How to Sell Guns: Advice from Gun Store Manager

Long before you had to put up with my ramblings on TFB, I was - and still am - someone running a gun store as my day job. Nestled in central Minnesota where the winters are long and our waistlines are longer, I have been a family-owned gun store manager going on 15 years. In this time, I have seen all manner of ridiculous customers, firearms, and my fair share of haggling, bartering, and deal-making. If you want to get top-dollar for your gun that’s aspiring to be sold, then there are several things you should do to ensure maximum moolah!

Clean your Firearm

From the gun shop perspective, I am going to offer you less money if you present to me a gross firearm. Regardless of how collectible the item is you are bringing in to sell, you need to give it a once-over and clean it up. We aren’t talking about a meticulous, disassemble-every-single-piece gun cleaning. Rather, clean the exterior and simply have it looking as presentable as possible. If I know I need to pay an employee for 2-3 hours to clean your gun, you’re getting a lower than expected offer. If you bring me a clean gun I can log into my inventory and put it out immediately, that helps me move along in my day.

Timing is Everything

As the saying goes, “timing is everything.” While handguns generally sell well year-round, long guns are extremely seasonal being tied to hunting seasons and league/competition shooting. Think of the time of year and season your firearm might be appropriate for, and attempt to sell it a month before that specific time frame begins.

Even think of the time of day you intend to stop into a shop. Gun shop owners (speaking from experience here) don’t want to entertain buying guns from the public while h-angry, or on an empty stomach. Sell your gun after lunch or a good hour before close. Then you aren’t impeding them from closing their shop for the day, and they likely got some food in their belly.

Bonus points: avoid selling your gun the moment when a shop opens. Gun store owners don’t like purchasing a gun first thing in the morning knowing their daily sales are now negative, and they need to climb out of a hole to break even for the day.

Call Ahead

Most gun shop owners don’t have days filled with Zoom meetings, stacked business engagements, or a full schedule. It’s a lot of dealing with the public, fixing broken guns, handling warranty issues, and hopefully selling things. All that being said, if you have a used G17 Gen4 and their shop already has 3 used ones on display, the owner might pass on yours; no hard feelings. So, a simple call ahead of, “I have XYZ, would you entertain buying one?” can save you and the shop time.

Also, we don’t like giving “ballpark prices” over the phone. Everything is based on condition and we’re lied to constantly. People try to sell us broken guns like we won’t notice or they state “their gun is mint” yet you drug it behind your truck for that TikTok video and the serial number is barely legible anymore. So, don’t appear wildly surprised when gun shops won’t give you a finite price over the phone.

Do your Own Market Research

You can collect “market research” from a lot of places. I would highly suggest investing in a “Blue Book of Guns.” Either a hard copy you can thumb through, or a subscription to the digital version. It is a phenomenal reference to gauge and know what something is worth. Plus, there is a bevy of additional information like a cross-reference section (what actual brand was this Sears Roebuck & Co copying?) as well as serial number dating and lots of other cool stuff.

Market research can also come from your buddies, but it often is so interjected with anecdotes and unsubstantiated information that you can only “take it for a grain of salt.” So, tread lightly with the bro advice.

One of the most clever ways to know what your used firearm should sell for is to jump on Gunbroker.com:

• Find the Search bar
• To the Right of it is “Advanced” in green lettering, Click on it
• Then, you have the option of “Current Items” and “Completed Items”
• Click on Completed Items

From there, you can search Finished or Completed auctions of stuff that actually sold. The biggest gap between a gun shop and you - the prospective seller - is that sellers often jump on Gunbroker and see a Glock for sale at $2,000. So, then the seller jumps to the conclusion that their Glock is worth $2K, but the issue is you can list something for sale at any price you want on the internet. What matters is what something actually sells for. That is where this clever Gunbroker search bar hack is invaluable.

