Guns lose value

I dont worry about resale on any of my handguns. With the exception of a '51 Colt Challenger handed down to me, all others (most are SW's along with 1 Buckmark in the mix) were bought with a purpose in mind, from range toy to SD and they all fill their need. All were what i'd consider reasonably priced regardless if on sale or not.

I understand when gun prices drop (even temporarily) that it can affect one's potential resale or value, just not something i'd concern myself with.
 
TTSH said:
I'll respectively submit that it is something more than just that this time around. Perhaps you, Bam and others are right about S&W doing an over-the-top build-up of resources and inventory in anticipation of a very different election result... but it also has to do with how insanely inexpensive it is to build plastic guns these days compared to what the market was and still is willing to pay for them. It's like printing money for S&W even at these new crazy low prices.
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TTSH you make a good point......even at lower MSRP/wholesale to attract buyers ..... we've had many threads on Tupperware having a greater profit margin than metal guns based on cost of production........


As a WAG; based on the rebates currently being offered that margin is at least $75 greater/gun!

When they clean out excess inventory..... prices may stay low; as folks wait for the next "sale"!



:D
 
All plastic framed pistols are $200 guns max. Doesn't matter whether they have S&W, Glock, Kel Tec or H&K stamped on the slide. Do you really think plastic and spring wire costs one company 3x what it costs another? The only difference is marketing.

A 'smart' man would sell his used Glock that has magically held its value and trade those beans in on a pair of Shields while the opportunity presents itself. Or possibly, the man who 'overpaid' for a Shield earlier would dollar cost average his way into a bargain by buying another bushel basket full at the reduced price.
 
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Poly small caliber hand guns (380-9mm) make great birthday, Christmas and spur of the moment gifts.
I've been giving a few to the Legion Post 639 to raffle off for the repairs our building needs. New HVAC units ain't cheap.

I hate drinking in a cold in the winter and hot and humid bar in the summer.
 
kaveman said:
Or possibly, the man who 'overpaid' for a Shield earlier would dollar cost average his way into a bargain by buying another bushel basket full at the reduced price.
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I tried that very same approach in the stock market. :) I lost bigtime. :(
 
GaryS said:
I could have said my rail 3913TSW, you know. :D

On a more serious note. The gun market has expanded tremendously over the past several years. We don't need to discuss why, suffice it to say that more people the need to own guns.

Many of those new owners are not "gun people" as most of the members here are. They plan to own one, maybe two guns, not the collections that many here have.

They are looking for guns that are inexpensive (relatively) to buy, easy to maintain, and that will spend most of their lives sitting in a safe, drawer, automobile console (!) or wherever. To them, guns are just another household appliance more or less. That's why S&W and other manufacturers are making and selling so many cheaper polymer framed guns.

Although I don't think she will, I'd love for my daughter to buy and carry a firearm. A Shield would be the type of gun that would be good for her even though she did enjoy shooting my 6906 a few years ago.
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I still don't buy that new narrative that today's gun buyers are a vastly different breed of simple commodity self-defense appliance buyers, but maybe that's just my advanced age and "behind enemy lines" location talking. ;)

I will, however, add this to the discussion: .40 pistol sales must be in a death spiral of sorts because I'm seeing giveaway prices on all sorts of .40 pistols, modern plastic fantastics and high-quality all-metal pistols (new and used) as well. :confused: Just this past week I was stunned on what I could buy for cheap if only I was willing to add more .40's to the arsenal. :eek:

But for the same reason they are selling for cheap, I am staying away from them for now. I really like my full-size .40's and I shoot them well... but if the market for them is crashing, I'm not inclined to buy any more. :o
 
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I'm not a collector......

I'm a user and resale value means very little to me. Plastic guns are utilitarian, period. Don't buy one if you want to keep it in the safe until the value goes up.

Plastic guns are great for carry (for most of us that don't want to tote around a couple pounds of metal).

Also, a lot of metal guns lose value, too, before they become collector pieces. Which I love because it enables me to buy guns that I would not otherwise be able to afford.
 
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rwsmith said:
I

Also, a lot of metal guns lose value, too, before they become collector pieces. Which I love because it enables me to buy guns that I would not otherwise be able to afford.
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Most of the guns I have I bought were in the sweet spot........ "Used but still in production" (in some form)...........

In Pa. S&W's have always( well at least since 1978) sold new at well under MSRP....... used,......even ANIB or still NIB...... the pricing "starts" at $100 off the price of a new gun.

Also if you liked revolvers or single stack autos.......they were dirt cheap ..... when everyone wanted guns with 15+ 9mm up there butts.

Even 3" 66s and 39xx ..... got nothing on trade; and were resold at give away pricing from the late 80s till well into the 21st century.
 
