Frugal pistol acquisition

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subhuman

New member
I'm a trader,horse swapper and deal hunter by nature, I do believe that you get what you pay for where quality is concerned but like most I'm a cheapskate and I want that quality as cheap as I can find it.
My current crop of pistols is for the most part a portrait of luck and hard shopping,


The Sig 1911 Nitron =free! A gift from my best friend

The Sig P229=$600 (G23 and a little cash)

The Sig P6=$310

The USP =$350

The Shield=$425 ( bought 2nd year of production )

My total=$1685 for 5 pistols

https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZcnJ6JGoKh6Ib1eV2
How frugal/lucky of a shopper are you? Share your best deals and guns with us
 
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Targa

New member
I guess my somewhat frugal purchases are:

M&P9c with nightsights $400
Colt 80 series 1991 .45acp $630 ( obviously, much less expenive 1911's exist but for a Colt this isn't a bad price)
Phoenix Arms HP22a .22lr $113 (laugh all you want, it has been very fun and reliable)
Kahr CM9 $330
Rossi 4"Plinker .22lr $280 (One of my favorites)

All were purchased new.
 
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HistoryJunky

New member
Kahr CM9 $280 new.

CZ P07 GEN2 $470 new.

Trading a super cheap AR for a Romanian Tokarev, Taurus TCP, and a Ruger P90DC.

Sent from my SM-G930R4 using Tapatalk
 
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Spats McGee

Administrator
I'm not a cheapskate, but I do enjoy "shopping victoriously" (as the old eBay ad called it). I don't buy and sell a lot, but I thoroughly enjoy some good, old-fashioned haggling and horse-trading. I think I got really good deals on:

1. G19 -- Blue Label bargain at $455 with night sights and 3 mags. Nothing special here, because it was just Blue Label pricing.
2. Shield -- ~$370, tax included. Once I get all of my Summer Hideaway swag, I should have gotten the gun, 4 mags and 2 boxes of ammo with it. I'm kind of proud of this deal because I used Academy's "Price Match -5% Guarantee," and took advantage of an online sale at Cabela's, to get them to knock the price down. We don't even have a Cabela's here, but it's on the list of prices that Academy will match. Then I hit Sportsman's Outdoor Superstore and grabbed 3 new magazines at $15 each.
 
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GarandTd

New member
SAR k2P 9mm - $279 nib
Heritage Rough Rider 22lr 6.5" barrel - $129 nib

Both have been accurate and reliable and a very positive experience. I love shooting them both. My super low dough scores were long guns.
 
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hemiram

New member
I've been going both ways, sort of high end and very "budget".

SAR K2P $250 new and shipped.
SAR CM9 G2 $259 new and shipped. I really like it a lot.
SAR SR38 .357 4" black, $325+15 shipping. Basically a clone of a S&W 586
S&W 28-2 6" $600+30 shipping.
Sig P229 .40, hard to explain, but it ended up costing way more than it should have. I had about $600 in a used one. A nice used one, but it was used.
Sig P226, got a DAO NYPD trade in good shape for $350 shipped. I didn't like the DAO at all, so I bought the parts to make it standard DA/SA for about $57 total. It took me a while, but it all went together without any issues, and it's got the nickel controls so it's kind of unique.
And the credit card buster, a mint 4" S&W 66, looked totally new, in the box, papers, etc. Got an offer $200 more than I paid for it a week after I bought it, so bye bye it went. Paid $1100, got $1300. Saw one looked just as nice for $1500 at a Columbus area place a while back, so I think I did ok.
 
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brian33x51

New member
shield 9mm. Picked it up this summer with rebate for I think 230usd all said and done. Been my primary CCW, even I can't visually tell I'm carrying it (AIWB).

taurus pt111 g2 millenium pro. A pretty serious bargain, especially if you aren't one of the very very few who get a lemon. Mine's been flawless, but I think I slightly overpaid 200usd for it (probably 220 altogether). Wish I went to 209 and gotten the stainless. Because of the rail and the multi strike capability I ordered some snap caps and a cheapo laser (truglo) to use as a training pistol with the wife, kids and new shooters when we have our occasional church 2nd amendment nights.
 
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FrankenMauser

New member
I generally buy semi-autos cheap, or not at all.
Revolvers... not so much. :rolleyes:

Ruger P95DC: $140 (new -- $180 sale price, plus $40 rebate. Definitely a victory. :D)
Remington RP9: $234
Browning Hi-Power: Free
Sig 2022: Free
Browning Buckmark: Free
Browning Buckmark (#2): $100 trade value
And the list goes on.


But the revolvers...
Generally 'standard' prices -- sometimes up to MSRP, because I'm grabbing an oddball before they sell out (and don't come back for another 10 years ... if ever).

My best revolver deals would have been:
1993 Super Blackhawk: $240 used, in Fall/Winter 1999/2000. Ridden hard, lots of holster wear, but well-maintained and in good shape.

