Milsurp prices of yesteryear

[drboompa]

Was looking through the pages of a 1959 issue of American Rifleman magazine and found many ads for milsurps. Here are some of the prices listed:

1. M1917 --$27.95
2. No. 5 303 British jungle carbine-- $24.95
3. No. 1 MK III 303 British-- $14.95
4. M1 Garand bayonet 10"--$4.95
5. M1 Garand rifle-- $97.50
6. Colt 45 ACP 1911--$34.95

These prices will make you weep!

The down side is that I was making $1.10 per hour during that year and taking home abut $35.00 a week after taxes to support my wife and baby. I did not have the money to buy them then. Oh well!

It is not as bad as we might think.

[Peter Laidler]

Yes, get the point Dr Boom, but at least you could get this stuff then and when you got it, you knew that it was original

[smellie]

I bought my first one from a Hunter's Lodge advert in back of a True West magazine, 1961 or thereabouts, a Vetterli-Vitali 1870/87/915 billed as a 'VV-70 sniper rifle' and featuring a 'genuine spaghetti-grained stock'. It sold (US) for $9.98 plus 20% extra for Canada, so I had to shell out a whole $11.97. Minimum wage in Manitoba at that time was 50 cents an hour and I was still in school and working 60 (unpaid) hours a week in a family restaurant.

About 3 years later I was working for CPAL in Vancouver (BC) out at the airport and spending too much time at Alan Lever's gun shop downtown. Garands were $65, Kar 98ks (in grease) were $27.50, Kar 43s were $65, Webley Mark Vs and VIs ran $15.95, Korea capture MN 91/30s were $8.50 and looked as if the whole NKPA had run away over top of them. I got an SMLE .22 Parker-Hale convert with PH match sights for my brother for a birthday present ($25). He still has it, it still wins matches. Good part is that it kept him from beating up MY 14-1/2 Little Scout for which I laid out $3. But even this incredible bounty was limited by wages of $1.27 an hour less union dues, less Federal Income tax (illegal under the Constitution), less Provincial Income tax (perfectly legal), less Social Insurance, less Canada Pension, less Unemployment Insurance, less....... you get the idea!

The REALLY good part, as Captain Laidler has pointed out, is that nobody was faking anything back then. There were all the Waffenamts and chickens you could ask for. Me, I got a CLLE, cost me $12 even though the bore was toast! BTW it had no WaAs or chickens for some reason!

In many ways, the 'good old days' of gun collecting are right now. The guns have gone up in PRICE much more than they have in terms of hours of labour to obtain one....... and the resources now exist which did not at that time, so that we can learn from each other. This Site, and a relatively few others like it, are some of our best learning tools.
.

[browningautorifle]

I remember the days from London Ontario in the 60s when the surplus chains had that sort of thing by the barrel full. In the 70s the US surplus stores in Seattle were full of all sorts of second war and Korea equipment they couldn't give away. The first war stuff was scarce but there too. Now all gone, even the stores are gone.

[paulm]

My 2cents This hobby of ours is very popular With all things time and tide changes everything. The laws of supply and demand prevail This hobby is indeed popular, and it's a big business. There are those who will pay the going rate, and there are those who will pay what ever is necessary to get what they want. When people are willing to pay thousands for a rifle that isn't worth 1/3 the asking price Only a fool would stand on principle and refuse to take the money. Monkey see,monkey do Am I right or what?

[browningautorifle]

I see it as comparative rarity. As the huge supply dries up the prices rise. Every time there's a theft or house fire and a collection is destroyed there's one less. Who knows, in a thousand years, maybe we'll even be worth something.

[drboompa]

Thanks, guys, for your thoughts. Only us older ones can remember back that far. It is easier for me to buy a rifle for $500.00 now than back in those days for $30.00. times were rough and money scarce.

[Sgt Brown]

Some guns have not stayed with inflation. In 1960 I could buy an Enfield No4Mk1(T) sniper rifle complete in the crate for $39.95. With inflation, that equates to $294 2010 dollars. Well, I recently saw a #32 scope - no rifle attached - go for $2300!! Lord knows what complete Enfield snipers are going for these days.

Tom

[xmingan]

Marstar has one for 3500$, if it's not gone.

[paulm]

Folks on these sites as well as friends have spoken about the " Good old days when a Mk1, or M1 for that matter didn't cost a lot" allow me to put a couple of ideas out there for you, and I'd very much like your input. To begin with a Cop with whom I am friends (fellow collector, and he helped me with my first C&R) has this theory. He mentioned how expensive it has become to get a hand gun permit. This pleases the Gun grabbers, since only the most persistant and the most necessary will get that permit.. C&Rs There are many that they would like to bann permanently, but the Supreme court, and public opinion will not let that happen(thank God) So therefore Theyseek to control the industry itself by controling the mfgs, and the dealers How many do you know who have had to sell to pay bills? Ok this was the down side. There is an upside. Since 9/11 there is a resurgance of Patriotism with the help of actors like Tom Hanks, Gary Sinese we now honor our veterans (thankyou), and what better way to honor them than to own the weapons they carried. The CMP, Garand guy,Mil Tech, are making money hand over fist Also we have to give some credit to the great Sperminator Slick willy Clinton. He created most of the problems with the DCM. As to the other milsurps Brothers it is again the laws of Supply and Demand. Now let me address another sore point, and this is the auction, and private sales. Auction we cannot do very much about since houses like Armchair gun show, and Auction arms hand you this baloney about consignment. Maybe this is the truth. Who gives a chit We as potential sellers/buyers can do our part by not disclosing what we sold it/ bought it for Does this sound reasonable after all isn't it the proverbial game of Monkey see Monkey do? He sold it for a small fortune, so I'll do the same. Guys like Jim Supica will not stop you from bidding well over it's real value. He'd be a fool to do that. The higher the bid the bigger his piece of the pie. Well my Brothers these are only my views and represent a majority of one (me) Let me know what you think