“Under President Donald Trump, a strong supporter of the Second Amendment, gun sales did not spike in the weeks since the Las Vegas mass shooting, according to a BuzzFeed News analysis. This suggests that spikes after other recent prominent mass shootings were driven mainly by fear of new gun laws after President Barack Obama called for new controls. It seems there is some truth to one pundit’s claim that Obama was ‘the best gun salesman in America.'” In fact . . .

"Estimated gun sales (black) compared with mass shootings (red)" (text and chart courtesy buzzfeed.com)

gun sales have slumped. Not crashed. Slumped. From previous historic highs. Driven by the prospect of a HIllary Clinton victory. Not mass shootings. Anyway, as we reported earlier this year, profitability is the real challenge facing American gunmakers. The market is flooded with product, driving prices down to historic lows.

You can now buy a new Remington pistol for less than a Hi-Point. If you want to scratch that AR itch and don’t have a lot of scratch, there’s a farrago of perfectly fine firearms for sale well under $800.

In short, it’s a buyer’s market. So, are you buying? When was the last time you bought a gun? When might be the next time?

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

73 COMMENTS

  1. I’ve been waiting on a CZ 97BD since February. I’ll be buying an heirloom Belgian Browning A5 of my grandfathers and a SxS for bird hunting this year. Plus anything else that catches my fancy when I have cash in my pocket.

  2. “You can now buy a new Remington pistol for less than a Hi-Point.”

    There’s a reason for that: The Hi-Point actually works.

    • I picked up the RM380, Rohrbaugh’s were always pretty decent, and $130 after rebate at my LGS is pretty good. Seems to work pretty well, at least after 50 rounds, tiny guns are a pain in the butt to shoot, tiny mag, and impressive recoil.

      It’s a bit smaller than my Kahr CM9, just as heavy though since its all metal. I have zero need for it, but I still had a few hundred rounds of 380 sitting around, so…

  4. Fulfilled my decade-old dream of owning an M1 Garand two days before leaving for MCT back in September. Haven’t fired it yet, but at least I have one.

  5. My last purchase was my Ruger 22/45 Lite Mark IV.

    I don’t need any more firearms. I have satisfied my needs and most of my wants.

    I do peruse my local gun exchange, just in case. The prices I see are still too high for me to bite, though.

  6. Last Wednesday. HK P30SK. Next one? Hard to say – next time I see something I want, discounted deeply.

  7. Haven’t acquired any new toys since March. Picked up a M&P 15/22 then. Great training rifle for the Misses. Working her way up to a AR. Going to a Gun Show next weekend with a pocket full of cash. Never know what may catch my eye. Being a Gunaholic an all. One is to many and 100 is not enough. Keep Your Powder Dry…

  8. Two weeks ago….a Kel-Tec KSG Bullpup Shotgun. The next time? Whenever I see something that I really want, and the price is right.

  9. “Question of the Day: When Was the Last Time You Bought a Gun?”

    It’s been quite a while…there’s no “need” to rush…

  10. I just bought a Savage Stealth in 6.5 Creedmoor. I pulled the carbine stock and added the XLR Tactical Lite buttstock. It shoots great!

    My next purchase, not sure. I’m thinking two more flats from HMG and the small bits to build my CETME L/LV/LC kits.

    • Good call on the XLR chassis. I got one for my savage last year.

      Last gun bought? I honestly don’t remember.

    • Got to love the CETME. Working on a PTR 91 but will probably have to wait til after Christmas. Buds had them shipped for around 600.00 recently.

  12. The last one was Wednesday November 1, 2017. The next one will depend on when/if something on my list goes on sale.

  14. Last gun purchase was a couple of months ago when I came across an Arsenal SLR95 milled AKM at a local gunstore that wasn’t putting an insane markup on it. Before that were a pair of VEPRs in 5.56 and 5.45, just after the sanctions hit but before the prices went through the roof.

    D’oh!!! Wait. I also grabbed a new Ruger MKIV Tactical at a gunshow last month. And 4 spare magazines since they had 2 packs at prices comparable to the reputable internet resellers. Yeah, I could’ve saved $5, but I had them in hand, so I don’t mind the modest impatience tax. 😀

    • You’re getting WAY too TECHNICAL for me, and probably for the rest of the readers on this forum.

      I truly appreciate your post, but just can’t understand it.

  15. Just like anything else, the worst time to purchase is when you’re in NEED. Like your car broke down, and you have no choice but to pay whatever it takes to replace it.

    Same with houses and even an old pair of shoes or a haircut. Point is: The BEST time to buy, is when you really DON’T NEED IT.

    I’ve got a really conservative cache of handguns that I’ve acquired in the last 10 years. Some bought at market prices (at the time), others were inherited, and still another was a manufacture’s special that’s actually become one of my favorites.

