[Panzer Front]

I've noticed the more time goes on, there's less and less coming up for sale, especially quality stuff. I've been scouring listings for over 2 years now for an exceptionally nice 1925-1928 Tula ex dragoon, and while there are some that come up for sale, there's always something wrong with them. Either they'll have electro penciled or mismatched numbers, have a wartime or postwar stock, have awful flaking lacquer or be refinished/sanded, be pitted or counter bored, have a poorly struck/dull rollmark, ect. ect. I have seen quite a few Izhevsk that meet the same criteria in the last 2 years, although not many lately. Have y'all been experiencing the same with searches of items your looking for?

 

[JohnnySako]

Around me, milsurp has dried up at gunshows. When you find it, its overpriced. Same with gun auctions. I have been mostly buying from friends. Many collectors have multiples. Sometimes you can horse trade for one or make a decent cash offer. Its the only way I can continue my firearm addiction.

 

[Slkdefnm]

Yes. The major gun show in my area has been useless for good milsurps for a few years. I’ve also been seeing a lot less good stuff come up for sale online, and when it does it is listed way overpriced or an auction will get bid up to absurd levels. Unfortunately I don’t have any friends who are in to milsurps, so now all my hunting is don’t on gunbroker. While I hate GB more than anything on earth, it’s my only chance for the rare rifles in great condition I’m searching for.

 

[Gregg]

Collectable milsurps have dried up, there is no doubt about that.
It is sad to say, the only way to get really nice additions to your collection today, is from another collection that is being sold off.
My last three purchases (over the last two years!), have been from the collections of people I know who have been selling their collections off. Sadly, that is the way it is, and will be until if and when another cash of milsurps is imported. I do not hold my breath on that happening.

 

[mowen]

Its certainly harder to find stuff these days, and its much more expensive when it is available. Big reason I've drifted away from 20th century milsurps to focus on American Civil War and now classic sporting rifles - both areas it seems prices are actually coming down as the 'old guard' ages out. The cross-generational appeal of WW1-WW2 stuff will ensure that demand, and prices, will continue to climb.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

 

[SSG_Lord]

The secondary market is driven by different motivators than the retail market so I don't think it can really dry up, just ebb and flow regionally. Owners and collectors tend to hang on to guns until life changes cause them to sell so it all comes down to being in the right place at the right time in the end. In my area the milsurp market has been dry recently but during an area "gun hunt" last Friday I saw may more milsurps than I'd seen in quite a while, two of the shops I stopped at had recently bought out estates. I didn't end up buying anything as I have a big Finnish purchase planned for later this year and I didn't need any of them, but prices were fair and under what you see on Gunbroker.

 

[Ol' Relic]

An ex-dragoon is by nature a heavily refurbished rifle (and usually one that has seen a lot of being ridden hard and put away wet), so most of that stuff is just part of it.

Same with "MOs". They're buffed to kingdom come and usually worn out besides.

But for sure, it continues to get harder to find collectible milsurps. Plus, there's the unfortunate reality that nowadays it' hard to find "deals". Even when the seller doesn't know what they have, you'll still end up paying at least what it's worth because it's become the norm to market every garden variety refurb at some exorbitant price.

 

[ncreptile]

The first problem is that imports of surplus are getting diverted to Ukraine.. everything from handguns to guns that would have otherwise been chopped/sold as parts kits here. All being fed into the meat grinder in eastern Europe.

This causes greater demand on the secondary market and it seems with this inflation getting worse that most people are not eager to sell to get currency that'll be worth less in a month or two.

Slim pickings out there for sure.

 

[iskra]

Lets keep the political rants out of the discussion.

 

[ncreptile]

 

[Peter_Paul]

I too have noticed the old days are no more. I got into this hobby as a young man in the Navy around 1997. Those were good times.

