GB listings for February, 2017 - Albanian

[running-man]

Ok, major SNAFU averted thanks to gunbroker changing things up for 2017.  It turns out I missed two guns in the "Collectable firearms" category this month and three back in January. 

Final numbers are:

• # sold: 6
• Lowest Sale Price: $424.25
• Avg. Sale Price: $717.85
• Highest Sale Price: $1299.00
• As-Issued Avg. Price: $989.50

Item Link   Description   # Bids   Final Price   Arsenal Condition   Current Condition   RM's Notes

• 620727284   Albanian SKS 100% Matching New 1978 All Original   1   $1,299.00    As-Issued   Good   This is simply crazy.  I know there aren't that many Albys out there, but 13 Benjamins?!  As an aside, that stock totally gives me the heebie-jeebies.  No way I'd drop that kind of dough on a gun like this w/o 10 more photos of every minute aspect of that stock. 
• 618127408   Albanian SKS 7.62X39 Rifle Bayonet NR Used   1   $679.99    As-Issued   Fair   Decent enough Alby here.  Kind of brown on the stock finish for my liking, but looks legit to me.
• 620339531   Albanian SKS 7.62x39 Semi-Auto Rifle   1   $650.00    Uncertain   Uncertain   This auction is horsetrash.  C'mon man, show the gun in at least some detail, not just 300x200 pixel thumbnails taken from 50 feet away.
• 621884419   SKS Albanian Model 561 1978 7.62 x39 NO RESERVE   4   $560.88    Uncertain   Good   Nice little carbine here.  Could have used a photo of the receiver to truly determine if it is as-issued (I suspect it probably is), but overall a decent enough auction.  We appreciate the SKS-Files props from the seller too. 

The two that I missed:

• 618054020   Albanian SKS   4   $424.25    Uncertain   Fair   Wicked shiny, but likely legit.
• 617385138   Albanian SKS, Matching #'s hard to find C&R Rifle!   6   $693.00    Refurbished   Good   Replacement stock, but otherwise looks good.

[Phosphorus32]

Wow, that's quite the spread this month.  Of course, if you discard the outlier it's fairly tight. I can't look at the actual auction links at the moment to see what happened in the bidding for that $1300 example, but there's always a few of those a month that are seemingly inexplicable...but never on the few guns I've ever sold   

[running-man]

Only s single bid on the $1299 gun Jon.  Somebody was smitten with it is all I can think of.  Most I've ever seen an Alby go for and I've seen some really nice ones go! 

[Phosphorus32]

Only s single bid on the $1299 gun Jon.  Somebody was smitten with it is all I can think of.  Most I've ever seen an Alby go for and I've seen some really nice ones go!

Yup, for some people $1-2K may be something they spend on a typical Saturday afternoon of entertainment, so they don't care about market value of firearms...if they want something they buy it.

[Direct Connection]

Only s single bid on the $1299 gun Jon.  Somebody was smitten with it is all I can think of.  Most I've ever seen an Alby go for and I've seen some really nice ones go!

Yup, for some people $1-2K may be something they spend on a typical Saturday afternoon of entertainment, so they don't care about market value of firearms...if they want something they buy it.

Finally looks like the Albanian is getting some long lost Love !  Most ive seen spent also on a Alby. Especially a 78.

[Playawhat]

Standard newb here. I think I got 2 more for you in February. Appreciate your work. Thanks.

Gunbroker:
#617385138
#618054020

[Justin Hell]

Standard newb here. I think I got 2 more for you in February. Appreciate your work. Thanks.

Gunbroker:
#617385138
#618054020

Welcome, and nice scores there! I so want one someday...that 69 is so very nifty.

[firstchoice]

620727284   Albanian SKS 100% Matching New 1978 All Original   1   $1,299.00    As-Issued   Good   This is simply crazy.  I know there aren't that many Albys out there, but 13 Benjamins?!  As an aside, that stock totally gives me the heebie-jeebies.  No way I'd drop that kind of dough on a gun like this w/o 10 more photos of every minute aspect of that stock. 

