Tips For Getting Your Rifles and Guns Appraised
It doesn’t matter if you are a new or old gun owner, a season expert in firearms, or the recipient of a family heirloom gun, everyone can benefit understanding and knowing the value of their firearm. By knowing the value of your firearm, it can help you immensely in the process of buying or selling a gun, as well as just simply help you understand one of your assets a little bit better. Some people will go to the lengths of even having their firearms appraised to find the true market value.
If you have a firearm that you would like to know the value of, there are a few things that you should look into for your specific gun or firearm. The value of a firearm is primarily made up of the following variables, make and model, the type of gun that is owned, the action and caliber of the firearm, how rare it is, and the condition of the gun! These are all things that with some research can give you a fairly accurate idea of how valuable your firearm is. Let’s break each of these variables down so that we can understand each one a little bit better.
Make and Model:
The make and model of your gun can play a large part in how much it is worth, whether it is a rifle, pistol, long gun or anything else, the gun itself will reflect how much was spent on producing the firearm as a whole. Some popular firearm brands that have stood the test of time include Smith & Wesson, Remington, Sturm, Ruger & Co., SIG Sauer, and more. These are brands that are well known for producing high quality, accurate, reliable firearms for use.
Type of Firearm:
The type of firearm that you own can also affect the value of your firearm. It’s possible that in whatever brand gun you have that a rifle is going to be of more value than a handgun, or vice versa! Depending on all of the other variables such as make, year, action and caliber, the type of firearm also can make a difference in the value.
Year:
Year can also play a large part in determining the value of a gun. For instance Browning manufactured firearms in Belgium until the mid 70’s when they moved most of their operations to Japan. In today’s market, a Belgium made browning holds significantly more value than a Japanese made browning. Another example is the Colt 1911. These pistols have been in production since the early 1900’s but knowing the year the pistol was manufactured can tell a story about your firearm. If your pistol was manufactured in 1942 it is considered a World War II era gun which can increase the value by thousands of dollars. Many companies including Colt and Browning have online databases that can tell you the year of your gun based on the serial number alone.
Action and Caliber:
The action of a gun refers to the part of a firearm that you load as well as the area that ejects the empty bullet casing. This could refer to a lever action firearm, pump action, bolt action, and semi-automatic. The caliber of a firearm refers to the diameter of the “bore” this is generally measured in hundredths of an inch or in millimeters.
How Rare the Gun Is:
This may seem obvious, but how rare your firearm is plays a large role in how much your gun is worth! If hundreds of thousands of the gun you own are also out in circulation, anyone could buy one fairly easily and the value of your firearm isn’t going to be as much. In the opposite way, if you own a gun that does not exist in many other places, and there are not many others out being bought and sold, you have something that holds more value and the worth of your firearm will directly reflect that fact!
Condition:
A simple concept for most firearms owners, the better you take care of your gun and firearm, the more it will hold its value and worth. If you are reckless with your firearm, the body will show it, there might be more wear and tear than normal, or maybe the accuracy and dependability has been compromised. Another factor that plays into the condition is also how many times the gun has been shot. When your gun has been well used the wear will show, even if you take good care of your firearm, there will always be wear and tear that incurs.
So now that you know some of the various variables that directly relate to the value and market value of your firearm, what are some tips that you can be a part of to see the highest value for your firearm? Many of the different things that an appraiser will look at to accurately evaluate your firearm are things that are out of your control, but there is one thing that you can control, take good care of your guns. Taking care of your rifles and firearms will definitely help them hold value. Clean them regularly, polish them, and be sure to care for any scratches or nicks that might be present. If you are going to invest in a firearm, do your research, invest in a gun that is going to hold its value, that has been proven reliable through it’s brand.
We hope that you learned a little bit more about firearms and appraisals, if you are looking for a new opportunity to invest in some new firearms for your collection, check out our latest auctions – we have tons of great, high quality guns up for auction today!