Just how it is, I suppose, milsurps are drying up. They’ve been around for a very long time, so good examples are hard to find and obviously they are not made any more. K31 probably still sits in armouries, it’s not “that old” and maybe will see a resurgence once or twice more. However, everything else is done. Everything has been sold off, so get in while you can.
The thing is, about once a decade someone finds a warehouse in some third world country or part of the former Soviet Union which is absolutely packed to the gills with WWII (and sometimes later) hardware.
They’re still selling stuff recovered from Nepal in the mid-2000s, and someone just found a fuckton of stuff in Ethiopia as well that’s in prettty decent shape.
What irritates me about milsurp price is the guns, for the most part, aren’t rare. They were made in their multimillions and even factoring in attrition due to age etc, there’s still millions of them around in serviceable condition. There’s no acceptable reason for an unremarkable SMLE to cost $1000.
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@Martini I just read the same post LMAO
Thing is, I don’t know about most, but myself and few others on here are picky bastards. I would like a Mosin, but it has to be Soviet and made in specific time period. K98, same deal - German or maybe German capture, but not contract. List goes on, that’s just me though. I don’t think any of the contracts are jumping as much as “country x” guns from actual “country x”. If that makes sense.
carcanos are still cheap as chips though lol
They all cost a fortune, though. Soviet WWII-era M91/30s have been made in unholy quantities and there’s heaps of them about, even in Australia. Ditto SMLEs and K98s. Even the “generic example” types that people like me want cost a mint.
Carcanos are cheap because it’s hard to get ammo for them and they’re a pain in the ass to reload for (they use a weird size pill)
Yeah, there must still be cracking caches out there hidden in random warehouses.
My father told me there was one hidden on Wilsons prom full of .303s, Brens and Austens with Ammo.
More a Bunker than a warehouse.
How much are K31s now roughly? I always get envious when my cousin tells me he’s bought another one for like 400 euros.
this is not a fair comparison, if you were to just convert currency, you need to compare cost of living.
K31 is about $1500.
400 euros factoring in salaries and avg living expenses and general pricing (https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/compare_cities.jsp?country1=Switzerland&country2=Australia&city1=Bern&city2=Melbourne) it’s definitely cheaper, but not 400 vs 1500 cheaper, more like maybe $500 cheaper.
Remember, grass is always greener on the other side, because it’s fertilised with bullshit.
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There must still be thousands is storage in India. That would be a hell of a buying trip.
Malaysia too. Most people don’t realise how huge the Malayan emergency of the 50s was.
The trick is probably to find the dodgy countries (like Ethiopia) where the government is less likely to ask too many questions about weapons exports and is in need of the cash.
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Exactly. And I’d bet that they all stayed with the Malayans when the Brits pulled out and gave them independence.
Malaysia has really strict gun laws - it’s really, really hard to get a gun licence there - and a lot of the goodies they might have in storage there are things we can’t have like SLRs, M1 carbines, Sterling SMGs and M-16s.
If it weren’t for the sanctions on Russia because of The Crimean Affair, we’d probably be seeing heaps of M91/30s and K98s on the market at reasonable prices too.
As @Nomis says, whatever else shows up is likely to come out of countries who need the cash more than they need to be concerned about the regulations around exporting weapons.
I honestly don’t see the point of milsurps but you lot seem to be making up the difference and driving the price hike! 
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The days of Milsurps compatible with Australian laws are drying up. Any Further caches will almost certainly be semi Autos.
We are approaching the end of a Golden Age.
Swiss Rifles are done.
Mosins are done.
Enfields done.
People with better connections and plenty of cash have scoured the globe.
Anything left over is stuck there due to difficulties in export.
The Ethiopian stuff took the better part of a decade to complete the deal.
Yep, as far as bolt actions go, especially considering the relatively small market in Australia, any new finds will go to the U.S.
We will only get dribs and drabs, as well as private imports.
Indian Enfields may be our last resort.
Even then, they will probably keep them.in reserve for years yet.
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I’m inclined to agree with @Supaduke; all the Australian-legal milsurps are more or less gone, with the possible exception of things like the Ethiopian Cache and some yet-to-be inventoried warehouses in the former Soviet Union. There seem to be quite a few TT-33s suddenly on the market at the moment, for example.
We may see a few dribs and drabs as some of the African countries keep clearing out their Cold War-era arsenals and going “What the hell are we doing with all these .30-06 Mausers?”, but I also agree most of those are probably snaffled by people with more money and connections than any of us.
Used 4wds and Milsurps. I watch them regularly and on the 4wd front, it feels like there are 80% less of the cheap cheap fourbys for sale.
Usedguns has a lot of .303’s for sale today and last Friday, and prices are really high.
Just going to pop this here:
yep
Damn, I wouldn’t mind a few of those boxes!
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I’d bet you, each guard has a couple at home for furniture.
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