In my travels yesterday, I checked out a gun shop an hour and a half from home. Nothing in the case looked interesting, so I asked” ‘Have any 66 pre-lock 2& a half inch Smith’s?”

The owner went in back and came out with a nice dash 2. It had no price so of course I said “It’s free?” He said that he would have to look up a price. I gave him a low offer just to see how he would react; no go. I gave him my #, but did not get a call.

The next day, I got $700 with the plan of making him a cash offer. The gun was in good shape, with the only fault was tha the barrel was very very slightly not perfectly indexed.

I offered him $650 cash, which he turned down. I said that I didn’t know what he had into it, but gave him a final cash offer of the $700 that I brought. He said that it didn’t matter what he had into it, but said he wanted $700 plus tax. So he lost a sale for $56?

I thanked him for his time and left. In the past year or so I made several reloading supplies from his store.

Your thoughts?

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Fide Et Amore

My initial thought was that you gave him a junk offer to begin with, one that must have been pretty bad (you didn't share with us just how low it actually was...)

The guy has a gun store. Unless it's only been open three weeks I'll guess he knows what he's doing and he's get his $700+tax eventually.

If you're offended that he didn't accept any of your three offers, that's fine also, certainly your right.

I honestly don't believe there is a whole lot to dissect here.

He thinks you'll be back tomorrow with a full offer.

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It’ll be gone tomorrow.

I would think any gun shop should be able to get $700 plus tax for a nice 2.5" Model 66. I'm surprised it wasn't in the case marked $799 to leave him a little negotiating room. I saw several at the last gun show marked $850. Still there when I left too!

If these are $700, they sure went up in price fast. I thought I overpaid for mine a year ago at $650.

These snubby K & L frames pre-locks are commanding high dollars. $700+ tax seems about right. It's a good thing I have a few of these things lying around, I would hate to have to pay today's prices.

The 2.5” 66s are bringing insane dollars now. I saw one last week, in a shop that is normally very reasonable, disappear in less than a week for the asking price of $800. It was killing me to know what it brought because I have one. They said they stood firm on the price and the guy came back with a partial trade. I immediately started thinking I could never bring myself to start carrying my near perfect 66 snub.

I think you should have paid the $56 and then you would have gotten a great deal. They're not making anymore of them.

That would have been the deal-breaker for me.

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'Merica!

You’re “it’s free” comment did not amuse him and he locked down on you. You will pay more then someone else if you end up buying it. Maybe not, but when I had a part time shop, it worked that way... but maybe that’s just me.

I paid $625 for my -1 earlier this year when a friend offered his up for sale. He works at a LGS and knew I like older Smiths. I didn't dicker with him, because I knew if I ever ran across another one locally, it would likely be listed at the $699,or worse. People are hanging on to them more since the freakish "gold rush" we recently went through has settled down some.

You might as well take the $56 bucks back and see if he'll let you keep half of it. Methinks it was in the back because he either didn't really want to sell it, or he's waiting for the next panic buying spree and will then ask $850. It's like land, "they stopped making that too"..

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I agree because it is probaly the most used and annoying cliche people love to drop when visiting a retail establishment if something isn't priced.

I have never had good negotiations when dealing with a gun store in their home territory aka the store front. Some places flat out won't budge and some only budge $50 or so from the list price. If you want what you want then you have to pay. If you already have 3 at home then I could understand walking away.

I've got a nickel 19-3 2.5" TH/TT on layaway and I tried to get it for $800 out the door. Wasn't happening, I had to cough up another $35 for that one.

2.5" 19's and 66's that are pre-lock are strong sellers now.

$750 is the right price, but I am a little surprised he didn't do $700 for you.

The 'free' comment may have budged him in the wrong direction, or maybe he just had a number he was not going to move off of and that was it.

Sometimes a deal just doesn't happen.

