Ethics Question For Military Collectors Please Read and Respond

albayo

albayo

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I have a question for milsurp collectors.

Would you sell an all matching military rifle with matching bayonet knowing it will be removed from the stock and used as a custom sporter?
Or just sell the barreled action as the foundation to build a custom rifle?
 
I have never needed money badly enough to make a sale with which I was truly uncomfortable.
When I had my business, I sold a lot of guns that I knew would be used up and ruined in short order.
If the rifle is a quality collector's piece, I'd sell it to someone who would appreciate it, rather than someone who would break it for its parts.
 
tiriaq said:
i have never needed money badly enough to make a sale with which i was truly uncomfortable.
When i had my business, i sold a lot of guns that i knew would be used up and ruined in short order.
If the rifle is a quality collector's piece, i'd sell it to someone who would appreciate it, rather than someone who would break it for its parts.
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samething for me.
 
tiriaq said:
I have never needed money badly enough to make a sale with which I was truly uncomfortable ... If the rifle is a quality collector's piece, I'd sell it to someone who would appreciate it, rather than someone who would break it for its parts.
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This.
 
No, the person who want to buy a matching milsurp at its full price to turn it into a bubba'd rifle is stupid IMHO. Why not buy an already bubba'd rifle for a fraction of the price for a project gun?
 
Not an ethical question - people can be as stupid as they wish with their own property. I'm not in the business of trying to save people from themselves.

However, I would choose another buyer if I suspected it would be butchered.
 
I wouldn't..

They would be willing to pay what your all matching piece is worth as opposed to just buying a rifle that has already been chopped?
 
Personnally, I have refused to do so a few times in the past.
 
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Enough nice milsurps have already been ruined, so unless it's something like a common sks I wouldn't do it.

If I were to sell a rare original piece from my collection, I would make the effort to find it a home with another serious collector.

I would also avoid selling to people or dealers who are just flipping guns, or exporting to them to the U.S.

-Steve
 
There's no way I could do it. The ethical part of collecting is the obligation to preserve these pieces of history for people who will appreciate them in the future, by selling a matching historically correct piece to someone knowing full well their intentions is blasphemy.
 
Philosophically: No, I would not.

Reality: Most buyers don't disclose what they are going to do with a gun I sell, but I assume that if they are paying a premium for a collectible specimen, they don't intend to bubba the rifle.

I have built several very fine custom rifles on military 98 actions, but in all cases the guns came to me as barrelled receivers or basic actions. There is no shortage of those things out there after the mass-scrapping of milsurps in the 1980's and even 1990's when Century was bringing in a lot of stuff.
 
albayo said:
I have a question for milsurp collectors.

Would you sell an all matching military rifle with matching bayonet knowing it will be removed from the stock and used as a custom sporter?
Or just sell the barreled action as the foundation to build a custom rifle?
Click to expand...

Simple NOPE!
 
I doubt that most people would pay the full meal price for a collectable firearm as there are so many sporters out there. I wouldn't sell one if I thought it was going to be cut down. Not really a matter of ethics. Just my own take.
 
Sounds like a possible business opportunity...

"Rather than buy this expensive old-school military rifle for $1000, how about I source you one and modify it to your specifications for a mere $800?" Then buy a $100 sporter and customize. Everybody happy, you've made a big profit and you can still sell the original to someone who'll know what they're getting.
 
There are enough buyers out there, so I can choose to avoid selling a collectable rifle to someone who openly tells me he'll destroy it. I do think we have a collective responsibility to protect history. This being said, as mentioned above, once it's in someone else's hands... it's out of mine.
 
louthepou said:
There are enough buyers out there, so I can choose to avoid selling a collectable rifle to someone who openly tells me he'll destroy it. I do think we have a collective responsibility to protect history. This being said, as mentioned above, once it's in someone else's hands... it's out of mine.
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+1 "Do the right thing"
 
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