Gun Auctions - Help a Novice Understand!

[Brett Trimble]

I’ve been watching a couple of recent gun auctions and would like to benefit from the experienced here. A couple of observations and questions..

Descriptions of vintage shotguns often do not include basic information like minimum barrel wall thickness, assessment of the hinge for evidence of it being loose, a barrel “ring” test for loose ribs, etc.

Despite this, I see lots of pre-auction bids. Do people look over the guns in person before bidding on-line?

Do the knowledgeable folks here only bid after an in-person inspection?

Best,
Brett