One gun you regret selling and...

[CapnMac]

Regret selling almost all of them; the trades not so much. A ho-hum {yawn} AMT Hardballer for a '43 SC 03A3? That one was in my favor. The revolvers don't annoy much; even the Python--iut was a safe queen. Got $1200 for having only spent $400 to buy. So, all good there. Selling my Garand, the M1A, and the Inland M-1 Carbine--those hurt. Especially since all three were at a loss.

Buying? Only two stand out. One was a Navy Arms Remington-Rand 1911A1. Was $367 in 1993, was worth about $150--looked like it had been found in a barn. Slide stop pin had been drilled out and a bit of drill bit substituted; you set a straightedge on the slide and it was not planar in any dimension; had been re-blued (over park) several times, and over rust pitting, too. About half way down the right side of the barrel, there was no rifling--just smooth. Mostly went bang when trigger pulled. Mostly.
Put a GI barrel in; GI hammer, correct slide stop; and safety; and grips--still looked like junk, shot a bit better.
Took a decade, but I got nearly $200 in trade in for it buying a 1903A1.

Regretted a Taurus PT-45, but mostly because it was a flat-out lemon--the pin holes in the frame were bored out of true. After two trips back to the factory, that one became a Colt 1903, so it was not ill-spent money; just too many weeks of frustration.

 

[huntsman]

I regret trading my p-232 for a S&W 4566 not because of the new gun but because they quit making the p-232.

Back in the 90's I chose a new KGP141 over a used S&W 681 I regret that decision.

 

[WhiteFoot]

Can't bring myself to sell any gun. I don't know why. I've never sold a gun, I just keep buying them.

Only gun I regret buying is a hi point c9. It works great! But I really have no need for it, as I have other handguns, so it sits a lot. Almost traded it for a RIA 38 special one time, but the other guy backed out. Only gun I've ever considered selling, but we'll see if I ever get rid of it or not.

 

[Jason_W]

Pre Remlin Marlin 1894C.

Oops.

 

[hdwhit]

I make sure I have a well-considered reason for each gun I buy, so I rarely sell one.

I sold a Charter Arms AR-7 to a friend who just fell in love with it (but I ended up buying it back from him when he needed money), so since I still own it, I'm not sure that qualifies for this thread.

The one gun I most regret losing was the Universal Carbine that my father gave away (along with several boxes of reloaded ammunition - heedless of the liability concerns) while I was at college after we had a falling-out over my major in college.

 

[Larry Ashcraft]

A well worn, no finish, LC Smith I had retired after the lead ban. Traded it for a wall hanger Elsie, a Colt Woodsman, and a Western knife and hatchet set. A decent trade, but I wish I had my old Elsie back. Only gun I ever doubled on ducks with, more than once, too.

 

[Legionnaire]

I don't have a lot of regrets selling; I've become a bit of a horse trader--easy come, easy go. But I do regret selling my first generation Remington 700 VSSF in .308 that I had accurized by Arnold Arms. I sold it to buy another custom rifle in .260 Remington. Had I known then what I know now, I'd have kept it and sent it to Hart to have it rebarreled. It was a sweet shooter.

One I regret buying was a Charter Arms Pitbull in .40 S&W. But I bought it used and broke even on it when I sold it again. Another was a Mini-14 ranch rifle; I tinkered with it but never got it shooting better than 3-4 MOA. Sold it to help pay for my first AR and never looked back.

 

[zb338]

I have regretted selling tons of guns. I was an FFL dealer and saw some awful good stuff go
through my hands. One of them was a broom handled Mauser which I unloaded for $50. I have
a closet full of guns that I'm glad I kept.

Zeke

 

[Captcurt]

My first deer rifle as possibly the sorriest piece of crap that I have ever owned. A 6.5mm Carcano that cost me a whopping $20 in 1968. You couldn't hit a barn with it if you was in the loft. Totally worthless. I thought, This POS killed Kennedy?

In 1972 I traded a gorgeous Franchi Falconette 20ga for a new 100cc Hodaka trail bike. I cringe now when I think about it. Someone needs to kick me now.

 

[Walkalong]

Regret selling? 4" No Dash 686. 6" 586-4. Sako .22 Hornet. Benelli B76 9MM. Kimber 4" lightweight 1911 in 9MM.

Regret buying? None of them really I guess. I didn't like a few of them after I actually tried them out, but they just got sold or traded. Of those was a Colt Police Positive. Just too small for my hand and was real rough on my fingers when fired. The Colt Official Police is more my size. (I still have it.)

 

[tarosean]

No regrets buying or selling. Every gun Ive sold was for a reason. (i.e. something about it I didn't care for.)
The only gun I miss was one that was stolen some 25yrs ago.

 

[SeanSw]

Regret selling? Remington model 597. I paid $60 for one brand new with shelf wear. I know they aren't worth very much but I wasn't able to sell it for beans on the "used" market. Once my time and effort was factored in I should have just sat on it for a few decades until grandchildren came along.

Regret buying? The greatest total loss was probably a Kahr CM9. It was a preemptive CCW purchase hoping that Illinois would pass concealed carry. I paid the going rate for the gun but it was so unreliable and Kahr's customer service and warranty policy was so full of crap that I actually spent just as much money on premium ammunition testing the gun. I loved the platform and trigger but it was an immense disappointment in reliability. The way I see it, Kahr still owes me money for time and resources spent beta testing their gun. Adding insult to injury the Kahr forum was non-supportive and quick to dog pile on the victim blaming, as if I didn't have a dozen other firearms that worked perfectly in the same hands. I wouldn't buy one again on a dare.

