I sold my 29-3 6" and 629-2 MR because they were worth too much to shoot loose, I replaced both with a 629-4 5" so I could have a gun to shoot ALOT, but realize I stole it for $740 and won't be able to replace it cheaply if/when it wears out.

So, I am looking at newer 629s to shoot loose. Have you guys caught yourselves buying guns to shoot, then realizing they might be worth too much to wear out?

I can't be the only one.

Sold this:


And sold this (I never even shot it):


And replaced both with this:

A: No.

B: You can't "wear out" a Smith & Wesson by shooting it, so long as you properly maintain it . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

Something to consider - how much profit makes one sell a keeper? What do you consider doing to your 629 that would "wear it out"? According to your photo, you have plenty of bucks, so no reason not to buy a couple so you always have one in reserve!

I reload and shoot hard cast mainly and my shooting guns have worn over the course of time.

I lube them with Mobile 1 and shoot current book loads in my 27s and 629.

Now, I DON'T shoot book loads in my 24-3 nor in my 25-15, but they were indeed bought to shoot loose since the 24-3 is in shooter condition and the 25-15 will more than likely not have collector status in my lifetime.

I have purchased many firearms that ended up not being shot.

Value or Profit were NEVER part of the reason why they did not get shot. A hundred+ dollars one way or the other is not going to alter my quality of life.

Most that end up not getting shot is strictly due to lack of time. Sometimes unusual pairs or sets came up through multiple purchases.

On rare occasion a firearm turned out to be a one of a kind. I know it is worth more, but it was preserving the rare piece and not the money that was the motivating factor. even if value had not changed I still would have preserved it. As an example, I have a Titanium SIGMA model SW40Ti. It was never documented, cataloged, displayed or advertised by the company, but a couple of tool room samples were produced and it letters as a factory Titanium gun. I highly doubt it will ever bring me any profit above what saving any S&W brings over time. But mine is the only one that I have ever found photographed and in research I only heard of one other and that one has never been seen since. You use the phrase "wear out" a Smith and Wesson, the Gun will not "wear out". A part or two might "wear out" in which case you get the firearm fixed.

What do you do when a part on your car wears out?

And if you truly are able to shoot a Smith and Wesson until it is beyond functioning and repair would you not agree that you got your money's worth?

Yeah, I've got a model 36 in nickle, never pulled the trigger. She's been in the gun locker since the 1980's.

Like the ones above already have said, you won't kill your Smith by shooting it a lot. It might need to be serviced by the factory somewhere down the road, but I doubt you will just plain wear it out, especially an N frame. My first pistol, which was a 5" 27-2 I bought in 1974, probably had around 30k rounds of 38 and 357 through it and had gotten where it needed a visit back to the mothership to get spruced up last year. When I got it back, it felt just as tight as new and slicker than new besides. Total cost for the repairs and shipping both ways was less than $200. They changed out the hammer nose bushing, cylinder stop, hand, rebound slide and took out the excess endshake.

As for buying a gun to shoot and then not shooting it; I've never done that. I have bought a pistol with the intention of keeping it in new condition and then going run rounds through it though. I just couldn't resist.

Bought a PC DPA 5906 to shoot IDPA....... about that time the second son came along....... the "close by" Sunday match moved east about an hour.....felt too guilty about leaving Mum with two little ones (under 3) for at least half of Sunday.........guns still in the safe.

Found out 10/12 years later about the "small runs" of those early PC guns....

My DPA is #00xx"
the PC SD-9 less than 200 IIRC about 179 made......
My PC unmarked Shorty-9s/PC reverse two-tone 6904s ........(one still gets concealed carried as it has since about 1995)

Two of my three 3" 66s (anib w/ box and stuff)...... are safe queens.... found a used 3" 66-4 that I do carry.

That picture is gangster.
Back to original question, yes a mosin nagant. Its so full of cosmo Im not even gonna bother.

