Pete
That is the same gun RIA had. And I don't have the sale prices but I thought it went for over $1500 and under $2000. Pre sale estimate was something like $1400 to $1800 and I thought it ended up on the high side. But my memory could be faulty. It often is. LOL
If it did sell for under $1000, I should have bought it!
Your pics are of the gun MikeeJ had. I believe that gun had a 45xxx serial number and the gun belonging to the friend of the OP is 47xxx.
I have top view pics of both MikeeJ's gun and the RIA gun. There are some very small imperfections in the metal around the top lever that are the same for both guns. I'm guessing he's the one who won the auction.
Going back to the original question, what I am not clear on is what, if anything, has happened to the US market over the last 12-18 months. I see a lot of the same guns so I am assuming it's soft but I don't know if pricing has changed much. The two don't always go hand in hand. Canada has not been hit quite as hard as south of the border.
Most of my Piepers were purchased before 2008, although I picked one up from a fellow poster on this site last month. It's a 16 gauge, identical to another one I have, but with much less engraving. I was waffling on it until I noticed the serial number was 3 numbers away from mine. I get a chuckle imagining the two of them moving down Pieper's assembly line together and ending up with me 90 years later.
Regards,
James
