Seriously, about four times as much! I just had that double rig because I was doing repairs on it. I replaced that tongue billet. It fit me, too!

Most of my Rossi revolvers cost between 200 -300 bucks, used. One was more, one was less. Most are Interarms era, but one is Taurus era. Most are fine guns. The earliest versions from the 60's and early 70's aren't as well made as the later guns, but seem to work OK. The best of the Rossi's are on par functionally with typical quality Smith and Wesson guns.

Also have a FIE Titan .25 auto from the 1960's that works great, as well as a Hi Point in .45 acp that I bought new a couple of years ago for about $150. AS far as new guns, Hi Point is the best bang for the buck.

Probably my favorite inexpensive handgun, though, is a CZ-50 in .32 auto that I got for $185, used. Inexpensive, but not cheap...a very high quality gun. I'm guessing it was eastern European police surplus.

Yummy, that beer looks nice and cold!

JC Higgins model 20 12 ga pump. Had one cut down, large bead sight added and ceracoated for my middle brother.

While it's low on my "like list," I forgot to mention the .410 SXS Stoeger I bought several years ago for my wife. I paid a little over $300 for the NIB Uplander model after my wife confronted me over the fact that I'd left her without a gun when she needed to dispatch a rattlesnake. She was on a rider mower when she kicked up the snake, and rather than turning it into chum with the mower blades, she ran to the house for a gun. She forgot the gun safe combo, which was my fault, of course

While she was winding down, I told her I would fix it so she could always have a varmit gun available, called my buddy at the LGS, had him set the .410 aside, and picked it up later in the day, along with some #7 birdshot ammo. When I got home, I grabbed her and took her to the back of the barn, where I set up a target, so she could learn the safe operation of "her gun" and see the pellet spread.

You shoulda seen the smile on her face. Now, her shotgun and ammo are located where she can get hands on in a moment's notice. It may not be my preferred firearm, but it was money well spent Not long afterwards, I found a handgun for her, but that Stoeger is still her go-to gun.

I bought a High Point Carbine in 9mm with a Red Head red dot at LGS for $75. It was ROUGH! It has now had 1,000s of steel cased ammo through it without a single FTF, FTEX, or FTEJ. These things are amazing.

Since I'm cheap by nature, all of my guns fall into this category!!!
I set a pricepoint, and cherrypick when something drops into that range. Been able to land some CZ's, a Beretta, a couple S&Ws etc, at or below $300, and not a one has been bad. Ditto a Winchester 94.

Maybe the best deal I've ran across in a long time was my most recent handgun purchase:

Zastava CZ 99 in 9mm, an "ugly gun special" for $199 off gunbroker. For those unfamiliar with this pistol, it's a big, metal duty gun. Steel slide, aluminum frame, chromed barrel. Gun seems to be a cross between a Sig P226 and a Walther P88; it looks A LOT like an older West German P226.
As far as I can tell, the only "ugly" issue is that they seem to have used a watercolor paint on the frame , it comes off so easily. I used some alcohol preps to wipe the gun down, and it took the black finish off.
I used my aluminum black on the resulting white metal, and it looks fine again. The only issue is that you have to scuff the aluminum to allow the black to take hold.

Outside of that: the slide is milled steel and has a nice blue finish, and to the casual observer it looks like a Sig. Barrel is pristine. Trigger is very similar to a DA/SA revolver in feel. Very tight groups, has old/dead night sights that give a good 3-dot picture. Has a proprietary magazine, that is basically a Beretta 92 mag, with a notch cut out on the front (I tested this out, and Beretta mags function perfectly if you make the cut). The controls are similar to a Sig layout, but this gun combines the decocker and slide release into one lever instead of two (think Sig without the decocker, just slide release); and the controls are ambidextrous.

And when I say it looks like an old P226, i'm not joking. I've read posts on Sigforums where Sig owners were fooled in gun stores, until they took a closer look; and recently when I took mine to the range, my buddy asked me when I got "a Sig".
Can't beat that for $200.

Two Colts, $500 in each of them. Maybe not the cheapest, but money well spent I think.

1933 Hartford Colt 1911, born in Connecticut, shipped to Argentina, then repatriated back home.



Colt 1917, shipped to "Commanding Officer, Springfield Armory, January 4, 1918." It has obviously had a little work since then.

I like my 500, though it is an 8 shot 20" barrel, with Second Chance Combat Shoot 1990 marked on the receiver side, wood stock and fore grip. NIB $150 or so (memory?). Evidently from an earlier post answer, award gun that was not given out.
I had it, my Dad borrowed it for blue quail in the south Texas brush, and back to me after he passed away. So family memory gun now! He told me a few legless crawlers succumbed to it and a lot of quail in heavy brush off the senderas down there.

