Is a model 10 really a $450 gun now?

[MajorD]

I went to one of my local pawn shops today ( a rare day off for me to poke around the numerous local gun shops ) and they had a near mint 4” model ten. Price was $450. I know I am living in the past admittedly, feeling like $200 ( and less ) model 10’s were around not too long ago ( which in reality is so 20 years ago!)

Is a really nice let’s say 98% finish with matching grips model 10 ( no box or papers) really a $450 gun these days?

The gun was very clean ( the ejector rod still had a full blue finish)
And I am tempted to try to trade for the model 10.

Input appreciated

 

[hivel37]

I sold a nice one no box for 500 over the weekend.
Any decent smith should bring that much.

 

[Sevens]

I don't think that any handgun marked $450 in a pawn shop is a $450 handgun.

But I love 4-inch heavy barrel Model 10's and 64's and if I owned zero, I would cry and after weeping, if it took $450 to get one, I'd do it and be thrilled.

 

[reddog81]

$450 would be a good price in that condition. S&W still makes the model 10 and the MSRP is $869

 

[A10]

.......yep......

 

[rwsmith]

Make an...

I don't think that any handgun marked $450 in a pawn shop is a $450 handgun.

But I love 4-inch heavy barrel Model 10's and 64's and if I owned zero, I would cry and after weeping, if it took $450 to get one, I'd do it and be thrilled.

...Make an offer. Yes, prices are high, but selling prices aren't always 'sticker' price.

 

[bmcgilvray]

I saw the brother of the Model 10 described in the opening post on a exhibit table at Tulsa two weeks ago with a tag dangling from its trigger guard unapologetically priced at $1000, no box, no accessories, no muss, no fuss.

 

[stansdds]

The days of $200-$300 S&W Model 10's is in the rear-view mirror and getting further away every day. These days, a Model 10 in 98% condition, no box, no docs, is a $500 revolver. Given the current environment of continued unrest, continued governmental threats, and continued inflation, don't expect the prices to go down.

 

[Bald1]

In my neck of the woods a very nice model 10 is not a $450 gun. It’s a $550 and up gun. Prices of $600+ are not uncommon. I recently sold a friend a 4” 10-6 heavy barrel with original grips for $425 and he thought he stole it. That’s the “friend” price. I could have got $500 easy. It was probably an 80% gun.

 

[moralem]

Gas isn’t going back to 35 cents a gallon either…….

 

[ken158]

At a pawn shop, nothing is worth sticker price. Just keep in mind they have no more than 50% invested. The odds are with you for a deal if you have cash to show.

 

[raljr1]

I'll bet you can get it out the door for 4 benjamins just by asking. And yes, it's worth it. I do not have a model 10, and don't really want one, but at that price for a nice version, I would probably bite.

 

[brian686]

I paid $500 a few years ago for my model 10 at about 90%. No box, etc.
Hurt a little until I shot it. Someone worked that trigger buttery smooth. I smile every time I take it out of the safe.

 

[Major 2]

I've seen Singapore or Hong Kong police imported Mod.10's in turn-in condition sell for $450 + in my area.

There was a 90% Mod 10 just the other day at my friendly LGS
no box @ $550 it didn't stay consigned a week and was snapped up.

Grab it while you can !

 

[Hawg Rider]

I'm afraid that it's difficult to keep up with vintage revolver prices- they're increasing all the time! A few years ago I had a minty Model 10-8 (ca. 1982) that I got in a trade with a friend. He had bought it new for his daughter to carry during her travels, but she refused to take it. I'm not much of a Model 10 guy, this 10-8 was just sitting in the safe, and I needed some money for my gun fund. In 2021 I went to a local gun show and took it along, and I sold it outside the show before I could even get in the door! I sold it for $450...I probably could have gotten a little more but I was happy and so was the buyer. Today IMHO that same package would be a $600+. In your case...Yes! these days that pawn shop Model 10 is a $450 revolver!

 

[jaguargolf]

Last time I saw a used one for sale in my area of the Lower Hudson Valley(about a year ago) it was priced at $750.

Same shop, same time frame, I bought a used, beautiful, well kept, Colt Lt Wt Commander that had been to Wilson for $600. Browning HP from same former owner in same great shape also priced at $600 in the case next to it.

 

[smoothshooter]

That would be a good buy.
I would have jumped on that “mucho pronto”!

 

[swagmeister]

In the condition that you describe, in today's market, $450 is a good, not great, price. The prices for them will only continue to rise in the months and years to come. The pawnshop might have $100 invested in it. They usually make insultingly low offers when people bring firearms in to sell, but some people are desperate for money and will take what they can get. They then mark the gun up to four or five times what they gave for it. Another tactic pawnshops use is that if the gun has not been set out for sale for very long, they won't budge on the price and will tell you (basically not being truthful) that the price they have on it is close to what they have in it and they can't come off any. After sitting for a few weeks or months, they might take a somewhat lower offer in cash only. As you might have guessed by now, I am not very impressed with the way most pawn shops operate and rarely have I found a good deal on a firearm in one. Like the OP, I too am stuck in the past when it comes to prices for vintage Smith revolvers. I remember the day, and seems like not too many years back, that any good condition used vintage L Frame revolver would sell for $350-$400. Try to find one like that these days and you've won the lottery!!! I still can't get used to the idea of Charter Arms revolvers selling for $400-$700. Good luck with your decision.

 

[Ameshawki]

I collect Model Tens. When I started twenty years ago my price threshold was $250. Then $350. I've paid as much as $600 for a variation I didn't have. Any M10 I see for under $500 I at least look at.

The beat to hell trade ins that occasionally show up are usually mid $300 range. Add in shipping and transfer and you're at $400. For something that looks like it was drug behind the truck.

 

[xfarfuldog]

One of my newer friends and I attend the area gun shows together. He is generally pretty adept at getting great deals. Last Saturday he traded for a nice CZ while I purchased a decent P228. We saw a LNIB model 10 four inch heavy barrel. The seller was not at a table, just walking around. He seemed not to know that much about guns. He wanted $ 900 for the model 10. I tried to politely dissuade my friend from the purchase. My friend ended up buying it for $ 700. (This gun show put a flex tie around the cylinder so the revolver could not be opened. They generally would simply flex tie the hammer securely to the frame. We could not see the dash number. This particular show is very strict in their practices.)

He later tod me it was a - 8. I feel he overpaid by over $ 100. When he goes to sell (as he always does) he will have a hard time getting his money back.