Finally found a Shield!

[AFrost20]

I have been looking for a Shield in 9 or 40 for the better part of 8 months now. I use the word "looking" loosely as I have not put a lot of effort into it other than checking my local stores and big box places a couple times a month and looking online here and there.

Earlier this week I had a couple hours to burn in between meetings, so I popped into the Gander Mountain near my house that recently went through a big renovation to become a "Gun World" version.....they have touted it as the largest gun store in Ohio and I believe it. Easily the biggest selection I have ever seen. I was looking at the case in the S&W section......the clerk came by, asked if I needed anything and I originally said no that I was just looking (no shields to be found in the case). I stopped him before he walked away and asked him how long it had been since they had a Shield in. He was like "I have a 9mm in back". I couldn't tell him to go grab it fast enough. Rest is history. I paid 415 plus tax. The process was super fast too.....I was in and out in 15min max. They earned a return customer for sure.

The manager said while I was checking out that they get 3-4 in per week, but that they are usually gone within a couple hours. I definitely just got lucky and had good timing. Couldn't be happier though!

 

[Rgoodwin]

You make your own luck. Good on you!

 

[Lawdwaz]

Congrats on the new gun!

Tell me more about this new concept Gander Mountain....

 

[AFrost20]

Congrats on the new gun!

Tell me more about this new concept Gander Mountain....

They came in and completely renovated the store. It is basically a huge gun-only focused GM store. The camping, hiking, etc. stuff is all gone. The gun case goes all the way down the right of the store, across the back, and halfway down the left side. The gun case stops, then there is a huge "ammo world" with a huge ammo selection. They also put in about 10 stalls at the end of the gun case for you to electronically fill out the background check and all the other paper work.

I know they don't always have the greatest prices, but the store is pretty impressive.

 

[Fatdaddy]

That's a good price for a Shield in the current market.
Gander Mtn., from my experience is usually $75-$100 higher than most other GS I frequent.
The Shield is a great gun, I love mine.
It's like a plastic Lightweight Defender.

 

[jeepmcd]

I have been hearing about the new Gander Store but I haven't stopped in yet. Its only 10 mins down the road so it looks like I gotta take a look. I guess I assumed that it would be a large empty guns store rather than just an empty gun department.

 

[AFrost20]

I have been hearing about the new Gander Store but I haven't stopped in yet. Its only 10 mins down the road so it looks like I gotta take a look. I guess I assumed that it would be a large empty guns store rather than just an empty gun department.

I would recommend stopping in and checking it out. I honestly prefer dealing with a LGS like NA Shooting Range in New Albany, but they struggle getting new guns in, and all the LGS in central OH have raised their prices up to the same as the big box stores like GM and Cabelas. Vance's has good prices and selection, but I'll pay 40 bucks more to not have to wait 3+ hours at MINIMUM to make a purchase.

 

[2tango2]

Better to be lucky than good sometimes


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[RGriff69]

Where in Ohio is this Gander?

 

[cola490]

That sounds like a great deal, congrats!! Shields are still very rare in my parts. I got a email notice from Buds yesterday that they had a 9mm for $550.00, it sold very fast.

 

[Nevadadvx]

So when did Bud's start price gouging? I remember when they were thee online store to go to for the best prices. Looks like greed has no boundaries.

 

[Cokeman]

Don't buy from them. Buy from the stores that don't gouge.

 

[sgmann69]

I just picked up a Shield .40 online at D&L Hunting and Outdoor Lodge located in RI. I was reading an old thread from 2012, and this store was mentioned. I figured I'd take a look at their online store to see if they had any in stock. BINGO!!!! I have only been looking for about two weeks, and never thought I'd find one so quickly. I paid $439+$35 shipping for a total of $474. I have a friend that has a FFL license who accepted my Shield at no charge. I called D&L to ask them how often do they get Shields. The man told me they have gotten a steady supply of 9mm and .40's for the past year. I think they only had the .40 in when I ordered, but that's what I wanted. I think it might have something to do with the close proximity to S&W. Check this place out if you need a Shield. I joined this forum just to pay it forward with the information that I received.

