I've done both, sell guns to pawn shops and privately. If you want the most amount of cash for a gun, I recommend selling privately. If the pawn shop has a gun you're interested in, then I would see what they'll offer for your gun(s). I recently traded several 22 short rifles and a 30-30 that was beat up and wouldn't cycle too well for a new smith 629 5". It cost me $250 out of pocket for the gun.