Gun Sales Slow??? Recent Gun Show

[BSA1]

I go to a couple of Gun Shows (Spring and Fall) every year but I very rarely buy a gun. I am usually looking for small items that costs four times as much to ship and my must buy item are surplus ammo cans. Earlier this month I went the show on Saturday but ran out of time to buy the ammo cans. I went back on Sunday which is better as attendance is much smaller giving me more time to look the tables over.

The good news is I ended up buying a S&W Model 64 in very good / excellent condition for $365 including sales tax.

The bad news is the dealer whom I get my ammo cans from I sold all of his 30 caliber and only had a few picked over 50 caliber ones left so I had to settle for only a couple of 50's. I already filled the cans so next Spring Show I am not waiting until the next day to buy the cans.

 

[kthom]

Was visiting Corpus Christi last week. Saw an ad for a gun show, so my two buddies and I immediately decided to attend, primarily so we wouldn't have to go shopping with our wives. Show was held at the County Fairgrounds in a nice big building that was pretty well lit. I guessed 300 or so tables were present. Lots of guns, revolvers were more in evidence than I expected, and there were more older and used ones than new ones. Lots of semi's and rifles too, with good showing of knives and other shooting, hunting, and reloading stuff. Probably close to 25% of the tables contained stuff for the girls, but also some pretty good printed materials, and yeah, some stuff to eat. Guy had a 3-D printer set up on his table and was advertising what he could do. That's a first for me at a gun show.

Prices were much better at this show than any I've attended this year, and by that, I mean prices were generally lower. Many of them were on the high side of average, but not by much. I was pleasantly surprised. Took the three of us over 2 hours to walk through and look pretty closely at most tables. Lots of stuff walking around as well. Atmosphere was very friendly and relaxed by both vendors and attendees. All around, time was well spent. Not a bad way to spend 5 bucks for that much interesting time!

 

[lkabug]

Gun shows in my area are becoming a waste of time and money. Would be military surplus, jewelry and beef jerky. Not much in the line of quality S&W revolvers.

 

[JayFramer]

Yes but strangely, seems every gun dealer I call is "experiencing higher than normal call volumes" still??

 

[Jeff423]

FWIW: I was recently offered three 6" Ruger Blackhawks in .357 (two SS and one blue) for $875.00.

 

[Ackley1952]

In 7 days I'll be at gun show in northeast Oklahoma. This will be 30 years twice a year. I won't have time to criticize and bitch about prices and what other dealers display. If you don't like a guys inventory or pricing just walk on by. Wait for those pinned and recessed guns to go down. Hope to see you at the show . I'll be the guy with a smile on his face and money in my pockets. If things aren't selling it's time to buy.

 

[Levallois]

The December Crossroads Show held in Phoenix in conjunction with the SAR is the best western show in the Country. I wouldn't miss it for anything!|
Jim

That is my favorite by far too Jim. The only must go to show of the year. I do go to 3 or 4 other shows and it is hit or miss. But it is the very occasional hit that keeps me going. The last show that I attended I found a perfect set of mother of pearl grips for a Colt Official Police for $200. I hadn't seen another set anywhere for less than $400. Couple shows before that I got a really nice 1897 Winchester shotgun for $300. However, It was a long dry spell before those that I bought anything. Still, it is not an awful way to spend a Saturday.

 

[Tom K]

There is a gun show here in Tulsa just about every month, including the Wanenmacher's show twice a year (world's largest gun show). I go to nearly all of them, in spite of the fact that the last time I bought a gun at a show that was not a Wanenmacher show was 2015. Hope springs eternal....

The problem is that almost everything out there falls into one of three categories for me:

1. Not interested in it.
2. Already got it.
3. Can't afford it.

 

[BSA1]

I should add that since my wife started going to the Gun Show with me last year it has become more enjoyable and expensive.

Last year I had her go with me as I was wanting for her to get a smaller handgun for conceal carry. Instead of getting a compact 9mm she brought a Ruger SR22. Obviously not a good conceal carry choice but it sure is fun to shoot at the range.

Then at the Fall, 2018 show she brought a purse with a exterior pocket for a pistol. In addition we got a couple of items suitable as gifts for the kids.

Spring 2019 Show was a dry run for except for surplus ammo cans.

The Gun Show last month hit paydirt. My wife brought another purse with a exterior pocket from the same dealer as last year . (Women and fashion). I hit payday buying a S&W Model 64 that is in very good condition. Only a few light handling marks and carried very little. I suspect it was only used for home defense. I brought peppermace as a gift for Daughter #1 for a Christmas gift.

The vender my wife brought her purse from told her that they sell a lot of purses at Gun Shows. It was money well invested as my wife carried her Shield when she and some family and friends went on the girl's only road trip last weekend. In fact she was the only one packing heat.

I evaluate Gun Shows on whether I find something I want. The last 3 out of 4 have been good shows to attend.

 

[scoobysnacker]

There used to be one yearly in Thibodaux, I usually attended, a couple of years ago it stopped. There was one in nearby Houma too, it went on till a year ago when it stopped too. Now the nearest is about an hour's drive away, I haven't made that one maybe this year. As others have mentioned the local shows had turned out selling lots of "other stuff" not so much guns.
Steve W

I've made a couple in the Baton Rouge/Gonzales area, and they're nowhere near what they used to be.