Your Accessories Aren’t Adding Value; They’re a Liability

It is incredibly rare that your accessories actually add value to your used gun where I’m going to pay more for it. If it is a $200 economy scope, I’m more concerned that if I leave it on your used gun and sell the used gun package that someone will come back telling me I sold them a broken scope. So, now they want a refund or assistance in warranty work. That is why if you have an AR-15 that is dripping with accessories, I will either strip it of everything before I buy it from you, or after I’ve purchased it, I still remove all the clutter and just sell a bare gun. The only exception is really expensive scopes like Nightforce, Leupold, etc, I might leave on because, yes, a $2K scope does add value to your used gun.

As far as your pile of mixed ammo, it is - as the kids say - sus (very suspect). I’ll take your used ammo if you want it “disposed of,” but I’m not paying you for it. If you think that’s a raw deal for you, by all means, keep your ammo. Want to know where all of my free ammo ends up? I give away all of my 12 Gauge ammo to James Reeves on TFBTV and he does shotgun burndown tests with all of my crap, used ammo. The other cartridges I give away to kids, 18 to 20-something years old, who barely have enough money to buy their first firearm so I throw them some used ammo their way. I can’t speak for all dealers, but most aren’t selling it in the back alley and setting themselves up for retirement, or repackaging it as new and placing it on their shelf.

Creatively Haggle and Purchase

There are all kinds of books out there on “the art of the deal” and creative ways to haggle. Jump on Amazon and I’m sure you can find thousands of books, but haggling in a gun shop is different. We are mostly simple, hard-working folks. If you come to the table with a proposition like:

• “I’m hoping to get $100 for my Ruger 10/22 and several bricks of 22 ammo. Could you swing that?”
• “Would you be able to do $125 cash and some ammo for me?”
• “How ‘bout $150 and a 10-piece chicken nuggie, and we call it a day?”

The owner is thinking… well, I’m only into this rifle for $100 and I send a bit of my inventory out that door, I like the way this guy thinks. Or, you break the “we’re haggling tension” in the room with your McDonald’s wise-crack. That will be a lot better received than:

• “I know what these are selling for. I’ve been on Armslist. I want $280.”
• “You’re the 7th store I stopped at. Make your best offer or I’m gone.”
• “No low ball offers. I know what I got.”

If you come to the table aggressively with a “I know the most” mindset, people don’t want to work with you. This applies to everything in life, not just gun haggling.

If you are looking to simply buy stuff at a gun store (a slight deviation from our current conversation) you’d be surprised how many dealers would be willing to accept gold and silver bullion, too. So, while “cash is king,” bullion isn’t that far off either. If you dabble in that thing, give it a shot next time you buy a gun and ask for a discount.

Understand your Market

Your market is where you live. If you live in remote Wyoming and you’re selling the latest Taran Tactical John Wick special, it might not go over well at local gun shops. Conversely, if you live near Chicago (outside that tyranny-laden city), you might have a difficult time selling a wood Remington 870. If you know your used gun is possibly not fit for your market, head to the internet. You’ll get more eyeballs on your gun, maybe a bidding war (advantageous to your pocketbook), and better odds of selling your gun.

Departing Words - How to Sell your Used Firearm to a Gun Shop

You should ALWAYS support your local gun shop first, but if your firearm is not a good fit, you can’t amicably come to terms, they have 6 of your gun already, or the guy behind the counter is in dire need of some some hot dish (Minnesota problems), then you need to look out for yourself. Head to Gunbroker and sell your firearm to the masses (this is not a sponsored Gunbroker post, by the way).

• Clean your Firearm
• Call Ahead
• Timing is Everything
• Do your Own Market Research
• Your Accessories aren’t Adding Value
• Creatively Haggle
• Understand your Market

I’ve been on all sides of the coin. I’ve been a seller, buyer, and here I am regaling you with some backwoods wisdom via TFB. What are your words to the wise for selling firearms? Anything to add to this list? As always, let us know all of your thoughts in the comments below! We always appreciate your feedback.