Finding your old pistol

RYANINMICHIGAN · 12-09-2012, 10:29 AM

I sold a pistol back maybe 20 years ago. I was young and dumb and needed some cash. Anyway I have been wondering, is there anyway to track down the current owner and see if I can buy it back? Has anyone ever done this?

wv hillbilly · 12-09-2012, 10:33 AM

if you sold it through a ffl dealer he could go back through his records and that would be a start.
if you did a FTF , i would say your chances are very slim to find it

gdmoody · 12-09-2012, 10:46 AM

If you know the guy you sold it to, there is a slight chance that he might still have it. If you sold it by an ad in the paper or something like that, an iceberg in Hell would have a better chance at survival than you would have in finding it.

jim brady · 12-09-2012, 11:34 AM

Like Hillbilly and Gdmoody said, the odds are awful slim. Sounds like you either didn't know the guy who bought it or lost track of him. Unless you went thru one of those facebook places and found him by name, I seriuosly doubt if you will ever see that pistol.

You'd be much better off just looking for a similar pistol and replaceing it that way. The only guns I've ever really gotten back were thru the family. As far as kicking ourselves in the fanny for long past trades and sales - welcome to the bruised fanny club. I am a charter member.

RYANINMICHIGAN · 12-09-2012, 12:28 PM

It was nothing special just a black hawk. But it was the first pistol I ever bought. I thought maybe there would be a way to run the serial number and find it. Only gun I have ever sold

WHSmithIV · 12-09-2012, 12:34 PM

Just buy another one like you sold - easier to do than finding out where the one you sold is. I had to sell a .45 long ago when I had to move from (what wasn't then) Commiefornia and go to Massachusetts to take care of my mom who was dying of cancer. I had to sell all my guns because Mass. has stupid laws about them. My Singer .45 would be worth around $3,000 right now. However, no use crying over spilled milk - I traded an SKS rifle for the .45 I have now.

gvw3 · 12-09-2012, 02:41 PM

In 1981 all my guns were stolen. A few years ago I decided to rebuild my collection. Kids were all grown up. House paid for. By the end of this year I will have replaced all my stolen guns.

Move on. Buy a gun like the one you sold and it will be just as good.

RYANINMICHIGAN · 12-09-2012, 04:46 PM

Ya easer to just buy another. They are a dime a dozen around here. I just have it a thought and my head kind of ran with it. Happens sometimes

Jerryboy · 12-10-2012, 04:02 PM

last year i sold my grandma's old H&R Guardsman .32 revolver, and i don't miss it(much).

i do wish i still had a small lightweight revolver that i could slip in my sweatpants pocket when my dog hears something outside in the middle of the night and won't shut up until i investigate, but on the other hand it was a very combat ineffective gun because the center pin would pop out every 3-4 shits, and in order to reload you had to pull out the center pin, completely remove the cylinder from the gun, reload the cylinder, put it back in the frame, replace the center pin, and then shoot.

other than that it was pretty accurate, lightweight, and compact. maybe when i have the money i'll find some little S&W .38 to carry.

lead · 12-10-2012, 05:45 PM

I sold a gun out of need a number of years ago. Maybe 4 or 5 years later, it was traded in at a local gun shop by the gun who bought it from me. He didn't take good care of it. I didn't even make an offer on it. I bought a version of that gun that was in the kind of shape my old one was when I owned it.

12-09-2012, 10:29 AM	#1
RYANINMICHIGAN V.I.P. Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 223	Finding your old pistol I sold a pistol back maybe 20 years ago. I was young and dumb and needed some cash. Anyway I have been wondering, is there anyway to track down the current owner and see if I can buy it back? Has anyone ever done this? -->

12-09-2012, 10:33 AM	#2
wv hillbilly Advanced Senior Member Join Date: May 2012 Location: mountains of wv. Posts: 2,016	Re: Finding your old pistol if you sold it through a ffl dealer he could go back through his records and that would be a start. if you did a FTF , i would say your chances are very slim to find it

