[Closed] Ludicrous price of firearms...

£79!!!!!

You could buy a bicycle for that!

Explains an awful lot of what's going on in places like Somalia, doesn't it?

I used to have a Diana .177 air rifle and fancy something else like that - how much would an entry-level rifle cost me now?

I went clay shooting a little while ago.

Talking to the guy who took me, it struck me that people pay a massive amount of money just to have elaborately ornate guns that they can show off to their peers.

Not like MTBing at all, obviously.

just out of interest wotsit cost* to get a licence?

Total, applications, gun lockers etc

No wonder some of these guns find their way onto the street for bugger all money.

Given that by definition an illegal firearm has been obtained through dishonest means then the price of a legal firearm is irrelevant.

Baikal's are pretty poor as shotguns go but £79 is very little it must be said. you could fill your freezer with a lot of food before you'll need a new gun, at that price though you will need a new gun. When though? What you shooting?

I guess it's not so surprising that an air rifle is as much as a shotgun. They're a bit more complex (if not as strong).

Cougar, agree entirely....i'm not a bad shot and my mate's second gun is this ancient side-by-side thing with barrels about 6 feet long and no markings on it giving away its origin....the looks i get from people at shoots when i pull that out of its bag is what i imagine would happen if i turned up at Swinley and unpacked an Argos special mountain bike from the boot....it gives me great pleasure to then shoot pretty well with it!

I once went to a petrol station in Northern Ireland and got taken down to a shipping container to part ex a shotgun we had (apparently this was legit) and swapped a baikal and a naff small gauge for a sexy berreta clay gun (I only do clay shooting) and £100. Some of the guns in there were very, very suspect though. Halfway through the transaction a guy came in looking like a cross between a roided gypsy and Johhny Rotten so we got outta there sharpish. It does seem silly for something so potentially lethal to be so freely accessible and cheap.

the old side by side is/was probably a better gun. have fun with the new one.

mt....i dont shoot all that often so not overly concerned if i have to buy a sub £100 gun every year, its the convenience now of not having to always go with my mate.

Mainly shoot clays but also have the use of some land that is full of pigeons and rabbits.

DONK- my cabinet was less than £100, the shotgun certificate was £50 and the gun was £79....less than £250 for me to get started.

Don't even think about asking about the price of a good F class target rifle then. The one I want has a stock that costs nearly a grand on its own!

Total, applications, gun lockers etc

Don't keep weapons at home if you don't absolutely have to (even if you live in a nice rural area). Keep them where you plan to shoot (e.g. gun club).

There will be loads of people who will say "rubbish, i've kept my guns under my kids' beds or down my trousers".

However, there will be as many (myself included) who can give you quite specific examples of why being spotted on a saturday afternoon unpacking a gunslip from your car can lead to some unwanted attention from some fairly hard people.

Not worth the risk of a couple of wide boys trying to rob you by your car, or even worse, in the house.

Willard, could you not just manage with an old BSA underlever?

Sorry

My old man sold his single barrel for £25. The price of a license and locker was too much. Only got one left now from early 1900's which we had decommissioned

Mmm, rabbit stew and fried pigeon breast.

Baikal's are pretty poor as shotguns go but £79 is very little it must be said

Guns are remarkably simple, easy to machine items on the whole. Not really surprising that they can be made and sold for buttons?

My money is on you getting another gun within 18 months just because it looks nicer/is better made

yup, nothing at all like mtb 🙂

do deal extreme sell them?

what i imagine would happen if i turned up at Swinley and unpacked an Argos special mountain bike from the boot

i'd assume you were from bracknell and give you a wide berth. i wont judge you on what you ride, but will make wild assumptions about your socio-economic background and judge you accordingly 😆

Even the cost of an expensive gun is easily recovered with a trip to the Post Office on pension day though best to arrive early.

