A lot of folks don't understand the situation in CA. A few years ago the Gestapo... er, the state legislature in CA created an approved list of handguns. Any pistol not on the list cannot be sold by dealers in the state or imported for sale. It costs thousands of dollars to get a gun approved, and each variation in finish, barrel length, etc must be separately approved. The approval expires and must be renewed every few years. Manufacturers pay to have models they currently offer listed, but who would pay to keep out of productions guns listed? Once C&R qualified, the gun is not subject to the approved list law.
The only way a gun such as a Model 14-3 (not old enough to be C&R but no longer in production) can be sold in CA is if an owner sells it in a private transfer (going through an FFL as per more state law). The dealer cannot sell it from his inventory so if an FFL has one, or takes one in trade, he HAS to sell it out of state (notice all the auctions on GunBroker by CA dealers selling guns that can't be sold in state). If a CA resident sees a beautiful M14-3 for sale priced at $5 in AZ or OR he cannot legally buy it as it's illegal to ship it or bring it into CA for purpose of selling it. If someone moves to CA and owns such a gun he can sell it once he's a resident. But sending the gun into CA specifically to sell it is prohibited.
This is why classic guns are so much harder to find in CA. This is why prices are so much higher, there. It's a seller's market. Plus, all sales MUST go through an FFL (add fees), all pistols are registered with the CA DOJ (add fees for each), so the final cost of exercising one's Second Amendment rights is sky high.
This is why I fled CA in 1992. I grew up there. Had a job I at worked at for 14 years. Owned a home. When all these awful gun laws started coming to pass in the late 1980s I knew I had to get out or one day I would snap and kill me a bunch of lawyers in Sacramento. I quit my job, sold my house, packed up and left. Took me 15 years to get to where I was financially. Only see my friends and family once a year at Christmas. It's been tough but I had to do it. I can't go back to that state until folks have finally had enough of the Nazis/Marxists in power there and rise up in opposition.
Call me when that happens. I can be there in about 20 hours. Of course, with the Commies in Congress ready to ram unwanted government take overs down our unwilling throats, the fight may start from wherever you are at the time.
PS: I hope this explanation was diplomatic enough.
