S&W K-22 pricing

[princeout]

I'm reasonably comfortable pricing Ruger single actions and single action customs, but I'm completely clueless concerning S&W double action revolvers. I've bought the Supica book and have the pricing guide found in the back, but the date on the "new" book is 2006 so the prices all seem like true bargains!

I've been trying to follow K-22 prices for a while and still can't get a good feel on where they should fall. Sales on Gunbroker are all over the map. I'm sure there are a multitude of details that collectors are aware of that I'm not taking into consideration, so that might be part of my problem in not coming to grips with the prices I see.

Is there something similar to the RENE Ruger pricing list around for the S&W revolvers?

Is there one of our Single Actions forum members who could educate me somewhat on K-22 pricing, post-WWII, pre-Korea era?

Thanks,
Tim

[brionic]

If you're looking for a post-war, pre-"numbered" gun, you can expect to pay $600 and up unless you luck into a good deal. And if you do, buy it fast, assuming it's not a beater.

The pricing in the S&W book is not only a decade old, but was somewhat generic even when published back then.

My experience is that online pricing is good for ballparking it, but you need a big sample, from a variety of sources, which can be tricky for certain configurations. Bear in mind the "gotta have it" buyer and the "RARE! MUST SEE" seller are equally guilty of online price distortion, so look to historical sales patterns, rather than just the listings.

Beyond gunbroker, check gunlistings, armslist, and gunsamerica, all of which rely on set pricing rather than auction formats. And the enthusiasts forums allowing classifieds are also a good bet, as fairly priced examples tend to sell quickly and overly high-priced non collectibles tend to languish.

[klnc]

Tim, you ought to check the Smith & Wesson Forum--it's an active one, and those guys are as knowledgeable as the SA guys are on here. I bet if you specified exactly what you are looking for, and asked for a price check, you'd get pretty close to what you're seeking. Of course, regardless of what the price "should" be, you always have the challenge of finding just what you want at the price you want to pay. I often find theoretical prices don't always match up with availability. That's why I always end up paying too much!

[princeout]

Thanks guys! I'll keep on digging around.
Tim

[awp101]

By all means, check out the S&W Forum. Lots of good info and a tightly run Classified section.

I finally had to pry myself away from there. It was very good for my knowledge but very bad for my bank account...