Firearms Are an Investment of a Different Type By: Bob Campbell

Recently, my friends and I were discussing the pandemic. Naturally, the discussion circled around to guns. Many folks paid too much, in our estimation, for firearms. Common pump-action shotguns were bringing twice the pre-panic buying price. Just the same, it is a little like an overpriced restaurant. It may be high, but it is good.

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I suppose there may be regrets among those who overbought. I would have hated to have been starting from scratch. What a time to build up a rifle, pistol, shotgun, and ammunition cache! But how big a loss is it really?

Initial Cost

Folks who routinely keep a truck four or five years and take a $10,000 loss shouldn’t cry about paying $400 for a $200 shotgun or a couple hundred extra for a 9mm pistol. After all, the purchase will serve them well for many years. Just the same, some of us are having to acclimate to a new norm. As an example, once affordable and readily available stand by firearms have crept into a high spot on the totem pole of prices.

I didn’t have a crystal ball to guide me. I prefer prayer to witchery in any case and neither did I have insider trading tips. I have seen this kind of thing before but not quite the panic and lack of preparation this time around. Unlike those clowns in the U.S. Senate who had prior warning and sold off their stock, I suffered a beating in my retirement account.

I guess like Ray Charles said in Lucky Old Sun, I will be working until I am wrinkled and gray. Hell! I am wrinkled and gray.

Value, Worth, Investment

I think new buyers got mixed up about value, worth, and investment. They aren’t the same thing. I don’t buy guns as an investment. I purchase them for a certain chore and often enough because I love shooting and testing firearms.

Investment firearms are new, unfired, in the box, vintage firearms with all original papers. It is your decision whether they are too valuable to be fired. A used gun at about 95% grade is just a shooter. That’s my opinion.

Firearms are made to be used and used hard. I don’t unnecessarily subject them to wear and tear but neither do I baby them. A quality firearm will last for decades. Poor guns are none too good, reliable, or even safe when new. A $1,000 pistol, and you don’t have to pay that to get a quality handgun, will last for decades. That is cheap protection. It is also cheap recreation.

You like guns and shooting, don’t you? Then use the things as they were intended. I care about maintenance and appearance. I own several handguns with pleasing holster wear. That isn’t the same as a scratch from being dropped on the floor.

I like the fit and feel of a well used handgun. Quality firearms become smoother with use. When you wrap your hand around the grip, something says friend. An investment firearm will never have that virtue.

Besides, truth be told, an investment firearm — at best — barely beats inflation. A new handgun will no more bring its purchase price a few months down the pike than my Jeep will ever bring its price when new. However, each will give good honest service and plenty of recreation.

Not to mention the protection and piece of mind of a quality firearm. You are fighting against markup. No dealer will allow as much on your firearm as he may purchase a new gun for. Your used handgun isn’t worth what a new gun and it never will be.

Collectible Firearms

Investing in collectibles is another world and one in which very few are qualified to travel. The occasional rise and fall of value of a certain class of older firearms isn’t a reliable source of wealth. Besides, for every good quality firearm, there have always been many middle-to-poor quality firearms and there still are.

Speculation tends to inflate prices, but someone is always caught when the bubble pops. I have taken a beating on some guns on trade and had to undertake unexpected repairs on others. That is just life.

An example of a poor choice is a buddy who, against my advice, cashed in his 401K and purchased about 35 AR-15 rifles. He isn’t a gun guy in the sense you and I probably are. He was convinced Hillary Clinton would win the election, ban AR rifles, and his horde would be worth a larger fortune rather than the small fortune he gave away.

I said my Lord, you are betting on the Devil to come take us. This isn’t an ethical thing to do! Sure enough, the Klinton’s ship sank. A few months after the election, some makers were offering new AR rifles for $399.

The same buddy didn’t understand why his $599 Glock wasn’t worth $450 at the pawn shop for resale. The guy behind the counter must pay bills feed his family and pay Caesar what is due. This is an extreme example but not uncommon on a smaller scale. A fellow who decided he had better get a shotgun to defend his home during the season of riots cannot complain about his investment. Overpriced or not, it is a stalwart defender of the castle.

Final Thoughts

It is nice to have few extra firearms as trading stock or in case of emergency. Firearms may be sold or traded easily and legally at the local gun store or pawn shop. Some sell better than others. A reputable dealer may offer a fair price or take your firearm in on consignment.

A quality firearm is a different type of investment in my estimation. A firearm is a tool for hunting, for recreational, competetion, and personal defense — with personal defense being the most important. Sure, there are quality firearms from the past worth accumulating. Even the humble and untrustworthy firearms of the past may be interesting, just understand their limitations.

I am primarily a handgunner. For the intended purpose, very few handguns of the past match the performance of modern quality firearms in accuracy and reliability. Parts resupply is another matter that isn’t ideal with older guns.

The handgun that defends the home is an investment worth its weight in gold, in my opinion. That is the real payoff.

Do you own any collectible firearms or do you prefer a gun that says “Hello” when you wrap our hand around the grip? A gun that seems to be as excited about going to the range as a hunting dog is to the woods or field? What kind of guns do you own? Share your answers in the comment section.