Been thinning the herd and listing a couple of guns on the classifieds. Started out with what I thought were some fair prices and have dropped them a couple times. Any lower and it will be an act of charity. Three guns I listed at more than reasonable prices since I didn't have a lot in them in the first place. Even so, many responses were kind of on the chiseling side. "How much to ship to so and so?", like that's a deal-breaker. I always figure at least $15 for shipping (seems to have been the going rate forever.) "Give me a full spec sheet on the gun." Don't own a chronograph. They seem to shoot ok, no issues. "More pics!" Post them and then never hear from the birds who requested them. On one forum, a guy needing a quick sale offered a pristine original Diana 45 for $150, shipped. Got such ridiculous questions/offers he became insulted and pulled it. What's with buyers these days? Honestly, I just looked into Auction Arms' listing policy and I could actually make a bit more, less their commission, than I could get for what I've listed the guns on the boards. I know there's a recession on, but this is plumb ridiculous.

i know what you mean....i am in the landscaping business and everyone wants "the whitehouse look with the walmart price". it seems it all about how much can i get for free....wonder if that has something to with our current congress?...ha!...sorry, didn't mean to include politics on your post. now i must admit this....when i was shopping for a new .22, i compared the pricing(including shipping) of used/demo/returned/new guns to determine which road i wanted to go down. finally, i got tired and just purchased a new gun but i never "bickered" on the pricing!!.....people are funny!!!

Guess I was just peeved this morning. One gun I'm offering is a Gamo Varmint Hunter with the scope/laser/flashlight rig. Actually a decent, accurate gun that I've only shot indoors and never even set up more than the scope. Still has the hang tag, fer crying out loud! Gun sold for $190 at Dick's (older model without the fake bull barretl) and the new ones are now $229 plus S&H. Listed at not even half that price, SHIPPED, and it's proving too much. For what I think some of these guys want to shell out, I could put it on consignment in a gun shop and come out about the same, and you know that's after 15% commission.

I need to take my high blood pressure medicine.

spendable income. hell, my gasoline bill has finally reached the size of my house payment. when i bought my diana 52 i vowed i would not spend any new money. i sold two fly rods and some camera lenses that i have not used in 10 years. i did ok with all of it but damn near gave the lenses away. 10 years ago i could have sold those lenses for three times the price. but what the heck. they were just dust collectors for me and now someone is going to give them new life and enjoy them. as for fly rods, i build them and have far more than i could ever fish. time to clean the closet. any of you guys avid fly fishermen?

being in the landscaping business, gasoline is essential for me....i currently gas bill is running about $300/week now. that really hurts the bottom line. if i try to go up on my prices, then the customers want to open the jobs up for bids. with the economy the way it is, everyone is low-balling just to get the jobs so they can have cash flow. so i have had to cut corners in other areas to make up the difference with gas cost....cheaper fertilizer, fewer chemicals, longer work days so i don't have to make as many trips, etc...times are tough but i think they are gonna get tougher before it gets better....in the meantime i have to hunker down and make the business work. the easy way to cut over-head is to reduce your workforce. i rather do it the RIGHT way. i will take a personal cut in pay before i put one of my employees in the street without a job!!!

Where are you located. I am in the same industry.

http://www.fielddirecttrees.com/

James

I don't think it's a good time to be getting rid of items. I am in buying mode. There are just too many people needing to sale now and that has created a buyers market.

James

i am located in south caroina. i am strictly a commercial account landscaper doing installs, designs, maintenance, and irrigation. my accounts include hospitals, industrial sites, banks, etc... been in it for 24 years now and the old body is starting to feel it..ha! i have never seen times this tough though. you're right about it being a "buyers" market. my wife and i were looking for retirement property last year this time and found a place we liked for $450k, we held off and the builder called several days ago and still hadn't sold it. said he would take $300k for it to get it off his books. we are considering it a little more strongly now but still cautious about tapping our retirement nestegg.

My partner is from SC. We are still blowing and going here. I shipped 13 semi loads the last 8 days. We supply many of CO's best contractors as well as direct sales to large commercial projects. Good luck with that retirement decision.

James

the used guns sales, like Ol' Man Rive, just keep rolling along. Not seeing any greater than usual traffic on the auction sites and the internet boards. Guess I'll see how my ads run until they get stale and either put them on auction or just hang on to them. Mainly getting rid of them as A) they're surplus and B) I can't really shoot them - a bit too twangy.

