Outrageous gunbroker prices!!!

[TMF]

[quote name="Jonnin" post="879704" timestamp="1357751392"]supply & demand.   I am befuddled that people here who decry communism and praise capitalism are offended by someone trying to turn a profit.  Suddenly when its a gun, its price gouging?   The demand for AR is out of sight: there isnt one on a shelf in a store here and has not been in weeks.   Therefore price increases to match the demand.   Its just capitalism at work.   If you do not like the price, don't buy one.   Laugh if you must, but I am not sure public links to the auctions is appropriate (even if funny).    What is funnier.... the stupidly high price, or that some are actually selling for this much, or that this price may seem low in 2 years?[/quote] Prices weren't this stupid after the 1994 ban, and there isn't even a ban in place or a chance of it happening for a while. Furthermore, I don't suspect much of this is folks selling their "personal stash." I find it suspicious when I see BNIB ARs and Mini 14s being sold en masse and they just happen to be the same models that Walmart carries all over the country. I believe that much of the artificial inflation in prices has to do with folks clearing the racks at gunstores and Walmarts then turning a profit. This is not only illegal, but it screws the whole gun owning community in regards to pricing and availability. As far as I know, Walmart is still receiving regular shipments of the stuff they have always sold and are selling it at the same price as always. You don't think it's wrong when somebody purchases those rifles with the purpose of reselling at a profit. That is pretty illegal if you're not an FFL dealer, but it is going on right now.

[decotriumph]

There are some people who just have to buy something that they are told is (pick one: hard to get, the newest, the latest thing, about to go away, etc.). They are the same people who were paying $3000 over list for the first PT Cruisers, grabbing up every Twinkie they could find a few weeks ago, standing in line at the Apple store for the newest iPhone, going to midnight screenings of Harry Potter movies, etc. If people are stupid enough to pay three or four times what guns, ammo, Twinkies, and PT Cruisers are worth, someone might as well relieve them of the money they are so willing to fork over. It helps the economy, at least in some little pockets of it. The buyer and the seller are both happy. It's capitalism at its extreme finest.

[mav]

supply & demand.   I am befuddled that people here who decry communism and praise capitalism are offended by someone trying to turn a profit.  Suddenly when its a gun, its price gouging?   The demand for AR is out of sight: there isnt one on a shelf in a store here and has not been in weeks.   Therefore price increases to match the demand.   Its just capitalism at work.

 

That is 100% correct.  As I have stated in other threads related to this topic, I might be a little irritated by it, but I can't really bad mouth it because I would be bad-mouthing capitalism.

 

The auction format is the truest form of capitalism.  In the auction you are getting "true" market worth at the time period.  If a rifle normally sells for $1500, and people are now paying $3000 for it, then the rifle (at the time) is worth $3000.  That said, I will not participate in the market at the current price level.  First off, I do not think a ban will happen, and the prices will plummet well below normal selling prices, especially once the credit card bills become due.  I will not sell in this market because as TGODavid mentioned, I could be wrong and not be able to replace what I have sold.

 

I am going to gamble in the current market by believing nothing will happen.  If I am right, I wil hit paydirt in the near future.  If I am wrong, then I miss out on some stuff I wanted but not necessarily needed.  I am sure I will have greater tragedies in the future.  Either way, it has been a great learning lesson for me.

[swim615]

I think it all has to do with everyone being so connected with the interweb and all these days. It makes the panic spread worse than the plague.

 

In 94 the ban took affect before common folk new about what was going on. Then to late to stock up

 

Again thank goodness for the internet. What would I do without it. :shrug:

 

I guess I would have fewer mags right now though. :ugh:

[Rowdy]

I look at the profit people are making off of selling their personal ARs and such the same way I do the winnings most people get from the lottery.  Here today, gone tomorrow... and gone very quickly.   There's no way I am selling any of what I own just to make a quick buck, especially given that there's no guarantee I would ever be able to replace it.

+1
If you're liquidating your arms now is definitely the time. If I sell something in high demand just to turn around and start over what have I really gained?

[gregintenn]

I didn't mean to attack capitalism with this thread. I simply intened to try and point out the absurd. Thinking rationally, one of three things is about to happen.

 

1)Nothing

2)An oughtright ban on some of these items.

3)Some manner of ban with a grandfather clause.

 

If you've paid these insane prices for these items, you might come out the other end unscathed by the third scenerio.

 

Assuming the first scenerio, you've wasted a LOT of money out of fear.

 

Assuming the second scenerio, you've spent a lot of money to suddenly become a felon.