Don't keep [s]weapons[/s] bikes at home if you don't absolutely have to (even if you live in a nice rural area). Keep them where you plan to [s]shoot[/s] ride (e.g. [s]gun[/s] cycling club).

There will be loads of people who will say "rubbish, i've kept my [s]guns[/s] bikes under my kids' beds or down my trousers".

However, there will be as many (myself included) who can give you quite specific examples of why being spotted on a saturday afternoon unpacking a [s]gunslip[/s] bike from your car can lead to some unwanted attention from some fairly hard people.

Not worth the risk of a couple of wide boys trying to rob you by your car, or even worse, in the house.

FTFY

It would be rather hard these days to get a license and not have a cabinet.

Given that by definition an illegal firearm has been obtained through dishonest means then the price of a legal firearm is irrelevant.

It would be rather hard these days to get a license and not have a cabinet.

I've never had a problem putting down the gun club as the place where guns will be stored. Slightly better security IMO.

Also, the gun v bike argument is nonsense. They attract a different type of thief. Bike thiefs are often opportunist and like to steal and then flip for a quick profit. Gun thiefs aren't normally looking to sell it down the local market.

Ace

You just need some Dragon Breath Cartridges now

wasn't thinking about starting shooting peter, just wondering how pricey a hobby it is. I'd assumed fairly expensive but sounds like it doesn't have to be, mind you I forgot to ask about gun club and shoot costs.

I asked my mate at the time, and whilst I can't remember the figures exactly, it's filed in my head under "prohibitively expensive, stick to archery."

Don't keep weapons at home if you don't absolutely have to (even if you live in a nice rural area). Keep them where you plan to shoot (e.g. gun club).

Ah, so all gun clubs have to have large secure storage? You've not thought this out much eh? 🙄

I've belonged to clubs that didn't even have premises, used to rent ranges. And some ranges were in the middle of nowhere with no buildings at all.

Ah, so all gun clubs have to have large secure storage? You've not thought this out much eh?

No, mine does. The point is that it won't be your house that gets broken into if someone tries to steal your guns. I've had 2 gun related break ins over the years at our family home. Don't care if the guns get stolen from the club.

You've not thought this out much have you? 🙄

Shooting is VERY expensive, especially so in the UK. Niche market, and generally presumed to be the preserve of the more affluent (though my experience shows this not to be true in the slightest).

I guess the OP won't be buying his matched pair of Holland & Holland's at £80,000 each.

You've not thought this out much have you?

Yes, most clubs neither have, or desire, member gun storage.

Guns are remarkably simple, easy to machine items on the whole. Not really surprising that they can be made and sold for buttons?

so you work in the gun trade?
only bore/chamber diameters are dealt with in thousands of an inch and the difference between an in-proof and out of proof chamber is miniscule.
or was that an uneducated guess?

OP, you might like to change the title to say 'shotguns' not 'firearms'. Whole different ball game, costs, etc.

Pish.

bulls**t

i'd assume you were from bracknell and give you a wide berth. i wont judge you on what you ride, but will make wild assumptions about your socio-economic background and judge you accordingly

🙂

starting shooting peter

Pish.

bulls**t

I see the standard of discourse is particularly well thought out and intellectual today.

Sense of proportion:

• 580,653 shotgun certificates were on issue on 31 March 2010, covering well over a million guns.

Figures for number of shotguns stolen or misappropiated (includes multiples, so one theft of five guns would show up as five)

2005 - 397
2006 - 282
2007 - 289

(latest figures I could find)

Further data shows that the majority of stolen guns are recovered shortly afterwards, at the scene or nearby.

So, really quite rare.

Figures for number of shotguns stolen or misappropiated

Whilst I agree completely that the theft of shotguns is statistically low, those figures reflect the shotguns which were actually stolen.

If we can assume that all those who reported their gun as stolen to the police had actually been storing it in their gunsafe (otherwise they would be pretty silly reporting it), then it's no wonder the figures for actual theft are low. I'd be impressed if anyone could get into our safe before the police arrived.

