Well it finally happened....

[Claven2]

I had to PM a fellow CGN'er the words "GET BENT".

I guess it eventually happens when you sell stuff on the EE...

In this particular case, I was offering a cleaned and restored Gahendra rifle similar to the current IMA offerings (though this particular rifle is NOT an IMA "battlefield pickup").

IMA sells their "cleaned and complete" rifles for $495 US and they sell their incomplete "battlefield pickups" for $190. Those typically are missing buttplate, small parts, etc. Stocks have major rot and cracking issues, etc.

No Gahendra rifle is ever advertised as fireable b/c the bores are .451" and if you shoot brit .577-450 in them, they could blow up as a result.

Here is the rifle I was offering for $325 plus shipping (far cheaper than the IMA cleaned and complete rifles), which is a fully cleaned and restored gahendra with a pretty nice bore (about an 8 out of 10), no parts missing, and the stock professionally patched and repaired. Having owned both, this is far better done than the guns IMA restores in a mass production fashion.

Unlike the IMA rifles which are also patched and repaired, I disclosed every single repair on the rifle.

There are a few minor repairs on the rifle, they are well done as demonstrated in the following photos. Rifle has been minimally restored very professionally.

I completely understand if someone sees a price on the EE and does not want to pay it. That makes sense. HOWEVER...

This is the PM I got:

I dont want to offend you, but will you accept $150 for this wall hanger? I see that this particular rifle sells for $189 in the USA....

Yes... $150 for a functional, complete, registration-exempt, non-sporterized legal antique in well above average condition.

I could have explained how (from lots of experience restoring 6 Nepalese firearms) that a battlefield pickup IMA gahendra will require about 60 hours of restoration work. I also could have PM'd the guy to inform him that the above rifle looks nothing like the rifle IMA is advertising with these photos:

But "Get Bent" was just so much easier

Anyone else care to share a story of shock and woe over EE offers? I'm seriously at the point where I'm thinking of cancelling my EE subscription and going back to supporting my local dealers. The grief is just not worth it.

 

[Claven2]

I thought that since I mentioned the effort involved in making an IMA "uncleaned" or "battlefield pickup" as atlanta cutlery refers to the same rifles into something resembling a real firearm, I should back up my statements about the effort involved.

For those with an interest, I detailed the restoration of a Brunswick from IMA over at MSC.

Here's the link, but you'll have to be an MSC member to read it (free).

http://w w w .milsurps.com/showthread.php?t=23840&highlight=brunswick

Trust me - it's a very entertaining thread if you are interested in antique restoration.

 

[Claven2]

And for further entertainment, here is IMA's (very accurate) description of an uncleaned Gahendra rifle:

What does “Untouched Condition” mean? OK, this is exactly what we are offering: Genuine pre-1898 Nepalese manufactured Martini-Henry Gahendra Rifles that have laid undisturbed for well over 100 years in far from perfect storage conditions in the Old Palace of Lagan Silekhana in Katmandu, Nepal. Our DVD of "TREASURE IS WHERE YOU FIND IT" shows these very weapons as we found them and the story behind them.

What you will get:
• Action
• Lever
• Trigger
• Stock [May have Cracks, Missing Chunks, Old repairs, Wood Rot]

• Barrel

• 2 Steel Barrel Bands

• Cleaning Rod

• Butt Plate


What you might not get:
• Screws [Butt Plate, Sling Swivel, etc]

• Sling Swivel
• Sight Leaf/Slide
• Other minor bits…

Typical Condition: 

• Will show rust & pitting

• Will be covered in filth

• May not operate

• May be incomplete 

• May have Cracks, Missing Chunks, Old repairs.

• May be frozen in grime

• May have cracks and/or rot in wood

[...]

One day we will also sell replacement parts, but that is in the distant future.
We are not trying to frustrate you; we are trying to fill a void in the marketplace for genuine but affordable rare and unique antique weapons so that collectors and historians of all backgrounds can enjoy a genuine part of history.
These should be viewed as “project” guns, work on it with your Son or Grandson, clean it up, hang it over your mantle, or don’t clean it, they are impressive anyway you seem them. The price is affordable; the history is priceless.
If you want to shoot it, DON’T!

