AZshot wrote on Dec 7^th, 2016 at 9:53am:


And those "few" are usually buried in work!  So unless you have a personal friend in the trade, anticipate many months of waiting.

OK, I'm prepared to go either get it, or pass, depending on what it is.   

I thought I could gauge prices on guns pretty well, but Stevens are not easy.  And I've never really followed them.  I see some nice ones that look similar on the "George" website and others asking for above $3,000 for most.  Then I see this one sell on Gunbroker for only $1500  (You need to Login or Register to view media files and links) .  So now I'm getting scared I may pay too much.  His price is firm, he just reminded me, mid way between $2k and $3K.  It does have 2 barrels with matching serial numbers and an Unertl scope on one, and a tang sight.  Can someone tell me if these assumptions are correct:

- If it's a Ladies, the preferred model is 56 over 55, with the 044 1/4 action.
- If it's a 55, I should pass on it?
- If it's a Ladies based on the Favorite, it's still preferable over the 55?
- If it's some other model on a 44 1/2, it should be bought.
- If it's a 44 action, I should pass on it at that price?   

I know, gosh I wish I'd asked to take photos.  I was trying to be respectful, they were his dads guns, and he'd passed only a year before.  He also said he was not in a hurry to sell, but I noted he had taken it to a local gun shop already to get an idea of what they'd  sell it for on commission.  I wanted to move quickly, but not act too excited.

I've met several sellers that are old school.  I buy a LOT of antiques.  They don't want someone to come in and say "I might buy your gun, but let me take pictures, go to the internet and library, research if your price is in my favor, and then I'll come back."  Many are 'take it or leave it' sellers.  I bought a Winchester 52 with a Lyman Targetspot scope like that.  The guy told me stories of other potential buyers pulling the "I need to research it" line.  He was not amused, and would not sell to them. It does one of two things.  It shows you are unaware of the values, or it causes them to be curious and go looking it up more thoroughly themselves.  You basically scare them off.  Instead of doing all that, I went in very prepared and knew the $600 was a great price for that 52 and scope (duh!).  Same with a Colt Pre-war ACE (in box, 99%) I bought from a guy.  If I had acted coy or excited to research the price, the pistol would have gone from $1200 to $2500 next time I met him.  Honey holes are sometimes guarded by crotchety gatekeepers.   

This seller is the same way.  He is on the cusp of not selling his dad's guns.  He gave me a list with prices of 20 guns.  99% were overpriced.  I picked one, a Winchester, that was very nice and priced right.  I passed on the others, many quite rare and mint condition antique guns.  Later, he realized he priced it too low, probably.  Hence, last night when setting up to meet again, he said "I've been checking and my price is good, some say too low..."  If I dork around with asking for pictures, he knows what I'm doing.  I have to bite the bullet and buy...or pass. You play around with these guys and the next call they say "I've decided not to sell..or..I found another guy that offered me $500 more on the spot...sorry" etc. I've been wheeling and dealing for a very long time....I know what I'm doing.  Just not the price of this gun give or take $700 or so.  I prefer to be give or take $100 in my estimates.

I don't really think he would have cared if I asked to take photos.  But I was trying to play it cool, having just bought that Winchester off him.  And I've missed many guns over the years by waiting "to think about it" too.  

Once, in New Mexico, before the internet was very big in the 1990s, a guy was advertising a Ballard in the local Dandy Dime paper.  I called him, and he brought it over to my house.  At the time, I had my Shiloh, a Trapdoor, and not much else.  But i'd been oogling all the obscure single shots in all the classic books for 10 or more years.  He arrived at the door with the rifle, a mid-range of some sort, with a tang sight and Marbles flip front.  It was in a good caliber, and had a ring lever. It was his grandfather's.  I loved it, he wanted $900.  As I started to negotiate, my wife started mouthing "we can't afford it..." to me.  We'd only been married 2-3 years.  I stalled, trying to think of a way to come up with "non-family money", and it was sold a few days later.  

After that and a few others, I learned to jump when the price is right, like the Win 52 I got a year ago.  That was another guy, retired, and I'd seen the rifle a few years before and told him if he ever wanted to sell it, call me.  Ironically, my wife was with me this time too, when I bumped into him in town.  He said he knew I wanted it, and would give me a really good price.  I figured $1500 or so.  I said I just didn't have the money.  He kept coaxing me, and finally said, "how about $600?"  I drove over, left the wife in the car, and got it!

To add to StevenHall's response on removing the barrel. Before you can unscrew the barrel you will need to open the action so the extractor will be clear of the extractor slot in the barrel. Believe it or not I have owned takedown single shots that were hammered on the receiver ring by a former owner who did not know he had to open the action to get the barrel to unscrew.

Wow, that's a shame.  Thanks for the tip, I'm usually pretty careful when working on my antique guns,  and might have figured out to lower the action.  But I'm thankful you told me!   

So today is the day!  I figured out the scope is an 18X Unertl.  So that is way after the period, as I knew Unertls were.  Would it lower the value, that there is a 1950s scope and blocks on one of the barrels?  Would you replace the Unertl with an older Fecker or such?  I think I would.  But where to put the nice Unertl?!

I'll let yall know if I get it.