Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. And it bears mention that most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at investing in Colt Competition Rifles. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)
Precious Metals:
Michael Gayed, over at Seeking Alpha: From Poor Man’s Gold To Rich Man’s Gold. Here is a key quote:
“Over the past three months, the silver ETF (SLV) has outperformed the gold ETF (GLD) as demand for the precious metal rises.
Gold/silver ratio has reached new peaks of 89.6, which suggests that a strong rally in silver prices is impending.”
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“Pet Rock” Indeed: Bank of America Says Buy Gold As Central Banks Lose Control
Economy & Finance:
At Wolf Street: Near-Record Low Mortgage Rates No Relief for Dropping New House Prices
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How the Ecommerce Boom Crushes “Mall Retailers” One by One
Commodities:
Wind And Solar Gaining Edge Over Natural Gas. JWR’s Comment: I’m dubious about those figures. Methinks there could be more than one taxpayer-provideed subsidies involved.
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Shale Bleeds Cash Despite Best Quarter In Years
Forex & Cryptos:
The Great Currency Race: Who Will Win Global Reserve Status?
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Cryptos Just Collapsed As IRS Deadline Looms
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Scammers Move Hundreds of Bitcoin to Exchanges; Is a Dump Inbound? JWR’s Comment: Expect a bell to ring, the next time that BTC touches $12,000 USD. This selling may push BTC down to $8,000, or lower.\
Tangibles Investing:
I recently mentioned investing in Colt Model 6920 law enforcement pattern M4 carbines in this column. But you may not have heard that there are even more scarce and more accurate Colt ARs. These were assembled with mostly Colt parts, under a Colt licensing agreement by a now defunct company in Texas, called Colt Competition. These rifles, which carried special “CCR”-prefix serial numbers on their Colt-made lower receivers were guaranteed to shoot sub-MOA groups “right out of the box.” They were all shipped with individual test targets, to prove it. Sadly, Colt Competition went out of business in 2017, as one of the first casualties of the Trump Slump in the firearms industry. Their bankruptcy froze the number CCR-prefix rifles in circulation. So this left room for gun investors to make some money.
You will of course want to find Colt Competition rifles that are either in new or like new condition, and still in their original box, preferably with the serialized and laminated white test target “hang tag” tucked away in the box. Here is a link to a video showing a “CCR.” These rifles retailed for $1,400 and up, depending on handguard, barrel, scope mount, and scope options. The high end CCR specimens have heavy duty Warne scope mounts (often with “3-Gun” style BUIS offset bases), and a few came from the factory also equipped with Colt Competition-branded VX-R lit-reticle scopes. (Marked “Colt Competition” in white, up near the front lens.) One like that would probably be worth well in excess of $2,000. As the old saying goes: “They aren’t making any more of them.” So prices can only go up.
Provisos:
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News Tips:
Please send your economics and investing news tips to JWR. (Either via e-mail of via our Contact form.) These are often especially relevant, because they come from folks who closely watch specific markets. If you spot any news that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers, then please send it in. News from local news outlets that is missed by the news wire services is especially appreciated. And it need not be just about commodities and precious metals. Thanks!
With regard to the “Wind and Solar gaining an Edge”, I find the comment about lies, damn lies and statistics to be apt. When you drive past any number of wind farms and the three armed giants aren’t moving, when you drive past large solar arrays and many of the panels aren’t following the sun, I find it hard to believe they are the ‘future’ green energy source of any reliability. This last trip this summer involved around 4000 miles and that was my observation from multiple locations.
You must be absolutely right, JE. Following the link about the ‘economic edge’ of the newer sources of electricity >failed to mention the true total cost: =
1. The necessity of building a back-up fossil fuel power plant, that is needed when the >wind doesn’t blow and the >sun doesn’t shine. [Green Power in our society relies on fossil fuel = back-up power plants.]
2. Electricity is needed ~>24/7 in our modern society.
…A. With the current technology for storing electricity in batteries, in the >quantity to power cities, the ‘new’ green power ideas are comic book ideas; in terms of economics.
…B. Water can be pumped uphill with wind as a power source. The water would be released to be used as a power for electricity generation. = That idea is also a ‘comic book’ plan, as the facility would be huge and expensive.
3. Wind and Solar energy sources use the ‘economic slaves’ in Communist China, as the source of their ‘inexpensive’ components. [That poses a problem to people with a well formed conscience.] Plus, China is turning their country into a toxic waste dump, and polluting the earth’s oceans.
All this information is on the Internet. The true cost of ‘green energy’ is NOT cheap; it’s expensive.
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The cleanest and cheapest source of electricity seems to be through the use of >new Nuclear Power Plants. [It’s on the Internet]
But the RELIGION of ‘Green Energy’ considers Nuclear Power to be the Devil. … The devotees of the religion of ‘green energy’ want to force >all of us to pay for their false religion.
And that’s not even counting the cost of having to pay someone to take your solar power off your hands if you produce too much of it…
Here is a strategy to use the tax subsidies to fight the left from its carbon free agenda.
The power I use now is cheap since it’s hydroelectric but if or when the left gains control of political power than having a head start on making your own power will be huge.
With selling power to the grid and have backup and quiet power is another win-win strategy.
And the tax credit for this year is 30% but it still 28%-(estimates) going into 2020.
And if it looks Trump is going to lose than alternative in power is a wise course of action.
Wind And Solar Gaining Edge Over Natural Gas. JWR’s Comment: I’m dubious about those figures. Methinks there could be more than one taxpayer-provideed subsidies involved.
You are undoubtedly right. On the other hand, natural gas has been well subsidized for many years.
The hand of big government is not our friend, no matter who it favors.
Carry on
Fossil fuels receive very large subsidies (they have been buying politicians for a long time). Renewables receive some subsidies. I’ve never seen a robust report that pulls out all the subsidies in the US to calculate a real cost of energy. I have seen articles about how renewables are winning competitive contracts in underdeveloped countries that won’t have subsidies, contracts that are indifferent to the power source used to supply power. A good way to think about solar and wind is personal computers or phones. Wind and solar are a fairly new product in the mass market, sort of like the flip phones were or pentium computers were 30 years ago. Over time companies are investing and Universities are researching how to improve the performance of renewables (even hydropower is replaced to implement efficiency improvements). Today we carry computers in our hands. Similarly solar and wind are seeing steady improvements that produce more power in smaller spaces with a lower capital investment.