I have the time to scan the internet daily and watch all sales going on, first off on the Yellow and American airgun classifieds sales are down. I am not shure why Gunbroker and Auction Arms sales seem better, my only guess is that people feel they have a bit more leverage on auction sites. We like German guns go do your history about now and you will understand it all, no joking when someone steals the wheelbarrow instead of you money outside of the store then you know why history repeats itself.

I've been out of school for quite some time. Don't feel I need to do any homework. My post was not addressing German guns, specifically, just my recent experience in the sales market. If you've participated here for any length of time, you will see that this forum is not exclusive to Teutonic products. Do a search on the Discovery, for example, as well as some Chinese clones.

I cruise the sales, myself, and haven't seen a sales drop off on the Yellow. Post an ad there and see how long it takes to be shoved to the 2nd or 3rd page of listings. Perhaps a few more guns as the economy continues to sour. Some super German deals lately, especially on 48's, 52's and 54's. My complaint was about the inordinate amount of tire kicking I've received. One sale fell through because of personal problems on the buyer's part that were totally understandable - no harm, no foul. When I contacted the next in line, he asked if I could ship the rifle half way across the country for five dollars. That hasn't been possible for quite a while, at least not well packed and insured. Heck, it costs a buck and a half in gas for the round trip to UPS and back to my own house! This on a very decent gun being sold at a parts gun price. As a result, I now list the price shipping included to the CONUS.

people are hurting financially and pulling in. two years ago i would not have
hesitated to go headlong into this sport. i had some spendable income. between gasoline, a drop in income, increase in office rent, the IRS (i am being taxed out of existance) if i want to buy something i have to sell something. i think it is going to get worse.

one thing nice about our sport is that once the initial investment is made in a nice gun, scope, etc (and heck you can get in for a grand) the cost of operation is relatively cheap. problem is with most of us one gun is never
enough. i see this in fly fishing as well. guys have 20 rods and 30 reels. i have finally realized that i only fish a few of these rods and reels. i gravitate to certain favorites. i could get along with three rods i think. 4wt, 7wt and 10wt. i have been selling some off because it just got silly how
many i have. i still have three blanks that i have not built yet. sheeesh!

i also wonder if he inexpensive (not necessarily "cheap") chinese guns are having an influence on the used market as well.

anybody need any fly rods?

I hang enough stuff up in the trees, anyway, without falling into the water on top of it! My hat's off to you if you are making your own rods. Bamboo? Those are truly elegant, be they fly rods or bait casters.

I agree about the collectivitis some of us are plagued with. I'm one of those who don't hunt animals - I hunt guns. Find 'em, research 'em, buy 'em, tinker with 'em, but shoot 'em? Well, I'm embarrased to admit it, but I've actually shot about a quarter of the guns I've owned (we're talking rimfires, though). Lots of safe queens in my kingdom. Lately, it's been if I want to buy one then I have to sell one (or more, depending upon the price). Not just due to the economy but more along the lines of a personal collecting perspective.

One thing's for sure. The internet has made collecting all too easy. It's worse than a gun show. Every day there is always a bargain or two turning up. Acquiring isn't the hard part. It's resisting!

I've been looking as a buyer rather than a seller, and what I find is just the opposite. I find that most sellers are listing prices that are not very far removed from full retail prices. For example, I don't see why I should be expected to pay more for an RWS gun than I can get a refurb, demo, whatever you want to call it, from Umarex.

I just missed - and I mean JUST - someone selling several guns on the Yellow. One was a Diana 24 in .22, a "safe queen", for $110. The other was a Benjamin 392LE with two scratches in the stock and a $35 drop-in Super Sear for $165, shipped. The LE's were a specially stocked run of 500 that sold for over $200 a couple of years ago. His other guns were well priced, too. They went in, maybe, an hour.

Soooo Redfeather you are the reason there is such a shortage of quality guns in the Northern part of VA AHAAA!!!!! I am on to you now!

WHAT!!!! you let a model 24 in .22 get away for HOW MUCH?!?!?!
<sputtering> Why thats just wrong is what that is. I'd have gone up to $150 at least.

Jer

Nature calls.