Registered Magnum box - RM Boxes

[Tom K]

I've been out of touch with some peripheral prices and values for the past 10 years or so. I was much amazed to find some items have been selling on auction sites for so much money with bids so far in advance of auction it gives me pause as to whether a particular auction is "for real" or just the seller shilling his own auctions.

Once I believe that an auction has gone viral or seems to be way out of sync with reality ... I won't bid on it if it were the holy grail itself.

What are the average / fair prices on RM Boxes, just a few to give me a concept of what the going price is. e.g. barrel size & condition of box with average selling prices.

Understand I hold Florida State Auctions House License, thus, I fully understand that ... at certain times ... value is what someone is willing to pay for it, but, when I see automatic bids put in 5 days before auction time give me a legitimate concern that there's likely some sort of hanky-panky or shill bidding going on.

So - has your question been answered? Do you still feel that shill bidding has been going on during the auctions you've seen, or do the prices quoted above fall in line with "real" values? I'd be interested in your reaction to what people are paying now for RM boxes.

 

[RKmesa]

As an Admitted Box Collector... I'll take this one...

Believe me, I do understand the attraction of a vintage gun with its original box. What I don't understand is paying huge money for a box you know is not original to a gun, then putting said gun into it, and expecting the price of a gun with its original box. I also don't understand paying a premium for a gun with a box that is clearly not original just to have a box.

Here is my response to a similar comment posted a year or so ago, and to give you a little insight into the mind of a "box collector":

I collect Smith and Wesson Revolvers. And I collect Boxes for Smith and Wesson Revolvers. There is a market price for each separately and when they are paired together and when they are believed to be "100% matching".

* Some of my guns are housed in boxes that number to the gun and may be original to the gun - those are cool and I like them.
* Some of my guns are housed in boxes that do NOT number to the gun - they are cool and I like them too.
* Some of my guns are in boxes with no numbers or identifying marks on them that link them to any specific gun - they also are cool and I like them too.
* Some of my guns have custom aftermarket cases that are specifically made for that gun - they are way way cool and I really like them.
* Some of my guns do not have period correct boxes - so I look for them and pay "market" for them whenever I find them. I also like the hunt for boxes (some OCD desire to put together complete packages, even if they are not "perfect").
* Lastly - some of my boxes for S&W's have no gun in them. I always keep my eyes open for guns to put in them and buy them when I get the chance.

I look at the box different than the features of the gun itself. The boxes were mass produced - not customized to any specific serial numbered gun. The fact that my gun was packaged in box A vs box B that were both produced at the same time in the same factory, is not a huge deal. Sure I like it when the grease pencil/lead pencil number on the bottom is the same as the SN of the gun it contains, BUT the box itself is one of hundreds or thousands. Is there a premium for complete sets that share the same number - yes there is. However, there is also a premium for correct sets where all the numbers do not match and sometimes those premiums are not that different. Particularly on many of the pre-war guns where the SN was written on a small piece of tape on the bottom of the box and often times with the passage of 60+years, that tape is gone, never to be seen again.

I have many guns with boxes and I will never be 100% sure that any of the guns are in the box that they were shipped in from the factory (whether they number or not). I will never represent that to anyone - that is too high of a standard. I generally do not part with my guns, but when I do, whoever purchases them can decide for themselves whether a complete package (appropriately numbered or not) is worth what I am charging. If they believe that it is - they can purchase them. If not, then I'll keep them or sell them to someone else.

BTW - I wish that no one agreed with me, then I could buy all the boxes I find at much cheaper prices... Apparently, based on prices that I see that is not the case.

My $0.32 (inflation you know...),

 

[Club Gun Fan]

I started collecting Smith & Wesson paper over 40 years ago. My first piece was a booklet called "BURNING POWDER". I paid $12.50 plus tax. Later I found out it is part of a series of six printings. Presently I am missing one issue in this series. If I ever find the missing issue, I won't mention what I'd pay. Does the price I'll pay make it worth it? Not buy along shot. But I need it to fill a hole. What I'm saying in a long winded way is, it's all relative. You have a near perfect Registered Magnum. You find an original box, granted it's not THE box for this gun. What is the box worth? Only you can say. No pun intended, but, no one is putting a gun to your head, you can walk away. The prices I was asked to give on a couple of boxes were what I thought are current market prices.

 

[lowriderfxr]

Although I won't be able to explain this half as well as RKmesa, I think he's spot on.

It's like putting on original type red line tires on a 60s Corvette because that's the way they came. Obviously they aren't the original tires and people would understand if you put modern tires on it.

Right just looks right.

 

[wlp624]

I've only got one RM box, and one RM to go in it. I paid an arm and a leg for each of them (and the SAT wasn't cheap either!), but I'm glad I did, because the more original items I find for it the more it just seems 'right'. I also found a letter signed by D.B. Wesson from the week the gun was ordered, and an original brochure for the .357 Magnum, among other items. My 'One Piece Collection'. As for these boxes being 'just cardboard', much smaller pieces of cardboard bearing the pictures of Honus Wagner and Babe Ruth seem to have held their values pretty well...

 

[chief38]

Hmmm - more of these old RM boxes survived than I ever thought! Good to see that!

 

[handejector]

I've seen a bunch of 6" guns and very few 4" Targets, but I cannot for the life of me remember ever seeing a 5" Target M&P. I usually pay attention to the pre-war target guns pretty closely and I don't recall one in photos and certainly not in person. I'd love to be educated a bit on this...please?

Okayyyyyy......
I posted this one years ago.

 

[RKmesa]

Okayyyyyy......
I posted this one years ago.

Lee:

What a beauty!!! And Nickel to boot. It's time to send this one to the top with its own new thread. I'll throw this one in the memory banks (hopefully I'll be able to recall it at some later date )

Thanks for the education (photos - one of my favorite ways to learn about S&W's - second only to actually holding them in my hands...).