Read and Weep.... the good old days...

i doubt that you get a decent Garand for $50 in 2002.
However, you most certainly could get a Danish rebuild at Lever Arms for $150 in around 1996. Or 4 for $500, thats $125 each.
Now going for $600-800 each.

You know nothing! ;)

sgt_20schultz_small.jpg


I most certainly did see them for those prices in that year. They were not in horrible condition either...

It is neat what you can find in the backwoods of Alberta sometimes. :p

Sure am glad I left the Lower Rainland.
 
My dad now 87 bought a new jeep from army stores for $200.00 when he left the army.A old timer said a good pair of shoes should cost you a days pay,based on that everything is relevant.
 
In the old days,,when I was 14, G&A had an ad for cased, Lahti 20mm anti tank guns fully equipped for $100. + $20. S&H. Shells were $1.00 ea. My dad couldn't see the need in southern Sask. so even tho I had the money it was a no go, altho he did but a Mauser HSc with holster for $25.00 to passify me. 1961
 
I remember in 1975 in Edmonton at the Army and Navy on White Avenue, saw many an Enfield in the wooden crate for $35 with ammo included. Dad had no interest in even looking at them at the time. Having carried one in Europe from 43-46 he saw no modern use for one.
 
...heres hoping some of those long forgotten small arms caches show up in countries that are now really needing the money and seeing collectors as a nice place to export these to..

Where do you guys guess the next big caches will come from?

Do you think anything is still sitting in masses in storage?
 
Those old adds are always depressing. Wish I was around back then.

The worst is seeing the adds for G.I. 1911's I would have bought tons :)

-Steve
 
The Johnsons were "junque". Most were missing some small parts and the barrels resembled gopher holes. IF you really used your imagination you could see rifling.
I think I sent 4 or 5 back until I got one that was "reasonably complete"
 
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Now you know why us old guys have all the neatest stuff.

That may sound like it is cheap, but when I bought a Remington 513-S in 1955, the price was $49.95. That was well over ONE WEEKS PAY.

However, just to make you drool a bit, I bought the following firearms during the 1950-1960s...


25mm Puteaux....French anti-tank gun on wheels..............$149.00


.

I want to know more about the artillery!
Did you tow it behind the family sedan?
photos if you have them, please
 
In 1971 my Father bought a brand new house in a brand new sub-division in North Vancouver (Upper Lonsdale). He paid $31,000. He was an assistant branch manager at a Western Canada head office of a large national insurance company (The Royal). He was making $13,000 per year ($250/week) plus a "company car" (all expenses paid). His house cost him 2.4 times his annual salary (my parents considered it well beyond what they should buy). What happened? I want that same house for 2.4 times the annual salary of a assistant manager who makes about $120,000 per year now. $288,000 please! I'll take it. Hahaha. CGNers from other parts of Canada (like Winnipeg) might not see the problem here.

Here: you should play Crack Shack or Mansion? (Vancouver real estate parody)

http://www.crackshackormansion.com/

People in different parts of Canada probably don't get the "Vancouver Tax". The real estate prices out here are so out of whack that it would make your head spin. Hey, here is a 50 year old 1500 sq ft house 50km from downtown Vancouver for $500,000 - what a steal!!

It used to be, not that long ago ~15 years ago, that 3x your annual salary was the max for a mortgage. The average salary in Vancouver is $50,000; the average household income is $70,000. The average condo is $450,000 and the average houde is ~$1,000,000. Do the math.
 
collections

I remember in 1975 in Edmonton at the Army and Navy on White Avenue, saw many an Enfield in the wooden crate for $35 with ammo included. Dad had no interest in even looking at them at the time. Having carried one in Europe from 43-46 he saw no modern use for one.

You said a mouthful there. Forty years ago, WWII veterans were young men. Memories were still first-hand. The culture of gun collecting that we are experiencing on CGN and other places, didn't exist the same way. Sure there were buyers and sellers, but having military firearms did not have the same historic appeal. The Vietnam War was daily news and anti-militarism was a prevalent attitude. The October Crisis of 1970 polarized even more people's notions of tolerable levels of violent symbols in society. Having a locker of identical military guns that weren't being fired would have invited a visit from the police.

Collecting hunting guns was another story. I know a fellow who had dozens of Win.94 lever actions, and aggressively sought out the subvariants that suited his collecting. I know of another collector who had hundreds and thousands of Winchester levers. He was very private about them because of concerns about theft, not confiscation.
 
In the old days,,when I was 14, G&A had an ad for cased, Lahti 20mm anti tank guns fully equipped for $100. + $20. S&H. Shells were $1.00 ea. My dad couldn't see the need in southern Sask. so even tho I had the money it was a no go, altho he did but a Mauser HSc with holster for $25.00 to passify me. 1961

We got gophers in the tree line! Bring it in close, sarge :D
 
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