Value guide
What is my Intratec worth?
Intratec's pistols are collected today for a reason that has nothing to do with how they shoot: the 1994 federal ban named them, production changed to comply, and the company closed in 2001. That froze the supply of the earlier configuration, and the market has priced it that way ever since.
No page can price your gun, and any page that offers to is guessing. What this one does is show you the things that decide the number, so you can look at what you have and know whether you’re holding something ordinary or something worth a proper look.
Before the ban or after it
The original TEC-9 was renamed the TEC-DC9 in 1990, and after the 1994 federal ban the company produced the AB-10 — literally After Ban — without the threaded barrel and shipped with lower-capacity magazines. Pre-ban guns in their original configuration, with the threaded barrel and the barrel shroud, are the ones with a premium. A post-ban AB-10 is the same basic pistol and a different market. The model name is stamped on the frame and is the first thing to read.
The models that turn up, and what they mean
| Model | Made | What it means for value |
|---|---|---|
| TEC-9 | 1985–1990 | The original name and configuration. The earliest production is the scarcest. |
| TEC-DC9 | 1990–1994 | Renamed version of the same pistol. Still pre-ban configuration, and the most commonly found of the collectible ones. |
| AB-10 | 1994–2001 | Post-ban production without the threaded barrel. Ordinary money compared with the earlier guns. |
| TEC-22 Scorpion | 1988–1990s | The .22 rimfire version, made in smaller numbers and often overlooked. |
| Mini TEC-9 and TEC-38 | various | Shorter and less common variants that need identifying properly rather than lumping in with the standard gun. |
What to check before anybody makes you an offer
- The model name stamped on the frame: TEC-9, TEC-DC9 or AB-10.
- Whether the barrel is threaded and whether the shroud is present, which is the visible pre-ban and post-ban difference.
- The magazines that came with it, and their capacity.
- The original box and manual, which survive far less often than the pistols.
And the two rules that apply to every gun on this page:don’t clean it, and keep the box and papers. Removing original finish is permanent, and on the right gun the packaging is a real fraction of the total.
"It is an ugly cheap gun, nobody wants it"
They were inexpensive when new and they are not finely made, and none of that is what sets the price now. Scarcity does. The company is gone, the pre-ban configuration cannot be made again, and collectors of 1980s and 1990s firearms want them. Families clearing a house routinely price these as junk and they are frequently worth several times that.
Is it legal for me to sell one?
That depends on the configuration and on the laws of your state, and it is not a question to take from a page that wants to buy your guns. We are a licensed dealer and we will tell you plainly what we can and cannot take, and where a transfer has to go through somebody in your state. Ask before you move it anywhere.
Model by model
- What is my Intratec TEC-9 worth? (1985–2001)
Getting an actual number
Condition, originality and configuration decide it, and none of the three can be judged from a description. Send photos and we’ll make you an offer, wherever you are in the country. It comes itemized, showing what we’ll pay for each firearm, so you can see how the number is built instead of being handed one figure for the pile.
Related: what determines value on any gun ·how to sell a collection ·you inherited firearms
Worth reading alongside this
Police trade-in guns — department markings and what they do to the value. Engraved guns — factory grade or added later, and why the difference is most of the money. What determines value on any firearm.
Other makers
Winchester, Remington, Colt, Smith & Wesson, Marlin, Browning, Ruger, military surplus rifles, Glock, Beretta, Savage, Mossberg, Ithaca, Walther and SIG Sauer.