Afraid of buying second hand.

[deputy dog]

Hello all.

 

As stated in past posts i am sort of new to to the center fire world of shooting.

I have got a slot for .243 on my ticket but as yet not bought any rifle.

Iv seen quite a few nice examples over the last month well with in range of the money i have to buy one.

But there is my nemesis as you could put it, i'm so afraid of buying second hand

especially as i don't really have clue as what to look for wear an tear wise

with any given rifle/rifles. I'm so afraid of buying a gun an being left with a

rifle i can't use. I see most people saying that certain rifles have shot only a certain

amount of ammo an its like brand new just haven't used it. But i just have a mental

block as to if their telling the complete truth. Some of the deals iv seen have been to good to be true so to say, like rifle , scope an mode for half the price they were new. And that gets me thinking if the gun is in that good a nick with only hand full of shots fired through it, why sell it for so little.

Can any one help out so to say to get over this mental block i have.

I feel i may be letting good deals go an going without just for a lack of confidence

of buying second hand.

 

Any advice given would be gratefully recieved thanks

 

 

 

 

DD

[Magus69]

Sorry fella I can't put your mind at rest.Buying second hand is a case of buyer beware if you don't know what you're looking at or know what to look for then take along somebody who does.

Yes there are some really good bargains to be had gun wise,and it pays to ask what sort of warranty the seller will offer you,if an individual or dealer is 100% confident that the gun is sound they will offer you a warranty

You pay your money and take your chance, even brand new guns can go breasts skyward or be far short of what you were expecting.

Mike...

[geordiepigeon]

I think the same as you. I tend to buy everything brand new apart from cars. When I buy something I buy it to keep. Il never part with it unless there is something wrong with it. Id also be scared of being shafted with a crappy secondhand rifle that was shot out. And for those reasons I would go new. That's not to say there aren't good secondhand deals out there that are totally genuine but for that extra peace of mind I'd go new. It's just the way I am and probably always will be.

[Paddy Galore!]

as above, unless you know the seller/ history of the gun then don't buy 2nd hand, i've had some right old tat been offloaded to me on here, ebay, and a few gun shops, but i've also had a few diamonds courtesy of njc even if i did pay over the odds. have you thought about a browning? quite cheap now compared to everything else, sub 600 bills for a new synth .243.

[deputy dog]

as above, unless you know the seller/ history of the gun then don't buy 2nd hand, i've had some right old tat been offloaded to me on here, ebay, and a few gun shops, but i've also had a few diamonds courtesy of njc even if i did pay over the odds. have you thought about a browning? quite cheap now compared to everything else, sub 600 bills for a new synth .243.

 

 

Hi Gram

 

Yes i have had a look at some rifle makes. Its between Tikka, Browning Xbolt or Styr.

Looking for a rifle with a medium weight if i can. Not going to be shooting willy nilly

at targets, just want have a rifle which is heavy enough for stability an accuracy while

being light enough to walk a distance without collapsing under exaustion.

But i think in the long run i can see me buying new, as i have read a few posts now an nearly

all have suggested that route so to say, especially as i am a bit green in buying center fire

rifles.

 

Thanks all who have posted

 

 

Dd

[artschool]

i had the same dilema and went for a new xbolt in 223.

[magman]

Bought second hand but tried before i bought

The owner shot a group first which wasn't impressive

I then shot a group and could live with a 1" group

Brought it home and with a few home loads got it down to a 1/4" group

So if you can try before you buy and shoot well with it go for it

[Bowen20]

ive only ever bought one brande new rifle the rest have always been second hand ive never tried before i buy and ive always had good second hand rifles that have never let me down namely my howa 1500 that shoots superb groups and thats second hand.

[Colster]

Felt the same as you mate, ended up getting a new A-Bolt for £488 with 2 mags. Well worth a look or consider a Howa maybe.

[al4x]

yep you are right to be wary, a lot of the guns that come up on here are ones the owner can't get to shoot. I've bought two second hand rifles first was from fister on here years back tried it out happy came away with it and its a permanent resident. Second was a .223 from a small dealer who had well looked after stock and again a decent buy and still got it, you can tell a bit from how long someone has had them but you can't tell they weren't a range freak and piled ammo through them. There are bargains out there but its definitely buyer beware, if the funds allow and its a gun to keep then try and buy new but if buying second hand and its centrefire then just beware

[njc110381]

as above, unless you know the seller/ history of the gun then don't buy 2nd hand, i've had some right old tat been offloaded to me on here, ebay, and a few gun shops, but i've also had a few diamonds courtesy of njc even if i did pay over the odds. have you thought about a browning? quite cheap now compared to everything else, sub 600 bills for a new synth .243.

 

Haha! You can be pretty certain that any rifle of mine has only fired a couple of hundred shots before I've got bored of it and sold up! That Tikka you had was one of my more regrettable sales. It was a cracking rifle, one of the best I've ever had in fact and I do miss it.

 

As others have said, the second hand centrefire market is very buyer beware. Either try to pick something special up at a price that makes a rebarrel possible or go to a reputable dealer or private seller that you know/trust.