Another thread got me to thinking.
What guns have you over paid for?
I bought a 1956 M&P amd paid $420 for it. That was about $70 too much but I have one in my collection and I love it. No regrets.

How about you?

Wingmaster

Way too many to list.

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Sure you did

I've only paid too much when l thought it was something l absolutely "had to have"... but experience has shown me that if l will be patient, the same model will eventually show up for sale here or somewhere else at a more reasonable price. Oh well... it's only money!

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Isaiah 55:8-9
Phil. 4:13

These two letters right there are the problem...

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Jorge

You got that right!

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Isaiah 55:8-9
Phil. 4:13

Paid too much for my Ruger LCP .380.
It was one the only time I didn't wait.
Now if I really liked it then it would have softened the blow, but to add that I hate the damn thing is like salt in the wound.

I don't think I overpaid for any gun I own or formerly owned. What you have to give for a nice example of a quality gun might seem excessive today but in a few years, you'll be patting yourself on the back for making such a wise investment.

Ed

The US currency is becoming more worthless as we go deeper into debt. If you have to pay too much for a fine S&W revolver, in a few short years, you found a real deal. And they are not making them like the good ole days. Get em while you can. Tedog.

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Who are those guys?

If I want it "REAL BAD", I don't care what it cost.

10mm, when you care enough to send the very best.
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If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. (Rom12:18)

My list is long as well. In California which carries a premium anyway for handguns, what other places consider over priced, is the "normal" price here.

The ones I bought were "few and far between" showings, a M16-4, Lew Horton 24-3, 38/44 Outdoorsman and so on.

The way I figure it, time is the great equalizer and value will eventually catch up with what I paid.

Also, just like buying stocks over an extended period of time, when you dollar cost average the total number of what you have, the highs and lows you paid usually averages out to a lower cost per gun than what you paid at the time... with that in mind, I just buy what I like when it presents itself.

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Conrad
SWCA #1830 SWHF #222

OH yeah. Back in the 1990s I'd been tracking a M57. I finally bought it for $2000. OK, no one said I was all that smart. After over a year of looking and beating the seller over his head, he finally came "down" to $2 grand. So I bought it. He didn't make anything on the deal, so I'm not the only stupid buyer. Just the last in line.

Worse, its factory engraved and it has one of the nicest sets of elephant ivory grips I've ever seen. So I just think I'll keep it.

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Dick Burg

Geez, where to start? With the exception of one M28-2, I overpaid on a M29-2, M27-2, M57, M58, M19-3 (twice), ...you get the idea. However, some of the ones I overpaid to have, now look like good deals. Time makes the deal look better. Plus, I have enjoyed having the ones I overpaid to have.

I seem to have that problem too.......

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Tim, USAF Ret.

I over paid for a S&W Model 18 with box and all the goodies giving $700 for it. It was suppose to be unfired but is was shot very little but it was shot. That said the market has caught up to what I paid so I guess I just bought it early.

I have made a few smoking deals that swing the balance to other way. By the way you have a better chance being right about the gun's value it you have a want list and do your research on those revolvers and then set an upper limit on what you will spend. That works well until you see one you weren't wanting but is to nice to pass up and then it's a C**P shoot and you may win or lose.

Most all of them!
paperboy98

I bought a 5906 that was listed as NIB, never racked,perfect. When recieved it had damaged finish with wrong mags and sights on it. The seller refused to take it back and I filed a fraud claim with GB and postal dept but got no help. I marked it up to expierence. I still have the gun which is worth 200.00 less that I paid.

Welcome to the forum, flightsimmer. I have the same mindset. Life's too short to worry about a few bucks.......

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'Nam 1968-69.DAV,VFW,NRA Inst.

In the California market, nice S&W's that are not in current production bring a premium price and can be hard to find.

I had been looking for a nice 2 1/2" model 19 for a couple of years and finally found one that is pristine. I paid wayyyyyy too much for it compared to the market price in the rest of the country, but I am happy. It is a nice specimen that if I keep it nice will still bring way too much if I ever decide to sell it.

The bedrock of my Smith collection (small as it is) are two K frames from my granddad when he died. I would say I overpaid for them, and he would have agreed... On the other hand they where my dad's (he's never been a pistol guy, more into rifles) so he passed them on early, and is still around to say "you paid how much for that...." so in the big picture, the price could have been much higher.

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always trust your cape...

I have paid more than I would like for several of my guns, and like Art says, in some cases I have come out a little better than I expected, so things do tend to even out - a bit.

In the bigger picture, compared to the money I waste in a year on sodas, coffees, newspapers, desserts, etc. - the extra few dollars spent on a gun I really "need" ( ) is probably the money I spend that does me the least harm.

If I can stand to write the check, once that is over, I never give it another thought.

I paid $599.00 for the first 43C I saw after two years of waiting, then I won one on an auction for $499.00 thinking it would help mitigate the cost...works out I'm happy and their terrific little shooters and still too pricey.
Four years ago I paid $500.00 for a 1970 Marlin 39 Century NIB and felt for a long time I was an idiot, I really beat myself up about it, now I'm okay with that purchase as well.

