How Do You Handle Gun Shop Lurkers?

[ky wonder]

I will have to admit I am a bit of a lurker (loafer) at the lgs's where I shop, I routinely keep my mouth shut until I am asked to comment, by the owner, or asked by a customer, but have been asked to chime in on many occasions, and got several free lunch's

I have even taken his customers ( the ones I like) to my farm range to let them try out there new weapons, many gun buyers even here in KY don't really have a good place to shoot.

my lgs knows that when his distributor has a shortage of ammo he can usually get some from me to help keep his shelves stocked, got more than I will ever shoot myself

but its a safe bet that twenty year old clerk that knows all the latest bells and whistles that you can mount on your Plastic AR platform, does not know how to identify the old browning superposed that has the early double/singe trigger options.

I can say I have never bad mouthed anyones gun,

everyone cannot afford a top of the line gun, and even a poor man has a right to what he can afford, there was a time when I was buying RG's, even still have a old 4" 38spl RG that shoots well,

I remember as a poor kid working in the tobacco patches here in KY, long before I ever saw a gun rag, drooling over the guns in the sears and roebuck and western auto catalogs and dreaming of the gun I was saving my money for

so you never know when that old ragged looking bum in the old rusted out truck might be able to write a great book on what he knows about guns, as well as being the guy who the shop owner calls when he runs up on something he does not know about, and could possibly pay cash for the entire store inventory.

 

[Arik]

Find out what he is driving and tell him you are a master mechanic. Ask him how many miles on his vehicle, and proceed to tell him every mechanical horror you can imagine until he decides to leave YOU alone. I've done this or just faked a few sneeze/coughs, and ask if the flu is going around again. That one usually works fantastically. Have some fun with the offending loafer!!

Neh, pretend your a doctor and ask him how long that skin blemish has been on his arm/leg/face. Tell him that it a likely sign of XYZ and he really should get a full checkup asap! [emoji48]

A lot depends on your area but you can usually tell who know something and who doesn't. I actually become friends with a guy like this. While I'm mostly into modern stuff I do like some older firearms. Occasionally I'll check out an old revolver or a surplus firearm. Most of the time they have been Bubba'd. Finish is wrong, cut down, drilled and tapped, some sort of home modification was started but never finished and no one can tell where it was going. But sometimes you find good to great guns at a decent price. So, anyway, I'm checking out this one rifle when the guy next to me proceeds to make comments. He's dressed professionally in a suit and tie, older guy, clean shaven, not pushy, polite tone ...but still I didn't ask for help right! He asks for to see the rifle, which was a Springfield bolt action surplus rifle. Looks it over and starts pointing out different stuff like the S# is X high so it was made between this is this date. The stock has been sanded a little and you can tell here and here, barrel is re arsenalled because of this. ....bla bla ...very knowledgeable guy. In the end he asks me if I'm looking for a collection piece or just to shoot. I told him that it was neither really. I was just checking it out as a potential purchase with no clear reason. He tells me that it's clean and should make a great shooter but the price was a but to high for that. Not horrible but should be about $75 cheaper. However, if I wanted one for collection it had some minor issues and no collector would pay that price for this example. A few weeks later I'm checking out a Luger P 08 when he walks in again. We talk and he says that's been refinished and starts pointing out places where there are signs of it and pointing out what the Germans would have done. The guy knows his surplus and older guns. Turns out his brother had a gunshop and warehouse back in the late 70s to early 80s. And he learned his stuff from his brother.

We eventually hit it off and traded phone #s. When his brother died....who was apparently a pack rat and kept so much of his stuff that the gunshop business suffered and closed long ago. So when this happened he had to take care of his brother's belongings. He offered me Soooo many nice pristine stuff that I was contemplating selling my car! I got some amazing examples of hard to find rifles in great condition. It wasn't cheap, he didn't give it away of course but I was paying less than the going rate for the same condition rifles. I think I bought at least 6 rifles from him and he's currently holding 2 more for me. Stuff that if found on GB would go for much more

 

[M3Stuart]

Now stay with me here; there's a theory that reality is a shared experience. If I think something, I'm not certain it is real until the thought is validated. Following me so far?

This theory explains why people seek out 'news' and opinions they agree with.

It also explains why many people think that OTHER people need to have THEIR thoughts validated. Soooo, they chime in, not just at the LGS, but everywhere they go...to sort of validate everything they come in contact with.

In a way this is good, because some/most people like to think that everybody agrees with them. e.g. "pre-lock, pre-mim S&W's are good". In a way this is bad, because, for example; some products or product-features get a bad reputation just because enough people said bad things about it. e.g. "Brand X are hair-trigger death machines".

 

[JJEH]

Tell him that he is pretty and ask if you can smell his hair.

Thanks. That was a great response and visual.
I actually laughed out loud when I read it.
I just might use it.

Stu

You know, this plan can horribly backfire...

