Increased Milsurp Prices?

commissar_lubi

commissar_lubi

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Is it me or a lot of popular military surplus rifles like Enfields and especially SVTs have been constantly going up in price for the past few months?
I know about the supply chain problems due to the Ukraine conflict but is this normal? Do milsurps increase in price this quickly usually?
 
I don't know, I just bought a Lee enfield for a lot more than I should have but it's in good shape and I don't see them going down any time soon.
I should've bought a couple K 31s too, they've gone way up in recent years.
 
I blame the internet. Used to be a much smaller group of collectors who bought/sold/traded amongst themselves. At first it was really cool to reach out to someone like tradeex or P&S militaria via email but then came the virtual storefront, social media and other wonders of the internet age.

Remember when the first $2000 Garand hit the EE? Lol you would have thought it was the end of the world.

Funny what people get used to :/
 
Is it me or a lot of popular military surplus rifles like Enfields and especially SVTs have been constantly going up in price for the past few months?
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The prices for milsurps from Western countries (i.e. Canada, USA, UK etc.) have been increasing in price for years now, decades actually. Now the same thing is happening with Easter bloc milsurps. This is not a phenomena that just occurred in the past few months. Dwindling supply and increasing demand.
 
Robbs said:
The prices for milsurps from Western countries (i.e. Canada, USA, UK etc.) have been increasing in price for years now, decades actually. Now the same thing is happening with Easter bloc milsurps. This is not a phenomena that just occurred in the past few months. Dwindling supply and increasing demand.
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You're quite right that this isn't a new phenomenon, I was primarily asking if the speed at which prices had been increasingly was particularly unusual or just really normal
 
For some firearms it has been increasing exponentially over a short period of time for no reason other than hype and lack of knowledge. A couple easy examples.

K31s, up roughly 250-350% in a year or two (used to not be able to sell at 300$). M1 Garands shot up 200-250% several years ago. M39s up 200-250% in a year or two (used to be able to buy them for 300-400$ easy, the funny part is when the supply increased for the first time in decades, that is when the price shot up). P38s, up roughly 200-250% when I started collecting about 6 years ago you could buy a all matching P38 with two magazines and the holster for 350-400$, when the RC P38s came on the market that was when the price increased as the RCs were priced at 650$ when a vet bring back was only bringing 350$.

In regards to SVT-40s, the price has always fluctuated. When I bought one about 6 years ago it was 450$. Then they took a nose dive in price to 200$. Now they are worth roughly 600$.

I personally blame uneducated demand driving the prices up. If people knew what to look for and what the prices actually were, they would have never shot up (still would have went up just not exponentially) in price to where they are now.

That all being said there is a lot which hasn't seen price increases. Swedish Mausers, Yugoslavian Mausers, Spanish Mausers, etc.
 
I must have got lucky, got my no4 mk1 full wood 1944 enfield for $125, my 1954 m1 garand for $700 and my 1933 hex mosin for $150. The Enfield and Garand are non matching but they shoot very good.

I regret not buying those $300-$400 svt 40's though, they're $700+ now.

Whats the next milsurp to shoot up insanely? sks? lol
 
Chinese SKS prices have risen steadily over the past few years. Once the supply dwindles, demand goes up....(marketing 101��)
 
Decay said:
I must have got lucky, got my no4 mk1 full wood 1944 enfield for $125, my 1954 m1 garand for $700 and my 1933 hex mosin for $150. The Enfield and Garand are non matching but they shoot very good.

I regret not buying those $300-$400 svt 40's though, they're $700+ now.

Whats the next milsurp to shoot up insanely? sks? lol
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NO, to many SKS on the market, may be, nice unrefurbs will gain some interesting value.

BUT, M39, Swiss rifles, Mosin with folding bayonet, Garand, Lee Enfield, Mauser 98 (all matched) etc. it's I think just the begining.

WHY, because they are rare.
 
There's been an odd shift with Lee Enfields. Years ago the No.5 'Jungle Carbine" sold at a premium over 'regular' SMLE's and No.4's. Now it's the full wood 'regular' rifles that have shot up in price. The only explanation I can come up with is that more collectors are looking for the rifles that were more typically used and have discovered good ones are not as common as they thought. I'd also wager there are 10 restored sporters for every original Enfield out there. Some of the ones for sale on the EE just scream of this (but I respect those sellers who are up front about it).

With some rifles like Ross's I think you have to stake out your claim and be in the right place at the right time when their current owner passes away.
 
Passed on the $200 SVT 40's and the $300 K31's ..... I was new to this, had less cash, and didn't want too many guns ..... now I'm kicking myself!

I haven't been looking at firearms as long as the collectors on here, but those were prices that even I found between 2-4 years ago.
 
weimajack said:
NO, to many SKS on the market, may be, nice unrefurbs will gain some interesting value.

BUT, M39, Swiss rifles, Mosin with folding bayonet, Garand, Lee Enfield, Mauser 98 (all matched) etc. it's I think just the begining.

WHY, because they are rare.
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Rarity isn't always a determination of value. Most of what you listed there is actually relatively common in Canada (other than the all matching M98, and the M91/30 folding trials bayonet rifles), and has been for a long time.

I have some legitimately rare firearms in Canada (some with likely less than a dozen or two in private hands), and they are worth less money than all those listed despite being exceptionally rare.

For something to really shoot up in price there has to be demand. To have that level of demand there has to be some level of supply to create interest otherwise you end up with a few very specialized collectors interested and next to no one else as it is too difficult to learn about and acquire them.

They all seem to level off at around the 1000$ mark as that is likely the point most mildly interested people shy away.
 
Eaglelord17 said:
They all seem to level off at around the 1000$ mark as that is likely the point most mildly interested people shy away.
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What you say is all true and the same thing happens with vintage automobiles. The going price seemed to settle in at $15,000 (less now since the last recession) not based on what it cost to restore but more based on what the average collector has as disposable income and is willing to pay. But just like milsurps there are the exceptions like T-birds and '57 Chevs that command a very substantial premium.

I think the other thing that will drive milsurp prices is relevance. The most exquisite Bolivian Mauser will never have the same historic value as a No.4 Enfield, to the average collector here in Canada at least.
 
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