Gun Show gripe!

[Golfin' Gator]

I go to gun shows for one reason, and that's to touch as many guns as i can!

I don't mind plopping down the six bucks or so because I usually stay a couple of hours and do a couple of loops around the selling area. I've only bought one gun at a gun show and that was a trade.

Last year I wanted a 1911 and went to a couple of shows, looking and asking questions; but I bought one from a local dealer who had a great deal on what I wanted.

This past weekend I wanted to look at 22 semi pistols, particularly the new Ruger. Now I know I want one, just probably won't buy it a show.

But I do get pissed at the ammo guys. I'll stick to Walmart.

 

[iam4uk24]

I go to gun shows for one reason, and that's to touch as many guns as i can!

And you wonder why the dealers are so rude to the no buying gun handlers. "Aaaaa can I see that 4000.00 SAA, no I don't want to buy it I just want to tell my friends I held one"....LOL

 

[bobsdad]

My brother in law took me to my first gun show back in the early 70's I think. I didn't know what they were and I think they were just getting started at that time?
I asked him "Will they actually have any guns for sale there?". Well, you know, I hear gun "show", and I'm thinking this is just a display of guns. It's a show, right?
Ever since then, I've always thought the term "gun show" was not quite right, with a few exceptions. They should call them a gun "flea market" or a gun "sale".
Anyway, my gripe is that I usually buy a couple boxes of ammo when I go. I also always forget to visit the men's room before starting. I hate it when I end up holding the recycled Walmart bag of ammo in my teeth while I do my business before going to the parking lot and home. But, no one can do a thing about that, but me. Thank God I still have good teeth.

 

[ohiobuckeye]

It's reassuring to find that gun shows are the same everywhere and haven't changed much over the 40+ years I have browsed through them... mostly buying...not much selling. A hard fact is that a gun show is poor place for a "walk in" to sell anything for top dollar.
If we think about it a while, as rookies, we were just not very aware of what was going on around us and we slowly became aware of the "door sharks', "greedy dealers", and "hustlers" that are always working the shows. They were there many years ago when I went to my first gun show and they will still be there at the last gun show. Browsing a gun show is good entertainment, even if I don't find anything to take home, and part of that entertainment is watching and listening to all the wheeling and dealing that goes on among those door sharks, hustlers, greedy dealers, and their "victims". If the price is right I buy it (or sell it) and if the price ain't right, I walk away....A very simple system that works well and doesn't raise blood pressure or grow ulcers....

 

[357larry]

Any more I go to gunshows on the off chance that I might find a bargain or something in particular that interests me. I rarely have any success, although it does happen. I just went to a show a couple of weeks ago not intending to buy anything but came across an early 659 with 2 magazines that was just about perfect but did not have the box. I have not seen one in this good of condition for some time so I haggled with the seller and took it home.

And then there was the show 2 years ago when I found a 3 inch 66-4 in great condition. Haggled and took that one home for $500. Sometimes even a blind squirrel finds a nut.

I used to buy ammo at gunshows but lately find that I can buy it cheaper at the LGS or Wal-mart. I sure miss the old days.

 

[rburg]

People who buy their ammo at Walmart must not be very particular about it. First, you can only take home what Walmart has to offer. If you know how to look, you can often find some pretty interesting ammo at a show. But not at the new ammo tables.

If you go to a show looking for one single gun, and don't see it, you'll probably complain. I just go with an open mind and view the sights to be seen. I've got a whole list of things I want. Chances are, I'll see some at every show. But maybe not at a price I'll pay. When they come together, I take something home. I'm an old man now. We prefer to call it mature. So I have a mature attitude on the subject. History has shown me that when I attend a dozen shows a year, I'll usually buy 2 or 3 new guns, maybe a holster, and some components as well as some ammo. Oh, those new guns aren't new, they're just new to me. There aren't 2 or 3 new production guns I'd want!

 

[Frizzman]

I'm Done

I used to go to gun shows frequently. I bought guns and traded guns and bought all sorts of shooting related stuff. I enjoyed it and dealt with some friendly traders/sellers/dealers. It seemed most of the people with tables back then were fellow gun enthusiasts who had tables and would sell and trade in a reasonable fashion. I usually lost some money on straight trades but not so that I felt that I had let myself be taken.

Now, I don't attend gun shows. The entry prices have gotten to be too much. They are always overcrowded and there are many people there who need some personal hygene improvement and many others are just plain rude. The "dealers" seem to be mostly people who just want to make maximum profit and are often surley. I know they deal with a lot of idiots but I am not one of them. Despite my obvious age, I find some who want to treat me as if I just fell off the turnip truck.

It isn't entertainment for me anymore. Between the dealers attitudes and the long delays for the "instant background check", buying firearms there is a frustrating experience for me. So, I save the money I used to spend at such events and use it to buy ammo, etc. Those that like these things these days can have my spot. It boils down to the fact there is nothing at any of the shows in my area that are worth the stress of going to them. I NEVER trade with dealers. Fortunately, in my state it is still legal to trade with another state resident of the proper age and not a felon...Enjoy the gun shows if you like them!

 

[raisedin99]

3 dollar hot dogs.

