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Funding Your Gun Habit...

9K views 63 replies 21 participants last post by  Outsider 
#1 ·
Okay, so some of you may not have to worry about the money to buy all our fun little toys, but some of us that are still paying for college (like me!) how do you fund your gun habit? Just do, go donate plasma, eBay sells, what? Just wondering because you think about it, it does get expensive.
 
#2 ·
I picked up a 2nd job (just a few hours a week) and that helps out a ton ($100 a week for 8hrs of "work"). 3 months and you can buy almost any gun setup you want. Security and phone sales are always hiring and willing to work with your time. Ebay is just more time than it is worth (unless you have a lot of junk lying around). Plasma is only good for the occ ammo buy. Bartering is another good way. Do you have a skill? trade it for guns (web site building, basement framing, mechanic, landscaping,etc) A lot of people will trade something they don't use for what they need (aka gun for yard work).
 
#3 ·
My wife and I have worked very hard to learn to live within our means and actually be able to save a substantial amount of money every payday... she works full-time, I work VERY part-time and go VERY full-time to school... but, on any given pay-day if I choose to go shooting or buy something, I can (it just means less money in the bank that week).
 
#4 ·
I travel a lot, on the government's dime. Every trip there is a little bit of per diem money left, which I put on my travel card. When it gets built up enough, I cash it out and buy a toy. I was going to get my wife a Kitchenaid, but then I handled a Benelli Nova. They are about the same price, and one is a lot more fun!! :lol3:
 
#5 ·
Find a way to save 20 to 50 dollars per pay day that goes to your gun or toy fund. I purchased a rifle three years ago after saving about $25 a pay check and the wife was shocked when I brought it home. The key was to get it out of the bank before she spent it and keep the cash in a 'safe' place. I purchased a 1911 a year ago by putting it on a 90 day lay-a-way and then during my lunch break on each pay day I would go make a payment. It took three months but I got it.

If you are wondering how do you save X amount first look at your spending habits. How often do you go out to eat? What do you do for lunch at work? How many DVDs have you bought in the last year that you have only watched once or twice? My point is if you look at where your money goes you can find a way to save.

As for your wife if you are married, if you announce that you are saving for a firearm and she is not fully supportive she will find ways to spend all the money before you can save or more important things will come up like a new dining room table or curtains :nilly: . Just remember when you ask for forgiveness for a firearm purchase, make sure she cannot get to the ammo! :D
 
#6 ·
My wife said something along the lines of "you have to sell one of these before you buy another." So I asked if I could buy more stuff if I found a way to make some money using the guns. She said I could.

Now you know one of the reasons I decided to become a Utah CFP instructor. :wink:
 
#7 ·
It sounds kinda "duh!", but the real key to having money for toys is to never go into debt to buy them. If you consider all of the credit card interest that most people are paying, they could use that money for an awful lot of toys. I don't make a ton of money (I work for the university!), but the only debt we have is our home. I also drive a 10 year old car that I'm perfectly intent on driving into the ground. This allows us to live pretty well. When we want something new, we save for it - and it's much easier to do because we're not dumping our extra money into credit card bills or car interest each month.
 
#8 ·
MasLakas said:
As for your wife if you are married, if you announce that you are saving for a firearm and she is not fully supportive she will find ways to spend all the money before you can save or more important things will come up like a new dining room table or curtains :nilly: .
This is happening to me right now. I got a stripped AR lower and told my wife I wanted to build a gun. She said, "You can do it with the tax refund." Tax refund came, she put it right in the savings account and said, "You can do it with the stimulus check." Now we are buying a house and she says we need the stimulus money for paint and "house stuff." :x

Insisting that the gun will be kept in the house didn't help, either.
 
#9 ·
UtahCFP said:
My wife said something along the lines of "you have to sell one of these before you buy another." So I asked if I could buy more stuff if I found a way to make some money using the guns. She said I could.

Now you know one of the reasons I decided to become a Utah CFP instructor. :wink:
When you become a Utah CFP instructor can you teach classes whenever you want or do you have to do it through an organization?

T-Man said:
MasLakas said:
As for your wife if you are married, if you announce that you are saving for a firearm and she is not fully supportive she will find ways to spend all the money before you can save or more important things will come up like a new dining room table or curtains :nilly: .
This is happening to me right now. I got a stripped AR lower and told my wife I wanted to build a gun. She said, "You can do it with the tax refund." Tax refund came, she put it right in the savings account and said, "You can do it with the stimulus check." Now we are buying a house and she says we need the stimulus money for paint and "house stuff." :x

Insisting that the gun will be kept in the house didn't help, either.
LoL! That is funny indeed. Sorry man.
 
#10 ·
Outsider said:
When you become a Utah CFP instructor can you teach classes whenever you want or do you have to do it through an organization?
Whenever you want, though I think the guys that do the regularly scheduled classes rake in a whole lot more than me. ;)

On the other hand, my overhead is pretty low.
 