It's basically:

• a flea market for "stuff"
• a bunch of tables from local shops, with new guns at MSRP laid out on tables
• a couple tables for guys who have collections; they lay their guns out like museum showpieces, and are priced accordingly

It's basically just a reason to take a drive, not really any great deals to be had regarding firearms.
One table had a bunch of magazines for guns, at prices that are about the same as online, but actually you don't get as much info as you do online. You have to know what you're looking at. For used guns, I have found better prices consistently at pawn shops and the used section at LGS...

Price examples-
during the Star BM run (where you could find them online everywhere for about $200 or so), they had a few BM's for about $300-$400.

2nd and 3rd Gen S&W guns around $400 or more. A few Ruger P series, about the same price.

 

[crsides]

If you miss the old times gun shows, come on out to the Tulsa gunshow Nov 9-10. Prices are high, but dealer come off their asking prices quicker than around my haunts. Very few black guns, lots of blue and wood. Colts, S&W, Winchesters, Marlins .... mostly vintage stuff.

 

[Golddollar]

I went up to the gun show in Lebanon, PA. The prices I checked didn't seem outlandish, but I think my wants are starting to narrow down. I did get a set of dies for a good price for a recent acquisition.

 

[rock n roll kid]

no need to go ....

most of the time , BUT the fall indy 1500 is a good show , very large and usually a good crowd . as noted here many times , the market is soft , has been for 3-4 years .
let the politicians bat new gun laws/restications into play and we will see business pick way back up ..... & it won't have to be a major thing !

if for no other reason i go because i can meet other " gunies " and once every blue moon a bargain appears . made a couple of gun purchases in last 4 years , when i never went to do so , but if you get an 1/2 price deal on a really nice gun it would be foolish to pass it up !

looking forward to going this coming week-end . enkoy seeing the guns & assesories 7 may even buy a hat or a shirt . rock on

 

[Barr1]

The big gun show in our area is usually very well attended. It has been slowing down with less vendors lately and the Smith and Wesson revolver prices have been steadily climbing and usually range from $600 to well past 1000 for anything decent. I expect that the Smith and Wesson revolver prices will likely dip slightly and same for the Winchester lever guns in the next 5 to 10 years as many of the older guys pass on in the collections will turn over. They have been artificially elevated the last two years or so. 4 to 8 years ago they were a good deal because everyone was wrestling in line to get the latest tactical high-capacity black rifles.

I expect the gun shows to pick up in the spring and especially as we get closer to election season in the fall of 2020. There is usually a few booths with lens cleaner, and the usual beef jerky and taser junk. But there are still a few older gentleman that are starting to parse out their collection and are willing to deal if they know you pay cash and show them that you and your children will be passing down and enjoying what they spent many years hunting for. Nostalgia and sentimentality do you have a price and they are willing to give a discount knowing that.

 

[CH4]

Yesterday I attended a small show in Placerville, CA. The crowd was very light. There were a lot of guns, but nothing that interested me, or at least worth having shipped to a Nevada FFL. I did buy a couple pairs of grips that were very reasonably priced. The entertainment value was worth the $10

 

[TTSH]

Someday, before I die, I hope to attend a "real" gun show... somewhere out there in free America. But for now I am pretty much limited to what we have here in heavily-restricted moonbat Massachusetts.

All of our MA shows are put on by the same promoter, so the same core group of vendors show up at each show. A really "big" show here used to be 500 tables (and is still advertised as such). In reality, it's more like 300 to 400 tables with a high percentage of tables selling jewelry, trinkets and mainly non-firearms-related stuff.

Still, I go to our larger shows at least 4 times/year. I might still take in one or two of the smaller shows, but they are not usually worthwhile... just a smaller set of the same vendors from the larger shows. That said, you never know. That one special gun you've been looking for just might turn up at one of the smaller shows.

I will admit that I enjoy attending our larger shows, even when I don't score something significant. It's a form of entertainment for me and worth the price of admission. Scoring something special, if it happens, is just the icing on the cake. A "big" show is coming up next weekend and I will be there for sure.

 

[Tim Tom]

Just a quick update from my weekend at the Wanemacher Gun Show in Tulsa.

I would say it was pretty much still flush with everything gun related, but not as crowded as I've seen it in the past.

At the end of the day, I did pick up a 686-1, two FAL mags and a couple of 6.5×55mm Swedish stripper clips. A good day indeed.

 

[Tom K]

There is a gun show here in Tulsa just about every month, including the Wanenmacher's show twice a year (world's largest gun show). I go to nearly all of them, in spite of the fact that the last time I bought a gun at a show that was not a Wanenmacher show was 2015. Hope springs eternal....

The problem is that almost everything out there falls into one of three categories for me:

1. Not interested in it.
2. Already got it.
3. Can't afford it.

After the Wanenmacher show this past weekend, I realize that I forgot about the fourth, and perhaps most important category:

4. Stuff I didn't know I needed until I saw it.

 

[TIMETRIPPER]

Went to the Gettysburg show yesterday. Hall was half empty and there were more vendors behind the tables than attendees in the aisles. Most dealer prices were high as ever but there were some good buys. Reloading supplies were reasonable and I picked up a pound of 4227 for $4 less than the one I bought last year.
Looked at a nice Hepburn rifle that was decently priced but still too much for my wallet.
The overall consensus is that it's a buyers market right now.

John

 

[Skeet 028]

I went up to the gun show in Lebanon, PA. The prices I checked didn't seem outlandish, but I think my wants are starting to narrow down. I did get a set of dies for a good price for a recent acquisition.

Haven't been to the Lebanon show in a long time. I used to buy a lot of neat stuff at estate auctions in the Lancaster/Lebanon area.