The Ethics of Gun Sales

[Ron Wood]

Michael,

While I totally sympathize with your situation, "several months later", statute of limitations notwithstanding, is WAY too long to be registering a complaint and seeking reparations. If you are in a position to invest $5K in an item, the expectations are you know enough about the investment to make that commitment. Your involvement in "offer[ing] one of my guns for sale" and "have[ing] half a mind to disclose this back story in my auction listing" is tacit admission that you are at least knowledgable, if not expert, in the sale of guns and determination of a weapons originality and worth. Given that premise, it would not be out of the question for the opposing party to claim that you are exhibiting "buyer's remorse" and there is no compelling evidence that after such an extended period of time the damage to the weapon was not the result of your careless handling subsequent to purchase. An "affidavit of damage signed by a gunsmith" will have no bearing on when the damage occurred.

I have no doubt of your integrity and your being on the moral high ground, but I would think you have missed your window of opportunity for redress. It is regrettable, but I suspect that the legal answer to "How much does my own practice of full disclosure entitle me to hold others to the standard that I impose upon myself?" is zero. We in the collecting community hold ourselves to standards of honesty, but when those standards are violated it is incumbent upon the victimized party to seek immediate and, if necessary and possible, public address of the wrongful actions.

I am not a lawyer so my opinion is worth nothing. But, I have been on the wrong side of transactions enough times to know that it doesn't always favor the good guy. Good luck on whatever you decide to do.