Descision, descisions, descisions...Seeking some kind advice from the membership.

OK, here it is in a nutshell.

MY Guns. I depleted a few of them over a year ago, and now I need to deplete several more.

My little moral dilemma is whether to give my every expensive M14 match Grade ARMSCORP and all its accessories to my son...
(16 magazines, bayonet, tools, & books)

or...

Sell it and put the money away for me and my wonderful new bride to enjoy.

I DO have a revolver he lusts after, but it is a factory model S&W 625-8 and he could possibly save of $800 and buy one new as it is still in production.
Giving him the revolver would save him all that trouble.


The Match ARMSCORPS M14, OTOH, is no longer made, and he would never be able to afford one of the other makes that are not as good.
This one has 100% all GI parts.
Not to mention the custom Doug Carlton tiger striped stock.
I can get a pretty penny for this if I sell it.

Hence my dilemma.

Wifey does not approve of so many guns?

Hey Retired, can you do a bit of both, Sell the M14 and use some of the funds to buy your son a nice gift,
and still spend some for you and your wife.

Well if the rifle cant be replaced it would be nice to keep it in the family but then if you could use the money for something better....
On the other hand the pistol can be bought but if it is what your son really wants......
Perhaps you should talk with your son about what he would like. Informally of course, if you want to make it a surprise whatever you decide. Perhaps as ask him about what should be done with your guns if something should happen to you (I know sounds a bit morbid but it would be a way to keep the surprise)

RetiredNSmilin said:

OK, here it is in a nutshell.

MY Guns. I depleted a few of them over a year ago, and now I need to deplete several more.

My little moral dilemma is whether to give my every expensive M14 match Grade ARMSCORP and all its accessories to my son...
(16 magazines, bayonet, tools, & books)

or...

Sell it and put the money away for me and my wonderful new bride to enjoy.

I DO have a revolver he lusts after, but it is a factory model S&W 625-8 and he could possibly save of $800 and buy one new as it is still in production.
Giving him the revolver would save him all that trouble.


The Match ARMSCORPS M14, OTOH, is no longer made, and he would never be able to afford one of the other makes that are not as good.
This one has 100% all GI parts.
Not to mention the custom Doug Carlton tiger striped stock.
I can get a pretty penny for this if I sell it.

Hence my dilemma.

View attachment 67210920 View attachment 67210921

Click to expand...

Gift your son the S&W. Sell the rest for you and wifey. Give son the right of first refusal on them.

Edit?..give him the S&W for Christmas.

Hawkeye10 said:

Wifey does not approve of so many guns?

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No, Hawkeye, I have found since moving here, all the local ranges are only 100 Yards long.
I don't see any sense in shooting my nice match / sniper rifles at so short a range.

Therefore I will limit myself to shooting rimfires and pistols in the backyard.

From my back porch I can shoot 75 yards long to "Dave's Wall".

I have a feeling my Rambo / American Sniper days are over.
It is also nice to just open the back door and shoot rather than drive 45 minutes to an hour and a half to a mere 100 yard range.

I really enjoy my 6inch barreled .38 Special S&W Model 14. I hope to find the .22LR version of it one day too.
There is something very satisfying about just stepping out back and plinking away with a mild caliber.
A retired navy Captain told me about his .38 when I was a young man in San Diego.
He said it gives him all the pleasure of shooting with out all the trouble of scrounging around looking for spent brass.
He also said the .38 Special is super accurate and a sheer joy to plink away with.
Now that I am about his age at that time, I completely understand what he meant.

I also like shooting my Remmy 550-1's. They are the only rifle that shoots CB caps, Shorts, Longs and long rifles all semiautomatically and all in the tube at the same time.
Something called a "floating chamber" allows this to happen.

So, yeah, the Rambo in me is done.

Now it is time for the old dog to sit on the porch in the shade, plink at tin cans, clay pigeons set on the wall, and tell lies about how good I USED to be.

longview said:

Hey Retired, can you do a bit of both, Sell the M14 and use some of the funds to buy your son a nice gift,
and still spend some for you and your wife.

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Thank you, longview. I had not thought of that.
I was thinking too binary about this.