There are plenty of reasons for "safe queens" - NIB/unfired, a rare gun, family or historical value. Your situation seems different - you want to shoot yours until they break, while not "wear(ing) out" a new one, using one that you got for too low a price, or might be collectible in the future.

Using all these criteria, it seems the only way to do all this is to find the most common gun you like at full retail, shoot it until it needs to be replaced, then repeat.

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

Compared to the cost of the ammo to shoot one loose, the cost of a new gun pales in comparison. Even if you reload.

NOPE!!!!!!!!!!!!!NOT EVER

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Just a shooter

Not new guns.

The guns I don't want to wear out require a time machine to buy a new one or pay NIB 24-3 4" or Colt SAA prices for one.

I really wanted a S&W 25-7 in 45 Colt (have you priced one?), but bought a new 25-15 for half what a 25-7 goes for so I could get on with my life and shoot.

New MIM and locked 5" 629-6s and 25-15 are made everyday, but 5" 629-4s and 25-7s aren't.

No I have not. I am not into collectibles although I have and have had some uncommon items I have shot them all because that is what they are for and they came to me having been fired.

I buy to shoot. Have a 624 no dash, 629-1, and now a 625-6 45 colt. The first two have been shot alot and as soon as the weather turns nice the 625 will get dirtied up also. My semi-autos are always dirty and have yet to wear any of them out yet.

If shooting a gun devalued it from say $25,000 to $15,000, I would maybe not shoot it. But if we are talking a few hundred bucks on a gun that cost a thousand or or -- I'm shooting it.

If guns were a good investment vehicle, my financial guy would have told me. Bonds and index funds are investments. Guns are fun.

Fuzzy pictures and a lacking description yielded me an early pre-39 when I was after a 39 to shoot, worry about condition & the long extractor has kept me from shooting it. Another gunbroker find; a 586 described as very good.... When I got it, only every other chamber fired...it was mint.

[QUOTE=Scrateshooter;138891601]I sold my 29-3 6" and 629-2 MR because they were worth too much to shoot loose, I replaced both with a 629-4 5" so I could have a gun to shoot ALOT, but realize I stole it for $740 and won't be able to replace it cheaply if/when it wears out.

So, I am looking at newer 629s to shoot loose. Have you guys caught yourselves buying guns to shoot, then realizing they might be worth too much to wear out?

I can't be the only one.

You sold some nice guns, but they aren't especially valuable or collectible. You should have enjoyed them.

Yeah, this one:

NYPD 1947 M&P

I was looking for a cheap 38 to plink with at the range. After I got it, it had enough history I couldn't shoot it. So it sits in the safe.It did get me off the lurker fence and start posting here.

Looks like a 25-7 is maybe $1500? That's what completed auctions seem to top out at. It would take two or three times that amount of money in reloads just to loosen it up, at which point it could be rebuilt.

There's a lot of variables, but assuming you're loading on the lower end of the power spectrum a S&W will need a tuneup by 30,000 rounds. It of course depends on what your component cost is but for most non-caters that's going to be somewhere around $7 a box of 50? x 600 boxes is around $4,000 in ammo.

$4000 ammo + $1500 for the gun is $5500.

The $750 you saved is only a 14% savings.

That doesn't even take into account the fact that you can shoot a gun loose over a couple of decades, have it fixed up, and it will still have appreciated over what you paid for it. Yes it would be worth more if you didn't shoot it, but still valuable even after all the use.

Buying a gun and not shooting it???.....For me that would be like going to Golden Buffet and not eat!!!....never happen.

This.. I have taken others to the GC that for some reason or another didn't eat??

That would be like buying a new Gibson Les Paul & putting it in a glass case & never even playing it.. Just for show..
My guns get shot.. I'm not a collector..
I know a lot of guys here are collectors & I can see why but I will never be one who owns anything that just sits around unused..

Many of the Smiths I own/ed I bought off this very website, they all were seldom shot.

So far I've had to send one 27-3 in to get the yoke peened to correct endshake, there is now also more play in the cylinder stops: this is the type of wear I'm talking about. I also have a 5" 27-2 that is still tight as a vault, because I shoot the 27-3 more, because the 27-2 will ALWAYS be worth more than the 27-3.

