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sroc112

Do you get bothered by scratches in your guns/finishes?

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Silly question - but just curious who treats their guns like a new car and who beats em. Do you mind when you get little scratches in your firearms or ware in the finish? I noticed some scratches in the black on the tip of my guide rod, the part that pokes out the front of the gun. Gun has only been taken to range twice, thinking it's probably just from cleaning it.

 

How common are things like this?

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Pretty common to have scratches and be bothered since your gun is new :)

 

Don`t be bothered. You don`t have to be reckless but you don`t have to baby the gun.

 

 

If you worry about stuff you own stuff ends up owning you. 

 

Well put

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It bothers the crap out of me TBH especially with how expensive some are, but i baby the shit out of my toys until i hit a breaking point and stop caring. Used to polish my snowmobile after each trip, only kept it in the garage, etc..

A few yrs later its sitting in the driveway with a cover on it. F it.. not worth fighting to keep it clean lol..

Same with my f150... ive come to terms, after 5 years, that i have to use it for work and it WILL get damaged/dirty. So now it is also all gross and what not. It is what it is. When i have a car that is exclusively a toy ill worry about it.

 

So, yes, i cry inside when i find a new scratch, but it is what it is. Its going to happen... just another reason to buy a new, new gun LOL.

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I have a few old guns that I would be pissed if they got scratched and that's why they don't get shot. The guns that I do shoot all have scratches on them, It happens and its not the end of the world.

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When I first got into shooting, I would clean my 686 after each range session, including polishing up the cylinder face. Spent more time after the range than at the range. Now I clean them every few weeks/months. Guess what I found, no difference in performance. Same think also with my truck, used to zaino it several times per year. Now just a wash in the spring and it looks just as good. Not so with the wife, if I stop with the occasional pampering I find out immediately!

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I look at my guns and my car, as tools. They are intended to be used and with use comes minor scratches, dings and a little bit of damage. I don't mind imperfections caused by use. I get mad at myself when damage occurs as a result of my carelessness.

I purchased a beat up Model 1917 Enfield and shipped it out to MilTechArms, a company that completely rebuilds historic rifles. When I got it back it was beautiful. Less then a week of having it back I leaned it on something and it slid off, causing a dent in the stock. I was mad at myself.

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I don't mind when I cause it due to use.

 

When another party causes it, then I'm annoyed. I had a .45 PX4 that Fedex scrapped the hell out of the polymer frame on the return trip from CCR. Just pissed me off that it happened. But if I caused it while shooting, I would have shrugged it off.

 

For the money I spend on firearms, any damage should be done by myself.

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I recently inherited my grandfathers off duty 22 magnum snubbie revolver (dates back to the 1960s, he was a retired NYS trooper) When I got it the pistol was in 95% condition....

 

2nd trip to the range, I scratched the bluing .... Pissed me off....

 

The pistol was an off brand, not worth an money, but I was pissed that he kept it in perfect condition for 50 years and I "ruin" it within a month..... Sucks

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....... just curious who treats their guns like a new car and who beats em. ....

 

I don't do either. You do the best you can but scratches and dings ARE going to happen. Obsessing over every little mark will just take the fun out of it.

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I have some firearms that I keep pristine as they were my grandfathers and great-grandfathers and they also kept them pristine. When I first started purchasing firearms I kept them pristine but read on...

 

On the other hand all 9 pistols I have are range guns, most are surplus (actually, all except one) and I do keep them in good cosmetic condition but if they drop or get scrapes it's not the end of the world. They are tools and I bought them as such, not to sit on display and collect dust but to be shot and shot some more. I'm one of the few guys you'll find at a range that will gladly let you handle and shoot my guns (with my ammo, no off brand or reloads) and if you drop it or scratch it that's not a issue. They were built to take abuse and be carried/used on a daily basis and are all under $400 price range, if they were scratched too badly I would strip them down and refinish them as I've done in the past (no hot tank, cold refinishing only).

