Selling my lee Enfield

[nearly there]

Hi all I'm just wondering if I'm being unrealistic about selling my lee Enfield. I have it advertised here but so far it's just the usual people asking for pictures. Am I asking too much or is it just hard to sell anything just now. The only reason I'm selling is because I'm finished with shooting. Any advice yous have feel free or any rfd who buys firearms from individuals let me know also

[Sim G]

Oohs, this could be a can of worms!

Simply, guns are expensive to buy and cheap to sell, as a friend often put it. There's all manner of reasons why stuff doesn't sell and not necessarily the price, but that is generally the deciding factor.

How badly do you want or need to sell the LE? If it has to be gone because of licence or club expiry, it could be gone very quickly, but you'd be taking a hefty hit on your asking price. Should you honestly believe that your price is the minimum you will take for the rifle, then you will just have to hang in until the person vines along who'll pay that.

RFD fees is another stumbling block. Stating RFD transfer is at buyers expense, you could have added 100 quid to the price.

Photos. Get a picture hosting account. You want to sell something and people will want to see that. But, on t'interweb, people are idle. Show me the pics in your post, as generally I'm not going to be ar$ed to have pics emailed to me. That's just the way people are. A picture paints a 1000 words. Especially if you are at the other end of the country....

And the big one, perhaps your rifle just isn't what other people want. ive got guns in my cabinet that I just know I'll not be able to sell unless they go at ridiculous bargain price and someone will take an impulsive punt on it. Fashion and taste dictates.

[nearly there]

Thanks sim g all valid points

[DanTheMan]

I think it's overpriced and the pics make the metalwork look a bit tatty, there are a few on Guntrader / Gunstar for £395 - £425 so you are competing with that.

[Alpha1]

The average price of a good lee enfield is about £500. Are there no gun shops near you ask them to sell it for you on comission.

[WelshShooter]

With advertising in general, you have to provide details. Give an accurate description of the item(s) for sale and include lots of pictures. Make note of the condition which may be an advantage if it's it good condition, and will avoid time wasters if it's not. If the firearm has all matching serial numbers across the parts (which is sought after the milsurps which may have components swapped) then state this.

Most people who look for milsurp firearms usually have a specific model in mind. Include as many details as you can, such as the year of the rifle, what number bolt head it is (which may be good indicator of the condition if it's a low number) and also how well it shoots and what discipline you used it for. Include a job lot of items too, such as reloading equipment, brass, slings etc.

I've only advertised two firearms for sale on here which sold very quickly (I had an offer within the first two hours on my last sale). On both occasions I provided as much information as possible and included a bunch of pictures and highlighted any imperfections. Both sales included a bunch of additional items so that the purchaser had everything they needed to load their own ammunition and shoot the firearm. I stated how much the whole bundle cost from new and put a reasonable price on the sale.

Try it out!

[Rockhopper]

Its a tricky one though, I bought an identical rifle to yours (but with a scope and mount) for £250.

[safetyfirst]

The average price of a good Enfield might be £500 but there are thousands of not so good Enfield you can pick through for £375 at various appropriate shops.

This pictures thing is important. If you use a smartphone, get an app called "An application" that makes using the forum much easier, especially adding pictures to posts.

Good luck with the sale!

[Robert303]

The market in Scotland is small but having said that get some decent pictures and stick it on Gunstar as anyone in Scotland looking for one will not want to go down south to look at a rifle. If you know any rifle clubs in Scotland see if you can advertise it with them. As to price I'd start at £495 and be prepared to take an offer of £425.

[LDC1982]

I had the same with my lee enfield a few months ago. I ended up taking it to richard at the devizes gunsmith. He offered me more than i was expecting after the response from people on here. I ended up £50 down on what i paid for it a year earlier and after a couple of hundred rounds i put through it i thought that was a good deal.

I know devizes is not feasible for you but i would take a load of detailed photos of the rifle at a good resolution and email Richard he will give you an honest opinion and if interested will probably give you a price range what he would pay depending on what the barrel is like. You could then RFD it to him if you thought it a reasonable offer.