 

[Kaliman]

I just picked up a Shield .40 online at D&L Hunting and Outdoor Lodge located in RI. I was reading an old thread from 2012, and this store was mentioned. I figured I'd take a look at their online store to see if they had any in stock. BINGO!!!! I have only been looking for about two weeks, and never thought I'd find one so quickly. I paid $439+$35 shipping for a total of $474. I have a friend that has a FFL license who accepted my Shield at no charge. I called D&L to ask them how often do they get Shields. The man told me they have gotten a steady supply of 9mm and .40's for the past year. I think they only had the .40 in when I ordered, but that's what I wanted. I think it might have something to do with the close proximity to S&W. Check this place out if you need a Shield. I joined this forum just to pay it forward with the information that I received.

Interesting to hear, especially since there was a thread on this forums specifically stating to avoid D&L.

Also, found 2 - 9mm shields in Cabelas for $449 ea. Picked em up. Last ones in the store.

 

[Bengal07]

New Shield 9mm

Just saw one listed 10 minutres ago on GunBroker listing 339225409 for $510

It will probably sell in 15 minutes

 

[AFrost20]

Where in Ohio is this Gander?

Reynoldsburg. It is just east of Columbus.

 

[snakeye]

D&L is great...they had a time there that they were swamped with orders....Mike there jumped on it and shipments started rolling....he jumped in on that thread and explained things...don't count them out gotta be patient with them and they will come through

 

[RGriff69]

Reynoldsburg. It is just east of Columbus.

Thanks. I usually go to the one in Huber Heights. I stopped at the GM in Columbus. Wasn't too impressed with their inventory.

 

[Fir3hawk]

Great deal congrats. I bought mine from Gander Mountain about 3-4 weeks ago for $450 plus tax/shipping so I'm a bit jealous that you got quite a bit better deal than me at the same retailer.

 

[AFrost20]

Thanks. I usually go to the one in Huber Heights. I stopped at the GM in Columbus. Wasn't too impressed with their inventory.

Yeah, the one on the west side of Columbus leaves a lot to be desired. This one did too until the remodel.

 

[ric_in_or]

I walked into an LGS (Discount Guns) over the weekend. Asked about the Shield. Yes he had one come in - (DG has 13 locations)
How much? 600
For a 450 list gun.

The clerk told me that to ever see the list price again would take S&W dropping their quality. DG is a "premier S&W retailer" what ever that means.

I am certain he probably sold the Shield for the asking price.

But not to me.

 

[GnarlyTwoTrack]

Awesome! Last April 2012 when they first came out I found it right away. Couldn't believe it. The store I went to had about 25 in stock and I could of had plenty of them if I had the money and the need haha. Though I only needed the one. I went 9mm. Too bad there isn't much ammo around for you to test it out much. Thanks for the heads up on the fancy holster too.

 

[AFrost20]

I walked into an LGS (Discount Guns) over the weekend. Asked about the Shield. Yes he had one come in - (DG has 13 locations)
How much? 600
For a 450 list gun.

The clerk told me that to ever see the list price again would take S&W dropping their quality. DG is a "premier S&W retailer" what ever that means.

I am certain he probably sold the Shield for the asking price.

But not to me.

These are the kinds of places that I honestly hope go out of business when this craze is over. Not only are they price gouging, but they are LIEING to their customers' faces to explain it away. You shoulda told the idiot that just cause the gun is hard to find, DOESN'T mean that S&W has changed the MSRP. Incredible.

 

[jimdevlin]

Got a 9 mm Shield from D&L last week after seeing the name on this board. About 8 days from order to firing at range. Nice gun. FFL transfer to Arms Room in Dickinson, TX

 

[Robotech]

$419 + tax less than two weeks ago at my LGS after only about a month wait for my Shield 40.

