My Blog

MY BLOG

For lack of a better title

Hi, my name is Ron DuPée. I’m not sure what to call these rantings so for now they’re just my blog. I’ll try to keep it interesting, informative, and hard-hitting—but I am kind of wordy. Thanks for reading.

The consignment of items in any field have notoriously been dirty and gun dealers are some of the worst! I know I’ll get flack for this, but let me tell you why. It basically boils down to that age-old, state of affairs in business, known as “Conflict Of Interest” (COI). Definition: “A situation in which a business owner or agent has a monetary interest for greater profit which is in direct conflict with your interest to receive the highest possible proceeds”.

There may be a scant few dealers that try to do what’s best for their customers. However, ethics seem to go right out the window when a COI is present. And this happens all too often in business…in the resale gun business! The following is one of the more prevalent COI scenarios found at traditional gun shops:

Scenario 1. So you take your rifle into a dealer to see what he’ll give you for it. He says it’s worth this amount retail and he’s more than happy to give you maybe eighty percent of the value. Sounds pretty good, huh? First of all no dealer only works on a twenty, thirty, or even forty percent profit margin on used guns. Typically, they want a conservative minimum of fifty to sixty percent profit. Second, where did he get that retail value? From the famous Blue Book, other publications, off the top of his head, or out of his ass?

None of those examples can define a price reflecting true, fair, realistic "Market Value". I know from my many years in sales, that true value is what buyers are willing to pay for an item right now or in recent weeks/months. In my not-so-humble opinion, the only way you can get an accurate value of a gun is through market research of very similar guns that have recently sold! The best place to do that is at GunBroker.com. You could check out the other auction sites too, but you still have to include the GB results.

All guns, however old, can both go up and down in value. There are many factors that influence values. They include economic conditions, trends, fads, news events (mis-information by the "lame-stream" media), publications, availability, political tensions, public tantrums by hoplophobics, asinine "Executive" orders, hoplophobic rulings by the Senate, Congress or Supreme Court—etc.! Appraisers and (especially) the "Blue Book", do not take these constantly changing factors into consideration when estimating current value! Definition of Hoplophobia: Irrational, mentally ill, media-controlling, unjustified fear of firearms. A pathetic phobia and/or disease rampant among liberals and other idiots!

So, did your dealer do any on-line research before giving you a price? I think not! But, I’ll bet he had a good idea of the true price range and I’ll bet it is much higher than he quoted you! That way, you would think he’s being really fair to give you up to eighty percent of retail value. Can you see the big fat Conflict Of Interest? Now we’ll add to this scenario:

Let’s say you ask the dealer about consignment. He says “great” and I’ll only charge you ten or fifteen percent, etc. Wow, you say, that sounds peachy…let’s do it! You’re now about to step into one of the most notorious, firearms consignment traps! Here’s what happens all too often: The dealer sets a nice high price you like, you sign the contract with him, and he just puts your rifle up in a rack. Nothing has been established as to how it will be marketed (if at all). Even if the dealer says he will put it on an on-line auction, etc., they almost never do a decent job (hell, they rarely know how, anyway)—because they’re not satisfied with only a small profit! Remember? Are you yet comprehending the magnitude of “Conflict Of Interest”?

Ok, did you read the contract carefully? Nooo. Most dealer’s contracts have sneaky little clauses about fees assessed to you after so much time has gone by. Hence, it behooves them not to do anything to sell your gun. I swear to you I’m not exaggerating when I say that many a duped consignors have wound up forfeiting ownership of their guns to the dealers because the fees racked up so high it wasn’t worth it to pay them and take back their gun!!! With consigned guns being out-of-sight-out-of-mind, a lot of time can go by—then wammo!

Alright, let’s say the dealer’s contract doesn’t have those nasty fee assessments (though most do). Instead the dealer starts his “Chiseling Routine” (I just coined that). He’ll call you periodically and say “Your price is too high, you need to lower it. The market has gone down on your lowly rifle, blah, blah, blah”. Whether he set the price or you did, he’s methodically conditioning you to accept less money—less than what was originally offered you—to make more profit when he sells your gun.

There’s many more twists and turns I could tell you about, intricate in this scenario, but I’m hoping by now you’re getting why a COI is a bad thing when you’re hiring a business to sell your guns.

Ok, a teeny, weenie, shameless plug is coming: As a great alternative to traditional gun shops, you could let Consignment Arms USA sell your guns! We promise there will be absolutely no COI. And please visit our simple (but informative) Home and About-Me pages.

Thanks again for reading my “Blog”. More to come when I get time.