Cal44 said:
I'm wondering if low prices and rebates on Shields are being offered to clear out inventory before a new version is announced.
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According to Smith and Wesson they did increase production ahead of the election. That put a lot of inventory at dealers. The rebate did not change the dealers cost only incentivized the consumer. Now with inventory moving off shelves they can invest in the next generation.

Smith and Wesson has been making moves to broaden their business. That's why they bought Crimson Trace. I wouldn't be surprised to see a rebate on Crimson Trace products for the Shield after June.

While Polymer pistols are a horrible investment to us, to the manufacturer they can be a cash cow. According to Glock, the average cost per pistol is $98. That's just materials and manufacturing cost. The distributor cost is $398, so almost 3 dollars profit for every dollar spent.
 
I buy guns that I like and want to keep and shoot.
If I am not impressed,or just doesn't fit my tastes, I sell it at the next gun show.
Example:

The last show, a fellow came to the table with a Walther PPQA 9mm, in its factory case,with all papers,all accessories, with 3 extra Walther magazines. 4 mags total.
He had bought it several years earlier and now needed money as his wife was expecting their 3rd child.
I and my gun guru associate looked it carefully and I bought it for 400 Dollars.
I now have read up on it and now know what the QA model is and it's main distinctive trigger feature.
It fits my hand perfectly, and I like the ambidextrous magazine release.
I'm now ready to go to the range and fire some rounds thru it.
If I somehow do not like it, I will take it to my local gun store and have it's gunsmith install a 5.5# Glock trigger spring in it.
If I still am not happy, I will simply re-sell it to another qualified buyer at the next Texas Gun Show that I attend. God Bless Texas.
 
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Breakaway500 said:
"I look for the "S&W Factory Outlet" store to no avail."

Ah..times have changed. There use to be a S&W factory outlet in Kittery Maine and one in Springfield,Ma..right at the "factory". Imagine that! Now..you have to buy through a distributor/gun store or on the used market. Welcome to 2017...
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One here in Myrtle Beach for a couple of years.
 
let's face it, these are just like most cars; as very few gain value. Most are just made to be used (driven), though some may give more enjoyment than others.
Drive a car off the lot or walk out the store with a new gun (or near anything else), and it's value will drop.

Trying to speculate on what may give the highest return? That may take a mix of knowledge and luck.... who's to say what value one of our Shields may hold years down the road when it's handed down to a child/grandchild (age appropriate lol).
 
WOW! Guys complaining about the low price of guns. I bought a 9mm shield some years back for more than they sell for now. Know how I soothed my hurt ego over the current rebate and prices? I bought a 45 shield! Look. I have been through this a hundred times. Smith has inventory to burn off, probably because Hillary lost and there was no mad buying frenzy. The shield is Smiths cash cow (about $100 profit per gun) and they aren't about to stop making them. In a few years a new shield will cost more than whatever you paid for yours. I have buying guns for many years and can't remember ever selling one for less than I paid for it. Of course, my guns look like new and are in the original box when I sell them.
 
WOW! Guys complaining about the low price of guns. I bought a 9mm shield some years back for more than they sell for now. Know how I soothed my hurt ego over the current rebate and prices? I bought a 45 shield! Look. I have been through this a hundred times. Smith has inventory to burn off, probably because Hillary lost and there was no mad buying frenzy. The shield is Smiths cash cow (about $100 profit per gun) and they aren't about to stop making them. In a few years a new shield will cost more than whatever you paid for yours. I have buying guns for many years and can't remember ever selling one for less than I paid for it. Of course, my guns look like new and are in the original box when I sell them. This also assumes you hold on to the gun for a number of years.
 
Pretty simple really. Do you buy a gun based on the price today or six months from now? My guess is today's price and hopefully the lowest you can find since no one knows what six months will bring. If it was worth $400 to you when you bought it then I don't see the problem either with the price or your decision at the time.
 
I value guns and guns have value to me...plastic or metal. I would rather entertain a manufacturer who sets a price that they can somewhat maintain. However, this takes forethought and strategic marketing analysis/planning. Some companies get it right! Not saying I'll never buy another S&W. In fact I'm interested in the 2.0 version for 275 with a 50 dollar mail in rebate :)
 
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Raw materials are likely a small part of the gun cost, be it metal or plastic. Engineering, testing, marketing, tooling, insurance, distribuion and profit margin (manufacturer, distributor and retailer potentially all taking a small cut) are all built in too. When you move a big volume, you lower the the fixed development cost for each gun, along with securing lower prices on raw materials and subcontracted assembelies. You should never buy a gun, car, lawnmower or any other consumer item for investment, as it is difficult to estimate what something will be worth in the future. Most items people see as collectible, when adjusted for inflation, are not particularly good investments. There are exceptions, usually bacause something is rare. S&W Shields or Glock 19s or insert xxx metal or xxx plastic gun name here, are not rare and likely will not be in the near future. By something you want when you can afford it and think the value is good. Use it, enjoy it and if the value goes up and you want something else, sell it. Value goes down, don't sell it, if it is worth more to you than the price you can get in the market. I am suprised so many freedom loving patriots don't support the free market :)
 
Capitalism at work, long live America.

