How important is it to have box and paperwork in older s&w such as a model 36 .thanks New to the forum

To me, not very important. If a LNIB gun then the box/paperwork/tools is important and ads $100+ to the gun. For a shooter grade gun, with just the box and paperwork (often found that way) not much added value. If the box is there, fine, but I generally buy just based on the condition of the gun. On a highly collectible gun (say Registered Magnum) the box and accessories can be worth a lot ($1k+). On an older Model 36 showing some wear, wouldn't make any difference at all to me. Others will have different opinions. Good luck and welcome to the forum. Lots of interesting things to learn here..

Jeff
SWCA #1457

Welcome also! It's personal preference on boxes and contents - some feel it is super important and will tend not to consider many guns without them, while others at the other end of the spectrum are indifferent. I think the majority of collectors fall in the "nice if there and willing to pay more but not essential" camp.

Good information from Jeff above about their value and happy collecting .

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

Welcome to the forum.
I think the comments from 22hipower and murphydog pretty much answer the question.
If i was buying a model 36 that was in new/near new condition, I would appreciate having the box. For me, the older the gun is, and the nicer that gun is, the more the box becomes a factor in pricing.

It is very important to me... so much so that I reject most older collectible candidates if there is no box et al. For a shooter, it is likely not a big deal to most folks. But as someone much wiser than me once noted: If it's as-new in the box with everything, it's a collectible. If it's the gun alone, the best you can say is that it's a really, really nice shooter. For the most part (there are always exceptions), I kind of agree with that statement.

Welcome to the Forum from Virginia. I fall in with murphydog in that if box and docs are with the gun then fine, I can and do mentally add some $ in my negotiation strategy. But as always...buy the gun...not the story. Box and docs certainly lend credibility/provenance to the "story" but are not the deciding factor for me.

My Model 36 is a no dash and (1965), the box and docs were simply an adder at time of sale, as Seller did not place any premium (not a gun person as is often the case at Estate sales). My Model 31 (1975) was bought literally unfired still in box with all docs and the original sales receipt folded under the other docs. This one too was bought from a man who's mother had recently passed away, and he found it cleaning out her house....never knew she had bought it after her husband had passed away.

So you never know, but most of my collection is the guns with no box, no documents. I shoot them all cause that's what I enjoy the most.

One caveat as you now proceed down this slippery slope called accumulating, collecting or whatever term you will apply to this addiction, watch out for reproduction boxes, documents, warranty cards, end labels....they are ALL modern reproductions and some are very good yet all are "phony baloney" to me.

The Internet is loaded with sellers of these repops and I guess they sell because these guys are in business year after year and if you know what they are and you still like them for whatever reason then fine. The "rub" comes in if a Seller is indicating original box and docs and they are really fakes.

You can usually tell, even a like new 99% original box has tell tales, even if it sat in a sock drawer for 30 years, so watch for it, especially if you are mentally adding a $ figure to your offer for any particular gun.

Also, as always, if in doubt, post a quick question on this Forum and you will be surprised at the number of speedy replies you get that will at least give you more insight and knowledge to go further into the deal, or back off and run away.

Snag that 36 you are thinking about, box or not, but remember when on this Forum.....if you don't post any pictures...then it simply didn't happen

Attached Images

	M 36-A.jpg (90.7 KB, 43 views)
	M 36-E.jpg (103.2 KB, 42 views)
	Model 31-1 H.jpg (44.2 KB, 39 views)
	Model 31-1 I.jpg (71.1 KB, 39 views)
	Model 31-1 J.jpg (96.2 KB, 44 views)

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Charlie B
SWCA#3083, SWHF#570

I used to sell S&W boxes to a former member here and he would counterfit the end labels. They looked legit to me. I don't know if they were for his personal collection or not. The boxes in question I pick up at yard/garage sales very reasonably priced.

Having the correct box and paperwork is nice, but it is not something I make a big deal of. Of course, I'm not a collector, just an avid Smith and Wesson owner.

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Always Stay Strong!

There is a significant financial reason that sellers on GB and elsewhere go out of their way to counterfeit S&W factory boxes and labels. That fact alone should tell you that at least some collectors do care about (and are willing to pay for) owning the complete factory package.

It's awful that some buyers are getting zinged by these Godless counterfeiters, but as always... buyer beware.

Nice to have, get them if possible.
But if not available, and you want the gun, go for it!

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NRA LIFE MEMBER

One other factor, no issue if you only plan to buy a few nice S&Ws (that's all anyone plans at first), but can be one if you become an "avid" (there are other words that can be used here) collector/aggregator. When you look around and discover a 100+ S&Ws, maybe another 100+ Colts, a few Brownings, Lugers, Hi-Standards, and Rugers and a couple dozen old Winchesters, some hunting rifles, maybe a couple dozen shotguns, storing the boxes becomes a challenge. Some will laugh and ask "how could storing a few cardboard boxes become a problem" but, trust me, it can. Good luck.

Jeff
SWCA #1457

Especially when the wife finds all the boxes and asks, " do you have as many guns as you do boxes?"

And while looking for the first gun with box to buy, you find a couple boxes without guns, nice condition reasonable price, so you buy those knowing you're likely to find the right gun for them. And in one of the boxes you find an extra set of stocks, and some guns have those funky rubber after market grips so you know having some extra stocks for future purchases is a good idea. Pretty soon you've got a box of stocks but too many to find the ones you know are there; so you soon have boxes for S&W, Colt, "others." Those grow to boxes for N, K/L, J, I frame stocks, Colt SAA, 1911, and you've still got your "other" box too and a box full of those awful rubber ones just in case. Along the way you talked to some guy at a show who showed you a Heiser holster and mentioned that company's long history and the wonderful products they made. Hey, that holster looks like it would fit my gun, and if it doesn't it might fit the next one. Soon you've got a box (or two) of holsters; Heiser, El Paso, Bianchi, etc. etc. etc. And when buying the holsters you found a great deal on ammo, not cartridges for which you have a gun, but likely you will have one soon enough. Pretty soon you can't find anything because of the proliferation of boxes and all because of that first box for the first gun. Maybe time to start collecting custom knives, they hardly ever come with a box.

Jeff
SWCA #1457

Thanks for all of your responses. I am a sucker for Smith revolvers ! They need to be shot !!

I've had a couple strange box related experiences lately. The first was a "NIB" gun where someone had gone to the trouble of printing a tiny computer label with the correct serial number and sticking it on the box. It fooled the dealer, didn't fool me and I'm still satisfied with the deal.

The other day, I agreed to buy a NIB commerative. It seemed like everything was there including the original shipping carton. Strangely, the commerative box was a bit dinged up. The label with the serial number had been attached to the outside of the shipping carton (not sure whether that was SOP at the time). Whoever created that label must have been dyslexic because he/she got the model number jumbled. Everything else on the label was as it should have been. The dealer, knowing I was coming for the gun, wrote my name in big marker on the shipping carton. Wish that hadn't happened.

22highpower really nailed it.
I don't collect boxes but if they come with the gun all well and good.

Walt

Everything is relative. I collect and shoot guns, not boxes. If the gun comes with the box all the better. But I'm not paying a premium for them, and I'm not looking for boxes.

YMMV.

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Expect the unexpected

Nothing cooler than to open a safe and have 100+ guns w/boxes stacked in there.

All original labels... I'd stand and stare at them for that fact alone.

As it is with anything collectible the original box and anything that came with it is important and adds value for a collector.