Also picked up one of the FS 9mm 17-rnd mags I've been waiting for for ages at $39.95.

Both prices are below MSRP, which in these times of price gouging is certainly going to help maintain customer loyalty!

 

[Cokeman]

I walked into an LGS (Discount Guns) over the weekend. Asked about the Shield. Yes he had one come in - (DG has 13 locations)
How much? 600
For a 450 list gun.

The clerk told me that to ever see the list price again would take S&W dropping their quality. DG is a "premier S&W retailer" what ever that means.

I am certain he probably sold the Shield for the asking price.

But not to me.

I paid $429 last month. Mine must not be as good as the one he was selling.

You should have told him that you would never be buying anything from his store again and that you would not be recommending him to everybody you know.

There is a Discount Guns here in Utah too. Probably a different company. They used to be the cheapest around. I asked how much Shields were and the guy said $450. Then the guy behind him hurried and raised the price by $100. He said "more like $550". Insta-gouge. My response was "holy ****!" I turned around and left.

 

[Roy_G]

I walked into an LGS (Discount Guns) over the weekend. Asked about the Shield. Yes he had one come in - (DG has 13 locations)
How much? 600
For a 450 list gun.

The clerk told me that to ever see the list price again would take S&W dropping their quality. DG is a "premier S&W retailer" what ever that means.

I am certain he probably sold the Shield for the asking price.

But not to me.

Its been my experience that everything they sell is at least that much above list, the only store I avoid.

 

[jdubpro]

I have been looking for a Shield for about 3 or 4 weeks and I finally found one today. I was at Sportsman's Warehouse yesterday and the guy behind the gun counter told me they had just received 4 9mm Shields. They were not yet logged into the system, and they were going to put them out this morning when they opened at 9:00am. I showed up at about 8:20 this morning, just to make sure I'd be able to get one of the Shields. To my surprise, the parking lot was full and there were about 50 people lined up in front of the building. I almost turned around and went home, but decided to check things out. I got in line and found out that they put out their new ammo shipments on Wednesdays, and everyone around me in line was there for ammo. My hopes were back up.

When I finally got inside I went straight to the gun counter and told the guy I wanted one of the Shields. He told me they didn't have any. I told him what the guy had told me yesterday, and he just said that guy was wrong. I looked around and found the guy I had talked to yesterday, and he said they changed their mind and weren't putting them out until Saturday. I argued a bit, but he wasn't budging.

I was furious and went to find the manager. I told him what the guys had said and told him I had driven 30 miles and stood in the 32 degree cold for 40 minutes for one of those guns.

He told me he'd make it right. He made a call to the gun counter, sent me back there and 30 minutes later I walked out with my new Shield. As I was waiting for the background check to come back, I started thinking that I had never gotten the price of the gun. I started to panic that they would gouge me for it. When the cashier rang me up, it was $419.99. I was shocked. I went and found the manager and thanked him for treating me right and for not gouging when many others are.

A couple of notes on the gun. The test fire date is 4/10/13. The trigger is not very good. It broke early and then had a lot of over-travel. It is gritty and spongy. I tore it apart and the sear looks like the old ones. The part that the trigger bar loop pushes against is rounded, not flat like the one on my FS 9mm with a test fire date of March 2013. I had an extra Apex hard sear so I installed it. That, along with polishing the trigger bar improved the pull a lot.

I tried to remove the rear sight so I could polish up the striker block before I decided whether to install an Apex USB. I loosened the screw and tapped on it, but it wouldn't budge. I tried soaking the slide in break free and heating up the sight, but it still won't move. The sights on my 9mm 5" Pro and my 9mm FS almost fell out when I removed the screw. Does anyone have any suggestions, other than a sight pusher or a gunsmith?

 

[Rgoodwin]

My FS 9 was very stubborn at first. I heated it with a butane lighter and finally got it moving. I installed Williams F/O front and rear.