Which guns hold their value the best?

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Pale_Rider

Pale_Rider

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Feb 16, 2019
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As I was thinking about the current value of two guns(bt65 & air force escape) I have up for trade, I realized that their value had dropped by 50%! Had I known how much they depreciate, I would’ve bought something that holds its value better. Luckily I’m only taking a hit of a few hundred dollars on their value. I couldn’t imagine buying a $2500 rifle new, and then selling it for $1250 used, OUCH! 

What are the guns that hold their value like a Rolex? (Springer, pumper, and PCPs)


 
Higher end guns will generally hold value better. But by % you’ll loose more $ with them. 

I try to buy something that I’m relatively sure it’s a keeper. I learned this when I bought my Gamo, before I knew what hit me, it had lost ALL it’s value. Piece of crap cost me $200 and didn’t serve me well over 4-6 months. It now serves me well as a Door Stop. Otherwise I sell it asap, and that way minimize my loss. 

I try to think of it as Rental Loss. I used, enjoyed, tested, etc for a year? How much did I rent it for? A Hyundai rental is way less than a Ferrari rental, see. 

Buying used helps mitigate that loss. The big hit is taken by the first buyer. 




 
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The problem today is that a number of manufacturers are selling pcp rifles and bullpups at very low prices, compared to ten years ago when a pcp was a scarce item, and the really good ones cost upwards of a thousand dollars...double that today for a new one, but you'll never sell it used for what you paid.

But Turkey, Korea, China, Eastern Europe and a number of other countries are hopping on the pcp bandwagon and producing top grade guns.

My advice mirrors the other comments...no pcp will hold it's value over time. Best bet is to buy a really good brand that you will keep. Example, a used Edgun shoots as good as a new Edgun. The other name brands like FX, Air Arms, etc...etc...tend to be very expensive, but hold their performance a lot better than they hold their value.

This is a sport for people with a good income, if that's not your situation, check out the really excellent "spring powered" rifles. I started with them back in '75 and I killed a lot of critters just as dead at distances that came very very close to today's pcp guns. They are durable and fun. You can even get a moderator to quiet them down. Just buy the best one you can afford and you will never have performance/durability regrets.

"Intenseaty22" above has good advice for you!



Regards,

Kindly 'Ol Uncle Hoot
 
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@Hawkeye Regarding the two Daystates you own(or any other rifles you own) Do they depreciate as much as the above mentioned rifles?
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I believe as someone else said already, the higher end guns tend to hold their value better than lower end models. But Daystate seems to keep their designs longer while FX changes them more frequently. Take the Impact for example, its now in its 3rd incarnation? Obviously that hurts the resale value of the first model.

Daystate's Pulsar, which I own, is pretty much the same now as when it was launched. Point being, I doubt that they'll be releasing a Red Wolf MKII and then later a Red Wolf X. Maybe that makes them somewhat more stable on the resale market, but I really can''t say for certain.
 
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My experience is you will loose close to 50% on any high end PCP if you buy new. If you can find what you want used you could possibly break even . So buy used if you can.

I accept the loss as part of the cost of the hobby. 

Clearly the problem is for most of us there is no way to touch and feel before purchase. 

Of course high end power burners are the same unless you keep them a long time. Then inflation easies the pain some.

All of this stuff is expensive . Most anything you buy is the same. Cars for sure. Boats worse. For me it’s a quality of life deal. Sitting home in front of the tube ? I’ll spent the money with no regrets 
 
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 Ok the general consenus seems that most airguns lose about 50% of their value. The rate of the value can be affected by how often a company releases new models. And that it’s better to buy used to avoid the harsh depreciation experienced by the first buyer. Thank you for your input on the subject. 

My gripe isn’t with the affordability of airguns. While my pockets may not be as deep as some of you, I have bought 3 pcp rifles in the last month. One of them is a used vulcan that I’ll be be picking up in a few days. It was worked on by Ernest Rowe and Motorhead. I think it is a good a example of buying a used gun at a price that won’t depreciate too much and shoots just as good as the new ones. That one might be a keeper. My huben on the other hand, I have seen sell for $200-300 less than the retail price, luckily not as bad as the hatsan and Air Force.

I specifically want to know which guns appreciate in value(any age, any power source, any price range). While most products in any market will depreciate in value there are products with in most categories that appreciate or depreciate so little as to not give the “ouch” factor. Like the Daystate pulsar that @Hawkeye mentioned is a good example of some rifles depreciating less because their are not any follow up models. Or the Theobens and RAW that @bucketboy mentioned that have actually gone up in value. 


 
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@intenseaty22 I get it. I just want to know your knowledge about specific models that have appreciated in value

@John_in_ma Are you saying all of those models are winners as in competition worthy guns or winning as in they hold there value well/can increase in value?

@L.Leon I agree. What models do you know of that hold their value well/ can go up in price?
 
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If anyone knows how to make money or even break even buying air guns he’s not likely to share the information . And I for one would have to see the papers to prove it

A dealer might take a gun on trade and make a little on it but then he has to to stay in business

I know some collectors of fire arms probably do ok but they sure aren’t going to share many tips on the Internet Air guns ? Just not going to happen is my opinion


 
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The guns that held their value best are the ones I didn’t buy. Seriously, I bought my first airguns in 1997, a Beeman R7, a Theoben SLR 98, a Career 707, and an FX Ultimate. Sold all of them on the old Yellow, and lost 25-30%. I now own an FX Verminator Extreme MKII, an FX Warcat, an FX Wildcat MKII, an FX Streamline, and a Woodswalker. The only ones I could possibly sell and only lose 20% are the two I bought used. All the others I bought new, and the loss would be 40-50%+.

That said, it’s the same for powder burners (especially AR’s), optics, Night Vision, cameras and anything else gun related. It’s only going to get worse, as the young people are moving away from guns of all types, and laws regarding them become more restrictive.
 
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I think that the main thing that impacts long term value is scarcity. The only air rifles that I know of selling for more than they originally sold for were like extremely old air rifles that did not sell for much to begin with.Thus being able to sell them for roughly 100ish-150ish dollars today would be considered a gain relative to price inflation. I've only seen guns like these in state air rifle shows with a lot of older collectors. However, a long with being scarce like someone else mentioned in the forum there needs to be widespread appeal. So if you are looking to get relatively new guns and dont want to feel the pain of the items depreciating your only real choice is buying a good used gun. 
 
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If anyone knows how to make money or even break even buying air guns he’s not likely to share the information . And I for one would have to see the papers to prove it

A dealer might take a gun on trade and make a little on it but then he has to to stay in business

I know some collectors of fire arms probably do ok but they sure aren’t going to share many tips on the Internet Air guns ? Just not going to happen is my opinion

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I've checked with AOA on prices for my guns and generally they offer 1/2 of new if really good condition. They definitely make a profit selling used, if they didn't make money at it they wouldn't be doing it. All I know is I enjoy the hobby and it's about fun not an investment.
 
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