As the milsurps have dried up, I have adjusted the targets of what I collect accordingly. Especially for things that I think will skyrocket in value in the future. For example, GWOT-era Colt ARs made pre-2011, especially those from Colt Canada or marked "Law Enforcement" or "M4 Carbine", modern imports of military-like guns like the Arsenal SAM-7SF or SLR series, and 80s and 90s era Smith and Wesson revolvers, which can still be found for a decent price. This list is not all-inclusive, but representative.

Just like milsurps, in 20 years people will be on some forum wondering what happened to these firearms and reminiscing how they used to be so much less expensive when compared to current prices.

 

[Leon]

The Finn's I've examined at my local gun show and a couple of outlying gun stores typically have ruined bores. The original owners probably shot corrosive milsurp ammo and did not clean up afterwards. I've also come across some M27's missing their 2-stage triggers, and M39's missing their anti-jam magazines.

 

[Ol' Relic]

And people tell me I think too much.

 

[Panzer Front]

I was still finding pretty decent Mosin stuff in 2020 and early 2021, since then, not so much. I went back to modern sporting stuff around late last year; got a FN military collector M4, Steyr AUG in OD w/ 3x optic, Benelli M4, Wilson Combat 92G, you know, the good stuff! I know back in late 2016, a large batch of high quality Tula ex dragoons came in, but I think Classic ended up with most of them. So maybe they are cursed.

 

[kentuckyguy]

If there is a will, then there is a way.

 

[bausch]

With the crazy prices lately I have only purchased a few milsurp pistols that I knew would be gone if I hesitated meaning I have not felt the need to sell out of my stable as replacing them would not be easy which equals less milsurps changing hands.I am sure I am not in the minority of gunowners who are keeping what they have

 

[apachedawg]

Yes I have seen crazy prices but I have also still found some deals last week I saw a less then field grade post war Garand go for 2200 at the same place that I picked up a Yugo capture K98 for 320, an antique M1895 Chilaian Mauser for 300, a Turked Gew 88 for 260. And a German Quillback bayonet for 100. Another guy picked up a Smith Corona 03A3 for 650. Deals are out there just have to look.

 

[Skratch]

Dennis Kroh @ Empire Arms is your "huckleberry" I think. He seems to have a wide offering, fair pricing and a "wish list" toggle feature.

 

[Konstanty]

At a recent gun show in my area, 91/30s were going for $600-$700. No M44s visible at all. No Enfields. One SKS (Chinese) for $700. A couple of scrubbed Arisakas in less-than-appealing condition. No M39s. The last time I bought a milsurp rifle was three years ago, when I snagged a really outstanding K98k RC Mauser for $500.

And it's not just the guns themselves. A jar of BLC2 powder set me back $45, and primers were complete unobtainium.

 

[BlackPowder]

I dunno gents, I haven’t seen much cheap, sight-unseen surplus since 2015 or so? And really it was awhile before that (5 years?) that every site had surplus Mausers, surplus Mosins, surplus Swiss rifles, surplus Mannlichers, and surplus Enfields. Which also meant plenty of gunshow dealers with tables full of it. So it feels like it’s been more or less secondary market only for a long time, unless you wanted junk or very common stuff. Most shows I’ve been to seem to have a few milsurps but they’ve not been cheap for a long time. I remember pre-Covid when online prices for Swiss K31s was in the 600-700 range (about what it is now, really) a seller had one at a local show and wanted 900 for it. It was absolutely the only one at the show.

There are always deals to be had but you have to look hard, both on auction sites and shows and local brick & mortar stores. I feel like a lot of the younger guys just getting into the hobby have a credit card burning a hole in their pocket and just want to binge watch every YouTube video on the gun that’s caught their fancy, and then buy one ASAP. Instead of biding their time and waiting for a fair price or a deal, they just start throwing wads of virtual cash at Gunbroker auctions, and poof, the market ticks upwards another few percent. (Which is great if you’re sitting on a hoard, not so great if you still enjoy the thrill of the hunt.)