MSC and Gunboards are full of first hand stories of uncleaned Gahendras. The vast vast majority of the time you will not get a buttplate. Your action WILL have a broken mainspring and a few parts will be absent. I think these rifles are a great project and I would encourage people to take one on as a project. ORDER TWO. You will need to cannibalize one for parts. Expect it to take a long time and if you enjoy metal and woodworking, it will be fun.

The rifle I was selling is NOT, however, what you will receive from IMA. TRUST ME - you've been warned

 

[donor]

One of the hardest things I had to learn when I started frequenting forums of all kinds was to ignore uninformed,rude,offensive,ignorant and sometimes racist and/or antisemitic comments.

So far I have been lucky on CGN ,but as you can see on the left I don't post much and I don't really sell or buy on EE.

Bottom line-don't be discouraged,ignore it as long as comments don't get personal.
Loosing your cool over something like that is hardly worth it IMHO.

PS-I did read posts on your restoration of Brunswick Rifle-I wish I had your level of patience and knowledge to do this.Very nice work

 

[Claven2]

Yeah, I know... I just had to vent. I won't be posting the person's user ID, but it was someone (a milsurp forum regular) who should have known better - we'll leave it at that.

Either way, I'll likely take it down from the EE since there are plenty of local guys who I can sell it to and the postal strike is just going to inject too much grief.

I also normally don't sell items like this with personal attachment, but I've run out of space in my gun safes

 

[donor]

It's too bad that getting set-up for reloading M-H or Snider is so expensive.

I like those rifles but I'm all set for 8mm cartridges.

BTW-There is nothing wrong with venting-I have a CRGC,lawnmower and a bicycle for that

 

[cody c]

Ill give you $160 for it then, is that enough?


Some people like to give lowball offers and try and work the price down, to you it might be a very specific exotic collectable, to others it might just be something to put on the wall.

Ive had lowball offers on things ive sold before, but ive never dedicated an entire thread to how horrible it was that I was offered half of what I wanted. I suggest adding "firm" or "non-negotiable" to your price listings if you get offended by a lowball offer, if you havent already.

 

[Claven2]

I agree completely - lo-ball offers happen all the time and I normally don't get excited, but it's not everyday I take a $490 item, offer it for $325 and get offered $150, or only 30% of the price.

That goes beyond reasonable - it's rude. In my view, a rude response was appropriate - especially when I was in "angry typing mode" LOL.

I actually feel better already.

In any event, I've taken down the ad because I don't want to ship anything during the postal strike. I also might not sell this at all, there's lots of other stuff I could let go instead.

 

[lanshoka]

Claven2, you've been dealing with firearms for so long that I'm surprised that this would concern you enough to post it here. It happens to every collector I know. There was an American dealer in Florida who got very nasty with me a few years back and offered me $700 US each for two mint complete No4T's that I had at the time. Apparently he had persuaded another Canadian who had inherited a collection of Enfields to sell him several No4T's at that price and he thought I would go for it because of the hassle he would have importing them into the States.

He was banking that I didn't know what they were worth. I refused to deal with him because of his belligerant attitude and stupid offer and I told him so.

The right collector will easily pay you what you are asking for that piece. In my opinion you're not asking enough for it considering the time you spent restoring it.

By the way, the No4T's eventually went to a member of this board and a wealthy shooter and collector in England.

 

[louthepou]

I often wonder about the reason behind unreasonably low offers. Ignorance? Total disregard for proper business ethics - in a way, when someone has no problem stealing someone else's money? I wonder which one is sadder...

 

[Coyote Ugly]

I wonder if the Low-Baller just saw his first episode of Canadian Pickers on TV and thought he would try too but failed miserably instead! LOL

 

[jody_v]

Yes the EE is full of low-ballers. I once responded to a WTB where a guy lost a part to one of his pistols and desperately needed a replacement. Turns out I had one that was brand new, never used so I told the guy he could have it for what I paid for it plus pay the shipping............He turns around and offers me half. I was really just trying to help the guy out as I knew it would take him several weeks to order the part and suddenly he wants a deal.

