doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Refurbished shotguns.....

I have a few (and collecting more) field grade shotguns. Im in the process of restocking, repairing, re casing & bluing all of them. They will be sold when complete. This is not a restoration, Im not attempting to fool anyone or make them look like a factory shotgun.

I have struggled with how to price these shotguns when complete. I just dont know what the market will bear. For example. Coming up soon is a FW LC Smith with ejectors. Pistol grip english walnut stock, factory dimensions, choked m/f (IIRC), leather recoil pad, steel grip cap. Its a really nice little shotgun.

Those of you that have more experience with pricing this type of work please chime in!!! Many thanks!!

Bill, it seems in different parts of the country how some used shotguns sell.
I recently bought a 1927 Ideal Grade L.C. with ejectors, 28 " barrels mod/full good wood decent bluing. The stock had a crack from the top of the side locks to the tang on both sides. It had been repaired but the glue line is reddish. I'm sure that it could have been repaired nearly invisible with the glues we have.


I paid $500.00 and I thought that was a steal. The side locks are shinny, but the engraving is still crisp. There has been talk and documentation that some guns were sent out and had the works nichol plated.

You may not be attempting to fool anyone, but your not doing them any great favors either. A less than restoration refurbishing adds little if any value. JMO.

JDW, the side locks and frame are shinny because the case color has faded and worn off.

So you are saying I should leave these shotguns as they are? Broken, beat up, and rusted? The FW I mentioned above was literally a box of parts. No stock at all.

As long as it's not a restoration, why the factory dimensions? Why not more shootable, modern dimensions?

As for what the market will bear, you'll have to put them up on an auction website and see what they bring.

I know of a factory refinished field grade NID 12ga that's been sitting in a shop for several months now priced at $1300. Gun is stamped "R" which Walt tells me was Ithaca's stamp for "redone". Looks like a 98% gun with case color, wood and blue all near perfect.

These guns will sell as shooters but not collectors.

Bill, I have two comments but am not a restorer or upgrader. Recently got a 1937 NID 12 field. Even W. Snyder, who has plenty of experience to know, said the gun had 75% case color. The breech wall still had bright color and the firing pins were as round and full as globes. But. . . , however little use the gun had, previous owner apparently decided he needed a stock scrub and refinish and thoroughly radiused or dubbed over the stock head panels in the process. Somewhat more careful about the wood to metal and wood to pad. Gun must have been (and probably is) pretty much the most that we can expect in a field grade as the owner had it consigned at just shy of 1K and took a bit less. If it had been a Fox (graded or Sterlingworth) and someone had carved out a strait-hand stock for it, I wouldn't have been surprised at 17-2100 asking. I think a lot of Johnny-come-yesterdays (I am nearly one myself) are buying the name in lower grade, revised condition and I don't think the "name" in the lower grades is Ithaca or Elsie. But it could be soon if we don't go "unleaded" and interest is maintained. Lot of "if"s! I doubt you can expect cosmetic revision to part the knowledgable from their money. First-time buyers--probably. Look at the refurb catastrophes instigated by Mr. Good. They apparently sell for more than he gave. As "remachinable" raw material in the hands of S. D. Hughes, maybe the sky's the limit.

jack

JDW,
That gun is not nickel plated. Nickel plating is very yellow and easily identified. I have one that looks identical, Ideal grade and same shiny finish. Note the grayness of the metal. Look at a modern K80 Krieghoff standard grade. That's nickel plating. Very yellow. Nickel does not have to be satin like a K80, it can be polished as well.

Bill, I do what you are doing all the time. Saving an old gun from certain death. I use the 50% of book rule of thumb. Everybody says that when you re-anything on an old gun it automatically makes it a 50% gun. So I take 10% -20% guns and make them 50% guns. I sell them as shooters of course and the new owners know that.

You ask about value. I'm just saying that the cost of the refurbish is more than the gain in value(money wise) of the gun. A "GOOD" refurbish to bring an old gun back to service is a good thing. It just doesn't mean that the gun is worth a lot more money.