Legacy Recordkeeping and Labeling

[RufAnki]

Hi Everyone.

My father died in July, and as my mother and I weed our way through DOJ paperwork and selling his collection, I'd like to make some recommendations for making this process easier.

While a binder or spreadsheet with Manufacturer / Model / Serial number is helpful, there is other information we need that can help your survivors sell and process your collection.

Year of manufacture and year of purchase (did you buy it used or new?)

Note any changes or modifications done to the weapon. Did you change the trigger? Barrel? Sights? Was it re-blued?

Keep receipts for your modifications and purchases and write the model / serial number on each receipt. Gunsmiths seem to write the model, but not the serial number. If you have more than one of a model, this makes knowing which one was modified impossible.

If you keep original grips and original boxes outside the safe, please note that in your records.

Label which original grips go with which weapon. A simple string label through the screw holes will save your loved ones hours of time.

Keep the magazines with the pistol or at least bag them with a label. I know, this is a pain, but the alternative of trying to slide magazines into weapons to see which fits what is laborious.

Consider creating one master list and giving each weapon your own inventory number. A plastic, numbered file pouch with all receipts and information pertinent to that weapon will save hundreds of hours.

Photos are helpful, but if you have a large collection consider putting a string label with model / serial number / inventory number on it while it's in storage. Looking through a lot of weapons to see model and serial number takes a lot of time.

If you have a friend who was always interested in the weapon, note that on your list with contact information.

I'm sure others can contribute solutions and other thoughts.

[RandyD]

How inconsiderate of your father, to fail to categorize, file, and maintain copious notes, so you can maximize a profit from selling his collection upon his death. Sorry to hear that your father passed away.

[AreWeFree]

^I understand what you mean, and the OP does sound a little like that, but I don't think that's what he really means.

George Carlin said it best, "Ever notice how all of your **** is stuff, and everyone else's stuff is ****."
Make no mistake, pretty much the only one who cares about your stuff is you, and if you have a collection of something and are planning or creating a will, especially expecting your collection to be sold, it is smart to maximize potential return for your family.

I keep records similar to what the OP described for my own sake, but the OP outlined even more detail I hadn't thought of. (Mainly because my collection aren't "collectibles" where year, condition, original parts, etc matter.)

There must be a million things to take care of when your parent passes, I'm sure it's incredibly stressful during a tough time, so documenting your collectibles really would be a huge help.

Sorry for your loss OP, I do wish you the best.

[RufAnki]

How inconsiderate of your father, to fail to categorize, file, and maintain copious notes, so you can maximize a profit from selling his collection upon his death. Sorry to hear that your father passed away.

I'm not sure if this is a stab at me or my father, but thanks for taking a post designed to be informational and helpful as a complaint.

Most people haven't been through this process. In my case, my mother would like to move to a much smaller home, but can't do that with 4 full sized safes full of weapons. It's not a value problem, it's a speed problem. It took 2 months for DOJ to transfer the all the guns so we even could sell them. Now it's compiling information about each weapon for sale, which again means mom is stuck in the house.

"If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway." ~ Mother Teresa

[Garv]

Thanks OP.
I have a spreadsheet with most of that but will add a new column for mods. in case of need.
Sorry for your loss.

[RandyD]

I'm not sure if this is a stab at me or my father, but thanks for taking a post designed to be informational and helpful as a complaint.

Most people haven't been through this process. In my case, my mother would like to move to a much smaller home, but can't do that with 4 full sized safes full of weapons. It's not a value problem, it's a speed problem. It took 2 months for DOJ to transfer the all the guns so we even could sell them. Now it's compiling information about each weapon for sale, which again means mom is stuck in the house.

"If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway." ~ Mother Teresa

Your first post left an impression on me that you were self centered. Your second post provides more context. I am sorry, for being sarcastic towards you.

[71MUSTY]

Didn't you find the note? Your dad told me he was going to leave you a note to just call me and I'd come over and get everything.


J/K sort of. Sorry for your loss

[sonofeugene]

Don't think the 1st sounded self centered. Just a man going through his father's things and noting that the job could have been made easier by his father making some notes.

Most of us go through life without doing the things that will make it easier for our loved ones once we die. As an example, I've been meaning to list the things I'd like certain people to get when I die so there's no questions but it's been 25+ years now and I've not done it.

Good reminder, OP.

[Sharp Shooter]

Welcome to CALGUNS OP. As you can see some members can be quite snarky.

I think you posted great advise, especially for a collection as large as your Dad's seems to have been.

[Woolly]

Thanks to the OP for his post. It happens that my wife is asking a lot of questions about my gun collection, and what to do with them when I pass on. I am going to use your post as suggestions for organizing information about my collection to help reduce her confusion when they pass on to her. My poor wife doesn't know which gun on my list is a handgun or a long gun based solely on the name. She has asked me to label each gun so she can tell which is which. Thanks again for the excellent post.

[roc_my_tims]

Tag

[RufAnki]

Organized Safe

This is what the final organized safe looks like.
Each weapon is tagged with an Item number, Manufacturer and Model including barrel length, and Serial Number. Each item number corresponds to an item number on a spreadsheet. The spreadsheet corresponds the information on the tags as well as other notes such as if there is a box, if there were modifications, if the original grips are on the gun or if they're in the box or an alternative location, number of magazines, etc.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/6elttct4hzpvodz/IMG_2236%20copy.JPG?dl=0

[devilinblack]

This is actually a good idea. A friend of a friend of a guy I know out of state recently inherited some items that were sorted haphazardly by other relatives. The situation with missing mags, notes about having original grips, but no idea where the grips are, is an issue. Not a big issue obviously but on a much larger scale I could see it being a headache.