How do I sell my SW 2nd Schofield?

[jdbott]

I took the gun to Antiques Road Show in Kansas City and it was pronounced a 2nd Schofield and given a value of $2800 including the original holster to the gun, which was made in Cheyenne, WY. The holster itself was valued at $800. It is a short barrel gun, not stamped Wells Fargo.

I want to sell it but don't know any antique gun dealers. What would you advise me to do?

 

[Aemsl69]

One of the Collectors will be along shortly.
They will walk you thru the transaction.
Mike

 

[glowe]

I took the gun to Antiques Road Show in Kansas City and it was pronounced a 2nd Schofield and given a value of $2800 including the original holster to the gun, which was made in Cheyenne, WY. The holster itself was valued at $800. It is a short barrel gun, not stamped Wells Fargo.

I want to sell it but don't know any antique gun dealers. What would you advise me to do?

Welcome to the Forum. You actually have several choices. You could put the gun and holster up for sale on this Forum at no cost to you. Look for the Guns For Sale section. You could sell it on Gunbroker, and pay a modest fee to sell. Lastly, you could consign it with a reputable gun auction company. Companies like Rock Island, Bonhams, Amoskeag, Cowan's, James Julia, etc. will most likely bring the highest value, but will also charge the largest fees to sell.

As far as I know, there was only one barrel length manufactured by S&W and that was a 7" barrel. Any other length has been cut, which should negatively affect the value of the gun, unless it was documented to be a Wells Fargo revolver. That may be why the value seems low for a 2nd Model Schofield. If I understand you correctly, the $2800 included the $800 holster? Not knowing the condition of the gun makes it impossible for us to comment on the $1800 valuation for the Schofield.

Good luck with your sale.

 

[rct269]

You have three choices: 1. Sell it to a dealer. You'll get the wholesale value---call it 50-60% of retail. 2. Consign it to an auction. You'll get 80-85% of hammer price. 3. Sell it "at retail"---via a listing in the For Sale section of this forum (by whatever more proper name it might be known), or via an online auction/other listing facility. I'm quite certain an online auction/other listing facility (e.g. Gun Broker) charges a fee, and I'm equally certain it will be substantially less than that of a brick & mortar auction house; but I have no idea what it is.

As an aside, there are other price/value guides (other than Antique Road Show) with which I would be more comfortable. The Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson comes to mind. It lists values for virtually every S&W ever made----and in virtually any condition from brand new to boat anchor. The only drawback is it's six-seven years out of date, so the values shown therein require the application of an appropriate fudge factor; which you and your buyer can come to agree upon.

Ralph Tremaine

In the likely event you don't have the "Standard Catalog" close at hand, here's a severely condensed version of what it has to say about your gun. The six-seven year out of date value ranges from $20,000 (for "Excellent +"----which is very spiffy) to $1,250 (for "Poor"-----which is boat anchor). A cut barrel (You have one.) reduces the value by half. End of severely condensed version.

Zeroing in on a realistic and appropriate value is going to require a detailed description of the condition by an expert, or the posting of some high quality photographs which will enable our experts (some of whom are potential customers of yours) to make up their own minds about it.

Here's some more stuff you may find enlightening. It's a list of guns sold. The % figures cited refer to the percentage of original finish remaining. The year/date, when shown, refers to when it happened. 92%, $39,725, 2006. 93%, $27,600, 2005.Then there's this little tid-bit worth noting: "To illustrate the importance of condition to Schofield values, note that the following lesser condition Schofields sold on the same day at the same auction as the previous one." 70%, $8,050. San Francisco Police marked model, 40%, $7,188. Cut barrel, 25%, $1,495. 10%, $2,750. 20%, $2,530.

Quitin' time!!

 

[glowe]

Ralph - here is the schedule for cost to sell on Gunbroker. Add to these fees, a cost to post your item for sale and that is usually less than $5.00. A $2000 sale would be something around $40 cost.

Here is how you calculate your Final Value Fee:

Take the first $25 of your final value and multiply it by 5%. If your item sold for $25 or less this is your Final Value Fee.

If your final value was more than $25, take the additional amount between $25.01 and $1,000 and multiply it by 2.5%.

If your final value was more than $1,000, take the additional amount above $1000 and multiple it by 1.25%.

Add up these amounts and that is your Final Value Fee.

 

[rct269]

Thanks, Gary; but I'm lazy, short on patience with inquisitive tire kickers, and very seldom sell anything. When I do, I call David Carroll. He gets top dollar for me---with no fuss, no muss, and no bother!! In a nutshell. he's easy to do business with.

Ralph Tremaine

 

[model3sw]

I took the gun to Antiques Road Show in Kansas City and it was pronounced a 2nd Schofield and given a value of $2800 including the original holster to the gun, which was made in Cheyenne, WY. The holster itself was valued at $800. It is a short barrel gun, not stamped Wells Fargo.

I want to sell it but don't know any antique gun dealers. What would you advise me to do?

Post some sharp focused pictured here. You'll have it sold in less than an hour. $2,800.00 with the holster seems like a no-brainer unless the gun is in terrible condition or had the barrel sawed off instead of professionally shortened. As it is an antique, you can ship it directly the buyer providing they do not live in a restricted area, e.g. California, or New York City, etc.

 

[BRush]

Did the Road Show expert tell you whether it was a martial or civilian gun.
The civilian 2nd Model Schofields are much rarer and may impact its value, all things considered, especially if its mated to a vintage holster that show they were used together.