Custom rifle didn't sell; take best offer?

I would probably sell it to the gentleman who is sweating to get it. You are pretty close on price, and as nice as it is, it's just a gun. Your memories of your father will live on with the guns you're keeping, and if you'll never use it, take the $$. It's a beautiful rifle!

I'd probably sell it to the gent that was offering if it were me. Of course I didn't know your father. Whether he was a "trader/wheeler dealer" vs the type that would "only sell at a profit and never lost on a deal" would probably heavily influence my decision.

I'd have taken the $1850. That rifle is VERY limited as to who would want it. Who knows what it would be worth in 10 years. It might bring $5000 to the right person or be worthless. I don't think it would appeal to younger shooters and the guys who would appreciate it are dying off every day.

Another option would be to have to rebarreled/rechambered to another more practical cartridge. I don't know what options would work with that bolt face

I'll add that if you feel hung up on price, have it rebarreled in something else you can use.

I would probably take the money, as it is fairly close to your minimum, and wildcats tend to really bring down the price of a rifle.

I also can't imagine selling anything that belonged to my father, but then, he left very little behind. Perhaps if I had dozens of his old possessions I would feel differently.

Not sure how selling the rifle for what someone wants to pay is dishonoring your father. He’s happy now and doesn’t care. If you feel a connection to the rifle either learn to love it or make it into something you can use and will love. If you’re set on selling it, take what the market offers and move on.

It’s worth what one person will pay and the other person will take. I try not to get hung up on what I paid for something or what someone says it is worth until I’m ready to sell and someone else is making me an offer. At this particular time at this particular place you know what the best offer is. Take it or try again later and somewhere else.

Also: GB auctions generally do better when you start at a penny with no reserve, or start at your actual minimum selling price with no reserve. If you knew what you’d actually take as a minimum price, why start the bidding low and have an undisclosed reserve? Personally I don’t even bother bidding on that type of auction because the seller usually has an unrealistic view of what the gun is actually worth on the open market and the reserve is never met. Waste of time.

That's a beautiful custom build. The audience for such a rifle is very, very, very small. Young shooters couldn't care less and guys who would want this are either retired or pushing up daisies.

tbs said:

That's a beautiful custom build. The audience for such a rifle is very, very, very small. Young shooters couldn't care less and guys who would want this are either retired or pushing up daisies.

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That really is a gorgeous rifle. Part of me is saying "that's a screaming deal!" and wishing I had the money floating around.

The rest of me, of course, is asking "What the hell are you going to do with a .17 caliber wildcat?"

I think I would take his offer for the reasons mentioned above.

Custom rifles in wildcat chamberings can be tough to move.

$1850 seams like a fair price. If you don't think so just list it again with the starting bid at your reserve price. I honestly very rarely ever bother to bid on anything with a reserve price. I don't like playing guessing games.

1) You don't dishonor your father by selling a rifle under its max potential value. You honor him in a million other ways in how you live your life. I'd bet if he had a say in it, he'd rather have another day with you far more than he'd care about $400 on a rifle...

2) It's a specialty item in a common man's market. Gunbroker won't be the best market to get the best value for something like that in the first run. If you're saying market analysis shows it should be bringing $2,000 to $8,000, then I wouldn't dick around with $1850... Why be the lowest guy below the market?

3) How desperate are you? Money and Time are currencies of exchange: If the dude offering $1850 is sweating for it today, he probably will be sweating for it a month from now too, or someone else like him will be, otherwise, he wouldn't be sweating for it... If you NEED the Money now and don't have Time to wait, then take the best offer. If you have Time to spare and want or need the most Money you can get, then if your market analysis is correct, I'd put this thing on the market wherever you found the $2000-$8,000 sales, and wait around to get an offer for whatever value this particular individual should bring relative to those other sales (is it more or less desirable than the $2,000 one? Is it more or less desirable than the $8k one?).

tbs said:

That's a beautiful custom build. The audience for such a rifle is very, very, very small. Young shooters couldn't care less and guys who would want this are either retired or pushing up daisies.

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^ This is all true, by and large, so it's a little difficult to believe v, but if v is true, then I wouldn't take under $2k unless that same market analysis proves the rifle he has is less desirable or in worse condition than the $2k comp he is citing in this v analysis.

Trey Veston said:

it seems they go for from $2000 to $8000

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Value of anything is what someone is willing to pay at that moment in time. It could change higher/lower next day/week/month/year/decade.

If I left something to my son and he didn't have a use for it, I rather he sold/traded it for something he would enjoy using. If I left him something that would appreciate over time (Like a beach house we bought for him), he better keep it and let it appreciate over decades ...

But that's me.

I, along with many, many others would never have known it was for sale, because we filter auctions with a reserve.

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If I'm reading you correctly, you have no desire to put this rifle to use. If so, I would have sold that to the gentlemen who offered you the $1850.

When you are on a gun forum and it is an obscure chambering to the audience. Imagine how small your audience is going to be on people willing to put bids on it. I presume, this is a triple deuce necked down to 17 cal, which sounds like a lot of fun making pink mist out of rabbits, feral cats, squirrels, rockchucks, coyotes, etc., but can't say I would be all interested in keeping it around.

I've always heard that wildcats typically bring less money than standard SAAMI cartridges. Much of it due to a reduction in interested parties with the know how to produce ammo for said rifle.

With that said, that's a pretty rifle that I'm sure your father was proud of. Do you have reloading dies to add with the sale of the rifle? That might help with raising your offered price.

Nice looking rifle, but if you can’t get the ammo to feed it at Walmart on a Sunday afternoon, you need go back to GunJoker and do the “No Reserve”/penny auction - a/k/a letting the market set the price. IOW, it will sell for what it will sell.

Otherwise, just hide it away in your attic for your grandkids to find after you’re gone.

$1850 seems to be a fair price.

Trey Veston said:

I contacted the gentleman in Oregon and agreed to sell it for the $1850.

It's going to a good home and will be appreciated.

Never found dies for it. Found two sets of dies for .17 Javelin but no rifle in that caliber.

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Might be just the thing for him and his kids to enjoy.

You did the right thing by selling. it to someone who wanted it; if someone doesn't have access to the dies, it's a beautiful piece of wood, but worthless to shoot.

start at your actual minimum selling price with no reserve

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In the future, yes, this^^ If it's got a starting price and I try it and don't hit the "reserve", then I stop bidding on that item. Don't play games with the auctions. If you have a minimum price in mind start the auction there.