3 Guns I Let Get Away: Which Purchases Have You Passed On and Regretted Later?

A Winchester Pre-64 Model 70 in .300 H&H. Photograph via Cabela's

The best way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it, as Oscar Wilde observed. And this has been my motto when it comes to purchasing guns. I see one I like, my id takes over, and, presto, my bank account is empty.

But, I don’t always indulge this urge…and I’ve lived to regret it. Looking back, there are a handful of guns that I am sad to say I let slip away. There was a lovely pre-’64 Model 70 in .300 H&H that I passed on at one point because of the “inflated” prices those Winchester’s command, and I’ve never forgiven myself.

There was also a Smith & Wesson Model 57 in .41 Rem. Magnum that I owned, which I convinced myself to get rid of. My logic was sound. I didn’t shoot it much, favoring instead the .44s in my collection. But logic won’t heal my heart, which still pines for that sweet wheel gun. 

Lastly, there was the time when I was teen when I was down at my local gun store—a favorite destination of mine—and got to handle the then-brand-new Freedom Arms Model 83 in .454 Casull. I kept thumbing back the hammer, listening to the perfect series of clicks the action made as the cylinder rotated, wondering how on earth I could come up with the $600 it cost. That was a puzzle I never solved…and good luck finding one for anything approaching that price today.

Which guns have eluded you?