Sometimes I think 'Get Bend' is exactly what some people need to be told.

 

[Claven2]

Look guys,

I didn't start this thread out of naivety - it's not my first time dealing with this nonsense either, but this one to me seemed more nonsensical than usual and I thought I'd share.

Looking forward to see what other Lo-ball stories we can tell and then ridicule

The No.4T story is priceless and very typical. I've seen similar dealings after talking to victims of being relieved of their CNo.7 sets for stupid low money.

You can bet your bottom dollar that Yank knew exactly what those rifles were worth. The scopes alone are astronomically priced on the bay.

 

[Claven2]

Yes the EE is full of low-ballers. I once responded to a WTB where a guy lost a part to one of his pistols and desperately needed a replacement. Turns out I had one that was brand new, never used so I told the guy he could have it for what I paid for it plus pay the shipping............He turns around and offers me half. I was really just trying to help the guy out as I knew it would take him several weeks to order the part and suddenly he wants a deal.

Sometimes I think 'Get Bend' is exactly what some people need to be told.

Yeah, I've had that happen to me too In particular, I once has a set of Lee Enfield No.22 MkIV* bolt internals and a new in wrap .22 barrel for same. A guy contacted me looking for parts to restore his MkIV* and I happened to have the parts. I asked him what he wanted to pay and he had the gall to offer $25 SHIPPED for the lot!

I had the stuff weighed and CPC was going to charge me $28 to ship it to him. After that I just stopped responding to his PM's.

Eventually A friend of mine needed the parts and offered me $200 for the barrel. I gave him the bolt parts for free and only accepted $150 for the barrel. Buddy pricing and all.

 

[Chumlee Bumsnag]

I've never sold a firearm, so I haven't dealt with the public on gun prices. I have sold expensive guitars on Craigslist etc... and won't do it again. For some reason people think musicians are a desperate lot and will take whatever you offer them.
I had a guy drive an hour and a half to meet me one time. I told him the price was "firm", and not to bother coming if he didn't have the full amount. He came anyway and offered me about 2/3's what I was asking. I didn't tell him to get bent because he was about 6'4", 260lbs. and we were in an Ikea parking lot.
Guitars are alot like guns in that they have a certain amount of life in them and they can be restored. Sometimes their worth more not restored, like guns.

 

[Claven2]

Now that would have me upset - if the price was agreed and I showed up and buddy only had some lesser amount of money with a take or leave it attitude, well.... let's just say that even if I needed the money, I'd eat KD for a month rather then accept such an insulting situation.

 

[Nabs]

Claven, I saw that rifle up on the EE and I have a great respect for it and the history behind it but also greater respect for the restoration work that you do with some of rifles that are not even wall hangar worthy when you get them. Your work daunts any restoration work I have done and puts most of it to shame.

I have gotten my fair share of low balls on the EE. At first, you want to say "Nuts!" but then you realize the particular firearm you are selling isn't held to the same regard in everyone's mind. All you can do is shrug it off and wait for the buyer, who can really appreciate it, to come by.

 

[angrysoldier]

i have sold a fn fal bolt, hand gaurds and a few other things on this web site. i dont haggle. its that simple. im not out to make a mountian of money, just enough to cover my cost and a case of beer for my time. if someone was to low ball me i just wouldent waste my time on that person. but dont get me wrong, for my fellow soldiers, vets, and old timers i can always deal a bit on the price- after all were all brothers in arms.

 

[John Sukey]

$700 for a T? That wouldn't even buy the scope, much less the rest of it!

And that was a few years ago!!!!

 

[rtangri]

I love the Hindi/Sanskriti on the gun. Beautiful, just beautiful- I'm new to firearms still but I love that! If you are still selling that later this summer and or have another restored one I would love it! Got an old family member who was in the Indian army and would love that Nepali gun.