Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Savage Collectors Crazy gunshow prices

Several 1899/99”s at the gunshow this past weekend , with sone ridiculous prices. I tryed to buy a 308 e model , blond hardwood stock , tang crack, blueing wear . Asking price was 800.00,, offered him 600.00, and he was highly offended!! Saw one of the cheapest 1899 h in 30-30, 300.00 dollars. There wasnt a sq. Inch of that rifle that wasnt messed up . Stock had enough pins and nails to build a small house. Reciever drilled of center, on top, plus a few different size holes in side. Forearm spljt and missing a big chunk, etc.
And probably to top it off , a guy had a couple of older 1899 and 4 or 5 Winchester 92 and 94’s. They had all been in a fire , Im guessing in a safe. All of them looked like someone tried case hardening on all of them, and failed miserably! He told me I could have any of them for a thousand apiece!!
I did end up buying a 308 model C , never owned a clip model. Metal nice, wood could use refinishing, no cracks. $600.00

Around here the dealers just take em from one show to the next, never selling any by the looks of the tags. Sounds like a good deal on the 99C though!

Looks to me like those guys get to keep their 99s.

I guess its a good deal Fireball . Never really paid much attention to them, except one in 284 I passed up a few years ago for 1000.00, with xtra magazine and some ammo . Should have got that one.
Kinda looking for a 20” 308 , this rifle feels sort of “clubby “ in my hand.

Time for some elbow grease and Tru-Oil

Some guys just like to go to the shows because they are social and fun. You get to hang out with other like-minded people. Bunch of gun geeks in a sea of gun geeks. People that really want to sell guns take them to auction houses or put them on Gunbroker.

As far as the guns go at gun shows, a lot of guys are there for other reason than to sell their guns, because they are retired and don't really need the money, so they put their "don't really want to sell it" price on them and if they sell, they sell, if they don't they don't. And if they don't that gives them a great excuse to go get a table at the next gun show and so on and so on...

Around here, guns aren't selling to well, just ammo and reloading stuff! Knives are real slow. My buddy just sells ammo. And does pretty well.

I hear you. The guy that was offended by my offer wasnt over 40, and I see him at alot of the shows in Idaho . When I mentioned to him the long tang crack, his statement was , 'they all do that'. I went over and bought the 99C immediately after that and paraded right in front of him. Told him I bought it for 600 w/o any cracks !
It was a good show Saddlering , and I sold around 500.00 in ammo, mostly hard to get and vintage stuff. 250 Savage, and 300 Savage big sellers, along with some 350 Rem mag, 32-40 etc.
Sold 3 rifles, 2 handguns, and brought home the 99C, and a ( you will love this ) Win. 94 Saddle ring carbine in 30 WCF,and a beautiful 1953 Rem 721 in 300 H&H. I posted pics of that in the new Remington fans column .
Fun stuff !

Yeah, I see that. And if that's their ojective I have no problem with it at all. I frankly have no issue with overpriced firearms at gunshows as they usually fail to grab my attention and are quickly forgotten. And if guys are going to shows for reasons of socializing and having fun then more power to them. I'm certainly nobody for finding fault with that and, if I ever happen to leave a show feeling frustrated and angry, then I'll see that as a serious reason for reconsidering the choices I make. Life is too short for getting pissed off at this sort of thing.

I have lived all over the country and EVERY place has a group of dealers that are exactly like this. Once I get to know them, I just pass by their tables without even looking at their stuff. Already seen it all 10x over.

We all go to shows because you just never know. Just when it seems that it’s a total waste, you find something worthwhile.

Thats true RAS, I guess you learn what dealers to put on ignore !

I knew a nasty assed dealer that used to show and sometimes had things that interested me. He was known as Fat Paul. No schit. He had a sour disposition and was short and rude to talk to. He acted like he was up here, and everyone on the other side of the table was down there. I learned to just walk by his table. I don't care what he had I didn't want one.

Last time I seen him he was all jaundiced and I figured he was on his way out.

some of these guys are trying to get collector prices for modified guns. They probably don't realize that they are modified and don't rate collector prices. And then some of them are just jerks.

Alot of the guys that do the shows around here, set up to get the deals, before the show opens.
A hell of alot of dealing go's on before the show opens, or at set up the night before.

Same here. And the last hour of the show, everyone running around trying to make a deal (me included). Its like a shark feeding frenzy !! I bought that 99C in 308 at end of the show, guy was packing up .

I've found this to be especially true at collector shows. Sometimes I've sold more before the public was let in than I sold during the rest of the show.