.480 Ruger Super Redhawk (first run): $650 used (with the market at $850-$950). Dirty, nasty, disgusting, ugly, and covered in some gawdawful sticky crap. But it cleaned up quickly and easily with a detail strip, and was already sighted dead-nuts for my handloads at 50 yards when I took it to the range. :D
 
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Cheapshooter

New member
Besides enjoying some of the low end guns like Hi-Point, and Heritage Rough Riders you have probably read in other posts about my cost saving strategies.
Sales, rebates, a standing order with family for gift cards at Christmas and birthdays, and credit card rewards points (as long as you pay off the balance every month).
Some of my money saving purchases have been a Glock G20 with my out of pocket being around $200. Charter Bulldog around a hundred and a quarter. Ruger Charger Takedown with Vortes Spark II I think was about 1/2 what it would have been without my "plan".
The best was a Remington Model 870 Express Synthetic Tactical 7-Round. Bottom line out of my pocket....$0
Then there are the namesakes of my user name. The 03 Curio&Relic milsurps. $79 mausers, $40 MAS 36, $89 1895 Nagant, $200 Manuhern PP, and lots more
 
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turkeestalker

New member
I'm an electrician, for me scrap copper money magically turns into firearms.
I consider myself very fortunate as most of the firearms I buy technically wind up being zero out of pocket, which enables me to buy more than I probably should.
 
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FITASC

New member
Back when everyone had a $10/year kitchen table FFL, everyone bought "inventory" at wholesale prices...............

Frugal depends on when it was bought, what it is worth now, etc.......
I can talk about a S&W I bought for $169..............35 years ago.......
 
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GarandTd

New member
Was a $169 s&w frugal 35 years ago?
Frugal: sparing or economical with regards to money or food; simple and plain and costing little
 
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old bear

New member
subhuman,
Sorry I’m about the exact opposite. As much as I like a good deal, whatever that is, I rather pay somewhat more for an item, I really want than spend lots of time trying to save a small amount of money. That way I can spend my time enjoying whatever I wanted instead of spending my time looking for that item. I do try to stayaway from impulse purchases.

As for my best deal, how about a 95+% condition Smith and Wesson model 27-2, at $550.00?
 
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Cheapshooter

New member
I'm an electrician, for me scrap copper money magically turns into firearms.
I consider myself very fortunate as most of the firearms I buy technically wind up being zero out of pocket, which enables me to buy more than I probably should.
Click to expand...
Yup, didn't add that to the mix because it's been a while. Retired eight years ago.
I remember way back around 1980 another guy and I were removing a bunch of unused conduit runs from a building we just remodeled. I told him I might save up my share of the copper for a turkey gun. Was thinking something like a single barrel 12 gauge. He said if it was for a new gun I could have it all. We would pull out a short run of smaller wire, and he would say "that's a trigger guard". A bigger run would be a stock, or receiver.
Ended up with $300 which became a brand new Remington 1100 Magnum!
 
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bandanabandit1

New member
I seem to rarely ever find a "deal", sometimes Ill find something one-off for a good price if Im realllly lucky. I seem to find good deals on jerky though, especially at the shows. :)
 
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hemiram

New member
Jerky is the only thing at the last gun show I bought that I thought was a good deal, meaning I wasn't angry about it later on. Almost all my "deals" have been from something listed on a forum, or just looking around on websites and finding gold. Last "Wow!, I gotta get one!", was about 2am Xmas morning, and I just happened to be looking for LE trade ins and saw something about $400 Sig P220's and grabbed one up. Looks almost new, and it put me on a Sig buying spree.
 
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TruthTellers

New member
This is going to get me laughed at, but I've bought a fair number of cheap guns the past few years. None of the prices include shipping and ffl transfers

Raven MP-25 > $100 and it shoots great.
H&R top break .32 > $150 and it shoots well.
Ruger LCP Custom > $198 and it's okay. I grabbed it just after Ruger announced the LCP II.
Glock 27 Gen 4 > $360. Came with 3 mags, all backstraps, and Trijicon HD night sights. Used .40 cal Glocks are about the best bargains going today for good polymer pistols.
Pietta 1851 Navy > $80 after using gift card and Cabela's had a sale.

And now we come to a frugal purchase I regret: A Leinad .410 derringer for $180-ish. I wish I had just bought a Public Defender.
 
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roashooter

Moderator
Raven MP-25 > $100 and it shoots great.
H&R top break .32 > $150 and it shoots well.
Ruger LCP Custom > $198 and it's okay. I grabbed it just after Ruger announced the LCP II.
Glock 27 Gen 4 > $360. Came with 3 mags, all backstraps, and Trijicon HD night sights. Used .40 cal Glocks are about the best bargains going today for good polymer pistols.
Pietta 1851 Navy > $80 after using gift card and Cabela's had a sale.

And now we come to a frugal purchase I regret: A Leinad .410 derringer for $180-ish.
Click to expand...

a collection to be proud of and the envy of many....
 
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