value of a custom flintlock

[rich pierce]

A good custom gun should have top notch parts but that's just the foundation. Will it shoot better or be more reliable than another with the same top notch parts but not the same artisanship? Probably not a noticeable difference.

Most good custom used guns on a certain website sell for less than the same gun would in "unfired" condition. I guess everyone wants it to be "their" custom rifle and not somebody else's. I would not buy custom guns as monetary investments, as there are darn few collectors compared to collectors of original guns. And with time passing, styles and preferences change, outstanding makers from the past are no longer as fresh in our minds as current makers, and we find that maybe their work doesn't bring what it should. Would a fella have been better off buying a Bivins rifle or Apple stock back in the day?

But looking and handling some Apple stock would never give me the pleasure that handling a Bivins stock wood (would, pun intended).

 

[rich pierce]

For collecting, the best of the best is always the best investment, whether collecting new custom flintlocks or originals. For example, for gaining value, a Hawken would gain more than 20 other plains rifles costing as much in total. A signed fine Beck would increase in value more than 4 plainer, unsigned longrifles totalling the same to buy initially. And a Bivins or Gusler or House or Mandarino or Brennan custom rifle will gain more in value than others, because the name is well recognized over the years. There are several new masters who are already being collected by some of the most knowledgeable folks around, but it will take another 10-20 years of their continued production to realize their full value monetarily.

 

[tg]

" I guess everyone wants it to be "their" custom rifle and not somebody else's'

Probably true, I have picked up several nice gun built by others with popular vendors parts, I only gave $800 for my Chamber Virginia smoothrifle with bag/horn and the works,these deal can be found on the various forums trade blanket or classifieds fairly often.I will usually take one down and refinish/remove some wood so as to make it a bit more "mine"

 

[rich pierce]

Can't even get the kit for that price. Well done.

 

[Vaino]

Through the years,I've bought and sold many guns and made real money on very few. When I was in Austria in 1953 I bought 13 very fancy rifles and shotguns from Ferlach and they all appreciated in value somewhat but could not be labeled "an investment" whatsoever. In all of my purchases did I buy wrong because they didn't greatly appreciate in value?....no. I acquired my guns because I wanted them and all were shot extensively whether on clays or hunting. For the average person trying to "out think" the market as a reason for buying MLing guns is folly because the "market" is erratic and is at the mercy of fickle buyers and an up/down economy. Just because one buys a used or new contemporary MLer at a certain price, doesn't mean that it's worth that amount of money... somebody has to buy it at that price and very few MLers appreciate in value by more than the rate of inflation.....which really isn't making money at all. So even if a contemporary MLer is kept for many years and was built by a "name" builder, there's no guarantee of it's resale value. Dealing in "originals" can be monetarily rewarding but for this to happen, one has to know what to buy and stay away from the many fakes and misrepresented arms on the market. As was said previously....most true investments are better than buying contemporary MLers if making money is the motivation....Fred