I bought a Beeman 250 in .20 caliber in 1982 at the Beeman San Rafael, CA location for $162.42. It had been discontinued and sitting for sale in their showroom/office. I had recently bought a FWB 124D, loved it, and was trying to follow the hype that Beeman was making over new guns in .20 caliber. So I bought it.
Now , after 41 years, I've learned that this .20 cal rifle was from the first and only lot of Beeman 250 .20 cal ever produced--and the first production .20 rifles ever made. Apparently, this .20 caliber Beeman 250 even predated Beeman's foray into the experimental Beeman R5 (.20 cal). From what I can read, this .20 caliber was in a lot of only 40 (some confusing references say 60) ever produced!
When Dr. Beeman wrote his artical on "For the Record: Rare Beeman Guns" he called this rilfe "extremely rare"; and in another article, "The Most Collectible Airguns of the Twentieth Century, he listed it as "highly desirable". And finally, in his article about the Beeman R5, he says “They are now among some the most desirable collectors’ items of adult airguns.”
I was blown away by all this hype. But was it only hype? When I looked it up in the 2020 Blue Book of Airguns 13th Ed., it was valued, at most, at $440.
I am now very confused about this rifle: do I have a very valuable vintage airgun? Are there actually any collectors interested in the very first .20 production air rifle? Or, do I have a 40 year-old nice, nostalgic, historic rifle...worth maybe $400.
I think all of us have guns that we love to think are "really worth something", but are actually just a treasure for our own enjoyment and imagination. And its external value is only what some other person, if any, is willing to pay....as always.
Now , after 41 years, I've learned that this .20 cal rifle was from the first and only lot of Beeman 250 .20 cal ever produced--and the first production .20 rifles ever made. Apparently, this .20 caliber Beeman 250 even predated Beeman's foray into the experimental Beeman R5 (.20 cal). From what I can read, this .20 caliber was in a lot of only 40 (some confusing references say 60) ever produced!
When Dr. Beeman wrote his artical on "For the Record: Rare Beeman Guns" he called this rilfe "extremely rare"; and in another article, "The Most Collectible Airguns of the Twentieth Century, he listed it as "highly desirable". And finally, in his article about the Beeman R5, he says “They are now among some the most desirable collectors’ items of adult airguns.”
I was blown away by all this hype. But was it only hype? When I looked it up in the 2020 Blue Book of Airguns 13th Ed., it was valued, at most, at $440.
I am now very confused about this rifle: do I have a very valuable vintage airgun? Are there actually any collectors interested in the very first .20 production air rifle? Or, do I have a 40 year-old nice, nostalgic, historic rifle...worth maybe $400.
I think all of us have guns that we love to think are "really worth something", but are actually just a treasure for our own enjoyment and imagination. And its external value is only what some other person, if any, is willing to pay....as always.
