Shopping for milsurps: how to tell if it's a bargain or not?

Guns Magazine, March, 2005 by Holt Bodinson

Shop till you drop may not be the best description for the act of acquiring surplus firearms, but it's close to the truth. When various surplus models come on the market that look attractive, don't tarry, buy them today while importer and dealer inventories are full and prices are low.

Bargains are where you find them so be opportunistic. I have found good bargains at gun shows, dealers, garage sales, auction houses, swap meets, antique stores, pawn shops, on a variety of Web sites, in local newspaper ads and in any number of firearm periodicals.

Besides our own GUNS Magazine, Shotgun News and to a lesser extent, Gun List and Small Arms Review are excellent resources when shopping for the latest surplus offerings. Shotgun News covers the surplus waterfront with classified ads on recent imports, want ads, and editorial features. With ads organized by firearm make or classification, Gun List is useful if you know what you're searching for and want to analyze a range of prices. Small Arms Review is heavily inclined toward fully automatic firearms and black guns, but it carries articles and ads for military esoterica that appear no where else.

The Web is a surplus gold mine for availability, sources of supply and collector comments. There's a discussion forum for every make and model of surplus arm you can imagine. It's fun to cruise the forums from time to time just to see if you've missed any hot, new import or to read the comments and experiences of other collectors who have acquired a particular or unusual piece. The forums are also an excellent resource for locating a difficult to find part or accessory, and they're friendly. No flaming permitted!

The best place for a variety of surplus forums is www.gunboards.com/forums/. You don't have to sign up at the forum to scroll through and read the discussions, but you do if want to participate.

The Web is also a great shopping place for military firearms. General auction sites like www.gunbroker.com and www.auctionarms.com are a virtual feast and a test of your bargaining power. I have found many models through the Web that simply could not be located otherwise. If you do buy over the Web, look at the buyer ratings of the seller based on buyer experience with past transactions. Did the seller describe the firearm accurately? Did he communicate well? Did he pack and ship the firearm promptly? Most importantly, does he extend to his buyers a 3day inspection period? Don't buy anything without a 3-day inspection period. That's personal experience talking! Frankly, I would much rather buy a milsurp from a local dealer or gun show so that I could evaluate the firearm right up front.

I have one caveat about the Web. Be very critical of the information plastered on the e-waves. There are a lot of poorly informed amateur collectors on the Web as well as some very well-informed experts. You'll quickly learn to sort the wheat from chaff. The one area I urge you to look at with a particularly jaundiced eye is all handloading recommendations and data for military cartridges. Some of the data I've seen on the Web makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck. Always consult a professionally prepared reloading manual before using any data picked up off the e-waves. You'll live longer and happier.

The third most enjoyable part about collecting surplus arms (owning one is first--shooting it is second) is researching them. We are blessed today with a library of meticulously researched reference books on every conceivable surplus arm and variation thereof, and new reference books seem to appear weekly. The more you know about a particular surplus model, its variations, rarity, and historical significance, the better you will be able to determine its market value and appreciate its place in human history. When I need an in-or-out-of-print reference book, I turn to the bigger, general arms book dealers such as Ray Riling Arms Book Co. and A&J Arms Booksellers as well as scanning book dealer tables at gun shows. For a particularly difficult out-of-print search, I recommend www.abebooks.com that searches the whole world.

Value? What keeps prices reasonable is the sheer number of milsurps on the market.

Unless you're dealing with a particularly rare model or variation, condition establishes value more than any other factor--the nicer the condition--the higher the price. I consider the overall finish of the metal and wood, whether the piece has been refinished, whether or not the piece has matching serial numbers and, since I'm a shooter, bore condition.

Be cautious about refinished arms, particularly the current crop of Mosin-Nagants. Most of the Nagants have been arsenal refinished and look almost un-issued on the outside. Check their bores carefully--many are rusted or shot out. And speaking of bores, I carry a little bore mirror and bore light with me to shows and have a cleaning rod and patches in the car to call upon if a bore is full of grease or dirt. Don't be too picky about bore condition though or you'll loose some valuable historical pieces. If the rifling looks sharp, the piece will still shoot accurately but will take a bit longer to clean.