This is a very good idea.
keep an eye out in East texas Armslist.

MaggieD said:

Gift your son the S&W. Sell the rest for you and wifey. Give son the right of first refusal on them.

Edit?..give him the S&W for Christmas.

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Good idea. he will not be down here until February, so I could just put it in a big box with a nice bow.
It also comes with 800....errr....400 rounds, and about 20 full moon clips.
I swear, I can reload that bad boy faster with full moon clips than I can reload my 1911.

PS...I have an old 5 shot .44 Special Target Bulldog with 4 inch barrel that I will never, ever let go of. It feels like a cap gun, it is so light. I call it my 90 year old gun because I can still be shooting it when I am 90 years old, it is so easy to handle and fire.

Offer the son a price discount. If the son passes on the offer, sell for full price and splurge on the misses.

Just my $0.02.

I see guns as tools and only as tools.

Since he's never likely to use the M14 for anything other than showing off/target shooting, sell it, put the money aside, and give him the revolver that has an actual, real-world application and utility.

Your son wins, your new wife wins and, having her win, YOU win.

Not often that a win/win/win situation arises.

Tanngrisnir said:

I see guns as tools and only as tools.

Since he's never likely to use the M14 for anything other than showing off/target shooting, sell it, put the money aside, and give him the revolver that has an actual, real-world application and utility.

Your son wins, your new wife wins and, having her win, YOU win.

Not often that a win/win/win situation arises.

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You are in the 10 ring here.

Let some collector hang the M14 on his wall, or take to the range for the compliments.

The .45 revolver is a very good utility gun he can use in all weather like he has up there in Nebraska.

We can also reload a few more rounds when he can make it down here.

Excellent advice. Thank you very much.

Absentglare said:

Offer the son a price discount. If the son passes on the offer, sell for full price and splurge on the misses.

Just my $0.02.

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He is not real good with money and saving it, so I doubt he will ever be able to buy this one or any other M14.

I think the best deal is like so many have already said.

Sell the M14 and all its accessories, and just gift him the .45 ACP revolver with all the full moon clips, and about 400 rounds of ammo.

I think it is as Tanngrisnir has said, he will most probably look at it and play with it more than he will actually shoot it.

RetiredNSmilin said:

No, Hawkeye, I have found since moving here, all the local ranges are only 100 Yards long.
I don't see any sense in shooting my nice match / sniper rifles at so short a range.
--------------------
snip
-------------------
So, yeah, the Rambo in me is done.

Now it is time for the old dog to sit on the porch in the shade, plink at tin cans, clay pigeons set on the wall, and tell lies about how good I USED to be.

Click to expand...

Oh I get it now....I am going through much the same thing re eating at fancy restaurants....we are in bankruptcy now so I really cant do it like I like (we still do happy hours occasionally and eat a bite so I still get in some places) so I refuse to do it. I have long been a "do it right or find something better to do, something that I do have the will/ability to do right" kinda guy. Besides I can cook better than most of these places anyways, and Seattle is getting freaking expensive....I saw a smallish salad at one of Tom Douglas's places going for $17.50 (service charge included) just for instance, a salad that was for sure nothing special.

We make prudent adjustments I think, you and me.

But you can understand I hope why I was wondering if the new wife was the cause.

Hawkeye10 said:

Oh I get it now....I am going through much the same thing re eating at fancy restaurants....we are in bankruptcy now so I really cant do it like I like (we still do happy hours occasionally and eat a bite so I still get in some places) so I refuse to do it. I have long been a "do it right or find something better to do, something that I do have the will/ability to do right" kinda guy. Besides I can cook better than most of these places anyways, and Seattle is getting freaking expensive....I saw a smallish salad at one of Tom Douglas's places going for $17.50 (service charge included) just for instance, a salad that was for sure nothing special.

We make prudent adjustments I think, you and me.

But you can understand I hope why I was wondering if the new wife was the cause.

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Yup, I could see why you might think she might be the reason, but no.

She is from South Dakota. Grew up in a small town of 300 (Alpena, SD) and did not even have a flush toilet till she was 13.
Guns were a fact of life for her and everyone else.
She is of tough, peasant, farm girl stock, and I love it!