 

I see little chance of gaining and a large chance of losing by submitting to the current fearmongering.

[TripleDigitRide]

One of my customers has come out way ahead by playing this game. He already had 2 Colt ARs that he purchased from Wal-Mart long before the madness. He sold both on Gun Broker for double what he paid. He then used his inside sources at a couple Wal-Mart stores to buy 4 more in the last few weeks.

[mav]

One of my customers has come out way ahead by playing this game. He already had 2 Colt ARs that he purchased from Wal-Mart long before the madness. He sold both on Gun Broker for double what he paid. He then used his inside sources at a couple Wal-Mart stores to buy 4 more in the last few weeks.

 

More power to your customer, but I don't care for that kind of crap especially in a frenzied market like we have now.  That is crony capitalism .

[TGO David]

I wonder how long before the BATF starts looking into these folks who have bought rifles only to turn around and flip them for profit.  Onesies twosies, probably not going to attract a whole lot of attention.  Someone on Gunbroker who went and cleared out their local Academy Sports & Outdoors stock of black rifles and then listed them for sale?  Yeah... that guy's probably going to get a visit.

[KJ48]

Those people coulda just gone to Walmart after a shipment and paid less than a grand. That's what the person selling them did.

While thats true a lot of people are too lazy to wait around and have the money, or they may not be able to hang around the store all day to wait for a rifle or ammo to come in.

Plus I'm sure some have a buddy at WalMart, Acadamy etc that will let them know what came in and when.

[KJ48]

I wonder how long before the BATF starts looking into these folks who have bought rifles only to turn around and flip them for profit.  Onesies twosies, probably not going to attract a whole lot of attention.  Someone on Gunbroker who went and cleared out their local Academy Sports & Outdoors stock of black rifles and then listed them for sale?  Yeah... that guy's probably going to get a visit.

Maybe a visit soon, but most likely they will take care of that when they come to get everyone else's guns ;)

[TMF]

[quote name="TripleDigitRide" post="879774" timestamp="1357755370"]One of my customers has come out way ahead by playing this game. He already had 2 Colt ARs that he purchased from Wal-Mart long before the madness. He sold both on Gun Broker for double what he paid. He then used his inside sources at a couple Wal-Mart stores to buy 4 more in the last few weeks.[/quote] If his intention was to sell any of those 4 rifles the same as the last two, he is a felon and deserves to rot in a prison cell.

[ironsniper1]

mosins have gone up in price aswell some where between 300-400 dollars for a round and more for a hex

[Dolomite_supafly]

Talking about visits. There is a "guy" who has a table at the shows. He takes stripped lowers and makes complete rifles for resale. He has been doing it for the last 4-5 shows now. I am 99.9% positive he doesn't have a manufacturers license much less an FFL. Play stupid games and you win stupid prizes. There are a lot of people who sit in their house and build AR's for resale that don't know it is against the law to do that. I am sure the ATF is aware because those guys are buying dozens of stripped lowers a year.

 

As far as the supply and demand thing it is true for AR's right now and I feel a little uneasy about it but not overly concerned with it. I view it like predatory lenders in that you need to be informed before making the leep. But on the same token there are people who are taking advantage of people who are not as familiar as they should be. And if anyone has a question about a gun they might be buying feel free to PM me. I won't comment on whether a price is fair but I will tell you if the gun is what they say it is.

 

Now the ammo thing pisses me off and if I could do something I would. I have watched dealers buy all the ammo at Walmart. I asked the clerk, after the dealer cleared the shelves, how often it happens. And she said that every day they get ammo in between 8am and 10am and that everyday that same dealer is standing their waiting to buy it all. So rather than go through his supply chain to get what he needs he destroys my supply chain. The unscrupulous dealers are creating a false supply shortage by buying up everything then sitting on it.

 

Not this shortage but a previous shortage I was at another big box store and a dealer had a cart full of all the 22 ammo. I asked if I could get a box and he said give him $20. This was before he had paid for it so I would have had to hand him a $20 bill then pay $15 for the box. I chuckled and he said fine I sell it for $37 a brick in my store. I asked what store it was and he told me. I then blasted what he did all over the web. Within a year he had to close his doors and this was during a boom time. We all forget those who do this but I don't. My supply chain gets smaller every time something like this happens.

 

I have a store that I frequent. He has not raised prices on ANYTHING. He still has plenty of ammo and plenty of guns. Just a few weeks ago he was selling AK's for ~600 and AR's for ~$800. He will get every red cent I can spend now to ensure he stays open. And he said he would be selling everything for the same prices as before this craziness hit.

 

Dolomite