I find it hard to believe I shoot more than other folks here.

I've not bought one that I did not intend to shoot. I have several that I have never shot.

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Even older, even crankier....

While I do go to the Golden Corral, I have NEVER felt the need or desire to eat EVERYTHING they put out

It is just like going to my safe but not needing to shoot everything in it

That is a GREAT example, thank you

Many a time... everything was obtained with the intention of using it, then either due to not having the time to immediately go out and shoot, or something else coming along shortly afterwards that diverted my attention, I've ended up with many of them in my safe that are still on my "pending to the range" list.

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Conrad
SWCA #1830 SWHF #222

Always wanted a Ruger Mini 14 so over the years I have bought 3 different ones and traded them off before I shoot any of them.

This thread pretty much answers my own question:

S&W 44 mag without mim trigger/hammer?

I haven't but I just had a gun that I really wanted to like but couldn't find any love for it so I sold it back to the gunshop.

I have a Ruger SR9C 9mm semi auto, one of two guns I use for CCW. Has been a great gun, just under 1100 rds with only one failure and that was a very hard primer on a Tula round, solid firing pin hit but no ignition.

Wanted a 9mm "range gun" something with a longer sight radius and fun to just plink with. Bought a Beretta M92 Brigadier. The Brigadier is just an M92 with a beefed up slide for greater durability.

Ran just fine with 115 and 124 gr generic FMJ ammo as well as Hornady Critical Duty +P ammo. But.........it just didn't light my fire. The Ruger's trigger is much better, I like its features better and the Beretta wasn't any more accurate in my hands than the much smaller Ruger.

So, will keep the $ for something down the road. Never cease to have an interest in a new purchase. Don

I bought a Bodyguard .380. I dry fired it, cannot stand the trigger pull, so it has never been shot. I plan on selling it.

Oh back around 2005 or so I came across a new in presentation case 8 3/8" blued M-57, unfired from the factory with all docs and tools. Meant to shoot it but never got around to it as I have a nickel six inch 57 and a good shooting Ruger to shoot. Never did get around to shooting the dang thing and it may be due to the 8 3/8th" 25-5 I found not long after the 57. The bigger .45 cal holes are just easier to see at fifty yards! Anyhoo that's my only "safe queen".

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Stay safe people!

Uhh, I just sold my 5" 629

Only one:
When Lew Horton came out with the 3" 44 specials in the mid '80s, I got one in blue.
It was so poorly made I sold it without ever shooting it.
I did keep the holster and got the stainless version (with it's holster).
Every other gun I own has been shot at one point or another.
The ones that give me the most fun get shot regularly.
Mostly 44 specials to this day.
Ones like the B78 in 6mm varmint rifle.. not so much.
The Browning BPS was mostly retired when I got a couple of Beretta O/U's but I shot quite a bit of skeet with it before then.
I do have a bolt action 12 ga that I should probably just give away

Like building the house we now live in, selling it or my guns has never been part of the equation.
I plan on passing them all along after I go.
Giving (or permanently loaning) one or 2 to close friends involves a lot less energy and paperwork.

Attached Images

LewHortonHolsters1.jpg (243.5 KB, 10 views)

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NEMO
"Everything 44"

I bought a pinned Model 60 from around 1974 that is NIB. Debating whether to shoot it or just keep it in the safe. Other than that, I shoot em all!

I bought an unfired M58 with the box, papers, tools and everthing else it left Springfield with in 1971. It even has the reciept from a local shop where the original owner bought it in 1971. I got it for a very good price and intended to shoot and even carry it some. I had wanted one of these overgrown M10s for many years...Well, six years or so later and its still unfired and living in a fleece lined case in the safe. The last time I checked what one in this condition is going for, I just fondled it and wiped it down and back to the safe it went. I keep thinking I may want to keep it at maximum value in case I come across something I want more sometime...But, I have plenty of others to use until I decide for sure what to do with it.