I have heard it said before that custom guns aren't worth much except to the original owner. Now to the point: are semi-customs, like the Cooper and Dakota, able to hold their value after field use. I know a person will loose some because it's inevitable that something will get scratched, but will a guy be able to get back a substantial portion of the original purchase price?

There was a price comparison on the Oregon Kimbers in a recent issue of Gun List. The general opinion was that they had basically held their own, but had not increased in value as one might expect. So you weren't losing money, but you weren't making any either. I can't say about the Coopers and Dakotas but that's a start.

Oregon Kimbers will continue to be worth some money. They like Pre-64 M70 rifles have a cult status. Some were nice, some were shit, all are worth something to the right person.

Dakotas are the same, wood on newer Dakotas is shitty!

A new Kimber isn't a semi-custom rifle. It's a factory rifle.

A custom shop factory rifle from Remington, Winchester, or Weatherby will be worth more than most used Oregon Kimbers. Some are custom some are semi-custom some are shit.

For the price of a Dakota you can get a full on custom rifle used from one of the big dealers like http://www.westleyrichards.com http://www.champlinarms.com http://www.hallowellandco.com http://www.griffinhowe.com

Thanx for the advice guys.