Gun folks?

[DamnearaFarm]

I've run myself ragged online trying to find my answers....

My father passed away almost seventeen years ago. His gun collection has been sitting in a locked cabinet since then, not cleaned, not fired, not touched. My mother has recently had two fights with cancer and is needing the money to pay her doctor bills.
My uncle (who has a history of favoring his church brethen over his family in monetary issues) has a friend from church that is wanting to buy 'the whole lot' and says that if what he pays her isn't the real value, he'll make it up later.
Obviously, I think he's full of it, but now Mom is wanting to sell these guns so she can pay off some doctors.

Does anyone have ANY idea of the value of these guns? I have not seen them, so when looking online, I was looking for value from good to fair. If anyone is willing to toss a guesstimate in here, i'd be much obliged.

Mods, i'm not tryin' to sell the guns here, I just don't want Mom to be taken advantage of. This last cancer was brain cancer, so it's muddled her a little bit.


Here's what's in the cabinet:

Marlin 1895 model Rimfire, with a patent date of November 1878-March 1898. (I do know only the rimfire pin is present.)

Remington Wingmaster Model 870 12 gauge

Thompson Center Arms 50 cal. White Mountain black powder gun

Zane Gray Marlin 30-30 (I understand that these were commemorative guns, correct?)

Universal Spig GDS Tula toz-66 12g USSR made

Knight 91897 black powder 50 caliber pat 4700499



All the above info, came from my mother and aunt, who apparently took them out of the cabinet and wrote down everything they saw
If this isn't enough info, please let me know and i'll see what I can do.


Thank you.

[Tim_H]

If you go to gunbroker.com you can do a search of people are currrenly selling whatever model for. This will give you a rough baseline of what you could ask for them. Your best bet is to have a reputable gun shop look at them. Hope this helps. -- Tim

[Batt]

Agree wholehearted with Tim H. You can look on GunBroker.com and get a pretty good idea of what they are worth.

[DamnearaFarm]

Gunbroker was one site I checked out, as well as antique guns and several others whose names are all blended in the mix now.

I could find nothing on the Russian gun's value, other than one guy who said they were worth 2500-3500- which I don't for a second believe.

The best I could come up with was 800-1000 for the 32 rimfire, 100-250 for the Wingmaster, 225-275 for the Zane Gray- nothing on the Tula to amount to much and gave up before I got to the Knight gun.

I did search to the best of my abilities, but since I don't speak gun- it was like reading it in Greek.

Rough baseline is all I need- I don't see her hauling the guns out to have them checked out, her paranoia is such that she'd think they were pricing low so they could buy them and resell- looks like my research is all she'll trust.

Do the above numbers seem out of line to y'all?

[TnAndy]

Couple hundred for the for the Wingmaster unless it has nice engraving or something.....same each for the black power guns, used.

Never heard of the Russian weapon....ask the guy if he will give 2,000 for it

[watcher]

Been there, done that. Had a 22 rifle which I wouldn't have been worth more than $50 was estimated to be worth between $1,500 and $2,000. So I very much suggest you FIND A PRO to look over the weapons.

Two things. Pawn shops can usually tell you how much just about anything is worth. They can either look up values or know who to call. Find a large pawn shop, call them and tell them your story. The odds are they'll be willing to give you a ballpark figure for no charge. If not the odds are they will do it for a small fee.

Or do a web search for the closest large city for gun smiths and gun dealers. Then contact them. If they can't tell you how much the weapons are worth they can at the very least point you in the right direction. Now these guys do this for a living so be ready to pay them for their skill and time.

[oz in SC V2.0]

The Tula could be worth money...from a quick search.

http://www.sportingclays.net/forums/...423&messages=3

[Allen W]

A good gun auction might be your best bet. I have never attended any of the really big auctions but around here there is a consignment sale that will have guns from time to time and they seem to sell good.

[Jokarva]

Did you check any NRA sites?

National Firearms Museum website will let you search for local NRA organizations that might provide some info.

Good luck!

[arabian knight]

I do not know if this is happening or not. But Marlin firearms just went out of business, so I am thinking any Marlin will be going up in price. I hope this is the case.
As I have a 1893 Marlin 32/40 octagon barrel in good condition.
I checked a few years ago and they were going between $1,500 and $2,500.

[plowjockey]

Cabelas has a gun research library, staffed with experts, that can give you and idea on what the guns are and what they may be worth.

They seemd to know what they were talking about, when I dealth with them.

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/te...Library*081910

[FyredUp]

Take them to a couple of gun stores and ask them what they are worth.

A life lesson is trust NO ONE who says they will make up any amount LATER on what they buy from you.

[DamnearaFarm]

That's the thread (and another by the same guy) I found, oz.

One site I checked was the official NRA auction site or something like that.

I'll start on the Cabela's site tomorrow.


Thanks, guys- I appreciate it.

[TnTnTn]

I would say $1300-$1600 for the whole lot depending on condition. TnTnTn

[clovis]

Originally Posted by FyredUp

Take them to a couple of gun stores and ask them what they are worth.

A life lesson is trust NO ONE who says they will make up any amount LATER on what they buy from you.

This is very true!!!!!

"Make it up to you, later on"????????

I'd like to have some of what that guy is drinking.

[watcher]

One thing, once you find out let us (well me) know how much they were worth.

[Wolf mom]

Be aware that if you decide to sell them yourself, you are inviting unknown people into your house, who might decide to come back at a later time when you are not at home. You also should familiarize yourself with the gun laws in your state. When I gave up my FFL, I put some guns on consignment rather than have someone come to my out-of-the-way, rural home.

Either find a mutual safe meeting place or put them on consignment. Sometimes you can sell them as a package deal rather than have a little money dribble in over a long period of time. remember, prices of different guns vary somewhat in different parts of the country.

www.gunbroker.com is a great place!

You can get The Blue Book of Gun Values - 31st ed. is the latest. It explains the classification of good, fair, etc., and gives an honest evaluation on pricing. Unless you have some familiarity with guns, it's really best to have a dealer or two (like a Dr's second opinion) evaluate them.

If they haven't been touched in years, and you know someone who has guns, maybe they'd like to clean them for a little cash? A clean gun goes a long way in selling it.

Best to you on this and to your Mom.

[DamnearaFarm]

The only person who'd be coming to mom's, other than my uncle, is his friend. Luckily, mom has a BBD (big black dog) and while he wouldn't bite his own fleas, his bark and his look says that he just might!

Yeah, I can't believe the guy thought mom would fall for that line. Maybe he thought...poor widow, health problems...who knows?

My brother is going to clean the guns for her, i'll have him check for condition then.

I'll look for that book at the library, Wolfmom- thanks.

[makete]

You can put them up for auction yourself at;

http://www.auctionarms.com/

There are others, but dont have the info handy.

[tyusclan]

Do NOT sell the whole lot to anyone unless they truly make a fair offer. MOST times when someone offers to buy them all they make a really low-ball offer, then turn around and make a killing on them.

I have no problem with gun dealers making money, and realize they have to buy a gun for less than they think they can sell it for, but many times they prey on widows in just such a situation.