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Why it pays to visit gun shops in dinky little towns

3K views 24 replies 18 participants last post by  Blanco_Diablo 
#1 ·
I went travelling this Fourth of July.

We visited several small towns in Southern New Mexico. Hardly anything was open because of the holiday.

In one small town, we just happened to pass a gun shop that was open with customers standing around.

I ended up buying an unfired Ruger Security Six. The muzzle had what appeared to be minor pitting on a strip around the outside of the muzzle rim (bore looked okay), and the actual rust appeared to have been removed with steel wool.

It was just minor cosmetic blemishing that at a distance looked like holster wear, and probably mostly was.

The rest of the gun could have been mistaken for new-in-box, except that you could tell the cylinder had been turned.

When I got the gun home, I detail-stripped it as per Ruger's instructions. For people unfamiliar with Ruger revolvers, they are designed to field strip much like an SKS: the trigger mechanism comes out as a whole unit.

The internals were pristine and the gun appeared unfired. There was not even a hint of powder fowling even in the gun's nooks and crannies. I put more wear on that pistol the first time I shot it than it already had.

I thought I might have paid too much at first ($400), but since I'd been looking for one for seven years I decided to ignore the cosmetic blemishes. When I discovered that the gun appeared unfired, I was especially happy.

:dance:

These pics are not of my pistol; they are from GunBroker. Since I don't have access to a digital camera, they'll have to do. My pistol looks identical to this one except for a small strip of minor cosmetic blemish around the rim of the muzzle on the left side.



 
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#5 ·
Some people think I'm crazy. "Why don't you just buy a GP100?" is a question I've been asked many times.

I don't like the GP100's abbreviated grip frame. I also prefer to have the ejector rod be the front lockup point instead of the separate cylider latch on the GP100. I'd think if you have to eject rounds from a GP100 or SP101 under stress, you could bend that rod a lot easier than the old style.
 
#8 ·
I think I just made it my lifelong quest to get as many Speed Sixes, Security Sixes, and Service Sixes as I can. :dance:

I had a Service Six around seven years ago that I had to sell to pay my rent one month. I should have let myself get evicted instead. :evil:
 
#12 ·
2 things I ALWAYS do,

1. Look in those out of the way places in small towns, and thru the "junk bins" at gunshows.
2. Keep Cash hidden for when rule #1 pays off.

Last week I had a friend who flips houses offer me a Belgian (pre-55)Browning takedown .22 and a Colt Woodsman Match Target (ca. 1951) together for $350. Both guns are in the 95% range. They were in part of the estate, and he just didn't want the guns around his house with kids. I plan on keeping the Colt, and flipping the Browning, as I already have one. I can replinish my cash, and got a free Colt.



pic lifted from GB
 
#13 ·
In 1970 I was driving from Lowry AFB in Denver to Ellsworth AFB for a traininh TDY assignment. We stopped in this one horse (literally) town for fuel and a few beers. I wondered into the gas station/store/diner and looked around.
In a case in the back I saw a .45 Colt SAA that was in crappy shape but looked cool. They lady dropped the price from $100 to $75 because I was a GI.
I cleaned it up and had a friend make a few minor adjustments that improved the lock up. I shot it for a few years before I put it away. About 10 years ago I had a Colt guy look atit and he advised it be appraised.
Turns out it's a first generation Ciolt SAA made in 1887.
Modern loads were not really a good idea for it.
It was valued at around $3200.00 back then.
I always stop at little back water shops.
 
G
#15 ·
Nice finds! I never seem to have any (or enough) cash when I run into
smokin' gun deals like that when I'm traveling. I guess I need to be
better prepared and carry a special cash stash kept just for those occasions.
 
#17 ·
UPDATE July 26, 2008

Well, you guys aren't gonna believe this...but I got ANOTHER almost identical Security Six today. The only differences are that my second one has the oversize square butt grips and is actually in better shape than the first one (although the seller admitted that this one has been fired).

I went to a gun show this morning solely because it was raining cats and dogs and there wasn't much else to do.

I didn't even take but about forty bucks with me because that's what I had in my wallet.

Of course, when you don't have any money that's when you see a gun you want, right? Isn't that the "Murphy's Law of Firearms?"

Anyway, it cost me $450 that I had to borrow from a friend and then go to the bank drive-thru to pay him back after I left the show. I made it to the bank about ten minutes before they closed (at noon).

I've looked for either a Service Six or Security Six at a good price for the last seven years, and then I find TWO within a month of each other?

I'm thinking some of these people are starting to cough up their good guns because of gas prices and everything else going up. :neutral:
 
#18 ·
No offense but..I dunno, revolvers don't really do anything for me. And I dont really believe in the whole "auto-pistols jam, revolvers dont" crap. My Glock 23C hasnt ever jammed on me.

Personally, I find this more intimidating than a revolver...unless we're talking a .44mag :razz: :
 
#19 ·
Blanco_Diablo said:
No offense but..I dunno, revolvers don't really do anything for me. And I dont really believe in the whole "auto-pistols jam, revolvers dont" crap.

My Glock 19 is my carry piece.

I love 1911's like I love...er..umm...women. But the ones I've owned were as temperamental as...er...ummm..women.

The 1911 is an enthusiast's gun like the AR15.

My Dad is seventy-something years old and recently switched from being a 9mm autoloader kool-aid drinker to a good 'ol .357 big frame revolver kool-aid drinker.

The reason: his elderly hands have trouble overcoming the spring tension to work the slide on an autopistol these days. It's a "grip traction" thang more than a strength thing. It seems that as you get older your hands just don't have the "tread" they used to. He has no such problems with double action revolver.

I've only ever had one revolver jam, and that was because of a sliver of brass under the extractor star.

In addition to being jam-free, don't forget that NOBODY ever doubts the power of .357 Magnum.

"Six for sure" has become my motto; my carry gun may be a nine million-meter, but my bedroom gun is a hand-held cannon.

Nuff Said. :grin:
 
#20 ·
Rotdorn said:
and a Colt Woodsman Match Target (ca. 1951)



pic lifted from GB
I realize that's not yours above but what a great find. Karma smiled on you for that one. That pistol is as iconic to Colt as the SAA & 1911.

Blanco_Diablo said:
No offense but..I dunno, revolvers don't really do anything for me. [/img]
I own and have owned a passel of handguns over the years. The one I shoot the most is a Ruger Blackhawk in .45 LC. Why? Because it is the most fun to shoot. Big muzzle flash, nice recoil & 50 rds. takes a long time to work through.
 
#21 ·
the security six was my first pistol. on the frame it says,"Made in the 200th year of American liberty". i still own it. i've bought and sold many firearms, but i could never let that one go.
good buy! and enjoy.
 
#22 ·
Blanco_Diablo said:
No offense but..I dunno, revolvers don't really do anything for me. And I dont really believe in the whole "auto-pistols jam, revolvers dont" crap.
I've bought 5 handguns in the last 3 years. 3 glocks, an RIA Gov model and a Taurus 2" .357. The only gun that ever malfunctions is the .357. It really needs to go back to Taurus. :sad:
 
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