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Anyone actually buy from Gunbroker?

ChargingCharlie

ChargingCharlie

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I find myself looking through gunbroker a lot but have yet to find any real deals. Is it me, or is most everything their priced higher than expected? Most accessories I've looked for were more expensive than eBay and Midway. I'm not bitching, just curious. There's plenty there to buy, and it's a great resource, I just somehow envisioned all these crazy deals :)
 
I bought a 10 gauge side x side with exposed hammers and damascus barrels once on gunbroker.
It wasn't real cheap, but it was something I wanted at the time. Shot geese with it using 2 7/8" black powder
shells loaded with #2 bismuth shot.

I have a friend who buys a few S & W revolvers on there from time to time. He knows what he wants, and just keeps
searching until he finds what he is looking for at a price he is willing to pay. He searches a lot.
 
smcnally said:
I find myself looking through gunbroker a lot but have yet to find any real deals. Is it me, or is most everything their priced higher than expected? Most accessories I've looked for were more expensive than eBay and Midway. I'm not bitching, just curious. There's plenty there to buy, and it's a great resource, I just somehow envisioned all these crazy deals :)
Click to expand...

Reloading supplies and equipment do seem as expensive or more than I can buy elsewhere, but I have bought a couple of guns and magazines at good prices which I couldn't find anywhere and prices were better in most cases than I found in shops.
 
Yeah, I was thinking it would be great for hard to find guns. Tonight when I was looking up some scopes i notitced that they were mostly priced above the prices I've seen elsewhere. It just made me think that I haven't seen any hard to resist deals there yet.
 
I think a lot of the gunbroker sellers are expecting offers rather than an outright "I'll take it".
 
GunBrokers system allows basic listings at no charge unless the item is sold, as a result, they tend to be flooded with Dealer listings at retail prices.

I have both bought and sold through GunBroker, and there are deals out there, you just need to wade through all the Dealer stuff to find the bargains which are more often than not, listed by individuals with more realistic expectations.
 
Most of the junk on there is more expensive, on the other hand the guns themselves are pretty well priced due to the level of competition.

-Mike
 
There are deals to be had on Gunbroker. You just have to be patient and look through all of the listings and keep an eye on what you ar looking for. It doenst hurt to make offers lower than what the opening bids are for. I have scored quite a few things that went no bid and they sold it to me for much less than what the opening bid was for.
 
You have to watch constantly for what you want. I have gotten some awesome deals on guns but you need to put in the time. Other stuff sells for more than you can get it for right from the factory so know what your buying. What's better are relationships with the sellers that lead to more good deals right from their shops. Win - Win
 
drgrant said:
Most of the junk on there is more expensive, on the other hand the guns themselves are pretty well priced due to the level of competition.

-Mike
Click to expand...

This, and may I add, since there is no charge for basic listings, you will see the same crap over and over, however if you have time to sift through the stuff, and utilize the search engine, it is possible to score some good deals, on occasion. I picked up a Marlin 39A for 275 and the corresponding date letter of H puts it at 1951. Like all these auction sites, if you were on early, great deals were to be found, as time goes on, more and more people get wise to it and deals are not as plentiful.
 
I've bought several items from gunbroker. Like buying anything from anywhere you need to know a lot about the product you are buying. Sometimes you can find a item that was just listed that has a low to reasonable buy it now price.

GB is also a great tool for gun appraisals as well. Searching for items in the closed auctions gives you a true market value. I have a rare gun that I couldn't find much info on. I put it up on GB with a 100k reserve (to make sure it wouldn't sell) and the bids went up to $1700. After the auction ended, people were still throwing bids at me. Not bad for a gun that I picked up for $300.
 
I have bought 2 guns and mags on there. All of it was a good deal but like others have said, you really have to look and know what you are buying.

Also be aware of shipping policies. Some places will not ship to MA no matter what it is. Also always check with your FFL before buying. It's a wicked pain especially of your watching multiple guns. I learned this the hard way just recently. I bought a gun I thought was ok to transfer and it wasn't. I could have sent it to the manufacturer and had it modified but it was going to be an extra $200. It still would have been cheaper than what I would pay in a store but wasn't worth it to me anymore so I sold it to a friend. It was my fault and a lesson learned.
 
I've heard of people getting steals from GB with buy it now prices that the seller clearly had no idea what they had. Then theres the occasional "sleeper" that no one notices and someone walks away with a nice item for a great price because people overlooked it. I still cruise E bay for stuff when I'm bored. I got a nice Izhmash mount for a Saiga for half of what they were brand new and they're hard as hell to find these days to start with.

Like everyone said, you just have to keep looking.
 
Picked up my 1894 44mag Marlin last year off GB. It was no steal, but I called every store I could find and no one had any so I broke and went to GB.
 
So far so good. I've bought a couple rifles and a couple pistols on Gunbroker with no problem. Like EBAY, you're buying from a person and not from Gunbroker per se. Most folks are honest and thus far all I've bought have been as advertised. You do take the chance buying something from a description and picture that may be not exactly as advertised. It's the chance you have to take.
 
I've had several VG experiences buying from GB. As with any online auction, you need to watch scores of the sellers and ask any/all questions BEFORE bidding. Vague answers=no bid. Additionally, I've found some very nice guns at very nice prices. Once and a while , even a steel. ( Case in point just 3 weeks back, NIB S&W 442 for $350 BEFORE $50 rebate!). The other thing to consider is sales tax. While a wash with shipping and transfer fee's on a $500 gun, lack of sales tax is significant on a $1200 firearm.
I still preffer to support my local shops when I can but once and a while something shows up on GB that they don't stock, is rare or they can't come close to in price.

I buy enough to keep everyone happy anyway :)
 
I just bought 12 NIW preban 30round AR mags on GB, my first time buying. With shipping it comes to about $14 and change each, not a terrible price and probably better than you will get anywhere in MA.
 
I've bought 4 guns on gunbroker. If you aren't in a rush, you can sit and wait for good deals to pop up. I only ever had problems with one guy....he shipped in a case that screamed "GUN!", and just packing-taped it shut. Other than that, though....2 shotguns, 1 rifle, and 1 pistol later....I'm pretty happy.
 
Moderator said:
I have a rare gun that I couldn't find much info on. I put it up on GB with a 100k reserve (to make sure it wouldn't sell) and the bids went up to $1700. After the auction ended, people were still throwing bids at me. Not bad for a gun that I picked up for $300.
Click to expand...

Great Idea, what was it?
 

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