However, what that doesn't show, is the number of idiots who decide to indulge in a spot of late night home shopping after it gets round the local area that guns are spotted regularly being taken into the house. Successful or not in their adventures, it's not pleasant being in the house when it happens.

All i'm saying is that if there is somewhere you can keep your guns other than your family home, then it's better that they are kept there. If you can't find anywhere else, then usual rules of common sense apply (not arriving home wearing shooting gear, no gunslips etc etc).

Why would I keep my guns at a gun club, when I can't get access to them at four in the morning to go deer stalking 🙄

its a riduculous proposition, on the basis of a tiny chance that someone might break in - and as regards the chance of being burgled while in the house - I'd strongly suggest that a potential burgler would be looking to seal his own place in the Darwin awards by choosing to do this in an area where guns are spotted regularly being taken into the house.

Back ot that sense of proportion - shotguns were recorded as being the weapon used in only three percent of incidents of gun crime (52% air weapons, pistols 19%, 15% replica weapons, 6% Unidentified, rifles only 0.1% of recorded gun crime)

[url= http://www.gunstar.co.uk/Shotgun/Sportco-Mod54-gun-for-sale-gs80880.aspx ]How cheap?[/url]

I'd strongly suggest that a potential burgler would be looking to seal his own place in the Darwin awards by choosing to do this in an area where guns are spotted regularly being taken into the house.

I think the point was more that potential burglars might have considered this when selecting their house-breaking equipment. To wit, in the unlikely event that you're targeted, it's might not be by the usual spotty teenager looking for pocketable electronics to sell for his next wrap.

It does sound like a highly unlikely occurrence, mind.

only bore/chamber diameters are dealt with in thousands of an inch and the difference between an in-proof and out of proof chamber is miniscule.
or was that an uneducated guess?

It would seem to be a fairly educated guess I reckon.

Judging by the fact that the OP was able to choose from three different shotguns under £80 (and one under £50) in the same shop.

It would seem to be a fairly educated guess I reckon.

Judging by the fact that the OP was able to choose from three different shotguns under £80 (and one under £50) in the same shop.

and an educated guess (if you had used a Baikal) would tell you that a russian side by side or single barrel was in the "couldn't give them away" category just like the russian made zenit cameras.
cheap subsidised labour and low quality materials doesn't necessarily make a quality product

and going back to your original statement:

Guns are remarkably simple, easy to machine items on the whole. Not really surprising that they can be made and sold for buttons?

you could apply that to £80 drug dealer pavement full-suss 'bikes' because a Baikal is of similar quality.
we all know a decent hardtail costs at least 1k 🙄

Do they sell pump action at that price? Benneli M4 would be good whether they are 2nd or 3rd hand whatever for shooting zombies judging by the strength of the drugs nowadays ...

Dont be dissing the Baikal, my 410 Huspower was a wicked gun, ive had pump action's for sub £100 too, ive seen people give guns away in the classifieds on Pigeon Watch, and i mean litraly givein.

[quote=nealglover]It would seem to be a fairly educated guess I reckon.
Judging by the fact that the OP was able to choose from three different shotguns under £80 (and one under £50) in the same shop.

[quote=mrsmith]]and an educated guess (if you had used a Baikal) would tell you that a russian side by side or single barrel was in the "couldn't give them away" category just like the russian made zenit cameras.
cheap subsidised labour and low quality materials doesn't necessarily make a quality product

Who mentioned anything about quality.

[quote=mrsmith]]and going back to your original statement:

(It wasn't my statement, it was coffeeking.)

[quote=coffeeking]Guns are remarkably simple, easy to machine items on the whole. Not really surprising that they can be made and sold for buttons?

you could apply that to £80 drug dealer pavement full-suss 'bikes' because a Baikal is of similar quality.
we all know a decent hardtail costs at least 1k

Quite right, you could.