 

I dropped a real nice VKE-91K (HK G3KA4 clone) last month and almost s*it when that happened. It was on the rest and I was shooting another rifle while standing up and suddenly I hear this noise...scrape and clunk...I turned around and to add insult to injury stepped on the damn thing while it was leaning angled against the bench on the line. I was pissed but not about the cosmetics, I wanted to make sure I didn't damage the cocking tube so I gave it a quick function test and all was well.

 

I had a Colt M16A! clone a few years ago, Colt Target Match lower and original A1 upper (made compliant by ADCO) w/ original stock and furniture. I had a company give the lower the "been there, done that" look where the finish was well worn to match the upper and furniture and I ran that rifle HARD and I mean HARD. I also have a SAR-1 (AK) that looks like it came from the sandbox, the finish is so worn the marking on the receiver are faint and the barrel was never cleaned..actually, I never cleaned it at all. Wood has tons of dings, dents, scrapes. It's a working gun, a tool, never intended to enter it in a gun beauty contest.

 

Guns are tools, if it goes bang and puts a bullet own range to save my life that's all I'm concerned about. If you are concerned about rough handling buy used.

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Yes, it bothers me. Most damage is from mishandling. Unless we're talking about holster wear, there's really no reason, in my mind, for a gun to be banged up. I have some 1911s with many thousands of rounds through them that could still pass for new. Admittedly, I'm a bit anal but, to me, use is still no excuse for damage. I know some state that "they're just tools" but, I take care of my tools too, and my truck, and my house. I also still have my first BMX bike that I raced and my first car that I got when I was 16.

 

So yeah, if I drop $1200 on a nice pistol I'll be pissed if it gets all banged up. No reason I can't shoot the crap out of it and still pass down a near perfect gun to my kids.

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Yes, it bothers me. Most damage is from mishandling. Unless we're talking about holster wear, there's really no reason, in my mind, for a gun to be banged up. I have some 1911s with many thousands of rounds through them that could still pass for new. Admittedly, I'm a bit anal but, to me, use is still no excuse for damage. I know some state that "they're just tools" but, I take care of my tools too, and my truck, and my house. I also still have my first BMX bike that I raced and my first car that I got when I was 16.

 

So yeah, if I drop $1200 on a nice pistol I'll be pissed if it gets all banged up. No reason I can't shoot the crap out of it and still pass down a near perfect gun to my kids.

 

Do you shoot matches? ever shoot in high stress drills where that rifle ends up being scratched? a lot of people do and understand the wear it puts on weapons (cosmetically).  Do you hunt? guns fall off ATV's and down out of tree stands when hunting. Seen it before.

 

I've seen people that with years of experience drop weapons, they don't ball their eyes out over a few scratches, nicks or dings.

 

Of course, I have purchased maybe 2-3 "new" firearms in my life and close to 100 used ones (mostly police trade-ins, mil-surplus) so I see it differently. They already have wear and my wear is irrelevant on those firearms. I have a S&W 59 that has a good amount of nicks, dings on the frame and picked it up for under $200. Those nicks/dings touched up and are hard to see, I've shot over 2K rounds in that pistol in the past two months and it has paid for itself by now with a long (Mechanically shootable) life ahead.

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Do you shoot matches? ever shoot in high stress drills where that rifle ends up being scratched? a lot of people do and understand the wear it puts on weapons (cosmetically). Do you hunt? guns fall off ATV's and down out of tree stands when hunting. Seen it before.

 

I've seen people that with years of experience drop weapons, they don't ball their eyes out over a few scratches, nicks or dings.

I only shoot standard pistol matches. Different kind of stress.

 

I don't hunt either but, dropping a gun from a rifle stand or off an ATV? Definitely preventable. And I'd be pissed. (BTW, all this dropping of guns you mention doesn't sound very safe.)

 

Ever roof a house? Do you drop your nail gun over the edge? Sure, it happens but it's almost always because some one was careless.

 

I have friends who shoot far less then I do and their guns look like shit. (In my opinion, others would probably say they're fine) It has nothing to do with use. They're simply careless when they handle them.

 

I certainly wouldn't "ball my eyes out" if I dropped a gun but I'd be annoyed. In general I just tend to take better care of my possessions than most.

