Rocketman's tables perfectly capture, based on real world examples, the value of branding. Learn how to judge the underlying gun, its original quality and current condition, and you can get to own and shoot fantastic guns for a fraction of the cost of London guns.
Where is it written that we do or should make money on every gun? We do our best....some work in our favour, some don't. But as rocketman's tables make clear, the same opportunity to make money exists for Belgian boxlocks as it does for London Bests
Larry, not to be picky but I don't need to know the brand value of a particular obscure Belgian maker. I just need to be able to judge the quality of the gun and have a sense of the brand value of all Belgian guns . Which is not much when compared to English guns.
I'd have to disagree with your comment about the brand value of all Belgian guns vs British. Within the past year, I've purchased a Francotte 14E and a Webley and Scott 700. Both 16ga, both similar condition (very good). I paid about the same for both. Looking at the market, I don't think you'll find Francotte suffers in comparison to well-respected makers of Brit boxlocks. Unfortunately! At one time they were sleepers on the market, but that's long since past.
I did pick up a Thonon sidelock at a nice price a few years back. But that might have been because I recognized two things the dealer in question did not: 1. It was Belgian. (It was marked as German, even though it said "Liege" right on the barrels, and the proofmarks were clearly Belgian.) 2. Thonon, although not a large maker, is one that's very well respected (as indicated above.) Knowing the brand value was a big help in that case.