    I won’t buy a gun just because it’s “Cheap” or “Undervalued” at an Estate Sale,,, Unless it’s on my radar list of something I’d like to acquire.

  16. Last weekend. Glock 27. Good deals to be had on .40’s while the lemmings head for the cliffs.

  17. September. ..Browning buckmark for my wife…next a savage in 243 for her….after that, a savage 99 for me….

  18. In the past thirty days I have bought:

    An unfired Romanian Sar 3

    A milled Mak90

    A cherry NDM86 with all original accessories.

    You bet it’s a buyer’s market!

  19. It’s actually been a few years. But then again I’ve been on a fixed income since a brain tumor took me out of trucking. so… yeah. :/

    But if nothing else it has given me more of a reason to look more into my old hobby of homemade guns. |3

    • Shooting up Insulin did the same to me. Can’t have anyone who can’t make their own out there driving something that could moosh the little trucks can we.

  20. Last friday…a CZ 2075 RAMI D. In shipment to my FFL as we speak. That will be the 4th gun I’ve purchased this year and probably the last for 2017…probably.

    • An excellent choice rc. The best double stack 9mm subcompact in my opinion and extremely hard to find. The stock trigger may bite a bit but the 85c trigger from CGW will work wonders. Aliengear makes a very nice IWB holster for it.

      • Thank you, I can’t wait to get my mitts on it. It’s been on my short list for 4 years now and it seems a big batch finally made their way into the US in the past month or so at reasonable prices. So I had to scratch that itch, even though I’ve exceeded my gun quota for the year already.

  21. 3 last month. I’m embarrassed to say what, specifically, but a rifle, a pistol, and a “pistol”.

  22. In May…currently have another on layaway. BREAKING NEWS: Major church shooting in TEXAS…

  24. 6 weeks ago. My starter Ar25. S&W sport II for $439 new. Have not seen a better deal on a comparable rifle to date.

  25. Kalifornia has required me to purchase one a month since 2000. I have been excessively in compliance

  26. I’ve had a 9mm Browning High-Power on my wish list for a very long time. But most prices seemed to be up there close to vintage Lugers, except for a few battered, worn-out mil-surps.
    Yesterday I finally found and bought a very nice example for a very reasonable price!

    Happy Motoring, Mark

  27. I’m in the process of buying my first gun since I was married, and now separated. That’s over 10 years. However the approval got lost in the mail and now I’m jumping through the process hoops to get another approval sent.

    This one is for a Ruger Scout in .223. I’m also keeping my eyes out for a M17 Enfield and a 1903 (preferably A3) Springfield.

  28. September. For my birthday I gave myself Howa 1500 in 6.5 Creedmoor. Heavy, threaded barrel, over molded Hogue stock, 4-16x scope FFP Nikko Sterling scope with rings, magazine adapter with one 10 round magazine, bipod. All together for $700 delivered. I just couldn’t resist. This gun seem to address all misgivings Chriss Heuss had couple days ago in his review: http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2017/11/chris-heuss/howa-1500-gun-review/
    Howa guarantees 1 moa on this model. After breaking in the barrel according to manufacturer’s instructions I shot about 180 rounds so far and had no problem keeping it under 3″ at 345 yards. (Longest distance I can shoot on my friend’s property)

    • You’ll never be disappointed with a Howa…great purchase…Howa, biggest kept secret in the industry…

  29. I picked up a 12 gauge coach gun in June and I’ll be snagging a pair of Vaqueros on Wednesday. I want to shoot SASS next year, if the lord is willin’ and the crick don’t rise. Hey, at 70 I won’t take anything for granted.

  30. I bought a Glock 43 and a North American Arms Pug about a month ago. The only things that will get me to open my wallet in the future are a small .357 revolver(either the Kimber K6S, Chiappa Rhino 200DS, or S&W 640 Pro) or a Kahr T9(which is rarer than hen’s teeth).

    My plan is to spend the money I’ve been spending on guns on classes and ammunition.

  32. Last thing I bought was a Mossberg Shockwave….wont buy anything until after Christmas, probably an AR in .308. I used to have MP10 by S&W, really liked that gun, sold it to buy an integrally silenced .300 blackout AR. Probably buy another one.

  33. One of those new M&P M2.0 compacts a couple of weeks ago. Slightly heavier than my G19 but I shoot it a bit better. Carrying it now in place of the Glock in a DeSantis IWB holster, now that cooler weather is here.

  34. Got a sig 226 legion in march for my birthday. Then found a sweet a 2VA ar10 for 1500. It’s been in lawaway ever sense. It will be under the tree from Santa soon. My guy thru in a nice hard case, mags, and a bipod. I love being in a post democratic president gun market!