#11 ·
Since I don't have a significant other, I thought it wouldn't be too much of a problem. Then I did some calculations and I found my gun habit is nothing compared to another habit. So I guess it is a matter of perspective.

ian
 
G
#12 ·
apollosmith said:
When we want something new, we save for it - and it's much easier to do because we're not dumping our extra money into credit card bills or car interest each month.
+ a zillion

Credit score 812 :shock:
Last car 10k cash
#of credit cards 2
# of bank accounts 5
Average CC debt >300.00 internet purchases only and a store card I should just shut off.
Liquid assets around 20K

The money we have, pays us. The debit we have costs us up 10x what the bank is likely to pay us in interest.
 
G
#13 ·
Seems to me if you are paying for college, you have answered your own question. It is a matter of priorities. Drop Out. College won't save you if you need to defend yourself. Ok, Just kidding, don't drop out. We need educated, intelligent gun owners. You could misappropriate federal grants and loans. They have lower interest than a Credit Card :lol3:

I have struck a bargain w/ my wife that I get to keep the money from any overtime I work. And I keep the extra money I am given to go grocery shopping each week if I don't spend it on groceries, this makes me very frugal when I shop 8) Although she might get wise to it if you eat Ramen most of the time.

I also agreed that when I have saved enough to get my M1A and an Ar of some sort, I will then save for her to upgrade her wedding ring. I get what I want, she gets what she wants. We have a bargain that I can spend as much on guns as she spends on Jewelery, it's the gift that keeps on giving.

Of course, there is also the idea of a part time job to support a habit.
 
#14 ·
Yeah, I was toying with the idea of picking up a few evening shifts for my security company, head up to Salt Lake and see if I can't get into trouble... I mean get some work, there. I'm trying to get into the Bail Bounty and Executive Protection stuff too with the company. Good money there, though a little more dangerous.
 
G
#15 ·
sculptingmyguns said:
Seems to me if you are paying for college, you have answered your own question. It is a matter of priorities. Drop Out. College won't save you if you need to defend yourself. Ok, Just kidding, don't drop out. We need educated, intellegent gun owners. You could misappropriate federal grants and loans. They have lower interest than a Credit Card :lol3:
Did you mean intelligent? :D

I am double dipping in rare program that allows it the feds buy my books and pay my tuition, and the VA gives me my MGIB!

Not fantastic money but, I will take it
 
#16 ·
I joined the national guard

300 a month and about 3000 for summer camp. Plus i get to shoot 155mm guns yeah baby
 
#17 ·
T-Man said:
I got a stripped AR lower and told my wife I wanted to build a gun. She said, "You can do it with the tax refund." Tax refund came, she put it right in the savings account and said, "You can do it with the stimulus check." Now we are buying a house and she says we need the stimulus money for paint and "house stuff." :x

Insisting that the gun will be kept in the house didn't help, either.
I need an AR lower! Who has the best prices on them? With all of the extra parts that I have from upgrading mine, heck I might as well get a lower and a barrel to build another AR "for the kids" (and I better do it during this administration while the prices are reasonable)... ;)
 
#19 ·
Ruger Collector said:
I need an AR lower! Who has the best prices on them? With all of the extra parts that I have from upgrading mine, heck I might as well get a lower and a barrel to build another AR "for the kids" (and I better do it during this administration while the prices are reasonable)... ;)
I got mine from Rainier Arms for about $100, but I saved some money becaues it was part of a 3-pack. And it was ordered with a military discount. Of course you have to have it shipped to an FFL, and pay the transfer fee.
 
#21 ·
Hedonistic, I'm interested in participating in a group buy on an AR... if you get something together with a few others, let me know.
 
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#22 ·
hedonistic said:
sculptingmyguns said:
Seems to me if you are paying for college, you have answered your own question. It is a matter of priorities. Drop Out. College won't save you if you need to defend yourself. Ok, Just kidding, don't drop out. We need educated, intellegent gun owners. You could misappropriate federal grants and loans. They have lower interest than a Credit Card :lol3:
Did you mean intelligent? :D

I am double dipping in rare program that allows it the feds buy my books and pay my tuition, and the VA gives me my MGIB!

Not fantastic money but, I will take it
Hedonistic, I don't recall including myself in the group of educated, intelligent owners, just said I thought we needed them. :D
 
#25 ·
marksman said:
Pardon my ignorance but I know jack about AR's. What's important about the lower? If there is another gun ban will all the parts be hard to come by or just some?
The lower receiver is the only part on an AR that has the serial number on it, which ATF defines as the "firearm." Everything else is just parts and you can have them shipped to your house, no FFL required.

As to what parts will be hard to get in case of a Brady Bunch re-run, I don't know. That will have to be determined by the bill itself.
 
#26 ·
T-Man said:
As to what parts will be hard to get in case of a Brady Bunch re-run, I don't know. That will have to be determined by the bill itself.
So if the same law gets passed as last time and has the same effects on the market and I buy a stripped lower now I would I be able to get parts later. I'm asking because I'm in no place right now to spend 1500 on an AR but I might want one later. I'm concerned however that if I wait until the next administration takes over that I'll be out of luck. So if it happens again this time like it did last and I bought a stripped lower now could I put together a whole gun later?
 
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