Anything you do to alter it devalues the gun in terms of collector's worth. That includes shooting it. It's an individual decision for sure.
Pre 64 Facelift
- Thread starter JLS
- Start date
Anything you do to alter it devalues the gun in terms of collector's worth. That includes shooting it. It's an individual decision for sure.
Southwind
New member
Well done, very nice! Is that the John Kay recipe?
Last edited:
Yes.
sbhooper
Well-known member
What scope are you going to put on it?
Wheezy1958
New member
- Joined
- Aug 10, 2012
- Messages
- 5
I have refinished and glass or pillar bedded a few pre-64's over the years. The "reduced value" issue is kinda relative. A standard or featherweight gun in 30-06 or 270 or a featherweight 308 are not particularly valuable. The caliber, variation and condition are everything.
If you have a battered and worn 30-06 with ANY alterations (like pad or extra holes) that's pretty much a $500-$600 gun. Some buyers snap them up for the action on a custom build.
When you are at that low end of the collector spectrum- a refinish isn't gonna hurt the value- unless it's butchered of course. Today's entry level injection molded wonders sell for twice that.
I've never heard of Model 70 Alaskan in 30-06, and I didn't think that moniker was used until the late 50's. They were 338's and later .375's.
Now if you have a less common caliber or variation- like a carbine, African or Supergrade then you may want to carefully review your decison before tearing into one.
I do see people trying to peddle "rare pre-64's" for collector prices that have been cut for pads or drilled for side-mounts , either of which crush the collector value.
In this case- the refinish was beautifully done- enhancing the appearance and protecting the wood for the owner. He may have actually improved the market value of the gun depending on how scruffy it was to begin with.
If you have a battered and worn 30-06 with ANY alterations (like pad or extra holes) that's pretty much a $500-$600 gun. Some buyers snap them up for the action on a custom build.
When you are at that low end of the collector spectrum- a refinish isn't gonna hurt the value- unless it's butchered of course. Today's entry level injection molded wonders sell for twice that.
I've never heard of Model 70 Alaskan in 30-06, and I didn't think that moniker was used until the late 50's. They were 338's and later .375's.
Now if you have a less common caliber or variation- like a carbine, African or Supergrade then you may want to carefully review your decison before tearing into one.
I do see people trying to peddle "rare pre-64's" for collector prices that have been cut for pads or drilled for side-mounts , either of which crush the collector value.
In this case- the refinish was beautifully done- enhancing the appearance and protecting the wood for the owner. He may have actually improved the market value of the gun depending on how scruffy it was to begin with.
Wapiti Warrior
New member
I refinished mine years ago and steamed out any dents it had, then wet sanded it. It really turned out nice. But since I altered the original finish it isn't worth as much to a gun collector. But it was my grandfathers and I still hunt with it.
John
John
Durango Mike
Well-known member
looks excellent! are you going to glass bed? I always did an extra coat of oil on the barrel channel to seal it better, at the time I was living in New England and the big variations in humidity tended to move things around.
Durango Mike
Well-known member
Probably the biggest factor is caliber, then condition, stock refinish is the easiest thing to return to original as there are plenty of original finish stocks around. Reblue is a real big NO on the lever guns as most collectors prize the patina of honest use. I have a 257 Roberts super grade circa 1953 that is 95% and is worth 4-5X the value of a 30-06 standard I bought for the action and paid $500 for. The prewar actions with the inletted rear tang (versus the oval that sits on top of the stock) are still in demand for custom builds and bring a premium particularly the magnum length.
I sealed the barrel channel, but I don’t have plans to bed it. It doesn’t come out to play very often, and it’s an MOA gun as is.
Pretty good chance it’ll go to Wyoming with me next year if we draw our antelope tags.
Scarey
Well-known member
Very nice!!! Great job on the facelift
MO Betta
Well-known member
That looks great. I've watched a few Potterfield videos where he re-cut the checkering, I'm guessing it took you a lot of painstaking hours.
What are the value ranges of the pre ww2 super grades at? Do you know by chance?
Durango Mike
Well-known member
It varies so much, a super grade chambered 7mm mauser carbine might bring $10K in 95% condition, a 30-06 standard rifle in the same condition might be $1,500-2,000. Check the Blue Book of gun values and the book by Roger Rule which details caliber rarity and production of specialty orders. The commemorative rifles that were made in the post war years for various distributors tend not to have much collector value relative to rare chamberings and specialty items like African models.
