Curious what you are seeing out there. I am hearing that the market has softened a bit for English guns, non-ejectors in both boxlocks and sidelocks, and particularly for low and mid grade guns. Opinions?

High end still sells. Low end, according to desirability, is soft due to money shortage and black gun sales.
JR

Seems like the market in CA has gone completely soft for older doubles in all gauges, but especially sub-gauges. If the governor signs or fails to veto AB 711 banning all lead ammo for hunting statewide, then most of my old doubles and almost all of my small bore guns will be sold or used only out of state. No news on status of AB 711 as of this morning.

most double gun prices are down about 20% from 2007...just a reflection of our depressed economy.

Certain models are up. I am shocked at the going prices for Stevens and later Fox doubles...not that I am looking for one, but they used to be $300 and are now $700 and up. Don't know how they can justify it for the quality. Many guns are selling above original price. Drillings are falling for the well-used ones and perhaps have to fall since I have a few, and nothing I ever invest in is up until after I get out...Steve

Governor Brown signed AB 711.

Steve, you beat me to it. AB 711 has been signed. No more lead shot in CA starting 2019. One more nail in the coffin for hunters here in CA.

This may put some pressure on the big ammo makers to start making affordable non toxic shot. Maybe not for us but for the California guys who have been through a frickin nightmare for the last few decades.

Shit.

Let's see now...

California is broke, full of illegal aliens, losing businesses wholesale, buys more K-Y Jelly than any state in the union, and now...

Moonbeam wants to save the little critters from accidental lead poisoning.

Sounds like a Democrat paradise to me!

"Has the double gun market softened?"

Yes but the seller's heads are hard.

TOUCHE!!

.... and too many sellers are not really interested in 'selling'; doin' shows is their retirement vocation ... the reason I quit attending most gun shows is the same old stuff by the same old sellers and some of it seen ten years ago; there are exceptions, but that's exactly what they are. Can you say, "Boring?" Over priced junk, tactical everything and jerky don't add up to much.

Better off to simply go shoot sporty clays, trap, skeet, bunker or helice if it is out of season for birds and enjoy the day.

Not even 1% of the population of CA hunts. South Dakota, with a population of less than a million, sells almost as many hunting licenses as CA. And steel shot has become quite affordable. I doubt the CA lead ban will do much to give us nontox alternatives to steel that are both reasonably priced and suitable for use in vintage doubles.

As for doublegun prices, I think Brit boxlocks have been bargains, relatively speaking, for quite some time. And I haven't noticed prices on Stevens going up much except for the smallbores, especially .410's. If you own an American .410 sxs in decent condition, regardless of the maker, it's going to be worth a fair chunk of change.

Unfortunately, the gun ban crowd and animal rights activists here in CA have finally discovered the well known tactic of divide and conquer. Now, with the political setting what it is in our state legislature it has become quite easy. We saw the ban of hound hunting which was a pretty easy argument to make to the uninformed. Those poor dogs are getting ripped to pieces by bears that are harassed to no end. Few hunters hound hunt so the fight was an easy one to pick. Lead was a much bigger battle which tells me that they have certainly been emboldened by their success. But, I have several friends that don't bird hunt much and simply stated, "I already use Barnes X bullets so it is no big deal to me." So again we have a chipping away of our base. As stated by Mr. Brown we already are down to less than 1% of the population that hunts and you can bet that this number will continue to decrease. I wonder what the next target will be? You can bet HSUS has one ready! When they are finished with CA they will be heading out to one of your states, not that they aren't a force in many of them already. Kind of a departure of the original topic but certainly connected.

The only things that seem to go for high prices are Colt SA revolvers and military guns with so called bring back documentation (Lugers, 1911, pump trench guns).
Naturally billionaires still buy London best shotguns.