Pawn Shops in a few months

[osbornk]

People,many new to gun ownership, are buying every gun they can find right now. However, with the slowing economy, increased unemployment and probable upcoming recession due to the Coronavirus, will Pawn Shops have a flood of guns pawned/sold to them when bills come due and food runs low? Many people make impulse purchases and don't plan for the long run so I expect they may many will decide that they will need to get rid of their newly purchased weapons and those that already have several will liquidate some of theirs to pay for living expenses.

[Sharkbite]

will Pawn Shops have a flood of guns pawned/sold to them when bills come due and food runs low?

I can only hope. Maybe some nice Smith revolvers at reasonable prices. Id love to find a nice high-end 1911 to replace my older Clark gun i had to part with.

[OneFreeTexan]

Keep in mind that the panic buyers are buying whatever they can at whatever price is asked...don’t expect them to be turning hi-end guns around for basement prices.

[2wheelwander]

^^ Agreed.

LGS is rationing 9mm to 1 box, 2 if you are a new gun owner and are buying a gun. Ammo shelves are all but empty. You can still find .357 Sig a plenty though!

[MarkCO]

At my LGS, the $4K Volkmann's were the last to go with the Henning Custom SP01s right before. I think there is a good chance there will be some excellent deals this summer.

[Mike38]

Now if the pawn shops would sell according to the low prices they will probably give, it will be a win-win for everybody. Unfortunately, the pawn shops in my area think their guns are gold plated.

[Double Naught Spy]

Keep in mind that the panic buyers are buying whatever they can at whatever price is asked...don’t expect them to be turning hi-end guns around for basement prices.

We owned pawn shops for 25 years. You would be amazed at what people let go for basement prices. That will include higher end guns and lower end guns. People will pawn NIB Christmas presents because they want beer and smokes and are tight on money.

Now if the pawn shops would sell according to the low prices they will probably give, it will be a win-win for everybody.

Of course they won't do that just like you would not be willing to sell me a $2000 gun for $30 that was gifted to you and cost you nothing.

Prices given by pawn shops will vary by a lot of factors. We tried to never loan more than 1/2 of what we thought we could sell a given gun for. That sounds like we were doubling our money, but in reality that wasn't the case because of the time involved, insurance on protecting the item while in our possession, other overhead expenses, wages, etc., risk of forfeiture if the gun turns out to be stolen, etc. etc. etc. Of course, if somebody brings us in a Glock 19 and we already have 10 of them out for sale (too many, in other words), we aren't apt to loan as much simply because we are covered up in them. One of our more rural stores did a heck of a business in deer rifles. Our inner city store did almost no business in deer rifles - very different markets.

[2wheelwander]

Few years ago, local pawn show had a BEAT UP CZ 82 they sat on for several months. Electrical tape holding on the grips. They had $350 on it, which you could get a better surplus for that. I offered $200 honestly expecting them to take it. The guy acted like I just slept with his mother. The thing was beyond filthy buy I saw a rescue. Never did get it.

[Mike38]

Of course they won't do that just like you would not be willing to sell me a $2000 gun for $30 that was gifted to you and cost you nothing.

Of course I wouldn't sell it for $30. I also wouldn't ask $3000 like any of the pawn shops around me would.

[OneFreeTexan]

2wheel....Is that gun still there?

[Double Naught Spy]

Of course I wouldn't sell it for $30. I also wouldn't ask $3000 like any of the pawn shops around me would.

Of course you wouldn't sell it for $30??? Why not? It didn't cost you anything. That would be $30 in your pocket, easy money, and a win-win for everybody, right? Surely, you are not implying a double standard, are you?

Why do you think the pawn shop should do that if you won't do it? The answer in simple. You want to pay as little as possible and maximize your profit when you sell. That is sort of a base line of how business works.

As for asking prices, pawn shops and other businesses just like you can ask what they want. You don't have to pay it if you don't want to. Eventually, the products will sell. Somebody haggler will come in and work a deal.

I always find it amusing when people think pawn shops should sell items based on what they paid for them by people who would not engage in the same practice themselves and never take into consideration the who concept of what it takes to run a business.

If this economic situation is like those of the past, the pawn shops will be have some good deals on merchandise in the future. They are going to be inventory heavy and comparatively cash poor by the time this comes to an end. However, they won't be giving stuff away either. Various types of merchandise hold their values better than others.

[TruthTellers]

It's going to happen, but I don't think in the amounts we're thinking. Most probably ran out and bought the cheapest guns or the most well known guns, so there's not going to be much that people like us will be interested in. I've already got my Glocks, ARs, AKs, Ruger revolvers, etc.

It'll really be a market for new gun buyers/collectors just starting out.

But then again by the time this pandemic panic is over it'll be election season and Bazooka Joe is gonna be looking to ban the AR-14s with 100 round clips, so the current gun situation may be with us a while or until Trump is re-elected.

[Bill DeShivs]

Double Naught Spy-
Thank you for concisely explaining how business works.
It's surprising how many don't/can't understand that.

[2wheelwander]

OneFreeTexan, no. It finally sold a few months ago, but I'd be curious to know what they got for it.

They hadn't cleaned it, not even spray cleaner down the bore. Tape holding the grips on, looked like it came out of grandpas WW2 trunk. Like finding a sad puppy at the pound I wanted it and make it over.

