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And who are those guys? "and the big playas make the rules and set the prices." Spell it out..name names...

It is Joe Blow bidding against Mortimer Jones that determines what is paid by Higgins. The Protalariate mass of people sets prices in a supply and demand situation. If you and everybody else thinks it is hot then prices go up. Pythons for instance, Colt don't make them anymore, they are a quality deluxe item and the Walking Dead featured one (which made popular culture aware of them).

Back in I think 05 I was at a Little John auction where he had a slew of Pythons in the mix. The guy sitting in front of me was a Dealer or at least an agent of one...he had every Python marked out and was bidding on them..he was paying no more than $600 for one and he was getting them cause no one else really wanted them that bad. This guy knew he could make a bit of money on em at the time, or maybe he had an eye to the future knowing that anything Colt was good as gold?

Why does Henry #6 go for 675K, cause #1 was Lincoln's, is in the Smithsonian and is made of unobtainium...supply and demand runs price, and price separates the men from the boys. In other words lots and lots of people would pay a few thousand for Henry #6 so the price goes up until one guy says I just cant go another dime.

The mass of buyers drives prices, till only one guy is standing. YOu well know that you can have a one of a kind prototype that goes for practically nothing, why because no one wants it. So you need desirability with rarity to drive prices.

Who drives "desirability"..popular culture for one...Dirty Harry, Walking Dead

Davey Crockett and Daniel Boone TV series spiked interest in KY Rifles in the 50's and 60's.

"Saving Private Ryan"...and "Letters From Iwo Jima"...Spiked interest in WW2 US military and Japanese Military stuff...were they trying to spike the market, no they were making a WW2 movie.

Custers Last Stand has always captured the popular imagination, and as such the stuff which is in small supply goes for lots...So attachment to a important or notworthy historical event will drive prices...supply, demand/desirability.

Another thing that drives desirability is the old models of a marquee have already dried up in the market place and have gone out of sight ...Registered Mags have gone ballastic, so what is second best a 5 screw Pre Mdl 27, then a 4 Screw and then the 3 screws...next will be the 627's and then the Pre Locks. So people tend to collect what is still affordable, which then dries up in the market and spikes prices.

Also inflation or the cost of the new one drives up used prices.

Now the Blue Book comes along and posts prices paid, which reinforces them cause now everybody knows what he has is worth GOLD. People who have Blue Book in hand can now vett what they see...and price accordingly. If you care to notice some things actually go down in value cause their desirability or popularity has decreased or people are not wiling to pay that price. When a big collector dumps his collection he sometimes will flood the market..and prices drop. Single Shot rifles prices have declined because the collectors have grown old and are liquidating or are dying. Not only has demand dropped off but the supply has increased. The younger guys dont look twice at a SS or a antique muzzle loaders...they want Black evil spooons that shoot multiple rounds in seconds...Ouuuu.ouuuu