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Wherever my mind isn't
Jim

...two fun guns I bought in the last year...

...Stoeger Coach Gun...



...Charter Arms Santa Fe Sky...

__________________
A Country Boy Can Survive

And a third vote for the JC Higgins Model 20. I had one identical to yours with the exception of a rib, and cut the "Dial-A-Duck" off the end, resulting in a 19" barrel. It was my first defense shotgun. Later traded up to a Winchester 1200 Defender, but came to the conclusion the Higgins was a better gun, despite holding fewer shells. At least it was not as miserable to shoot as the 1200. Been looking for a cheap Higgins to make a truck gun out of.

I've got a little 20 guage Mossberg 510 Youth model that I got used for about $200 out the door...... a handy little utility/defense gun for the whole family. Only 3 in the tube........... but better than a SXS.


One of my favorite guns for concealed carry is a Beretta 92FS Compact Type-M......... about the size and feel in the hand, with custom grips of a model 39........ I've had mine since just before the AWB in 94...... got it "just in case" and fell in love with it..... to the point I went back and got a second.......... since then .......

I picked up a couple of Beretta 92S Compact Type-Ms ........ single stack (8+1) wood grips,round trigger guards w/ bright blue finish .........IIRC both were about $250 w/ 3 or 4 magazines each. Found both at the same little LGS about 2 years apart.......pretty enough to be BBQ guns.

Savage makes some very accurate rimfires. A lot of bang for the buck, and they come in various styles and price tiers. The above is one of their more recent models, an FVSR, available in 22 LR, 22 WMRF and 17 HMR.



This is my 93R17 FVSR dropped into their model BV stock, with a Leupold 6-18x and a modified HK SL-8 cheek riser, with a Bowers USS suppressor. This is a very accurate varmint gun and it's my most used now for that purpose.



Picked up a Mark II FVSR and dropped it in a BVSS stock (only difference is gray instead of tan). With a USS suppressor and CCI Quiet 22 ammo, this gun is just stupid quite. I mean it is on a par with a Daisy Red Ryder. The bullet hitting the target makes more noise than the muzzle report. The scope is a cheap Bushnell "shop scope" to do testing, but discovered that the POI is shifting as it is zoomed. Will put a Leupold on it, just not sure what model yet, but it has to have a target style elevation knob to compensate for different velocity ammo.

Also have a used stainless 17 HMR that I swiped the BVSS stock off of for the Mark II. My son has two 17 HMR Savages as well.



This was our original solution to poor check weld with the synthetic stocks - a Karsten cheek riser made from formed Kaydex plastic.



He also picked up this Cabela's package gun, which has the gray BVSS stock, but with a matte black gun, not stainless. He switched to a Leupold 6-18 scope and put the package scope on something else. The gray blends in well with the bark on trees in the area we hunt, while my brown stock blends in with the dry grass, dead leaves, etc.

In addition, my daughter has a Savage Mark II .22 LR I gave her for her birthday.

OOOH, I forgot my BEST cheap gun-DUH. The ugly to look at, but oh so accurate Marlin 880 SQ 'Squirrel Rifle'! Mine is from the first year of production and has the semi-match chamber. Picked it up used at a gun show in the early '90's for $115.

When I downsized my collection of .22 rifles in February, I sold several, much much more expensive target grade rifles and kept the 880 SQ. Give the SQ standard velocity ammo and watch the ragged one hole five shot groups appear at 50 yards.

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Virtue,Liberty & Independence

Someone mentioned Marlin 30-30's....

Don't overlook Glenfields for cheap but solid guns. Picked this Glenfield 30A up recently cheap. They were sold through places like Western Auto, etc. The metalwork is identical to Marlin except for the Glenfield name and model number. The stocks are pretty cheesy plain birch with reddish stain and stamped checkering with acorns and oak leaves.

Someone already replaced the buttstock on this gun with a walnut stock off a Marlin. I'm in the process of fitting a walnut forend, and will refinish the buttstock to match. Not sure if I'll run a scope or iron sights, but leaning towards a low power scope.

Marlins and Glenfields are solid guns, and except for barrel swaps most repairs can be done at home with simple hand tools. There's really not much complex about them, and any parts that need gunsmithing can usually just be replaced cheaper.

For those wanting a "politically correct assault rifle", consider this: The 30-30 and the 7.62x39 are in the same class for power. So if you can't own an AK or SKS because of state laws, a Marlin 30-30 makes a good alternative. Don't worry about the tube mag. It can be topped off at will (unlike its competition, the Henry).

