Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Savage Collectors OT- Gunbroker vs. Guns International

I thought I'd throw this out there since a few of us monitor websites like these for interesting firearms that may occasionally pop up.

Most are at least somewhat familiar with Gunbroker and how it works. Of course it's an auction site, so you bid against others to *win* the auction. I've been struggling with photo uploading, dramatically reduced traffic, and a complete lack of technical support with Gunbroker. Their most recent round of changes must have driven off a good percentage of their sellers because Savage searches that used to yield 5 pages now get 2. Many sellers are like us, old and crotchety I guess, and probably left due to the changes thrust on them by Gunbroker. I still watch it, but I don't think my blood pressure is in any danger of exceeding safe limits while on there. Overall, the experience has really tanked from their heyday just a short time ago.

When I decided to sell some rifles for the land acquisition I looked around at other sites I'd used for buying but with an eye towards selling. Guns America was a trainwreck to use as a shopper so I never considered them for selling. I figure if they can't get their act together for buyers there's not going to be much incentive for people to shop there. Maybe I'm wrong but I can't stand that site.

One site I had used for buying was Guns International, so since I was already registered I read up on selling policy.

One major difference is all their sales require a 3 day inspection period. I think that's cool, it holds sellers accountable for accurate descriptions. Second, their photo uploading is much simpler. In fact, their entire listing process fits on a single page. It's not an auction site, it's more like an ad in the classifieds, with a set price.

You can list your firearm in a couple categories so it pops up under two searches rather than one.

So far it seems like there may be a 15 photo limit, whereas Gunbroker starts with a 4 photo limit, but then allows you to edit and add more after listing. Loading photos on Gunbroker is painfully slow and frequently times out or says "photos too large". I load all 15 photos on Guns International at the same time and they're pretty quick. One very cool feature is the G.I. site allows you to rotate, edit, and crop your photos. The crop feature eliminates a lot of distractions that may be in the photo that you don't want, like your toes or your d-ck.

Lastly, cost is a flat $12 to list a gun, taken from a credit card at the time of listing. They give you plenty of time to sell your gun, but I forget now just how long a listing lasts. Plenty anyhow. G.I. also allows you to edit your ad easily.

I've sold 8 guns so far and the people have all been really nice. The first day I listed some I got a call from a real live person at G.I. that walked me thru a couple tricks and tips to using their site. They asked if there was anything else they could help me with and told me to call if I had any questions, which I did, twice, and got help each time. I can't even get Gunbroker to answer an email question. Ever. Anyway, G.I. seems like a quality site. You might check it out if you haven't already.

I certainly share your disgust with GB! They made it so difficult for me to sell the bulk items like screws and swivel studs that I just gave up. I've sold on there for years and years and customer service was never part of their business model.

Thanks for taking the time to put this great info together. Agree with you, G.I. seems to be the better site and also seems to have higher quality items

I don't think anybody is tending shop there at all. The cows are runnin loose in the barnyard near as I can tell. They're just collecting money. I was so surprised when Guns International called just to say hey and help me get started selling.

I think you're right Keith, there's some really good product on G.I., but some of it gets expensive.

Frankly, the few guns I ever bought on online auctions were through GB and to this day I remain happy. GA and GI just aren't on my radar- I guess I got some catching up to do.

Note though: I've never sold any via online auction. The couple times I timidly ventured there, the GB protocols for doing such turned me off. I suppose I assumed the others were similar so I have lived my life fat dumb and happy not selling any guns via online auctions/mass audience venues. Lots of small stuff bought and sold via eBay, and more than a few guns bought/sold privately through classifieds such as found here on this site.

We're lucky here in this neck of the woods to have a powerful gun auction house nearby, one that draws a huge crowd for their twice monthly auctions. We're talking 300 guns each time, give or take, and audiences sufficient to make it work. Online is fun, but at the end of the day I'll take the live venue when possible. (There's one of their auctions coming up with a bodacious number of Savages in it. And another one soon that has a beautiful working Lewis Gun, complete with spare magazine pans in an Irish Army case, plus canvas cover and complete tool kit. I'm tempted to go that day just to view the gun and watch the circus.)

