Why Are Single Shot Rifles SO Expensive?

[Bigfatts]

So I finally got my H&R repro Trapdoor. Since then I've watched a few movies that feature Sharps rifles pretty prominently. Django, Outlaw Josie Wales, Quigley, etc. and I realized something. I have to have a Sharps. Then I started looking at what they cost. Then I started looking at other single shots like the Rugers and they're all roughly $1k plus. Why? Is it because there is such little demand for them that companies have to get a premium for them to justify their production? It seems to me like a single shot would be more simple to make than a nice bolt action. I mean I can understand it somewhat with Sharps. The dual triggers, good sights and better than average wood you see on them and all. even a mini Sharps in .22 is crazy expensive.

Any input?

 

[mattL46]

I own a few and my way of thinking might be that they are actually more complicated to produce. Lots of machining. Especially with the falling blocks. Several operations occur while the block is in travel. Cocking of a striker/hammer and extraction/ejection. Lots of small parts to ensure functionality. I'm no machinist or gunsmith just my two cents. Like you mentioned above I do believe there is a rather small market for them. Maybe not?

 

[NoSecondBest]

Supply and demand put these into the category of being not mass produced. If there were a bigger demand and some automated process were added to making the gun the price could come down to some degree. Another thought is this: you can buy a Pedersoli Sharps for around a grand or a little over and they shoot fantastic. I've owned three of them and they all shot very well and were very well made. Pedersoli offers a good number of models from anywhere around a grand up to over three grand. Even the cheaper ones shoot very well. They just have plainer wood, and the metal finish isn't quite the same. However, even the "cheaper" ones are still well made guns. I personally don't think a grand is that much money for a gun like that. You really can't compare even the cheapest Sharps replica to a plastic and metal Remington promo bolt gun from a big box store. Even those really cheap intro rifles run over three hundred and you basically get very little for your money. Just my two cents.

 

[mattL46]

^like no secondbest mentioned. Fit and finish is usually superior to most other breeds of rifles.

 

[mattL46]

My great uncle repro's the Remington Hepburn by hand from the ground up. The only thing he buys is the barrel blank. He is one man so production is slow but it still takes him months to produce one. The starting cost is usually around $6k. Extremely fine product though.

 

[peggysue]

Look at 50BMG...they ARE not that expensive.

 

[Doyle]

The same reason decent quality O/U and SxS shotguns are so expensive - lots of skilled labor to hand fit the parts. Far more so than a bolt action or semi-auto.

 

[SIGSHR]

I recall when H&R introduced their repro Trapdoor Springfield it cost TWICE what an original was going for.

 

[B.L.E.]

A blow back semi auto is actually a simpler gun than a falling block single shot. Also, the fact that production runs tend to be limited, better fit and finish. Polishing is a big part of the labor of making a gun.

Also, I ain't never seen wood like this on any Ruger 10-22.

 

[Bigfatts]

So I've been looking up schematics on some of the rifles I mentioned, the Sharps and such and I'm starting to see it. They are much more complicated than I had thought previously. That, coupled with the better than average wood, fit/finish and limited market add up to premium prices. I guess I will have to start pinching those pennies and saving.

 

[B.L.E.]

What is simpler than a muzzleloader? Check out the prices of some of the finer traditional muzzleloaders if you want real sticker shock.

 

[Scorch]

The level of machining required for manufacturing many single shot rifles is more intricate than is required for many bolt action rifles. Couple that with lower production volumes and you get an idea of the many changeovers required to manufacture a single shot rifle. It all translates to more $$.

 

[Bushmaster1313]

Because a nice single shot is also a work of art -- Capisce?

 

[B.L.E.]

Single shots don't have to be expensive. There were a lot of low cost single shots on the market, particularly in .22 rimfire.
Stevens favorite
Winchester model 59
Ithaca M-49
And of course, the break open single shots available in all sorts of chamberings.

 

[mattL46]

@bushmaster and BLE beautiful rifles. Here's my low wall in 22-k hornet. Agree with BLE's wood remark.

 

[Jimro]

Well, market forces are what they are. One one hand if you have a labor intensive build process and a limited market, you can expect a higher cost per unit.

I've paid more for a single shot air rifle than for the fist AR-15 I built, and the Hammerli AR20 is considered a "kids rifle" not fit for serious competitors. A single shot Anschutz small bore rifle can run over three grand easy, with base models still north of a thousand dollars.

Compared to a Daisy 853 or Ruger 10/22 those higher level competition rifles are just not as cheap to manufacture, and because they have a limited demographic of purchasers the prices stay high, as well as the quality.

Sometimes you just have to grin and bear the sticker shock when it comes to your hobbies...

Jimro

 

[Bigfatts]

Sometimes you just have to grin and bear the sticker shock when it comes to your hobbies...

Ain't that the truth? I just wish I could find a hobby that didn't bleed me dry. I left paintball because it was too expensive. Now, between guns and knives I'm about broke!

 

[WV_gunner]

Break actions are pretty cheap as long as you don't get a laminated stock and stainless metal. A regular outfitted break action used can be had for $200.

That being said I own a .45-70 NEF but I do eventually want a Ruger No 1.

 

[Ibmikey]

One of my single shots, AAC Handi Rifle, is in 300 Blackout and was very inexpensive. I topped it with a Nikon AR 223, 3X scope and 125 gr Sierra TNT --- one shot into the boiler room of a 350 pound Texas Boar and he was toasted. No you can have a lot of fun with a single shot, not too many rounds of ammo and a place to shoot.

 

[Bigfatts]

True enough. I guess I should have eliminated them in the op. Not because they're not good rifles, just because I have no interest in them. I was talking more along the lines of falling or rolling block rifles. The only break action I'm remotely interested in is the H&R Buffalo Classic and my brother has one of those. Nice as it is, it's not in the same league with a Sharps or Ruger.