  37. Picked up another NM Blackhawk in .357 last month. This one is from 1978 with a 4 5/8″ barrel. Last week my son fell in love with a Voere rifle in .308 that was made in 1968. It will be under the santa tree.

  39. I’ve been jonesin’, but business has been slow. It’s been almost a year. Last buy was a Winchester Model 1882 in .45 Colt with a 24″ barrel. I have long list, but short green. My daughter had to sell her FNX .45 recently to pay bills, so I suppose “Daddy” will have to find her a replacement at some point. But a full size 1911 is high on my list, as is a long range rifle in 6.5 Creedmore so I might have to cover her with a pocket 9, all of which are selling for unbelievable prices.

  40. In September I bought a Beretta 1301 Tactical 12 gauge (sweet gun!). Then in October I bought a Remington 700 5R in .308. Put a Harris bi-pod and a Timney Elite trigger under it, and am now saving to upgrade to a better glass on it. Happy Birthday to me!

  41. Bought a new Marlin 1894 in .44 mag 6 months ago. I am thrilled to report that it is a very well made firearm. The fit, function, machining and finish are top notch. The stock is a beautiful piece of wood, the action is very smooth and it is quite accurate. It is vast improvement over the first batch of RemLins.

  42. The last time I decided I wanted one, whenever that was.

    Didn’t write it down so I don’t remember.

  43. new? since june, a bodyguard 380 and a g43. also, my LGS bought out a local PD’s evidence locker at auction. the good stuff went in the used gun counter, but they had a pile of guns they thought were too low end for the store sitting in a box marked “junk guns” in the back. when i found out about it i offered them $200 for the whole box. got 4 9mm hipoints and a 45, a phoenix hp25, two sccy’s, and six ring of fire classics. all of them beat to hell, and the jennings/ravens/bryco are probably not safe to shoot but are interesting to have. i sold one of the sccy’s and 2 of the c9s for about 300. Pretty happy with the way it turned out.

    • One of the downsides I have to living in an extremely rural area with fairly low crime rates is that I am virtually never going to run into deals like that. 🙁

      (By “extremely rural” i mean that it is so rural that my nearest Walmart and nearest McDonalds are both 35 miles away.)

  46. Unfortunately, I will NOT to go through the draconian process of gun ownership in my “Eastern Bloc communist /left-wing controlled police state.” Where the local/state police departments are in control over a US citizens 2nd Amendment Constitutional Right…Nor will I allow the local police to force me to waiver, or give- up any of my other rights for a government issued privilege…Under a form of “Perceived Authority.” As my Veteran dad would say, “If something is going to happen…A civil war, or a Globalist coupe…It shouldn’t be a problem…You should just be able to open one of your homes windows and reach down into the streets…For there should be plenty of firearms lying amongst the dead…” (PS. Still waiting for President Trumps 2nd Amendment reforms……)

    • I moved to a nearby state due to Maryland’s inability to comply with the constitution. Just a thought why continue to pay for tyranny in the form of state taxes?

  47. Late July when I had some cash and Sportsman’s Warehouse had $100 off on S&W M&P 9s to make room for the 2.0 models.

  48. Last one I bought was a Mossberg 590A1 left handed model. Due to parent needing help with medical issues. I won’t be buying anything else for a very long time.

  49. Back in March I bought a LEO trade-in M&P40, then last week I picked up a couple of Aero Precision stripped AR lowers for $50 each. Just trying to do my part!

    Next up (maybe this year?) will be either a .22 LR/Mag single-action revolver, or (if I get lucky) I’ll find the Goldilocks pump gun I’ve been looking for… an Ithaca Model 37 from the late ’60s or ’70s. I handled and shot one way back then, and I’ve been wanting one ever since!

  50. A couple weeks ago. A coworker was gifted a Ruger 10/22 by her father, and was so hysterical about having it in her apartment that she asked a friend of hers in a city nearly two hours away to keep it there so she wouldn’t have it anywhere near her. Got it for half of MSRP because she wanted to get rid of it.

    Sometimes someone’s anti-gun hysteria really CAN be someone else’s gain.

    That said, that was mostly a “right place, right time” [on my part] purchase. I’ve been eyeing several new guns for a while, but as I plan to move soon, I’m saving my money up for that instead. Sucks to be responsible.

  51. I bought an IWI Jericho 3.8″ steel a couple of days ago. In great barely shot shape and it was about $150 less than the best new one I could find.

    • Very good choice in .45acp or 9mm. I have a 4.4 inch Jericho 941 in 9mm…awesome on the range and built like a tank. Last purchase was a few weeks ago, a 2 inch SP101 in .357 mag. Also, built like a tank.

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