Buying from Us
How to register, bid, pay and collect at a Lonsdales auction.
Buying from Our Auction
You must have the appropriate authority to buy Sect 1, 2 & 5 items at our auction.
UK buyers must have a valid certificate/licence to purchase the item on which they wish to bid with the appropriate authority to possess the firearms which they intend to purchase as required under the Firearms Act.
Lots listed as S1 will not be delivered to purchasers nor collected without production of a valid United Kingdom Firearms Certificate with the appropriate authority or an R.F.D. Certificate.
Lots listed as S2 will not be delivered to purchasers nor collected without production of a valid United Kingdom Shotgun Certificate or R.F.D. Certificate.
Conditions
The over-arching caveat remains ‘Buyer Beware’ and no warranty or guarantee of condition or functionality is given. However, we believe that trying to ensure that consignments are described as accurately as possible is vital in maintaining buyers’ confidence especially where they are bought over the internet from our photographs and condition reports alone. There is still no substitute for coming and having a good mooch over the racks.
These assessments are based on the US NRA Gun Condition Standards. These are assessed in three areas – Metalwork, Finish and Wood (including other stock/furniture materials). The finish is assessed separately as wear could be due to other factors (ie acid sweat could remove blueing very quickly) and would not have had an impact on the underlying metalwork. A finish can, in most cases, be easily rectified. These are purely subjective opinions and those of the auction staff and are purely to assist buyers assess a lot and again, offer no guarantee.
Choke measurements are always approximate unless specifically measured with a bore gauge.
Metal
- A New All original, untouched
- B Excellent Used but very little sign. Limited fine scratches
- C Very Good Some wear. Edges sharp. More expansive fine scratches, some silvering, minor burrs, marks sharp
- D Good Obvious wear. Edges rounded in places. Minor dents. Local, light pitting, marks worn
- E Fair Light, more extensive pitting, with localised deeper pitting, marks very worn,
- F Poor Extensive deep pitting, some parts needing replacement, marks difficult to read,
Finish
- A New 100% All original, untouched.
- B Excellent 95% All original, very localised wear
- C Very Good 80% Still localised, more expansive, some silvering to edges
- D Good 60% General wear, silvering to edges
- E Fair 30% Expansive wear
- F Poor <30% Obviously little remaining
Wood
- A New All original, untouched
- B Excellent Used but very little sign. Limited fine scratches. Can easily be polished out
- C Very Good More expansive light scratches, finish worn locally, some dings – easily restored
- D Good Some dents, more dings. Deeper scratches.
- E Fair Expansive dings, more dents, small crack
- F Poor Badly scratched, cracked, broken, bits missing.
Barrels
For shotguns, please see the specific measurements for gauge, wall thickness and chambers. Any damage will be noted in the condition report
Rifle Barrel
- A New All original
- B Excellent Some copper wash, very minor, occasional light frosting
- C Very Good Rifling crisp, more light frosting
- D Good Some rounding of the rifling, widespread frosting to light pitting
- E Fair Extensive pitting, rifling worn
- F Poor Little or no rifling
Wood – Dings and Dents
- Dings are where the wood is marked and can easily be repaired ie by steaming, There is no damage to the fibres of the wood
- Dents are where the fibres of the wood have been broken / torn and the damage would need significantly more work to repair
Function
No consignments are tested to ensure functionality. However, if a component is obviously not working ie. a hammer stuck, then this would be noted in the condition report.
Buyer’s premium and the final price you have to pay
All purchases are subject to a buyer’s premium of 25% plus VAT. When you successfully bid on any lot, the price you pay will be your winning bid plus the buyer’s premium.
Additional commission of between 3 and 6 % is payable if your winning bid is via an internet platform
Register for a Sale
To bid at Lonsdales for the first time you will need to create an account, which can be done by creating an account online or by telephoning us. You only need to provide your name and address.
Once you have an account with us, you will simply need to log in to bid in each sale.
Live internet bidding
Bidding live on our website is the easiest way to bid. Once registered, log in to your account and move to the auction. A preview screen will count down prior to the opening of the auction. For live sales there will be a live video feed from the room which will appear on the screen. As bids are placed the bidding button on the screen will automatically change to the next bid increment until the standard count down to the hammer.
