Local merchants carry diverse selections of rifles, shotguns and handguns, but sometimes you must look abroad to find unique or collectible pieces.
Maybe you collect hunting rifles in obscure calibers, or vintage shotguns in mint condition. If you can’t find them locally, you can almost always find them on the Internet.
Conversely, if you want to sell your guns, the Internet expands your pool of buyers, which improves your chances of getting a better price.
Buying and selling firearms on the Internet can be daunting, but by following some simple guidelines the experience can be painless and highly rewarding.
THE MARKET
Gunbroker.com is the most popular Internet firearm auction site. You can find almost anything there.
First you have to create an account. Provide your name and address, and file a credit card for Gunbroker to charge commissions and fees for things you sell.
Buyers do not pay fees to Gunbroker, but you will incur additional costs from sellers and local dealers who help with your transactions.
Give yourself a screen name and start bidding.
SEARCHING
On the Gunbroker Web site, there is a drop-down tab in gray labeled “browse categories.” Firearms is the first category that appears, and it leads to subcategories, including cowboy action shooting, pistols, rifles and shotguns.
Each genre has subcategories, too.
Let’s say you’re looking for a bolt-action rifle in 280 Remington. Do several searches. First, key in 280. It will show you all the selections with that combination of characters.
Do another search, this time with .280. Note the decimal point. It will trigger a different pool of selections.
Then, key in 7mm Express. Remington marketed the 280 under that name for a time, and searching for those keywords summons a unique set of selections.
This is where you’ll find vintage Remington 700 BDLs and Ruger M-77s with that barrel stamp, and they often bring premium prices.
Perhaps you’re searching for something more specific, like a Remington 700 BDL in 7mm Remington Magnum.
That’s an easy search. In firearms, go to the “rifles” drop tab, and then to the “Bolt-Action” tab. Key in BDL. That will show you all the BDLs, usually four to seven pages worth, and you can poke around for the 7mms. Or, you can key in BDL 7mm, as well as BDL + 7mm.
Basically, you’ll search for as many variations as you can imagine for the maximum number of selections. Sometimes, a seller will list a firearm under a non-intuitive heading that won’t show up in a common-sense keyword search. I have gotten some outstanding bargains on rifles and shotguns that didn’t get another bid because their oddball listing criteria prevented bidders from finding them. The advantage to me was worth several hundred dollars.
Click on an item that interests you. The item description should be thorough. Ideally, it should also specify the percentage of original condition the firearm retains according to National Rifle Association standards.
It should also contain high-resolution photographs showing the firearm from different angles. Examine the photos closely for marks, scratches or blemishes in the wood and metal finishes. Each item has a link that allows you to e-mail questions about the item to the seller.
If a seller is evasive or vague, walk away.
PURCHASING
Fjestaad’s Blue Book of Gun Values tells the market value of the item you’re buying or selling. You can either key in a maximum bid, or you can ratchet bid.
Gunbroker notifies you immediately as to whether you are the high bidder or not.
If you win the item, Gunbroker will send you an e-mail. The buyer and seller have five days to arrange the transaction.
The buyer almost always pays for shipping.
It generally runs about $50. The buyer must also arrange to have the item shipped to a Federal Firearms License (FFL) holder. An FFL holder generally charges at least $50 for this service, so you can add at least $100 to the actual cost of the firearm.
Do those calculations before you bid because they might drive the price higher than what you’d pay locally.
SELLING
You are very proud of your guns, and you want to get the most money for them. Keep in mind, however, that people love the competitive nature of an auction.
Have faith and list your item with “no reserve.” Start the auction at one penny. Unless it’s a common firearm you can get for a song anywhere, like a Remington 870 Express, you will get your price.
First, follow the tutorial on listing your item. List it with all the variations you can think of. If you’re selling a Ruger M77 in 7x57, then list it as “7x57 7 x 57 7mm Mauser 7mmMauser Ruger.” Anybody searching for a 7x57 will see your item no matter what combination of keywords he enters.
Photographs sell the item. Shoot your photos in the soft light of morning or evening, with no clutter in the background. Focus should be sharp. Post photos of both sides of the buttstock, both sides of the forearm, the action and barrel inscription. If you have the box and papers, post a single photo of them together. A total of five to seven photos should do it.
Specify your payment preference. U.S. Postal Service money orders never bounce. Make it clear who will pay for shipping, and make sure your buyer sends you an ink-signed copy of an FFL. If your buyer lives in another state, you must ship the item to an FFL holder.
Some FFL holders will accept a firearm only if it is shipped from another FFL holder. Again, a local FFL holder will charge a minimum of $50 for the trouble. Your buyer should be willing to cover that cost, as well.
It’s good to schedule your auction to cover two weekends, so 10 days is sufficient. Usually, a penny auction starts immediately, with some wise guy bidding one penny as soon as the auction goes online. There is almost always an intense flurry of bidding in the first 48 hours, and then little to nothing for the next few days. The heaviest bidding usually occurs in the last hour or two.
Avoid the temptation to protect yourself with high reserves. They alienate potential bidders.
For example, I once auctioned a rare, Mississippi Flyways Edition Winchester Super X1, unfired, with box and papers. No reserve, with a one-cent start. I paid a lot for that gun, but for nearly 10 days it looked as if I would have to give it away.
I couldn’t bear to watch the end of the auction. I went to bed very sad.
While I slept, a hot bidding war erupted. It sold far higher than its Blue Book value. The same thing happened with a Winchester Model 70 Ultimate Classic in .264 Win. Mag.
People love a bargain, but they hate to see the other guy get a bargain.
That’s what an auction is all about.
Sports, Pages 29 on 06/23/2013