Stocks, bonds, CDs, index funds, crypto, gold, silver, oil. After retiring from financial services after 18+ years five years ago I still get people asking me the same, tired question: With our current economic climate, high interest rates, an over leveraged stock market, unaffordable housing, high inflation, AI, uncertainty about the job market/economy, etc. what's a safe investment?





Guns, bullets, powder, primers, factory loaded ammo, MAGAZINES. For once I'm not going to have to explain why to this group. That is all.

I’ve been applying the alchemy of turning lead into gold in earnest since the first Obama administration. Here in Tennessee, our temporary house being smaller, I’ve moved the operation to my 16’ cargo trailer until our new place is built. I would encourage all to practice this alchemy too.

My wife is not a fan of the stock market and it's volatility. Every time she complaiins about the market I ask "so you're saying you want me to get out of the market and buy more guns and ammo?"

Ammo is the new gold.

A good friend bought a full-auto machine gun about 25 years ago. The real deal.

That thing is worth so damn much money now that I think it has outpaced most traditional investments.

My gunshow pard, and a fellow forum member, has a full auto. He had 2 but sold one and bought a Mustang convertible.

As for me, the stock mkt ben berry berry good to me

Invest in 'Precious Metals'...Copper, Brass & Lead, as well as Ordinance Steel and other exotic precious metal alloys!

quote:

Originally posted by radioman:
A good friend bought a full-auto machine gun about 25 years ago. The real deal.

That thing is worth so damn much money now that I think it has outpaced most traditional investments.

In 1982 I could have bought a full auto MP5 with tax stamp for less than 1000.00 IIRC. last time I looked that same gun was selling for around 40,000.00. I stopped following prices somewhere in the second Obasm administration. For the same amount of money I spent on my muscle car in the years before the Hughes amendment, I could have bought 10 MP5s. If I do the math it makes my blood pressure elevate like Buford T Justice. 9x40 if I sold them at the prices from last I checked, is 360,000.00 woulda, shoulda….

As I (we) get older, it’s important to keep time value in mind as we evaluate purchases/ investments. So you paid $200 for some gun in 1985, and now it’s worth $1000 and you’re feeling pretty good about yourself. BUT, if you had put that $200 in an S&P index fund, it would now be worth $5000.

To be fair, that gun you bought and shot and enjoyed for all that time WAS a better “investment” than that cruise you went on or that trampoline that’s now gone or worthless. I’m not telling anyone not to buy, shoot, and enjoy guns. But we have to be very careful in evaluating what may or may not have been a good investment.

Take the aforementioned $1k MP5s in 1982, now worth $40k.

The same $1k invested in a S&P 500 index fund between January 1982 and January 2024 - with dividends reinvested - would now be worth over $100k (not counting taxes/fees/etc.).

So more than 2x MP5s. Almost 3x.

I've gotta say, the market has been very good to me too. Past performance doesn't guarantee future performance.

I just keep a stash for bartering in case. Nobody cares about a $40k anything when the SHTF, it will be just as valuable as a gen3 G19

quote:

Originally posted by darthfuster:

quote:

Originally posted by radioman:
A good friend bought a full-auto machine gun about 25 years ago. The real deal.

That thing is worth so damn much money now that I think it has outpaced most traditional investments.

In 1982 I could have bought a full auto MP5 with tax stamp for less than 1000.00 IIRC. last time I looked that same gun was selling for around 40,000.00. I stopped following prices somewhere in the second Obasm administration. For the same amount of money I spent on my muscle car in the years before the Hughes amendment, I could have bought 10 MP5s. If I do the math it makes my blood pressure elevate like Buford T Justice. 9x40 if I sold them at the prices from last I checked, is 360,000.00 woulda, shoulda….

Guns and ammo are generally a horrible investment. Yes, you can't throw your 401K at a deer or burglar, but $10,000 in the S&P 500 in 1982 would be over a million dollars today:

https://www.officialdata.org/u...t=10000&endYear=2023

quote:

Originally posted by BigSwede:
I just keep a stash for bartering in case. Nobody cares about a $40k anything when the SHTF, it will be just as valuable as a gen3 G19

I’m not sure that bartering with firearms and ammunition would work for very long. Once the word gets out that you have them, someone with more firepower will come for them. Maintaining a low profile would be preferable,IMO.

I put these together today. 200 grain Hornady ELDX. Should be cruising along at 3050 fps or so. Ya can't have too much gold...

The key word in the question is "safe." I've never lost money buying anything gun related. Granted I don't buy brand new firearms, always gently used, low rounds or safe queens. AR15 30 round magazines? I made 1000-1500% selling them during the Sandy Hook hysteria. I started reloading right before Sandy Hook and even at the higher cost of reloading components, primers, powder, etc back then, I've made 300-400% selling off some of my supply in the last year or so.


Over the years I've sold off guns I had no use for. Worse case I'd break even and I think that happened one time selling it to a friend. All of the guns I buy are well maintained and I get the enjoyment of using them till I'm ready to move on.


I'm not proposing anyone over exposes themselves to anything in particular, however with the current economic climate I believe it to be prudent to add a little more of these types of "investments" to the portfolio. That is all.