12-09-2012, 10:46 AM	#3
gdmoody Advanced Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Northeast Georgia Contributor Posts: 6,306	Re: Finding your old pistol If you know the guy you sold it to, there is a slight chance that he might still have it. If you sold it by an ad in the paper or something like that, an iceberg in Hell would have a better chance at survival than you would have in finding it. __________________ NRA Endowment Member GeorgiaCarry.Org Member Retired US Army Postal Worker Personally, I carry a gun because I'm too young to die and too old to take an ass whoopin'.....author unknown (but obviously brilliant)

12-09-2012, 11:34 AM	#4
jim brady Advanced Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 1,070	Re: Finding your old pistol Like Hillbilly and Gdmoody said, the odds are awful slim. Sounds like you either didn't know the guy who bought it or lost track of him. Unless you went thru one of those facebook places and found him by name, I seriuosly doubt if you will ever see that pistol. You'd be much better off just looking for a similar pistol and replaceing it that way. The only guns I've ever really gotten back were thru the family. As far as kicking ourselves in the fanny for long past trades and sales - welcome to the bruised fanny club. I am a charter member.

12-09-2012, 12:28 PM	#5
RYANINMICHIGAN V.I.P. Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 223	Re: Finding your old pistol It was nothing special just a black hawk. But it was the first pistol I ever bought. I thought maybe there would be a way to run the serial number and find it. Only gun I have ever sold

12-09-2012, 12:34 PM	#6
WHSmithIV Advanced Senior Member Join Date: May 2012 Location: Moore, Idaho contributor Posts: 2,589	Re: Finding your old pistol Just buy another one like you sold - easier to do than finding out where the one you sold is. I had to sell a .45 long ago when I had to move from (what wasn't then) Commiefornia and go to Massachusetts to take care of my mom who was dying of cancer. I had to sell all my guns because Mass. has stupid laws about them. My Singer .45 would be worth around $3,000 right now. However, no use crying over spilled milk - I traded an SKS rifle for the .45 I have now.

12-09-2012, 02:41 PM	#7
gvw3 Advanced Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Chicago IL Area Contributor Posts: 3,240	Re: Finding your old pistol In 1981 all my guns were stolen. A few years ago I decided to rebuild my collection. Kids were all grown up. House paid for. By the end of this year I will have replaced all my stolen guns. Move on. Buy a gun like the one you sold and it will be just as good. __________________ Criminals advocate stronger gun laws to foster a safer work environment. This limits their exposure to risk.

12-09-2012, 04:46 PM	#8
RYANINMICHIGAN V.I.P. Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 223	Re: Finding your old pistol Ya easer to just buy another. They are a dime a dozen around here. I just have it a thought and my head kind of ran with it. Happens sometimes

12-10-2012, 04:02 PM	#9
Jerryboy Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2012 Posts: 708	Re: Finding your old pistol last year i sold my grandma's old H&R Guardsman .32 revolver, and i don't miss it(much). i do wish i still had a small lightweight revolver that i could slip in my sweatpants pocket when my dog hears something outside in the middle of the night and won't shut up until i investigate, but on the other hand it was a very combat ineffective gun because the center pin would pop out every 3-4 shits, and in order to reload you had to pull out the center pin, completely remove the cylinder from the gun, reload the cylinder, put it back in the frame, replace the center pin, and then shoot. other than that it was pretty accurate, lightweight, and compact. maybe when i have the money i'll find some little S&W .38 to carry. __________________ "If voting could change anything for the better, it'd be illegal." -Unknown "If good intentions were horses, politicians would own glue factories" -Jeremiah Thompson Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, & Explosives should be the name of a convenience store, not a government agency.

12-10-2012, 05:45 PM	#10
lead Advanced Senior Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Missouri Posts: 1,522	Re: Finding your old pistol I sold a gun out of need a number of years ago. Maybe 4 or 5 years later, it was traded in at a local gun shop by the gun who bought it from me. He didn't take good care of it. I didn't even make an offer on it. I bought a version of that gun that was in the kind of shape my old one was when I owned it. __________________ The best things in life, are not things.