I have no experience as a seller on either site. I have only ever sold one firearm...ever. Once I acquire a gun, it stays in my possession until my expiration date.

As a buyer, I have acquired firearms from both GB and GI and have been happy with transactions from both. They're two different formats and each has it's own appeal.

I like GI because the items are a fixed price. You either like it and purchase, or don't and pass on it. You can also contact the seller and take a shot at haggling over the price. You don't have to get involved in an auction that may take days, or even weeks to conclude. Skeptic that I am, I'm always a bit leery of the possibility of ghost bidders inflating prices. I also like their picture and description formats. Prices, due to their fixed nature, do seem to run higher.

The thing I like most about GB is that there is a greater likelihood of catching a deal because of a less knowledgeable private seller, whereas, the sellers on GI seems more savvy as a whole. I also like GB's user watch, buy and sold lists and the ability to check history of same. I don't believe GI offers more than a current watch list, though I could be wrong.

GA is a complete waste of time as far as I'm concerned.

Funny you brought this topic up. I started really watching GI over the past two months....very nice site. I admit I haven't actually used them as a customer but the quality seems to be there and I am frustrated with the new format of GB. My FFL prefers to use GunAuction, formerly known as AuctionArms. He likes the people that run it and says they are first rate. However the traffic on that site appears to be lower, so he advertises on GB as well.

You can make the ignorance of sellers on GB work in your favor. On a couple occasions I scored fairly delectable items cheaply because they "flew under the radar" due to poor or inaccurate descriptions.

As for never selling a gun, well, I've sold more guns than what I currently own- and that's a lot. Very few of what I own/owned was for any purpose than to explore its mysteries and then move it along after I grew tired of it. Only a couple will stay 'til the end- everything else has a price. Cold hearted? Maybe, in a way, but by doing so I've had the pleasure of exploring/owning a lot more different guns in my life than I would've by hoarding every one of them. Come to think of it, that pretty well describes my relationship with women too!

I have not sold any guns for quite some time, but I still enjoy looking at all the Savage 99s and side by side shotguns on Gunsinternational. One dealer has a lot of 99s and some I have never seen before.

Savage99F358

gnoahhh, that is a great way to enjoy a hobby. I like you, keep them for a bit till I have felt its history, play with it awhile and then let someone else enjoy. But I do have to say it's easier to get rid of firearms than it is a Hellcat. There are like stiktites in ya flannel.

Gary, I get it. I too have experienced a lot more guns than I myself have owned. I have quite a few friends with large collections, who also trade in and out as you do. I get to enjoy those as well. Come to think of it, they all have wives too....

Forget that last bit...

I picked up a very nice Remington Model 31 Shotgun, it was a factory Skeet Model with vent rib that was all original and flew under the radar. I have seen similar guns go for twice what I paid. So I too look for the undetected bargains..

I forgot my password for GI and haven't been there much since. I check out GB quite frequently, and have scored a couple good deals. I got the Jewel of my collection because the guy had it listed as, "Barn find condition, with no name period scope, may clean up." Saddlering knows this one, sorry John. As soon as I got it out of the box I ran out in the sunshine and could see Malcolm on the scope. I also like the auction format to shop certain days of the year. I picked up a Fecker 10X and a Lyman 438 on Christmas day, sitting at the dinner table with my laptop. I think every year sellers become less informed with the guns we like. All of us geezers are cashing in our chips and the new generation want black plastic. A little O/T, if you live in MD and want the personal tag, "GEEZER", can't have it. It's on my cousins Vette.

That website is working. 12 sold so far.

I've used GB for years and it does pretty much suck now as far as tech support and listing photos. The quality of the photos they display is terrible even when I put up hi res images.

What I have gone to is putting up one main picture for the search and then my second pic is a notice to check the description for a link to my Dropbox account with high resolution images. I'd like to put in a live link but can't figure out how and though I have been asking their tech support for months now they just never gave me an answer.

Here's one to give you an idea....look at the second picture.....

GB Auction


Seems to work for me so far.