 

 

 

As far as your "pre-damaged" guns, that's a little different. I have old rifles that have plenty of wear. It doesn't bother me but I don't add to it either.

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I only shoot standard pistol matches. Different kind of stress.

 

I don't hunt either but, dropping a gun from a rifle stand or off an ATV? Definitely preventable. And I'd be pissed. (BTW, all this dropping of guns you mention doesn't sound very safe.)

 

Ever roof a house? Do you drop your nail gun over the edge? Sure, it happens but it's almost always because some one was careless.

 

I have friends who shoot far less then I do and their guns look like shit. (In my opinion, others would probably say they're fine) It has nothing to do with use. They're simply careless when they handle them.

 

I certainly wouldn't "ball my eyes out" if I dropped a gun but I'd be annoyed. In general I just tend to take better care of my possessions than most.

 

 

 

As far as your "pre-damaged" guns, that's a little different. I have old rifles that have plenty of wear. It doesn't bother me but I don't add to it either.

 

Having a gun fall off an ATV or out of a tree stand isn't always preventable, insurance policy's covering firearms exist for a reason. Go to Maine on a hunting trip and chances are you'll see this happen at some point over a weekend. Dangerous? depends, I've never seen one go off from being dropped but that's not to say it hasn't happened. Now if you meant mechanical damage that would result in the weapon being unsafe to fire? unlikely with the exception of barrels and I've known guys who straighten shotgun barrels with a tailgate (not the best idea).

 

I never said "pre-damaged", damage would mean the weapon isn't operational or is unsafe to fire as that is how I interpret "damaged". My firearms (for the most part) are cosmetically well-worn as I previously said but mechanically excellent and fully functional, I've never had a problem selling or trading up cosmetically worn firearms and never lost a cent on them.

 

I'm not trying to argue with you, I'm just pointing out the fact that no matter how well you take care of something if it sees daily use for years and years wear will occur...gunsmiths do a lot of refinishing work for a reason.

 

This might surprise you and many others but a market exists for the "done that" look on firearms. Nodak sold tons of these receivers and before you ask..no, they are not used but brand new and "aged": I actually like this look but that's just me and opinions will vary.

 

BFPU_XM_b.JPG

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Having a gun fall off an ATV or out of a tree stand isn't always preventable, insurance policy's covering firearms exist for a reason. Go to Maine on a hunting trip and chances are you'll see this happen at some point over a weekend. Dangerous? depends, I've never seen one go off from being dropped but that's not to say it hasn't happened. Now if you meant mechanical damage that would result in the weapon being unsafe to fire? unlikely with the exception of barrels and I've known guys who straighten shotgun barrels with a tailgate (not the best idea).

 

I never said "pre-damaged", damage would mean the weapon isn't operational or is unsafe to fire as that is how I interpret "damaged". My firearms (for the most part) are cosmetically well-worn as I previously said but mechanically excellent and fully functional, I've never had a problem selling or trading up cosmetically worn firearms and never lost a cent on them.

 

I'm not trying to argue with you, I'm just pointing out the fact that no matter how well you take care of something if it sees daily use for years and years wear will occur...gunsmiths do a lot of refinishing work for a reason.

 

This might surprise you and many others but a market exists for the "done that" look on firearms. Nodak sold tons of these receivers and before you ask..no, they are not used but brand new and "aged": I actually like this look but that's just me and opinions will vary.

 

BFPU_XM_b.JPG

I should have said "pre-worn".

 

You are correct, accidents do happen. They are, however, almost always preventable.

 

I like the worn look too though. A 1911 carried by a soldier has "character". It should look worn, it's been through a war. My target pistol, trap gun, or AR that has never been fired in self defence should not. Just my opinion.

 

I have had similar conversations with my wife regarding vehicles. She gets dings and scratches all over her car after a few years and chalks it up to "wear and tear". Apparently it's unavoidable, or so she says. Funny thing is, when I look at my 12 year old truck with four times as many miles I don't see any of the damage she incurred.

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