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2021 marks the 40th Anniversary for the Blue Book of Gun Values – the

first edition was released 40 years ago in 1981. Since then, we have published a new edition every year (except for 1982 when two editions were released with a mid-year update). This also means we have been compiling firearm information and values for 40 years. We often get asked how a gun’s value performed over time. Since we have been doing this for 40 years – the numbers are all there. The challenge (and extremely subjective part) is how we compile them and statistically make them representative of the collectible firearm industry.

Welcome to our inaugural Blue Book of Gun Values Collectible Firearms Average Index, where we will show how 10 guns have performed year-by-year in a Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) sort of way. For those of you not familiar with the DJIA, it is a stock market index looking at the performance of 30 large publicly traded companies in the U.S.Itgivesacurrentsnapshotofthemarketconditions and generally represents the current health of the economy.

So, after some 11th hour deliberation, I asked contributing editor Mark Rendina togive me ten guns that would fit the following criteria: They must be collectible over the length of our timetable (1981-2021) there needs to be variety (including handguns, rifles, and shotguns), and are common/popular enough that most collectors would seek these out for their collections. We intentionally omitted high value guns (Colt Walkers for example) and left out low end guns as well.

Co��ecti��e Firearm Va�ue Inde� Guide�ines

All values in the index are based on a gun in original 98% condition and assumes the most common/popular configuration (a certain barrel length, the inclusion of a box, etc.). Each year, I took the 98% condition value for the ten chosen guns, added up all the values for that year, and then divided by ten. This provides a year-by-year average or “mean” touse the proper statistical term. Also, this is meant to look at the long-term value of a firearm in terms of collector value as opposed to new guns and what they sell at for retail.

We have been working with a true database to compile the Blue Book of Gun Values since 2005, and one of the features that technology affords us now is year-by-year reporting of each gun’s values for that specific year (this is also a shameless plug for our online subscriptions as you can view historical pricing back to 2005). However, prior to the 26th Edition, those books were edited directly in the graphic design program, so I had to go back through all the old copies edition-by-edition and mark these values. This was a tedious task, but it is always fascinating to see how the book changes year-by-year.

BLUE BOOK OF GUN VALUESCOLLECTIBLE FIREARMS AVERAGE INDEX

We picked the following guns for consideration:Browning Post-WWII Superposed Midas Grade,

12 ga.

Colt 1st Generation Single Action Army, .45 cal.

Colt 2nd Generation Single Action Army, .45 cal.

Colt Model 1911A1 Military in Bright Blue Finish, .45 cal.

Colt Python from the late 1950s/early 1960s with a 4 in. barrel, .357 cal.

Smith & Wesson .44 Magnum Pre-Model 29 (5 Screw), .44 Mag. Cal.

Winchester WWI-era Model 1897 Military Trench Gun, 12 ga.

U.S. Military M1C Garand Sniper with original paperwork, .30-06 cal.

Winchester Model 1873 First Model Rifle, .44-40 WCF cal.

Winchester Model 1886 Carbine .50 Express cal.

Guns, like this Colt Python, have become very collectible in recent years. In 1981, this gun was listed in the Blue Book of Gun Values at $375. Today it is worth $3,000+!

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Observation 1. The CFVI has only gone down once in the 40-year history when in 2018 it decreased $137 from 2017 due to a slight correction with the Browning Superposed while the other nine firearms remained the same. Otherwise, every year has shown an increase, even if it is a modest increases such as 1981 to 1982 ($11), 1984 to 1985 ($10), and 2000 to 2001 ($47), but positive, nonetheless.

Observation 2. The CFVI only stayed the same between editions twice: in years 1998 and 1999, and again in 2001 and 2002. I think this is extremely important to note that the values in this book are constantly changing. We picked a diverse group of 10 guns and only twice in the 40-year history have those 10 guns not changed between editions.

Observation 3. 2009 was the best year according to the CFVI with the value increasing 17.5% over the previous year, and that might have something to do with the election of a new president in 2008. Other large increases include 2004 (16.6%), 1991 (16.3%), 1992 (12.8%), and 2000 (11.2%). Interestingly, 2021, which set many records for firearm sales, shows only a respectable 6% increase from 2020. While it seems

firearm values are up, these 10 guns do not indicate the anomaly many of us think 2020 represented.

Observation 4. As I stated in my introduction, no two guns are created equal. The increase in value of the CFVI ranges from a modest 312.5% increase on the Browning SuperposedwhiletheColtModel1911A1shows a large 2000% increase and the WinchesterModel97MilitaryTrenchGuna whopping 2111% increase since we started trackingvaluesin1981!

I hope to continue the Collector Firearm Value Index into future editions, and I also would like to expand it to include more firearms. Again, our goal is to provide you with a snapshot that is representative of the market. We hope you enjoy this as much as we enjoyed compiling the information and looking back through our history.

ZacharyR.Fjestad&MarkRendina

Blue Book of Gun Values Collectible Firearms Average, cont.

As you can see, the trend is nearly all positive. In 1981, the ten-gun average was $1,869 and 40 years later, the ten-gun average is $10,448. However, I am always amazed at what you learn looking through data after you have taken the time to compile it.