Anyone wanna off their awful plastic Shield, I'm buying at $150 and I'll toss in 10 bucks for shipping.
 
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ladder13 said:
Capitalism at work, long live America.

Anyone wanna off their awful plastic Shield, I'm buying at $150 and I'll toss in 10 bucks for shipping.
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That's actually a fair price for a used S&W shield but I am keeping mine. I will hold out for the 2.0 for just around 200. I'd like to have both
 
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mattwings said:
Raw materials are likely a small part of the gun cost, be it metal or plastic.

There are exceptions, usually bacause something is rare. By something you want when you can afford it and think the value is good. Use it, enjoy it and if the value goes up and you want something else, sell it. :)
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LOL If S&W had sold 25,000 Registered Magnums between 1935-40 vs the approximately......5000 they did sell...... what would be their value today???
 
Yeahya said:
...S&W? 239 for a shield, really?
... Considering I paid a little over 400 for mine really tears me up.
... Obviously over priced when I bought it.
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Then you are not a very astute buyer. I bought my Shield when it retailed for $419 and got a sale price adjustment of $385 for it. I've had it for several years now and have thoroughly enjoyed it. Was it overpriced when I bought it? No, otherwise I would not have bought it. If I thought it was overpriced and bought it anyway, I'd foolish. The fact that it can be bought some places for $239 now has nothing to do with paying $385 for it when I did. I certainly got more than $150 worth of enjoyment out of it.

If you only think that you are a wise shopper only when you get something at the rock bottom price, good luck. You'll be sitting on your money scouring the ads rather than shooting.
 
I mostly buy used, in like new condition. But I bought my Shield 9 new due to the $319 sale price/$75 rebate.
Awesome gun, awesome value. Win for me!
I take issue with the plastic guns are **** comments. Sure a PC SW1911 is sweet, sweet. But read other forums about issues with all metal guns... lots of issues. My M&Ps. Walther & Glock have never had a function issue, ever.
I buy for reliability and value. This sale on Shields has given me both.
 
rsrocket1 said:
Then you are not a very astute buyer. I bought my Shield when it retailed for $419 and got a sale price adjustment of $385 for it. I've had it for several years now and have thoroughly enjoyed it. Was it overpriced when I bought it? No, otherwise I would not have bought it. If I thought it was overpriced and bought it anyway, I'd foolish. The fact that it can be bought some places for $239 now has nothing to do with paying $385 for it when I did. I certainly got more than $150 worth of enjoyment out of it.

If you only think that you are a wise shopper only when you get something at the rock bottom price, good luck. You'll be sitting on your money scouring the ads rather than shooting.
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What does this have to do with an item holding its value for resale and a manufacturer devaluing their own product? 🤔
 
About a month ago, Lowes had John Deere riding lawn mower baggers on sale for 25% off (269.99 instead of the regular price of $350 or so). I went back and forth about buying one, but decided, on the last day of the sale, not to get one, as I really did not NEED it. Not a week later, I was at Lowes again for something else, and decided just to go look at them to see if it was something that I just had to have, even at full price (sale was over). You can't imagine my face when I saw that they were now on sale for 50% off... I didn't even have to think about it and put one in the cart. I got it for $174.99!

That being said, unless you know somebody in the mix, buying an item at its current price is sort of a gamble. You can buy a shield today for $299 ($224 after rebate), and they may go out of business in two weeks (very doubtful) and the shields will be on sale for half that price (doubtful, but you never know!).

The biggest decision that anybody has to make when purchasing an item is whether or not the item is worth what it is being sold for. In your case, OP, the Shield was worth what you payed for it at the time. Now, for some reason, it seems to be worth less, at least from a manufacturer's standpoint...
 
Wee Hooker said:
Why are these sort of flavored threads always from somebody with less than 10 posts to their name. I bet most of us can figure out why....
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I bet you know why. I'd also bet you have the answer to just about anything. Perception vs reality can sometimes be tricky for us who lack that crystal ball ��. Don't judge a man by the size of his posts
 
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Remington just announced rebates on several of their models, including $150 on the M700 rifles. (That's almost enough to pay for a Timney trigger.;))
 
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