 

[Rule 303]

I find better deals at my local gun shops and Pawn and Gun Shops than I find at the Gun Shows. The attitude of too many is that "If I have it, its gold" and "if you have it and its the exact same thing in the same condition, its a piece of trash" is getting real old. Reality is reality. If its used, it not worth a new price unless its a collectors item or in great deamnd.

I don't expect a new price for a used gun, but as all the dealers I talk with say, "the price is going up" and I figure that applies to used guns also.

It doesn't hurt me to say, "thanks, I think I'll pass, the price is too high or sorry we can't reach an agreement" and move on down the line. I've been going to gun shows since the 60s and I don't lay a bad attitude on folks and I don't suffer fools lightly.

Rule 303

 

[mstuhr]

I'm with Pete!

I've been going to gun shows since the early 1970's. I think I've only bought one or two guns at a show in the past 2-3 years. I've probably bought 7 or 8 online at auction websites. Now my main goal when going to a show is finding ammo and visiting friends. I guess thats good enough.

I'm with Pete. Everyday is a gun show on line.
Good deals and bad deals. Good folks and bad folks.
Another advantage to the on line option is I can find just about anything my odd little heart desires.
I would think the internet has had something to do with the state of recent gun shows.
I still like to catch a walk in gun show from time to time. Every now and then I'll find or sell something, but if I know what I want chances are I'll find it on line for a better price and have several to choose from.
Thanks
Mike

 

[Retired W4]

Have you ever had someone pick up your pristine pre-70 Government model and start jacking the slide, or pick up your 98% model 27 and start dry firing it? Get a table at the next gun show and put your stuff down on it. I don't set up at gun shows to make money. I do it because I enjoy the company of most of the people there, and to do a little buying and selling. I might just have one too many 10-5's, or need... what ever. I picked up a really nice 65-2 today, and missed a beautiful nickel 15-3. The damage to my things were minimal this weekend and I had a good time.

 

[frbeall]

I think they call it capitalism or greed. I just walk on.

 

[perrazi]

when i did shows for about 25yrs. i kept the handguns in display cases to no one handled them without my approval. it seems people were more polite back then. if you had a do not handle sign on something,most would ask before they picked it up. if you sell anything very valuable, you simply have to take precautions.

 

[PALADIN85020]

I've been going to gun shows since Caesar was a roadguard, and that's the way it always has been. Most of the tables at the shows are manned by dealers, and they try to buy low and sell high - that's their livelihood. They are not going to pay a retail price; they can't charge more and make a profit. They are not usually gun people, they are business people.

I do like to buy from individuals, though. Often their prices are flexible, and there's no paperwork to fuss with. These are usually gun people who are thinning out a collection, and if they bought a piece over 10 years ago, they will make a modest profit at today's prices, and I'll be happy, too.

My main gripe at gun shows? Narrow aisles with baby carriages and screaming kids. My four words of advice for parents who insist on bringing their undisciplined brats and/or aisle-blocking carriages?

Get a baby sitter!

John

 

[mooshoo]

I quit going to the gun shows years ago no deals and can I clean your glasses and the doll's and the toys unhappy women pushing stroller's between crowded table's and 6 dollar beer's. but the best part is going to the gun shops around town and finding hardly anybody there!

 

[Doc Nonverbal]

My gripe is the lack of manners. There are people who appear to have learned their negotiating skills from watching TV shows like Pawn Stars, American Guns, and the like. To tell someone that they can't make money off of the purchase of your firearm is essentially saying they're disappointed that they can't manipulate you into taking less than the firearm is worth so they can capitalize upon your lack of knowledge.

I hadn't been to a gun show in decades and was quite surprised when I went to the show in Valley Forge, PA a couple of years ago. I politely asked a vendor if I could pick up a knife that he had for sale and the fellow seemed genuinely shocked as he said "Sure! No one asks anymore!"

He was right - I subsequently observed several people picking up items without permission. I overheard a vendor telling a potential customer that he wouldn't sell anything to him, as the fellow's friend was so obnoxious. I think if we saw more of this limit-setting that we might see a return to proper gun show decorum.

 

[imjin138]

All the shows around here are run by one guy, so it always the same vendors with almost the same thing. I go because I have nothing else to do. Went last friday to the Milwaukee show which is really small and spoke to my buddy John and then walked around for about 20 minutes saw all the guns and jewlery and toys.

Then went about my business.

One time i went to the Waukeshaw show and was holding my friends Beretta 34 in 380 he wanted 200.00 for it and it was in good shape one dealer looked at it played with it and offered 75. I told him for 75 i would take it to the parking lot drive over it a few times and bring it back, he got all huffy. The next guy offered 200.00 so we sold it.

I went back the next day with a model 60 3 inch heavy barrel with adjustable sights to trade for an nframe and the same dealer tried the same thing I said don't you recognize me oh I went home with a 6 inch 29-2 in a wood case.

 

[michael thornton]

they wait for a fool and his money, or gun! when i was doing the gun show thing i tryed to be fair and treat people with respect, there are some of the dealers that i pass there table and never even look to see what they have! the part i dont understand is why the same dealers are still there? they sould have been weeded out years ago!