Well, that's a silly question. That's like asking, "How long is a piece of rope?" It is what it is, right?
Still, I think the question has some merit if you look at it from a comparative standpoint, as in, "How much would that Ruger Super Blackhawk that I bought in 1981 for $250 cost, if I bought it today?" That is, factoring inflation into account. (The answer is $587.) I got started thinking on this when forum member jolsen posted some scans of a 1963 catalog, complete with prices. The natural reaction is to drool over the low prices, forgetting that in 1963 the average wage was $2.20 per hour. I went to an online inflation calculator, and posted the equivalent prices in 2009 dollars. Overall, they weren't too different from what we see today.
http://smith-wessonforum.com/e...03904/m/12110613/p/2
Then I took it a step further, making it personal. Some time back, I started keeping an inventory on an Excel spreadsheet with information like make, model, caliber, price, date purchased, etc. It enabled me to do things like print off a compact listing that only took up a few sheets. I could also manipulate the information to do things like sort by brand, or caliber or price; I could make charts that showed total number accumulated over time, and so on. I know some guys who can make Excel dance and sing - about all I can do is make it crawl and poop, but that's good enough for my puposes.
Anyway, I had this spreadsheet so it was pretty easy to apply an inflation factor to the prices listed, and get the price in 2009 dollars versus the original amount that I paid. Then I thought, "Okay, that accounts for inflation. But what about the cost to ME personally, as a percentage of my personal financial worth?"
I know you were told that there would be no math, but bear with me. Using fictitious easy numbers, lets say in 1980 a person was making $10,000 per year, and today he's making $50,000, a factor of five. The inflation factor from 1980 to 2009 is 2.589 - something that cost $100 in 1980 would be priced at $258.90 today. However if it cost our person $100 in 1980 (with a salary of $10,000), an equivalent price to him today as a chunk of his $50,000 salary would be $500. So, he'd be getting a bargain buying it at $258.90, nearly half price comparatively speaking. In 1973 I was 16, and I worked for my older brother on the farm as a hand. My wages for the summer (given in advance) was a Ruger 10/22 rifle that he had bought for $50. So that gun cost me 1/4 of a year's salary, and is therefore the most expensive gun I own!
So where's all this jibba jabba get us? Personally it give me a clearer picture of how much I'm willing to spend and have spent, and what constitutes a bargain to me. Back to my Excel spreadsheet, if I bought that Super Blackhawk for $250 in 1981 (and it would cost $587 in 2009 dollars), how much would it cost if it were the same percentage of my income now, as it was then? The answer is $970! I had no idea I was spending so much back then....
Still, I think the question has some merit if you look at it from a comparative standpoint, as in, "How much would that Ruger Super Blackhawk that I bought in 1981 for $250 cost, if I bought it today?" That is, factoring inflation into account. (The answer is $587.) I got started thinking on this when forum member jolsen posted some scans of a 1963 catalog, complete with prices. The natural reaction is to drool over the low prices, forgetting that in 1963 the average wage was $2.20 per hour. I went to an online inflation calculator, and posted the equivalent prices in 2009 dollars. Overall, they weren't too different from what we see today.
http://smith-wessonforum.com/e...03904/m/12110613/p/2
Then I took it a step further, making it personal. Some time back, I started keeping an inventory on an Excel spreadsheet with information like make, model, caliber, price, date purchased, etc. It enabled me to do things like print off a compact listing that only took up a few sheets. I could also manipulate the information to do things like sort by brand, or caliber or price; I could make charts that showed total number accumulated over time, and so on. I know some guys who can make Excel dance and sing - about all I can do is make it crawl and poop, but that's good enough for my puposes.
Anyway, I had this spreadsheet so it was pretty easy to apply an inflation factor to the prices listed, and get the price in 2009 dollars versus the original amount that I paid. Then I thought, "Okay, that accounts for inflation. But what about the cost to ME personally, as a percentage of my personal financial worth?"
I know you were told that there would be no math, but bear with me. Using fictitious easy numbers, lets say in 1980 a person was making $10,000 per year, and today he's making $50,000, a factor of five. The inflation factor from 1980 to 2009 is 2.589 - something that cost $100 in 1980 would be priced at $258.90 today. However if it cost our person $100 in 1980 (with a salary of $10,000), an equivalent price to him today as a chunk of his $50,000 salary would be $500. So, he'd be getting a bargain buying it at $258.90, nearly half price comparatively speaking. In 1973 I was 16, and I worked for my older brother on the farm as a hand. My wages for the summer (given in advance) was a Ruger 10/22 rifle that he had bought for $50. So that gun cost me 1/4 of a year's salary, and is therefore the most expensive gun I own!
So where's all this jibba jabba get us? Personally it give me a clearer picture of how much I'm willing to spend and have spent, and what constitutes a bargain to me. Back to my Excel spreadsheet, if I bought that Super Blackhawk for $250 in 1981 (and it would cost $587 in 2009 dollars), how much would it cost if it were the same percentage of my income now, as it was then? The answer is $970! I had no idea I was spending so much back then....