Only s single bid on the $1299 gun Jon.  Somebody was smitten with it is all I can think of.  Most I've ever seen an Alby go for and I've seen some really nice ones go!

Yup, for some people $1-2K may be something they spend on a typical Saturday afternoon of entertainment, so they don't care about market value of firearms...if they want something they buy it.

Yeah, the Buyer on the '78 that sold for $1299 was a well-established Buyer. Many times, I see these over-bid exceptions go to NR Buyers, or Buyers with very little buying history. So, I agree that it's like you surmise, he wanted it, jam the cost, he's getting it! I guess if he's happy, all is well in the world. (His world, and the Seller's world, anyway) 


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Standard newb here. I think I got 2 more for you in February. Appreciate your work. Thanks.

Gunbroker:
#617385138
#618054020

Alright, Playawhat, welcome to the SKS-FILES! You know how to make a splash with your first post! TWO matching 1969 Alby's! Very nice! Please post a detailed thread on each rifle with LOTS of great, clear pics on these fine acquisitions!

RE: The #617385138, my '69 Alby is 269 rifles prior to your SN.
RE: The #618054020, my '69 Alby is 295 rifles prior to your SN.
It will be interesting to see your rifles in close up pics after you receive them.

  This is how we learn timelines of variations of parts changes, or lengths of consistency in processes, options used, etc. It also gives us an idea, albeit a vague one, of what numbers of specific years made it into the USA.  The in depth information gathering and confirmation via pictures supplied, is a major standard that makes The SKS-Files a total cut above the other boards.

  Members can actually disagree with one another here! We can request proof of our member's hypothesis, and bandy back and forth without slamming the members, or even "banning" the member for not "conforming" to the "long-standing wild ass guesses" that slowly, repeated over and over through the years, became some type of Holy SKS god's absolute, irrefutable "facts". I think you'll like it here if you value the SKS-FILES approach.

  It's not required here, but if you get a chance, post an Introduction in that section and tell us a little, (or a lot), about yourself. It gives an idea of what areas of interest in the SKS you have.  Thanks!

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618127408   Albanian SKS 7.62X39 Rifle Bayonet NR Used   1   $679.99    As-Issued   Fair   Decent enough Alby here.  Kind of brown on the stock finish for my liking, but looks legit to me.


The description in the auction lists it as a 1968 Alby. I'd like to find a nice example of the '68 some day.

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620339531   Albanian SKS 7.62x39 Semi-Auto Rifle   1   $650.00    Uncertain   Uncertain   This auction is horsetrash.  C'mon man, show the gun in at least some detail, not just 300x200 pixel thumbnails taken from 50 feet away.

This one's listed in the description as a 1969 Alby! Even though the pics aren't reflecting a visual "for sure" like we prefer, I'd say there's a 95%, or better, chance that the dates are accurate. That is something I like about the Alby's and the Romy's. I think the Russians should have thought about using the same system, instead of the loss-prone Receiver Cover. (This is for ease of Y.O.M. ID. I know we're beginning to understand SN blocks and prefix's better now, but it's so much simpler, easier with the date on the receiver.


firstchoice

[running-man]

Nice post FC! 

So if you notice, the two guns that playawhat found both sold in February but neither is on the list. The reason for this is &$)&)&*%^^ gunbroker changed their category structure on me. 
It used to be that C&R guns were a subset of All Firearms and searching for 'SKS' in All Firearms captured everything.  Now All Firearms is gone and replaced with Firearms.  The categories are now independent meaning I'll have to independently search both to get all guns that sold that month. I don't know how big a change this will be, but I will go back and redo Jan & Feb to clean things up as best as possible. I'm glad I found this now instead of halfway through the year. 

[running-man]

I found 100+ guns I had missed in Jan and Feb in the "Collectible firearms" sub category.  Of these, 7 were Albys.  Will backtrack and fix as I go through the rest of the Feb GB sales. 

Jan amendments will be a ways off I'm afraid, but I'll get them done at some point before the auctions go poof.