white bread was less than $0.20, compared to $2-$3 today.


Used cars in good shape were readily had for $300-$350


I bought my home in 1973 for $22K - today I'm paying taxes on it for an evaluation (from the municipality) of $360K


Personally, I see no end to it in my lifetime.

.

[beemer]

Simple fear. People are worried about Biden banning semis and high cap mags, so they hedge their bets with Cowboy guns.

Good luck confiscating the ARs. Sure recipe for Civil War 2.

More to that than meets the eye, Appalachian Assault Rifle. A 357 lever gun, lightweight, reasonable short range power, easy and fast to operate and shoot, load it without putting it out of action and inconspicuous. You can have a matching revolver too. It is timeless, the concept worked in the 1800's and still works today. What's not to like ?

A 1894c and a Speed Six, what a great combo.

[freakonaleash]

I only buy old lever guns . I never see them under 1k. Old 86 shooter grade goes 25 to 3k. 1881 marlin shooters are 2.5k and up. M93s can still be found at 1.5k
Caliber makes quite a difference in price. 38 55 and 32 40 are more expensive and hard to find. 30 30s are everywhere. 86s and old marlin 95s in 45 70 are very expensive too.

[dverna]

Simple fear. People are worried about Biden banning semis and high cap mags, so they hedge their bets with Cowboy guns.

Good luck confiscating the ARs. Sure recipe for Civil War 2.

I had "backed up" my small arsenal of AR's (only acquired for when the SHTF) with a number of lever action rifles. But at my age, I have decided to thin my herd of lever actions. I will keep a couple but will likely be dead or close to it but the time AR's are banned...and they will be.