I've bought more than a few guns by asking the seller, "What's your best price?" followed by "You're not going to hurt my feelings, I know you have to make a living". Whatever price they tell me is the price I'm either prepared to pay, or decide it's too much. Either way I thank them for their time, and if it's more than I'm prepared to pay right then, I'll either tell them I'll think about it and get back with them, or tell them I'm not prepared to pay what they're asking. And I always get back in touch, either to let them know I'll take it if the price is still good, or let them know I'm not. 9 times out of 10, when I ask for their best price, it's lower than what I would have offered initially. My daddy always told me, "Son, never be the first one to give a price. Let the other fellow be the one to do it." Pretty good advice that's worked well for me.

I typed out a long reply, but ultimately:

1. I think $700 was a fair price, and I wouldn't pay more just because market prices are a bit inflated right now. I paid $600 for a almost mint M19-3 snubbie last year; I might have paid $700, but not $756 to that guy.
2. I don't think I'd go back to that gun store, because the owner's practices bug me. I personally would rather give my money to someone else.

Yeah, they can be that rediculous in price. https://www.gunbroker.com/item/776963319

Which of the owner's practices bug you? All we know about his practices from the OP is that the owner turned down three offers for his merchandise that he felt were too low. He stated his desired price, which the OP rejected. The OP questioned the owner's willingness to lose a sale over $56 -- another perspective is that the OP lost a purchase over the same $56.

My approach would be, "What price are you looking for?" when I would have first seen the gun. At that point I would have tried to analyze what was kind of wiggle room I would have in negotiations.

I would have dug deep and just pay the $56 above what I came in with.

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Why does everyone was to dicker on prices? If the guy would accept $700 with tax, he would have priced it that way. I never haggle price - if the price is more than I honestly think the item is worth or at least worth to me, I thank the seller for his/her time and walk away.

And for the umpteenth time on this Forum, I will remind you that any nice older Smith & Wesson revolver that seems too costly today will seem quite reasonable before long. They don't make 'em any more, at least not like that, and there are fewer nice examples available for sale as time marches on.

Go back, give the guy his $56 and have something you obviously really want. IF it's still there, of course.

Ed

The dealer's price is fair for a pre-lock 66 snub. Someone will pay it eventually (probably today). I don't let the tax amount, or worrying about what the dealer had paid for a firearm get in the way of making a purchase if i really want what's in the case and the price is reasonable.
Having said that, profit-hungry dealers will always try to lowball private sellers. A gentleman wanting to sell his 3" 66-4 (with Spegels) took it to a gun show. He told me that the dealers refused to give him his asking price, which at that time was half the going rate, because "there would not be enough profit". I bought the 66-4.

Well you were bidding against yourself ........ Free (bad joke), low ball offer ,$650,$700..... why would he expect you to stop bidding........ over $56 in tax.

He figures you will be back and/or your $700 bid proved to him he had it marked/priced correctly.

$56 over the useful life of the gun is how much per year? When was the last time you saw one in a LGS.....for me it's been at least 10 years.

The way I see it you lost a good gun for $56

I wouldn't have lost it over fifty bucks. Not if I wanted it.

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John 3:16 .

I bought my 66-2 no box or docs from a private seller a couple of months back for $650. Great shape, good price. $650-$750 sounds about right.

My experience when negotiating at a pawn shop, less so a LGS is to very respectfully show the employee that you have the cash. You are serious.

I also have watched pawn shops and gun shops negotiate and price customer trade-ins. Courteous, but it’s all about the money. They likely bought it for 50% of its value from someone hurting for $.

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Just hanging with my dogs

Obviously your tactics with gun buying didn't work with this gun shop owner. I'd be willing to bet neither one budges on the $56 tax. The hunt for a 66 snubby continues.

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"Happiness is a warm gun"

I think that most people view price haggling as a game or sport .How often do you see a post where a member has come across a $650 gun selling for $450. And the responses usually advise him to go back and lay down four Bengimans and see what he does.
I'm with you if I want something and can afford it I buy it.

Your free comment and then you threw a low ball price to him closed him down to entertaining any negotiation with you. When people know what a fair price is on gun, why lowball a dealer?

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Life NRA, Life TSRA, C&R FFL

Much ado about nothing.

Pre-lock snub nosed *magnums* are going for mega bucks these days. 800-1000+, depending on the model and condition.