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R Gitz

In my mind I've only ever overpaid for one gun and it was 'some other' brand. I lost $100 bucks on that deal when I sold it a short time later. I lost $100 bucks on another deal - but I just didn't want it any more. There have been others I literally gave away just because I didn't want them any more and I don't consider those in the 'bad deal' group at all.

My Smith's were either square deals, or smokin' deals. And the few smokin' deals waaaaaaaay more than compensate for even the square deals.

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But then, what do I know?

One stands out. My identical-twin brother had a nice clean Remington 1903-A3 in a C stock... milled metal parts, nice milled buttplate. He didn't really like it so he took it to the Atlanta Farmers Market Gun Show to sell. I bought it for $300 (1985). That was of course to much to pay back then. But he died in 2004 and this is the one and only thing I have that was his. Shot my first vintage military rifle match with it shortly after the funeral. Wouldn't sell it for the world.

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<><

Kind of a long story My Uncle Passed away in West Virginia & his will stated any items not specificly named to go to someone would be sold at auction to the highest bidder,So I aproached My aunt who got all the proceeds about My Late Uncles Pristine Winchester Model 61 .22 Magnum that he purchased new in 1960,She wouldn't sell it to Me,So I drove from Florida to West Virginia for the auction & every thing went for crazy high money when the 61 magnum came up it quickly came down to Me & 1 other bidder & I did end up giving $3300 (I know it's about 1K Too Much) But it was My Late Uncles & absolutly mint,& I didn't drive that far to come home empty handed! At least My wife was cool about it when I decided to go she told Me not to come home with out that gun!

I think the "too much" question only comes into play if you are a dealer or trader. People who move guns certainly never want to pay more for one than they can sell it for pretty soon.

When I buy a gun, I am pretty sure I am into owning it for the long haul. That allows me to go as high as I need to in order to acquire it if I really want it. Sometimes I have dropped out of bidding on a gun I really wanted just because the price went from outrageously overvalued to insanely overpriced. I'm sorry I lost these guns, but I'm not sorry I kept the money.

Only twice have I chased a gun up the value ladder against all common sense and under the influence of a "buy at any price" psychology. Neither was a Smith and both have appeared in threads here in the Lounge. I won't mention the prices, which were nuts, but I will identify the guns. One was a seemingly unfired Colt Commando with a two-inch barrel, a scarce configuration of an uncommon WWII revolver. The other was a barely shot Model of 1903 Mannlicher-Shoenauer carbine with a classic prewar Kahles scope that had been factory mounted to the gun with a two-piece mount that duplicated the rifle's serial number. In each case, the bid that won me the gun was the last bid I was going to place because I had run WAY beyond my comfort zone. But the opposition must also have been having heart palpitations, as they ceased bidding and I won both guns.

I love them both and have absolutely no regrets about buying them. But I realize that the only reason I paid as much for them as I did was that I got into a bidding duel with another party who wanted them almost as much as I did.

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David Wilson

I paid too much for a 2inch model 63 had the factory box, all papers, cleaning rods etc, almost looks unfired. Well it used to. Price$800 I thought it was too high, but had to have it.
Same with my 696 no dash. same stuff as the 63 Price $825 another had to have

Tj

I won an unfired 29-2 on GB 5-1/2 years ago at was at that time an extremely high price. Now it would be about the right price. I'm glad to have it, but I would prefer a 6-1/2" model(this one is an 8-3/8"). If anyone has one in comparable condition and would like an 8-3/8", send me a pm.

Andy

Boys my thought process runs amuck these days. It is impossible to pay too much for a good Smith & Wesson. But you can pay it too soon.

Just my 2 cents.

regards

Bill

AGREED ! ! !

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'Nam 1968-69.DAV,VFW,NRA Inst.

Exactly the case with my 3" 66. Paid a lot but it has since caught up!

I have always admired those gun collectors who only buy or trade when it is a very good deal for them. I wish I had that kind of self discipline, but I don't. I have always had limited funds available for a gun purchase, but unfortunately I was often willing to trade whatever I had at the time to make the deal for what I wanted. Consequently, I have sacrificed many guns that I wish I still had today. I try to console myself by saying, "well I could have a gambling addiction, and that money would be gone with nothing to show for it." Makes me feel a little bit better, just a little.

If I only bought guns that were "great deals" I wouldn't have many of my favorite guns

It seems unorganized but I really don't keep track of what I paid for most of my guns.........I paid $400 for a 10-8 4" recently only because it was a round butt and was made in 1980, and I had been looking for a "birth year" Model 10 4" HB RB since this is one of my all time favorite firearms. Sure, I could have gotten a square butt HB Model 10 4" made in some other year for less, but that wasn't what I wanted.

So, overpaying is all relative...........if it's there, and you want it but it's priced a little high, you can either pay the price or go home without it!

