Cartridge slide from Gimbels.

[dwh]

I was looking through my leather box for a better way to to carry 32-20's, than the 2x2x2 I had been using. I found a cartridge slide from Gimbels of all places. It's must have been in the box I inherited from my uncle. Gimbels went out of business in 1987. Im guessing it's from the 60's or 70's. It has no other markings other than a stamped 38. It's a cool throwback.

 

[Dave Baird]

I grew-up with Gimbels. Always a great department store! Had no idea they sold gun stuff! Cool.

 

[31FordA]

I remember Gimbel's, I've even got a book about the history of the company around here somewhere. I also don't recall Gimbel's selling firearms related merchandise, at least not at the ones I went to in Philly in the '70s and '80s.

 

[WR Moore]

I recall visits to the Pittsburgh Gimbel's as a child. I'd sneak away from mom to visit the hunting department. They apparently filled the Abercrombie & Fitch niche in Pittsburgh. Very impressed by the cape buffalo mount. Alas, the hunting department went away sometime after I became an adult.

At least one of the 3 major downtown department stores had a LE section as wife #1 bought me a pair of sap gloves their for our first Christmas.

 

[dwh]

Kauffman's in Pittsburgh also had a hunting section. The same uncle who I got the slide from bought a model 94 there. He told me his mother sent to Kauffman's with her Store credit card to buy a new school coat. He wisely purchased a brand new 1962 Winchester 94 32spl. instead. Oh how times have changed. Selling a 16 year old kid a rifle, sitting at bus stop with the rifle, riding on a city bus with the rifle. No cops no swat teams no 30 block shelter in place order. Just a kid that wanted to hunt with a better rifle than he had. Joes gone now but he was one of the most unique and colorful people I've ever known.

 

[WR Moore]

Now that you mention it, might have been Kaufmans. Hornes and one other of the big three department stores in those days were real close to each other. The one with the truly impressive hunting department was further down toward the point. Liberty Ave?

 

[Dave Baird]

Joseph Hornes was the closet department store to the point, at the end of Penn and Stanwix. Gimbels and Kaufmanns were more in the center of downtown, off of Smithfield. Great story! I doubt we'll ever see days like that again.

 

[ghawke]

Talking about odd places to buy guns or gun related stuff, I bought ammo at Woolworths in Milwauke, WI, gun cleaning kits from Kohls dept store, and a shotgun from J C Penney, 70's early 80's.

 

[chief38]

There was a 6 floor Gimbles in Jamaica Queens. As a kid we used to slide down the escalator handrails from the top floor to the basement. Seemed like lots of fun at the time! When I got older they were forced out of business by the lower and cheaper end stores.

 

[DWalt]

Talking about odd places to buy guns or gun related stuff, I bought ammo at Woolworths in Milwauke, WI, gun cleaning kits from Kohls dept store, and a shotgun from J C Penney, 70's early 80's.

Many discount stores plus Sears, Wards, and Penney's, had sporting goods departments that sold guns, ammo, and other shooting supplies into the 70s and 80s. Not so many do today, I think WalMart has pretty well stopped in most stores, at least those around me. One place I lived in West Texas had both a grocery supermarket and a Walgreens drug store with very good hunting and gun departments. The supermarket even carried a decent line of reloading supplies.

 

[PapaWheelie]

Back in the 70's I worked part time in the sporting goods at Gimbles in Milwaukee on 27th street. If I remember correctly we sold shotguns and rifles but no handguns. I picked up my first real deer rifle, a Remington 788 for $129.00.

A couple months ago I bought my garrison .45 at a Holiday gas station

 

[dwh]

In my misguided youth around 12-13 we would buy a box of 22lr and a pack of cigarettes from GC Murphys. We would then appropriate a 22 rifle for a Saturday at the abandoned coal mine waste dump. Where we would hone our marksmanship skills on old bottles and mining equipment.it the same store I bought my first 22. I don't know how we made to adulthood.