I have been selling off firearms recently, partly because I have too many, and partly because I don't want my wife to be left with a big headache trying to get rid of what I would have left should I die. She knows very little about firearms, and even less about how to sell them and what they are likely worth.
As to the claim that firearms are an 'investment'- assume that you own 50 firearms, and that you bought them right, over a period of 20 years, and they all have appreciated, say at an average of $100 per gun. You sell them all, and realize a gain, over a period of 20 years, of $5000.
$5K, over a long period of time, would hardly be considered a significant investment. The reality, based upon my experience, is that for every firearm that I sell at a profit, 4 are sold near break-even, or at a loss. None of the firearms I own are safe queens- they are all shot, hunted with, and enjoyed. In every instance, they have caused the additional expenditure for ammo, reloading components, scopes, etc., at an amount that far exceeds the value of each individual firearm.
So, maybe the more correct way of describing firearm ownership, rather than using the word 'investment', would be 'hobby', or 'recreational equipment', or 'personal protection expense'.
If you think if it as having rented them for that period, it doesn't seem so bad what you can, on average, get back for them when you sell them. After all, you actually make use of them, and enjoy their ownership, unlike a securities portfolio.
