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View Poll Results: Should I sell the AR?
Yes, this insanity will end and prices will drop. 30 33.71%
No, too much chance that you can't buy another one. 41 46.07%
I don't know. 18 20.22%
Voters: 89. You may not vote on this poll

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Old January 7, 2013, 01:41 PM   #1
Ben Towe
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To sell or not to sell

I was torn as to which forum to put this in, but I think this one is the best fit.

Should I sell my AR at current inflated prices or hold on to it? I kind of have the hankering to put together another bolt action rifle and selling the AR would finance it nicely, and then some. I don't really need another bolt gun as I have four, but I do want one. I have only one AR, a nicely decked out (Trijicon Reflex, MBUS, quad rail, light, single point sling) M&P 15. At the present I can nearly name my price, but if this blows over, as I believe it will, ARs will be a dime a dozen. What say you?
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Old January 7, 2013, 01:45 PM   #2
Pahoo
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I could be wrong, but !!!

This might be one of the few times that you will hear me say this;

Sell It !!!

Be Safe !!!
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Old January 7, 2013, 01:58 PM   #3
RamItOne
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Tough call, I've wanted an AR since I was in the sixth grade or so, 17-18 years later I finally bought one, have had it for almost two years. I'm not normally for ever selling a firearm, if I had two then I'd sell my second one. I don't foresee any completely restrictive legislation passing. However I don't see prices settling back down completely to pre dec 2011 prices again on both ammo and EBRs so selling now for a nice profit could help offset future ammo prices and EBR prices.

I hope I'm wrong about the prices never being what they were, look at gas, we are now happy it's just above $3 because it had been between $4-5, retailers aren't stupid.
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Old January 7, 2013, 02:35 PM   #4
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Keep them all. No sense in selling any gun that still provides you with an option for armed defense.
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Old January 7, 2013, 03:04 PM   #5
Magnum Wheel Man
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would you feel really bad if you couldn't build or buy a new one later ???

I'm sure you could profit nicely, but that profit might not be worth it, if you felt like you had to have one, & they pass the needed legislation to keep them priced that high from now on...

I sold mine for a nice profit back in the Clinton era... never felt the need to get another, so I was fine with my decision...
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Old January 7, 2013, 03:25 PM   #6
Skans
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Skans AR Decision Tree

1. If you don't have any military style 5.56 then fork out the $$$$ now for an AR-15, you don't want to be caught without one!

2. If you only have one AR - don't sell it. Who cares what prices are, you have yours and all is good.

3. If you have more than one AR, use your least favorite(s) as trading fodder to upgrade to a better AR, if you can find something you really like better.

4. If you have one AR and another .223 semi-auto like a Sig 556 or Mini-14, then sell all of it and your tacticool accessories too and buy an FN SCAR. Then you are done because now own the very best .223/556 you can buy.
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Old January 7, 2013, 04:39 PM   #7
Quentin2
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I had to vote I don't know.

I have three good ARs, Daniel Defense, BCM and PSA plus another complete lower - and fear if I sold for profit I may never replace them for that price later. Odds are prices will come back down but what if they don't!

This actually is one time where having three cheap ARs might be better than having three good ones since the odds are much higher you could upgrade and still make money.

For now I'm hanging on to what I have.
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Old January 7, 2013, 05:05 PM   #8
Revoliver
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Voted 'NO' as you only have the one and already have four bolt actions. Also, a bolt action is and will be (I believe) easier to get/put together in the future.
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Old January 7, 2013, 06:01 PM   #9
Sgt Pepper
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In a way, this is a fairly easy decision. Here are the considerations:

1. Do I want to ensure that I will continue to own an AR15?

2. Am I willing to take the chance that I will never own an AR15 again in exchange for an easy $1,000?

3. I don't care if I own one or not, show me the money!

Speculative buy and sells happen everyday on the stock market and elsewhere (and for a heck of a lot more at stake!). If you have an emotional attachment to, objective or subjective need for, or some other compelling reason to own an AR15 and you cannot live without it, then it is probably not wise to sell at this time. $1,000 really is not a lot of money in the grand scheme of things to be receiving in exchange. If $1,000 is a considerable amount of money to you, then what the heck are you doing with an AR? You should sell immediately for max cash. If you are willing to speculate and take a chance for $1,000, then sell. If not, then do not sell.

What would you do with the extra cash, i.e. the profit of $1,000? Wait until ARs are cheap again and buy two? Blow it at the strip club? Buy your old lady the washer and dryer she always wanted? Put it in the bank?

In my opinion, $1,000 isn't enough to move on, but that is just me and my economics.
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Old January 7, 2013, 06:23 PM   #10
Skans
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What I don't understand is owning more than one AR-15. Isn't the point to have a modular weapon, one that you can change to suit your needs? You should be able to own one lower receiver and as many different barreled uppers that you may desire.

Right now I own a Colt SP1 Carbine and an extra Colt government barrel attached to an A2 Upper. Old-school, for sure, but they are in almost new condition.. The only reason I still have it is because its a Colt.