I've shown it here before, but it fits this thread well I think. It was $350 with most of a box of ammo, box, papers, etc. The remainder of the box was all that had been fire in it. I added the Grashorn grips, 3 dot sights, and a Colt ambi safety. This Rock Island 4" is accurate, and perfectly reliable. I can't find a bad word to say about it.

My Stainless steel 4" Ruger Security Six .357 with original walnut grips for $380 this year. 99% new condition.As for a real cheap but high quality gun, East German Makarov that I bought in the 1990's with a holster and two magazines for $149.

I have a Remington 512 22 rifle I paid $265.00 for mainly because it had a Lyman 5A scope on it . Sold the 5A for $350.00 and put a spare Lyman 6x Junior Targetspot on it.
I mainly shoot walnuts with it, but a friend came up with a home made gong made out of 1/2 rebar with a thin piece of plate for the gong. We ended up knocking the gong off so we commenced to shooting the hanging rebar stem. Using Fed Bulk Pack we got to where we could hit that stem 100%...at 50 yards!

I have a refurbished M44 Nagant rifle in 7.62x54R that I picked up years ago for $60.00. At the time I also stocked up on the cheap surplus ammo that was available. I bring that rifle to the range with me every time I go shooting. It shoots great and the fireball you get when shooting it is quite impressive.

A couple of Rugers

'58 Target,'54 Standard

I've shown it before but this $250 SA is one of my best deals. All the marks and scratches were complimentary with purchase. Joe

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Wisdom chases me; I'm faster

I like fooling around with "junker guns" and I bought a box of pistols in that category awhile back. One of them was a Browning Model 1922 and upon inspection I discovered it had matching serial numbers on the slide, slide extension, frame and barrel. Rummaging through my parts I was able to come up with the internals to get it operating again. I have 3 more in the same category that I'll probably get to next.
Jim

Earlier, I posted about my CZ 99. Here's some pictures, all prior to applying the aluminum black to address the finish issues.

With my Beretta, would you believe that's only $500 total in pistols?


right side


left side

Picked up the Beretta 70S in 22LR last year for $275. Shoots great.



Also around the same time I found this Astra Constable in 22LR for $250. Another great pistol and also shoots great.

Taurus Millenium G2

$211 OTD, such a great deal! A lot of features in a small package!

Forgot my Marlin mod 25 22 LR. Bought in a gun show in Topeka for $40. I had to draw file the front half of the bbl due to bloody hands, I refinished the genuine Birch stock and was fixing a crack in a pre war Commercial Mauser for a guy. I
also laid in some blind pins and glass bedded the receiver to help the old wood hold up. Came out perfect. I got to thinking about the Marlin stock laying on the bench, wonder what glass bedding will do for it? I got it ready and after the Mauser was together and curing I did the Marlin. After it was refinished I put a 3x9 scope on it. It is a tack driver.

If anyone has ever used the Busch range in STL you might remember old Hank, one fine human being. He was a range volunteer. One Day I took 3 or 4 deer rifles there to check zero, I took the 22 but it was a busy day and I knew I wouldn't have time for it. Hank also had a booth where he zero'd in rifles for folks. I gave him some PMC HP, Federal Match, 2 different types of Ely and asked him to shoot for group and zero it using the best group. I loaded up when done and went down to Hank. He handed me a target, all 5 rounds were in one hole, then he put it dead center of the bull. I said Wow, did you try all of it? He said nope, the PMC was first,
I didn't see any need to try the high dollar stuff.


I have about one brick of the PMC left, I bought a half a dozen or so around 1990. It shot well in all the 22's I had.

I bought 4 scopes at a steal price on ebay from one scope dealer. All 4 were about what one cost over the counter. All new Simmons. I found a sling in my leather goods tub and figured I was into it under $50 bucks.

It shot so well I sold my 1415 Anchutz.

I paid $ 199.99 for my Maverick Model 88 12 Ga. Pump Shotgun!!

[IMG]http://i1377.photobucket.com/albums/ah50/gabeh49/IMG_0802_zpssryfw***.jpg[/IMG]

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Life is short,live it fully.

Hey I just picked up an old Colt 45acp that has "Singer" stamped on the side, is this worth anything?

Maverick model 88
$180

Anderson AR 15 .300 BLK. assembled by yours truly
$400

Spikes tactical AR15 pistol .223/.556 assembled by yours truly
$400





Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I trust you realize that you have a real prize in that Singer Colt, my Grandmother loved her Singer, it even has a drawer for the pistol.

Too bad they had to part the ways, they would make a nice couple.