Online absentee bids
If you would like to leave a absentee bid on our website you can do so up until an hour before on each auction day. This is proving the most popular way to bid especially with our automatic auctions (Ammunition & Accessories) as it effectively acts as a timed sale with email notifications should you be outbid.
Absentee bids – email/post
The easiest way is via the website. However, we are happy to bid on your behalf and attempt to purchase the lot for you at the lowest price, allowing for other bids and any reserve price up to your maximum bid. Absentee bids can be left in person at our saleroom, emailed directly to us at enquiries@lonsdales-auctioneers.com (please ensure that you supply us with your full name, postal address, email address, and contact numbers to enable us to register your bids) or via our website. Your bid will always be confirmed by email, so please contact us if you do not receive this.
Absentee bids can be left up to half an hour before the start of any sale. Please note when we receive two or more absentee bids for the same lot at the same bid amount, we will prioritise the first bid received.
Telephone bidding
For telephone bids, we will contact you a few lots before your item comes up for sale and a member of our saleroom staff will bid live with you over the phone. All requests for telephone bidding must be made by email 48 hours before the start of each sale day and must include your full details as per the Absentee Bidding paragraph above.
Automatic Sales
These are proving a very popular format and an alternative to a standard timed sale. Lots always end in numerical order with a run rate of 120 lots per hour. Bidding will open at the start price or lowest absentee bid (if placed) and will go up by standard increments eg if a max absentee bid of £100 has been placed on an item starting at £50 and there is only one other bid at £60 then the item will be won for £70.
Methods of payment
Payment is accepted by cash, bank transfer, credit or debit card. We accept cash to an upper limit of £10,000. We will only release goods to a third party upon receipt of identification and authority from the purchaser.
Collection
Buyers are urged to arrange collection within 10 working days of the auction after which period risk of loss passes to the buyer. Instructions for shipping and delivery to a shipper or Firearms dealer must be received by this time.
All lots that remain uncollected after 28 days will be subject to storage charges of £1 per day (plus VAT) unless instructions have been received or alternative arrangements have been made.
Postage
Postage Rates (inc VAT) up to 25kg are
UK Mainland Sect 1/2 £48
N Ireland £65
Highlands & Islands £80
Unrestricted Items £19
Firearms can be sent to a UK RFD only. On receipt of your invoice, please inform us of your requirement for your items to be shipped and we will forward an amended invoice.
Depending on your Police Force’s guidance, private buyers resident within the UK may either:
send their certificate to us for completion, the goods sent to a receiving RFD and the certificate presented on collection.
or
the goods will be forwarded to a receiving RFD who will record the transaction as part of the transfer.
Please confirm with your receiving RFD.
Airguns – pre-1939 airguns can be sent to a private address as unrestricted item.
Modern Airguns are treated as Sect 1/2 and must be sent to a receiving RFD via Parcelforce on the Firearms contract.
Obsolete Calibre must be sent via Parcelforce on the firearms contract but can be sent to a private address.
International Customers
Please contact us for details of our agent who handles all our overseas shipping.
Information Re Sporting Arms – Sect 1 & 2
All guns, rifles and ammunition will only be released with the appropriate certificate (with the appropriate variation for Firearms) be it Firearms or Shotgun. Overseas certificates are not valid in the U.K. Firearms will be released by appointment only.
Antique and Obsolete Calibres – Sect 58
Antique and obsolete calibre weapons are sold under Section 58(2) of the 1968 Firearms Act expressly as Antiques and Curios only, they must not be fired and ammunition must not be possessed. Please note that by bidding on these items you declare that you are not a prohibited person as defined by Section 21 of the 1968 Firearms Act and that you are over 18 years of age.
Private Buyers
As part of the registration for each sale we will confirm that appropriate authority is held prior to bidding. Should you win, please send your FAC / SGC to us for confirmation after which we will forward your invoice for payment. Once received, we will complete the FAC / SGC entry and dispatch your items.