 

[Twiki357]

Never sold a gun so no regrets there. Now buying, that’s another story. Most recent is a S&W Victory model revolver off of Gunbroker that the condition was grossly misrepresented by the seller. Then there is the Beretta that malfunctions that Beretta won’t repair without paying exorbitant fees because I bought it used even though it was only two years old.

 

[MedWheeler]

There have been a lot I've purchased after which I've had some "buyer's remorse", but my line of thinking has changed over it. Now, I only buy guns that I'm fairly certain could be turned back into what I paid for them (or nearly so) if I decide I'd rather have that. I no longer have any regrets over any of them.

I've sold two, both in 1991, I think, and I should not have, especially considering both were sold for pittances compared to what they should have gotten. But times were tough back then for a while. They were the two most-valuable guns I owned at the time, and would probably be today. One was a S&W 659 and the other was an Interarms-imported PPK/S.

 

[bassjam]

I somewhat regret selling a USP .45. A guy I used to ride with offered it to me for $500 so I bought it as my second handgun, but never could shoot it well. I ended up selling it to a buddy who knew what I paid for it for only $550. Used some of the money to buy a Buckmark and improved my handguns skills by about 100%, now I wish I had that USP back because I could probably shoot it now. I know my buddy still has it, so maybe one day he'll remember the good deal I gave him.

I regret buying a Remington 710. My parents let me pick it out as a gift when I achieved Eagle Scout, but in hindsight I should have added another $50 or whatever it was and gotten a 700. Now I have a cheap centerfire rifle with essentially a plastic bolt, that's not hardly worth anything even if I decided to sell it. The only good thing is that it shoots really good, sub moa even with the cheap scope it came with.

 

[ny32182]

Regret selling: VEPR K 762x39. It was a good solid rifle; I let it go for pretty cheap, and then right after that they announced they were going to stop importing them. Last I looked, prices were about twice what I paid, and several times more than I sold it for, and again, it was good rifle; my gripes about it were pretty minor in the grand scheme of things.

Regret buying: Glock 32. 357Sig sounds like a cool idea until you realize that logistically, it shares NOTHING with any other round that you shoot except for the primers. Too niche especially for a performance envelope that is within that of any other standard autopistol round. Also I prefer other platforms to Glock these days.

 

[mudstud]

My biggest regrets are the ones I DIDN'T buy!! For instance, there was this Colt SAA, made back in the1800's, very nice condition, all original, nickel, FULLY engraved, ivory handles with longhorn steer heads carved into them, sold to a Texas Ranger, with factory letter, the gun was as built by Colt. Still have nightmares over that one! LOL.

 

[HOWARD J]

I regret selling a Rem 700 in 6 MM Rem
I sold it when it started to fire as I took off the safety.
I should have had it repaired --oh well

 

[22-rimfire]

My biggest regrets are the ones I DIDN'T buy!!

Have a few of those myself. They say that there is always another one, but that isn't true at the price point you had an opportunity to purchase at. Why would someone pay $50,000 for a SAA owned by Gary Cooper?

 

[Vonderek]

I regret selling a 1943 byf P08 Luger. I made a little more than I paid for it but wish I still had it. The one I regret buying was a .38 Charco Undercover. After several trips to the factory to make it right it still was an unworkable POS. Fortunately I didn't pay a lot for it.

 

[JeffG]

I had a Harrington Richardson Shikari in 45/70. I sold it in hard times.

 

[stchman]

Believe it or not, I regret selling my Taurus PT1911SS. Gun was really accurate and felt good to shoot.

 

[Deanimator]

That can easily be replaced if you want to. I never thought Colt would stop making DA revolvers either. But of course now we have the new Cobra.

Not so easily, at least not locally in NE Ohio. This just isn't a good place for used nice handguns anymore, not even at any of the shows I've attended in the last few years.

The OGCA is the place for that sort of thing, but since they moved halfway across the state, I let my membership lapse.

 

[wanderinwalker]

This buyers remorse happens to me all the time... buying a computer, buying a TV, new camera, guns, knives, art, more clothing, another flash light, even a higher end cell phone.... It all relates to acquiring stuff that I don't even need. It must be a personal flaw. It goes away. However, I was kicking myself for getting a keyboard (and case) for my new tablet computer after getting it home.... seemed like a good idea at the store. Except.... the reason I might carry the tablet is not to write long dissertations, but for it's lightness and usefulness when I travel light. Honestly, the Kindle app is its dominant role as I like the screen resolution better than a regular Kindle. The keyboard made it weight as much as a laptop and I already have two laptop computers. Not at all comfortable reading in bed as a Kindle. But with the keyboard, I will likely leave the laptop at home for one and two day trips and not have to worry about whether or not I have a wifi connection at the hotel.

If you want to talk about agonizing over expensive purchases, I'm a bicyclist when the weather is nice and I'm not shooting. (Ironically I tend to shoot more during the winter and rainy days.) My go-to road bicycle cost more than a decent used Anschutz 54 match gun! Agonizing over the price difference between a Ruger SR1911 and a Colt is trivial after that experience...

And I'll likely have more guilt when I retire the bicycle than I've ever felt trading and selling guns.

 

[Nanook]

I used to own an H&K P7. Back then IL didn't have concealed carry and wouldn't have it for 20 years yet. I really liked the gun, but decided to sell it to fund another gun.
I wish I had it back since we now have concealed carry. They've also doubled in price over the years, if not tripled.