I've paid "too much" for most of mine, at least according to the internet. I've found that guns are always cheaper "somewhere else, a long way away." However, I have no interest in buying on Gunbroker, or any acution site. I want to see it, and hold it before I say "I'll take it."

Most recent example, and I'm sure there are those who will hoot and laugh and tell me how much I overpaid for this one, but it doesn't matter to me. A couple of weeks before Christmas, my LGS turned up a near mint M&P, (from 55/56) with a 2" barrel, in the gold/blue box, with most of the papers. (The only sign of having been fired I coud find were carbon rings on three of the cylinders.) They were asking $750.00.

I made an offer, and the guy behind the counter apologized and said that he just couldn't take anything less. Two weeks before Christmas, if I didn't buy it, someone else would, and at that price. My wife standing beside me said "We'll take it. I know he wants it."

Too much? Probably so. On the other hand I've got a 55/56, 2" M&P that looks like brand new that I wouldn't have otherwise. I have no intention of selling it, so it really doesn't matter.

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John 3:16 .

I'm sure I have a few that I paid to much for and a few that I got more than I paid for so it all equals out in the end...

If you buy a quality, name brand gun or antique collectable you have never paid too much ...... sometimes you have to wait 5 years but seems like the market always catches up to the price you paid.

Paying too much is apparently my modus operundi. I'm real notorious for doing that. And my advise to you is if you are trying to sell one... seek me out. In a couple of instances it worked out well since those particular guns jumped way up in value and I could have made money had I sold them. But about a year ago I bought my second K22/40 and am so embarrassed to reveal what I paid that I'll have to do it in a riddle.

If you had 3 female pigs and 3 male deer... what you'd have is what I paid. Sadly, I'd probably do it over again.

Roger

....................(3 sows and bucks)

Pretty much every 1911 I've owned. I'm yet to get one I didn't have to fix right out of the box... I love the platform and carry one almost daily, but objectively speaking my money would have been better spent elsewhere. I think spending $1k on a gun you have to fix straight from the factory definitely qualifies as over paying.

P7M8 here, nine years ago. It's taken that long for the used prices to catch up to what I paid. On the other hand, warranty replacement of the firing pin bushing and firing pin was free, so I'm a couple hundred ahead on the gun. I won't be selling it, so it's all moot anyway.

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Bob

There is not enough band width on this site to list them all.

I love to attand live gun auctions. I go to about four a year, and I always walk out with at least one that I overpaid for. Those guns are the ones that I just had to have, and someone wants them almost as much as I do.

But the internet is ALWAYS the truth! You're not going to tell me that GB is crawling with scam artists? Oh gosh Wally, you wouldn't let ole' "Beav" lose faith in the magical internet?

The problem I have with GB and the other sites is that those are typically (though not always) people trying to make money in the 'gun bidness'. I'll order from Bud's, JG, or other 'real' internet businesses. But I won't do business with GB or those other goofy sites. Too many scam artists.

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But then, what do I know?

Bought a Kimber once, only once.

That is exactly what I think when I read of others complaining about paying a bit too much for a gun. Since I always buy every gun assuming I will be keeping it, I have never been overly concerned about the price of a gun that is "a little" more than I want to spend. After all, it is a hobby and no one is forcing me to buy anything, at any price.

When the cost exceeds a certain number, the matter takes care of itself. I seem to have a built-in barometer for that. If the price is "too high" - I don't want it any more.

That is a rough definition of overpaid. One paying 2015 prices for a buy in 2012 is just that.

Well, I did it again. I just received my M58, nickel. I overpaid by at least $100, in my opinion, but I am glad to have it.

Hold on just a minute. I've bought guns that I fully plan on keeping. But 10 or 15 years later, I'd be hard pressed to recover my initial investment. You can slice that one up any way you want, but when you buy a gun and decades later you can't get back the same amount, much less a tiny profit, you've probably overpaid.

Maybe not if the market has shifted a whole bunch. But I have some experience in this stuff!

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Dick Burg

Being in CA I overpay for just about everything. I don't really mind, my guns are not for sale so I do not worry about getting any of my money back. Also it doesn't take very long to spend more in ammo than I did on the gun so whats $75-$100 really matter.

I swapped some cash and a rifle for an 1899 250-3000 Sav takedown with extra factory 410 barrel. Even though I dickered hard and got the best deal I could (He wanted my trade real bad) I still broke out in a sweat over it. Now many years later and not having seen another set like it, I'm starting to sleep at night.

Here's my simple rationalization/justification when I over pay for a gun...or guitar, fiddle, banjo. I'm not buying it unless I really want it and if I overpay by $200, but keep it for 5 years then I'm paying approx. .11 cents a day to rent it. Yes, it does add up but then what price do you put on the joy it brings?

Just my, er, .11 cents worth.
T

How about $4K for a gun nearly a year ago that I don't think I will ever see?

I put the *market* price on it.