Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles What used centerfires have you regretted not puchasing, and why?

Nothing special but an older Remington 700 Mountain Rifle BDL style for $350 at a gun show in Austin. It was pretty clean. Also not buying a TI 700 in 30/06 or 270 win when they were on the shelves!

My circuit would overload and I would get the blue screen of death just thinking about it. What is wonderful about this sport/hobby is your next trip to the gun store could get you something that makes your hand shake and mouth dry.

A Remington 700 Classic .250-3000 for $375 in 2001.
A Remington 600 .35 Remington for $600 when I was stationed
in APG MD in 1987.
A Savage 99T .250-3000 for $595 in 2002, went back and
looked at it 2 or 3 times in a week period, girlfriend
said buy it, but I didnt.
Back in 1989 I passed up a...., I better stop.

When I was 18 and looking for my first real big game rifle that I could buy myself, I found a lightly used Rem Model 7 in 308 in the original KS stock (grey camo that came in at 5.25 lbs. from the factory). I wanted to think about it, so went home, rounded up the money, and went back to purchase it a few days later for $400. GONE!

That one still haunts me at times. OTOH, I went to the next gunshow in town with the goal of picking up a stainless synthetic Remington of any sort. Found one at the show, but sitting next to it was an XTR Featherweight with an HS synthetic at 6.25 lbs. Not knowing much of anything, I picked up both rifles and chose the Winchester because of the feel/weight. It was/is the best practical gun purchase I have ever made.

Another regret I have is not getting Brad's Kimber 308 a bit back. I was a few minutes late. It just came up for sale on Gunbroker the other night, and I came up a bit late again. Oh well....

A Ruger #3 in 30-40 Krag I saw at a Livingston, MT gun show a few years ago. $400 was the price and it was minty.

Our gunshows around here suck, good deals are almost nill. High prices even for junk.

The only one I regret not buying was a pre-war German Mauser in 8mm that had been sporterized - schnabel stock and blued, slick action with, as I recall, "Berlin" stamped on the receiver with the other markings. The owner was German and had picked it up in the early 60's.

Very nice rifle, $225 asking.

Idiot that I was, I passed. Still kick myself.

Every pre 64 M70 I have ever seen.....

Some post-war BRNO commercial rifles in 7x57.

Rifles by Brownell, Biesen,Goens,and Pilkington;stuff with metal by Burgess or Waldron,etc. I should never have passed them up....the cost of these was in the vicinity of $1000


This back when I was in college;no money.


Why? Because that was when they made true "custom" rifles.The term was not so loosely applied then as it is today.

A pre-64 Winchester 70 in .458 in 1976 for $1500.....
One of my "Buds" bought it after I showed it to him.He still has it and I get to see that nightmare a couple times a year...

Three of them:

1-15 years ago, a BRNO 21 7x57 with doble square bridges and with an original mounted old Meopta scope. Mint. U$S 500, I had..
2-5 years ago Browning Safari 30-06 with a Hendsoldt Diavari in claw mounts. U$S 1.500 (I had also...)
3-3 years ago, a MINT in a box, FN Supreme 30-06 with the rear bridge mounted peep sight... u$s 1.200 !!!!! (I had also, also....)

Well.....you know the feeling...

Regards,

PH

This has been facinating... thanks guys.

One other thing that I've done, and later regretted, was trading, or otherwise giving up a particular rifle that I appreciated in favor of another that was an obvious mistake...
For example: a nearly new, beautiful PF M70 in .375 H&H (RH) for a Browning A-Bolt SS (LH)in the same cartridge because I shoot from the left side. It was a mistake because that Browning would never shoot anything inside 2-inches, no matter what. Most groups were over 3-inches. It turned out that the bore was eight thousandths (.008) off center. It went down the road and I lamented giving up the M70.

Bob

www.bigbores.ca
Has anyone had that experience?