used reproduction revolver part

[bigstick6017555]

Over the years i have found neglected repro. revolvers for reasonable prices to buy and recondition to a usable condition, and make a small profit on resale. It was more less a hobby i liked and could make a few dollars in the process. Today I can buy new parts, cheaper than used, and some times badly neglected, and damaged guns are asking as much as a used gun in good working order. These auction sights and fleabay are crazy prices. I have seen used Pietta 1851's go for more than new, and the brass framed guns are just as crazy. It is getting a lot harder to find a reasonable deal. I know some local gunsmiths that let me know if they get a gun in they are not interested in so i can look at it to make an offer. Keep checking pawn shops and yard sales. Have even now and then run small ads in local papers. Back in the 70's and 80's you could find them for 50-60 bucks. Signs of the time i guess. Rant over, just wondering what some of you are doing.

 

[expat_alaska]

For the most part I concur with your observations. I frequent the Ebay BP revolver parts section regularly (every couple of days) looking for good deals. I am on SS and have very limited "mad money" funds at my disposal, so my purchases are infrequent. There are good deals to be had: for example, presently there are two listings for Pietta 1851 Navy .36 plain (unengraved) cylinders at $45 and $60 respectively. VTI and Taylor's are asking ~$100 for them. Since Ebay no longer allows complete guns to be offered, some sellers have resorted to disassembling them and stating that they are parts to be sold as a lot, presenting them all in the same photo. Some day Ebay will catch on and disallow that form of listing. The listings that have exorbitant prices for parts are just gold diggers fishing for uninformed buyers. Most say "used" but look like new and probably come from new guns bought from sources like MidwayUSA (et al) during a sale, and just disassembled to sell piecemeal.

My other peeve is about Gun Broker. In the past year or so in the BP revolver section, there are very few used repro guns for sale as the smaller dealers are using GB as a proxy website to sell their wares, and always use a single stock photo from the manufacturer website to display their wares. Very obvious when one sees a listing that has a firm price and also states that the are X amount left in their stock at that price.

Another thing is that there are very many sellers of used revolvers who think they have a gem in the raw and ask pie-in-the-sky prices for them. Presently there is a listing on GB for an Uberti 1848 2nd Model Dragoon (date code AP/1986) for $525. It was original listed at auction for $575 minimum bid for 2 weeks, and the seller is an antiques dealer with no other guns offered on the seller's site. I have no idea where they derive their asking prices.

https://www.gunbroker.com/Item/843663771

There are some good deals to be had on places like ProxyBid, but it is a combination online/onsite auction house. Normally, an item is put up online 2 weeks prior to the onsite auction, and bids will be accepted online until the hammer falls. The kicker is that if you want to bid online, you must supply PB with all of your CC info, and I am a bit leery of that in this day and age.

As I like G.U. (Gregorelli & Uberti) guns, here is a rare find:

https://www.proxibid.com/Firearms-M...REVOLVER-w-WOOD-STOCK/lotInformation/50850014

With that, I am off topic.

Regards,

Jim

 

[frydaddy96]

Jim,
That is a sweet '51 but not interested in handing over my CC info plus a holding fee + 18% on top final price.

I agree, there are a lot of overpriced replicas on GB, and surprising that folks will pay that. I've gotten a couple good deals on wayward BP revolvers needing a good home and a couple not so good, after receiving and inspecting them. An ASM Walker that was a good bit more beat up than described but added to my gunsmithing skill building. The other a Navy Remmy with a frame that appears to be ever so slightly bent from Guido the assembler attempting to get the barrel seated. The front sight is off to the left a few degrees and the frame appears to be angled to the right a few degrees but it shoots with a POI to the left of POA.