[OneFreeTexan]

Thanks for the info..2wheel... curious about what they got for it too.

[Ignition Override]

osbornk/OP:

Yes, although pawn shops will continue to sell gun at market prices (or above).
I can't imagine any future prices dropping much, unless their supply far exceeds future demand at that time.

If they have a huge amount of space, it costs nothing extra to wait for interested buyers.

2wheelwander: you mentioned that .357 Sig ammo is available.
It might be interesting to see whether a fair bit of .40 S&W ammo (the unwashed, unpopular ) and 9x18 Mak. is out there, simply to note any ironies.

TruthTellers: True, and when Biden asks some guy to "step outside", that old coward knows that these other guys have no Secret Service protection. What a "tough" guy, Perfumed Prince.

[LOLBELL]

Originally Posted by Sharkbite

I can only hope. Maybe some nice Smith revolvers at reasonable prices. Id love to find a nice high-end 1911 to replace my older Clark gun i had to part with.

Seems kinda sad to hope someone falls on bad times so you can reap the benefits

[Sharkbite]

You miss the point of the thread. Panic buy now, leading to good buys later. Nothing to do with hard times

[jmr40]

I can't say for the rest of the country, but nicer handguns are still sitting on the shelves locally. Plenty to choose from at $500 and up. They have sold out of everything under $500. No AR's left, very little 223 ammo and no 9mm.

[jonnyc]

We have sold out (a few times) the last two weeks, and our prices didn't change. Some consignments were higher due to the seller's wishes, but all guns flew out the door.
When some of these guns start coming back we surely won't be paying much for them as the cases will most likely be filled with lots of new guns. I hope all these new shooters who decide to go back to their old ways will understand basic economics and not be too disappointed.

[LOLBELL]

Originally Posted by Sharkbite

You miss the point of the thread. Panic buy now, leading to good buys later. Nothing to do with hard times

You quoted “ Will Pawn Shops have a flood of guns sold/pawned to them when bills come due and food runs low.”

You said “I hope so” So you could get a reasonable price on a Smith.

Bills coming due that you can not pay and running out of food is hard times regardless of how you got there, China Virus or poor judgement.

Hoping that happens to someone so you can get a good deal on a gun is pretty cheap in my book.

I’m not the sharpest knife in the drawer but I understand simple English I did not miss the point of the quote and reply

[Kreyzhorse]

I saw a lot of low priced guns flying off the shelves; think Taurus. That said, people are buying what they can get and those that bought cheap guns, I'm not sure that people will feel the need to sell them once the virus dies off.

Even if some do, I have a feeling that the gun community and 2nd Amendment supporters just gained a lot of new members.

[reynolds357]

Originally Posted by Double Naught Spy

Of course you wouldn't sell it for $30??? Why not? It didn't cost you anything. That would be $30 in your pocket, easy money, and a win-win for everybody, right? Surely, you are not implying a double standard, are you?

Why do you think the pawn shop should do that if you won't do it? The answer in simple. You want to pay as little as possible and maximize your profit when you sell. That is sort of a base line of how business works.

As for asking prices, pawn shops and other businesses just like you can ask what they want. You don't have to pay it if you don't want to. Eventually, the products will sell. Somebody haggler will come in and work a deal.

I always find it amusing when people think pawn shops should sell items based on what they paid for them by people who would not engage in the same practice themselves and never take into consideration the who concept of what it takes to run a business.

If this economic situation is like those of the past, the pawn shops will be have some good deals on merchandise in the future. They are going to be inventory heavy and comparatively cash poor by the time this comes to an end. However, they won't be giving stuff away either. Various types of merchandise hold their values better than others.

A pawn shop is a business. I guess so long as you can lay your head on your pillow and sleep well, you didnt rip folks off too bad. Someone has to do it, but I dont like making money on the misfortune if other people.

[Aguila Blanca]

Originally Posted by Kreyzhorse

Even if some do, I have a feeling that the gun community and 2nd Amendment supporters just gained a lot of new members.

I doubt it. We may have lost some staunch opponents, but if most of these new buyers just bought a gun because they feared some sort of apocolypse, I don't expect many of them to become avid shooters after the pandemic winds down, nor do I expect many of them to become 2A activists or advocates. IMHO the best we can hope for out of the majority of them is that they may stop supporting politicians who are trying to take away the RKBA.

[44 AMP]

IMHO the best we can hope for out of the majority of them is that they may stop supporting politicians who are trying to take away the RKBA.

Probably the best we can hope for. What I think we'll get is somewhat less than that.

I think a lot of them are buying a gun with the idea of it being "emergency use only", and now, since they HAVE ONE, future gun control laws still won't have a serious impact on their lives and they will continue to support anti-gun politicians, whom they agree with on other issues.

Any fear, anger, or frustration they feel now, when they find out that buying a gun isn't what they've been led to believe (right off the internet delivered to your door, etc) those feeling will have been long forgotten after the crisis passes. And they won't come back, really, if/when there is another crisis, because they already have a gun and a box of ammo (possibly 2).

So they won't care about banning this or that, (unless it's the gun they have), won't care about any increase in ownership requirements, fees background checks, waiting periods, etc, because they already have a gun....

A few people will see the light. Most will not bother.