The K-frame magnums in the snub nosed variants are quite costly. 850+ around these parts is standard.

Its all about the art of the deal as Trump would say.... depends what he has in it...my local shop runs a 40% margin on used weapons.

A brand new Kimber K6S is sounding pretty cheap right about now.

I'm not convinced Kimber revolvers will increase in value. They're good guns, and I have a hunch that in this age of plastic fantastic they won't stay in production long. So maybe they're a good investment, but if I knew for sure I'd be rich from the stock market. Don't take my advice!

I told you a while back. $1k for a Combat Magnum isn't even out of line for a 4", much less a 2.5". It's going to be around $2k to get a pre-lock magnum gun in the next few years.

Lost a nice revolver you wanted over $50. Congrats

Everybody loves buying a nice handgun cheap. But with the days of the web prices are to easy to check. It becomes a matter of how bad you NEED a certain handgun.
I recently paid 750 for my prelock 66 snuby. I’m sure happy with it. Now that I have it and have shot it ,I would pay more.

$650-700 is high around my area. I purchased a 66-2 (2.5") used but in great shape 2 yrs ago at a local shop for $550. And that was a cash offer because it was priced at $575. Sold it a year later for $575. I just didn't care for adjustable sights on that short of a barrel. I have seen them at gun shows around the $550-600 range. If he didn't take your offer it just sounds to me like he doesn't intend to sell it. It wasn't even priced when he showed it to you.

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Ephesians 6 (Armor of God)

Everybody has their price, and y'all's didn't match up. $700 is a little high for around here, maybe $100 high, but I understand they go for that other places.

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

Between the free comment and the low ball offer I probably would have had my hackles up; I probably would have done the same as the shop owner.

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K & N S&W revolvers

You frequent his store and buy his items and he won't deal.
Bad business in my opinion.
I would not give him any more of my cash.
And cash 700 may go into the books as 450?

I can only speak for me, but when it comes to used anything, usually the seller prices high, to be able to negotiate down to the actual price they are looking for (learned this from my father when I was young, and guess what, as usual he was correct), and frankly I enjoy the negotiating.

If some sucker actually pays their higher asking price, it's a win for them (seller), and shame on the buyer.

Now, I'm not saying this always happens, or that sometimes the asking price isn't reasonable (to the buyer), but I've found that to be very unusual.

When dealing with anything used, the price is ALWAYS negotiable, and (at least in my mind) if you think otherwise P.T. Barnum said it best - “There's a sucker born every minute.”

You asked and these are my thoughts.

He still has the gun you don't... who lost?

Of course, he still has his $700 and the dealer doesn't. When I was a kid and I would loose out on some "amazing deal" my dad always used to say "you had money in your pocket this morning and you were pretty happy about it. Why aren't you happy about it now"?

When it's a gun purchase. You can't go shoot the money.

To the OP..If spending $56 more to own the gun, shoot it, carry it..and maybe in a couple years (after using it)sell it for $750...

I'd be unhappy I still had the cash..

If it was a gun I really wanted I would not have walked away for $56. Just my opinion.
Walt

Not trying to be negative about the OP in any way, shape or form. But just wondering why we pick certain items to feel like we can just make an offer. We don't go to a grocery store and put an offer on a gallon of milk or a clothing store and ask if there is any wiggle room on the price or call the electric company and offer less per kilowatt. I'm not saying I haven't done it but after thinking about this post it got me wondering.
Any thoughts?

Or you could say, You lost the gun for $ 56.00

The dealer has money and the gun, anybody and everybody has money. But not everybody has that gun. You ever looked at it like that ? Id personally rather have that gun than 756.00 dollars,, that dealer is thinking the exact same thing. Take you 700.00 and get out on the hustle in search of you a clean 66 2inch, see how much time and gas you burn up trying to save 56.00 dollars.

I don't know about you, but I don't buy "used" food.

As to clothing, if it's used, it's price IS negotiable, just as any used anything is negotiable in price.

I'm not so sure what is difficult to understand about that.

Listed my 29-2.. I was asked "is that my best price?"

answer.."yes, firm"

Result..cash in hand, gun delivered.