PS...It is funny how what you do as a child still sticks with you. When growing up they did not heat the upstairs where the bedrooms were. If you had to go pee at night, it involved slippers, a flashlight, and a heavy jacket in winter.

That being said, TO THIS VERY DAY....once she crawls in bed, she does not get out again until the morning. It does not matter what happens, she will not get out of that bed at night, period.

RetiredNSmilin said:

OK, here it is in a nutshell.

MY Guns. I depleted a few of them over a year ago, and now I need to deplete several more.

My little moral dilemma is whether to give my every expensive M14 match Grade ARMSCORP and all its accessories to my son...
(16 magazines, bayonet, tools, & books)

or...

Sell it and put the money away for me and my wonderful new bride to enjoy.

I DO have a revolver he lusts after, but it is a factory model S&W 625-8 and he could possibly save of $800 and buy one new as it is still in production.
Giving him the revolver would save him all that trouble.


The Match ARMSCORPS M14, OTOH, is no longer made, and he would never be able to afford one of the other makes that are not as good.
This one has 100% all GI parts.
Not to mention the custom Doug Carlton tiger striped stock.
I can get a pretty penny for this if I sell it.

Hence my dilemma.

View attachment 67210920 View attachment 67210921

Click to expand...

I'm rather pragmatic. Collecting isn't really much of a thing for me so I'd go with what will you use the most? Ask this for which you want to keep and when it comes to what you'd keep, would you use it more than you would the money. That's how I'd approach it. I'm kind of a minimalist though in that I don't like keeping stuff I don't use. Every now and again I go through my stuff and if I haven't touched it in over a year I really question myself on why I would keep it.

poweRob said:

I'm rather pragmatic. Collecting isn't really much of a thing for me so I'd go with what will you use the most? Ask this for which you want to keep and when it comes to what you'd keep, would you use it more than you would the money. That's how I'd approach it. I'm kind of a minimalist though in that I don't like keeping stuff I don't use. Every now and again I go through my stuff and if I haven't touched it in over a year I really question myself on why I would keep it.

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poweRob,
That is pretty much what I am doing now.
In the shooting world we have what are called "safe queens". Guns that have been collecting dust in the safe for quite some time, and find themselves being pushed farter and farther back each time.
I have some very beautiful rifles and pistols, but I feel it is time for another house cleaning.
So, yeah, we are a lot alike in that perspective.

There is one museum piece I do not think I will ever sell, though.
I got it in AZ and the guy said it was his great grandfathers. He sold it because his two kids were not interested in shooting, and wanted it to have a good home.
It is a Krag carbine with a saddle scabbard, and an old box of ammo with 13 round still left in it.
The kid said his dad's dad remembers his dad saddling up and getting an elk with it each and every season up in the AZ hills.
I have never owned a rifle like this one before, so I think I will keep this one forever.
Hell, it even had the original buttstock cleaning kit.

RetiredNSmilin said:

poweRob,
That is pretty much what I am doing now.
In the shooting world we have what are called "safe queens". Guns that have been collecting dust in the safe for quite some time, and find themselves being pushed farter and farther back each time.
I have some very beautiful rifles and pistols, but I feel it is time for another house cleaning.
So, yeah, we are a lot alike in that perspective.

There is one museum piece I do not think I will ever sell, though.
I got it in AZ and the guy said it was his great grandfathers. He sold it because his two kids were not interested in shooting, and wanted it to have a good home.
It is a Krag carbine with a saddle scabbard, and an old box of ammo with 13 round still left in it.
The kid said his dad's dad remembers his dad saddling up and getting an elk with it each and every season up in the AZ hills.
I have never owned a rifle like this one before, so I think I will keep this one forever.
Hell, it even had the original buttstock cleaning kit.

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Pretty cool. I went to the Mason's buidling here in Santa Fe once and got to actually hold Kit Carson's rifle which they keep. Has an octagon barrel and weighs a ton.

Well, I put her up on Backpage and Armslist today.

My thanks to everyone for helping me see a better way to go.

win/win/win as Tanngrisnir said.