How about this 1903 Springfield from 1918 with matching barrel and receiver dates. Got it and this 1930 version for $500 Each. about 4 years ago from a Marine who fought at the Chosin Reservoir during the Korean Conflict.

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Robert
SWCA #2906, SWHF #760

I have many old handguns but my favorites are my Dad's and Grampa's. one a High Standard .22 revolver that I have shot more than Dad ever did. Gramps is his old police revolver, Colt Army Special. He used to say it was extra strong because it was on a .41 frame. anyway, Grandma gave it to him for Christmas in 1928. I'll pass them along to my kids someday. Nowadays some of my favorite shooters are Taurus revolvers. A model 85 snubbie, a m94 5" .22 and a 4'' Tracker .44 mag. I have S&W's of course including 629 classic, but I have had very good luck with the Brazilian guns. Will they last as long as S&W or Colt? I won't live long enough to find out.

It's not that I don't like "low priced" firearms. I have a soft spot for the value to dollar proposition some value priced firearms provide. I've owned a bunch.

• Ruger P95
• Hi Point JHP 45
• Hi Point .45 Carbine
• EAA Witness P
• Taurus PT709 Slim
• Taurus PT92
• S&W SD9VE

I don't remember them all. The issue with value priced firearms is that I don't hold onto them for long. After a year or so my curiosity is satisfied, and sell them and move on. They sell for close to the price I paid. Should I ever get the itch for one again, I can buy one because they are common, easy to find, and value priced.

Right now, the only value priced firearm I own is a Heritage Rough Rider .22lr single action revolver. This little revolver is so dirt cheap and fun to shoot, it's pointless to ever sell it and move on. It cost me $150 new.

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-John

GSG 1911-22.......................

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S&W Accumulator

Nope! It's a fake!

Still have a battered, finishless pre-WWII Stevens 12 gauge side-by-side that I had sawed to twenty inches. Paid next to nothing for it forty years ago and took about three metric shiploads of rabbits in heavy brush and doves over silage fields with it. I keep it for home defense with #4 buck. Ugly as homemade sin, but a good old gun.

Some years ago when I wanted a J-frame but couldn't afford a Smith I paid $188 for a NIB Rossi M88, a Model 60 clone. In fit and finish it wasn't miles below a 60, and with innards polished and hammer bobbed it made a perfectly acceptable little pocket gun. I sold it, but it was a very decent deal. Wouldn't mind having it back for a spare.

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Oh well, what the hell.

I agree with this sentiment, and it why I've bought some of the used guns I have.

For $300, I have a Beretta 92SF (from the LAPD), a couple of CZ 75 pre B (from Czech police, made in 92, and from Israel, made in 89), and a S&W 39-2. These are nice guns mechanically and design/materials wise, from any standpoint. They're used... so what (as long as they run)? Like any car dealer will tell you, whatever you buy, as soon as you walk out the door, it becomes "used".

My vintage Charter Undercover was made in 1971 at Bridgeport, which
I had been told was some of Charter's finest finishes and actions. This
one does look good and the action is smooth. I don't know if $300 is a
great deal, but I'm happy with it. The Walnut grips it came with are fine
for concealment, but the rubber combat stocks are better for shooting.

Back at that time Charter offered holsters for the Undercover. I have
been told they were made by Chic Gaylord. I have never found them
anywhere.

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In Omnia Paratus

Back around the turn of the century I was wandering around in my
favorite local gun store and came across a Colt's series 80 Gold Cup.
It didn't look bad so I bought it for $500. Went to the range. First shot
the front sight fell off. 3rd shot it jammed. After that about every 3rd
shot or so jammed.
My local gunsmith put a AO big dot sight on it and suggested some
Wilson magazines. They did help reduce the jamming, but I still had
enough of them to feel uncomfortable.

About that time I read an article in a gun magazine about Karl Sokol,
a gunsmith in Vermont. "When it absolutely, positively must work,
knowledgeable people from all over the world send their guns to Karl
Sokol" was the last words in the article.

I packed it up and sent it to Karl. I won't bore you with all the details
but suffice to say he gave it a complete overhaul using premium Ed
Brown parts, and he re-finished it with his Mountain Tuff finish.

Well the $500 that I thought was an ok price turned into about the
same "investment" as a new Gold Cup. But I rationalize by telling
myself it is better than a new one. Most important - it absolutely,
positively, does work every time. 100% reliability is worth a lot.

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In Omnia Paratus

Spanish Mauser I sporterized for deer hunting. $30 on consignment in a local gun store some years back. Didn't shoot worth a hoot until I spent forever cleaning a hundred years of crud from the bore. Now it shoots great. I have less than a C note in it fully loaded, and it's put a lot of meat in the freezer.