Since I have an AC-556, I really don't shoot my other .223's. Now, my AC556 is too valuable and .223 ammo is too expensive - I need to re-evaluate....or maybe not.......Ehhhhhh, time to buy another 9mm pistol!
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Old January 7, 2013, 06:26 PM   #11
Tucker 1371
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If you had two ARs I would've voted Sell, but I am not so sure, as other on TFL are, that this scare is all for naught.
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Old January 7, 2013, 06:35 PM   #12
CharlieDeltaJuliet
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I have four now. I sold off a DDV4 to a friend that had begged me for the rifle for quite a while. He had plans on buying one after the Christmas rush, then the panic ensued. The only reason I sold the DD, is I never shoot it anymore. The rest of my AR's each have a different purpose. I will be honest though, I would not part with the ones I have left. So that is kind of up to you. I was offered a great sum of money for one of mine, I still won't consider it.
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Old January 7, 2013, 06:42 PM   #13
budrock56
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I have a Colt Sporter I bought back in 1994. Almost sold it last year. I'm keeping it.
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Old January 7, 2013, 06:59 PM   #14
spacecoast
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I voted No, it sounds like it's your only AR. If you had 5 of them, I would have voted Yes.
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Old January 7, 2013, 07:03 PM   #15
Jo6pak
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I'm in the same boat with my M1A. Basically, for me it comes down to the fact that I have been on the fence about selling it for a while. And why not do it now while you can get a premium for it. If it's something you don't use, or if you have another project in mind to use the funds for, go ahead and sell it.
If your thinking you can jsut replace it later with another AR, then you should hang on to it.

Get a price in your head. If you can sell it for that price, go for it. If not, hold it. That's what I'm doing.
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Old January 7, 2013, 07:55 PM   #16
dayman
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Sell it - If you're unattached enough to to be thinking about it, this is the very best time to sell. And I think the price is going to come back down. Any ban has to make it through the house, and with 8k people a day joining the NRA I don't see the traditional pro gun politicians changing their stance. If this even gets that far, any ban will die in the house.
Worst case scenario something does pass and you'll have a bolt gun, which - if .223 goes through the roof - will be cheaper to run during a ban anyway.
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Old January 8, 2013, 09:21 AM   #17
tulsamal
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Quote:
What I don't understand is owning more than one AR-15. Isn't the point to have a modular weapon, one that you can change to suit your needs? You should be able to own one lower receiver and as many different barreled uppers that you may desire.
That's such a funny thing for somebody to say in a gun forum! Next you will say I only "need" one Glock or one 1911!

In the case of the AR... before all this craziness... lowers and parts for the lowers were cheap. I'm sure that most of us that have multiple AR's started out thinking like you. We had an AR and then we bought another complete upper. And we swapped them out and we were happy. For a few days. Then reality intrudes.

How do you store the upper that isn't on the lower? Doesn't fit right in any of my safes... way too long for a handgun section but keeps falling over propped up with rifles. So I put the lower in a soft case and tossed it in a closet. Where it was always in the way. And falling over.

Let's say the complete upper in the closet is your dedicated .22 LR trainer. So you pull it out and swap it around and practice. But if you leave it on the lower... you don't have a rifle in "ready to go" condition. So you take the .22 LR off and put it back in the closet. But you want to shoot it again that weekend.

At some point you tire of the wrong upper always being on the lower. And having an orphan upper falling over in the safe or closet. So you by a stripped lower for less than $100 and build a new one. And you realize then just how much easier it is in every way to just have a lower matched to a particular upper. The lower on an AR should match up with the upper from a configuration standpoint. A light target trigger might be appropriate for your hunting AR but not your duty one. You might actually want a fixed stock on one for some reason. Or a heavier adjustable stock on one while you would really prefer the lightest possible one on another.

So you build more lowers. Every time you end up with a new upper... someday the lower will appear. Has worked that way for me!

Gregg
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Old January 8, 2013, 07:20 PM   #18
Ben Towe
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Thanks for the replies y'all. I'm leaning toward keeping it, because it is set up exactly like I've always wanted one to be.
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Old January 8, 2013, 07:46 PM   #19
chris in va
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Keep it. If you had two, I'd say sell one but with the current gun climate change you may not be able to get another any time soon.
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Old January 8, 2013, 09:28 PM   #20
Justice06RR
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Your have 4 bolt guns and 1 AR15.... hmmm.

Keep it. Most Bolt guns are easier and cheaper to buy right now. If you sell your AR, can you afford another one even if they are not banned? You will probably regret selling your AR now, and IMO people are pricing them way too high than they are really worth due to the panic.
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Old January 8, 2013, 09:48 PM   #21
kilimanjaro
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Keep it, you'll be sorry if you sell it, I guarantee it.

Prices may come down a bit in the future, but not to what you paid for it originally. This is not a bubble, it's recognition of the danger to the 2nd Amendment, it's serious.
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Old January 8, 2013, 09:50 PM   #22
mxsailor803
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I voted no for the simple fact that I waited too long not to get a AR. Now I'm looking for a lower that I can build. Any suggestions on companies that have them in stock?
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Old January 8, 2013, 10:04 PM   #23
Marquezj16
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Probably late to the thread, but I'm not really sure if prices will go back or if you will not be able to buy another one in the future.

However, because it's your only AR, I'd say keep it like most other said.
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Old January 9, 2013, 06:37 AM   #24
texgunner
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I say keep it. If anything actually passes it'll be watered down from what Feinstein is proposing. However, just to be safe I would keep your ARs until the hysteria passes.

I have two ARs and 20+ Pmags. In the last two years I've lost a lot of interest in them and was considering selling them. Then the Newtown massacre happened.and I decided to wait and see what happens.
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Old January 9, 2013, 07:16 AM   #25
droptrd
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I have never sold a firearm and probably never will. I have stuff I havent shot in years. Dont care. I just keep buying bigger safes Unless you have a surplus of ARs, Id hold on to it
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