Although again, nobody said anything about quality or relative value.

Just a comment about the price of certain guns.

In a similar way as you could quite correctly say....

"you can buy a bike for £79"

It might be shit, but it's still a bike.

What you're saying then is, he's bought a Gun Shaped Object?

Guns are remarkably [b]simple, easy to machine items[/b] on the whole.

it was this statement i had issue with, they are not, as tolerances have to be measured with a micrometer with the potential for disaster if they are not manufactured to those tolerances.

apologies for misappropriating the quote.

it was this statement i had issue with, they are not, as tolerances have to be measured with a micrometer with the potential for disaster if they are not manufactured to those tolerances.

And my point, was they must be [i]fairly[/i] simple and easy to make, if you can buy them from multiple manufacturers for under £80.

Cougar....they're not pretty but Baikal have an excellent reputation for reliability, sat it next to a fiends 'Shadow' today and the finish on his gun is superb....mine looks shit next to it....however when we broke the barrels and looked down them it is flawless, the action is still firm and nothing creaks or wobbles....i'll be testing it at Bisley next week and will have a better idea of whether the £79 shotgun was a gem of a bargain of whether to throw it in the bin!

I wanted something different....it would have been easy to hand over my credit card and walk out with a Browning, Beretta, Webley & Scott etc....but the local shoots are crawling with these guns....as i said in an earlier post, sometimes we take out the 'musket' as we call it....an unbranded, long, heavy beast of a thing with two triggers and still we knock the clays out of the sky much to the surprise of anybody watching.

Nealglover- the price reflects the spartan design, average wood work and age of the gun....its also missing some modern niceties like an ejector system for the cartridges and an automatic safety.

And my point, was they must be fairly simple and easy to make, if you can buy them from multiple manufacturers for under £80.

not as easy to make as this
[img] [/img]

what are the other 'multiple' manufacturers that sell a new shotgun for less than £80?
the uk importer lists the baikal side by side at £562.95

what are the other 'multiple' manufacturers that sell a [b]new[/b] shotgun for less than £80?

I've highlighted the word you seem to have added to what I actually said.

surely a "manufacturer" (one of the numerous ones) sells new products not second hand?

So you know how everyone says those cheap bikes are dangerously rubbish........

surely a "manufacturer" (one of the numerous ones) sells new products not second hand?

I based what I said on this.....

Gobsmackingly it wasnt even the cheapest in the shop, there was one next to it for £75 and then a single shot/single barrel shotgun for £49!!!

When I said "from Multiple manufacturers" clearly I didn't mean directly, as the OP had already said he was in a local Gunshop.

But really, keep picking holes in it.

It's fun.

I keep toying with the idea of a shotgun, but can't justify the why. I'd enjoy shooting game for a bit, but would probably get bored and the same with clays.

ah i misinterpreted "manufacturers" as a factory making new goods not a shop selling secondhand stuff, my mistake, sorry. 😳

Purely out of interest, what's the position on ownership of gas powered/combat shotguns in this country? Would it be permitted to own say, a Bennelli M4 if you limited the magazine capacity to 3 shells?

I keep toying with the idea of a shotgun, but can't justify the why. I'd enjoy shooting game for a bit, but would probably get bored and the same with clays.

That's when you move on to people.

Purely out of interest, what's the position on ownership of gas powered/combat shotguns in this country? Would it be permitted to own say, a Bennelli M4 if you limited the magazine capacity to 3 shells?

Don't see why you couldn't, my dad has an 8-shot semi auto which was modified to be 3-shot following Dunblane.

On another note, that has got to be the most fun (legal) gun ever. The amount of destruction it could reign with a full mag was awe-inspiring. Never gets used now, not posh enough for pheasant shoots apparently.

but the local shoots
are crawling with these guns

Edit -Thought better of it

The amount of destruction it could reign with a full mag was awe-inspiring

wow that really must have been a spectacle of wanton destruction beyond all wars.