 

[M29since14]

I will have to admit I am a bit of a lurker (loafer) at the lgs's where I shop...

I'd guess about 95% of us here are, to one extent or another. A smaller percentage will admit it.

...drooling over the guns in the sears and roebuck and western auto catalogs and dreaming of the gun I was saving my money for.

I remember when my Grandpa showed me a Sears catalog picture of it and told me he had ordered a Browning Challenger - and then the wait for it to come in... and finally the big evening when he and I drove over the the "catalog center" the next town away to pick it up. Great fun for a young lad! I don't see how much kids have nowadays compares to that.

 

[Rick_A]

Well...nothing is worse than range lurkers...you know, the guy shooting a box of ammo in what would be a 25 yard shotgun pattern at seven yards with a plastic fantastic. They always seem to know pointers for anyone else's technique.

The sideways smirk usually works best. :/

Saying anything results in more words from their end.

 

[MrTrolleyguy]

At my favorite gun shot there are "regulars" who frequently are asked by the owners to wait on customers. The volunteer will take care of the entire sale with the owners approving or declining customer offers etc. and then writing up the receipts etc. The volunteers are happy, the customers are happy and the owners are happy.

Me? I sit nearby and mind my own business, snap a few pictures, do a little (very little) online research w/smart phone for the owners, pass someone a donut or maybe top off someone's coffee and of course chat w/ the other regulars.

The term groupie is derogatory and a sexist word that I would not apply to regular visitors to a gun shop. Unless one intended to offend. And that wouldn't happen on our forum.


Happy Customer!

Gun shop groupies (folks hanging around who are neither buyers nor sales staff) can be a pain or they can be harmless. All depends on the particular shop and what you are trying to achieve there. I first try to understand the relationship between the shop owner or employees and the groupie... then I take it from there. I find some are a friend or relative of the owner (or of an employee) and some are past customers. One was just a local gun owner-wannabe who liked to hang out. Once you understand the relationship, you can sometimes even use it to your advantage in your negotiations.

One small (one-person) shop I frequent actually likes their local groupie to hang around for a bit of enhanced security (or at least the perception of enhanced security) at the shop. I think they figure the shop is less likely to get robbed or shoplifted with two folks present rather than just one.

 

[handejector]

The guy keeps interjecting his "expertise" and won't hush. How do you folks deal with a situation like this without getting "ugly"?

I've had a retail store.
I had a few of those.
It usually does NOT help.
The owner/staff should always handle it.

I always started off easy- make eye contact and say "Thanks, I can handle this.....". Maybe with a raised hand, as in a gentle "Stop" motion.
If that didn't work, I would be as direct as I had to be.
That's hard to believe, isn't it?

 

[just jim]

I ask the fellow if he works for the shop. Most of the time they realize they are out of place running their mouth.

 

[Brian41]

I'm the type that usually just ignores them and let the owners handle it. I've also found some of them to be rather knowledgeable and have given some good input as well. I once had a guy start in about .41 mags when I was looking at a S&W Model 357PD. Turned out he was also a fan of them and was having better luck than me locating any here. We wound up exchanging phone numbers as he said he'd call if he found any of the models I was interested in. Never did get a call but worth the chance he might have located some for me.

 

[M29since14]

...If that didn't work, I would be as direct as I had to be.
That's hard to believe, isn't it?

Classic.

 

[Malpasowildlifer]

Ignore!

But, it is fun to listen in case they say something like "SEALs use Glock 20s with the barrels coated in Vaseline so they can fire underwater"

 

[2ndAmendmentNut]

Short answer is I simply ignore them. The only guns I have been interested in buying for years have been pre-lock S&W revolvers. The "experts" seem to rarely know anything about revolvers and try to steer me towards the latest and greatest polymer pistol.

 

[labworm]

If they become annoying then I just tell them.

 

[MTKTM]

It's just part of our culture. It's like a bunch of guys standing around the open hood of a car with their hands in the pockets and nodding their heads knowingly back in the day. Usually it is completely and utterly harmless. Sometimes I learn something, sometimes I teach something, and sometimes I have a good laugh at some whopper......although I try to keep those inside, don't really want to offend anyone or hurt anyone's feelings.

 

[Frank237]

I know this is a bit off topic but related. LGS Experts who really are NOT.

My gunsmith buddy is at a local shop looking at reloading components. A guy is there telling another fellow about "Berger bullets are super expensive...All bonded core bullets too, etc, etc".

So Terry mentions to the guy that their Match bullets that he was showing this fellow are NOT bonded but simple cup and core. And few of them are over 50 or 60 cents apiece, even for the .30 calibers. Certainly NOT the "Two dollars apiece " the "Expert" had quoted.

The "Expert" didn't care for his comments and his retort; "I have forty six heads of big game on my walls and have been to Africa TWICE....I am a WORLD FAMOUS HUNTER". (The last three words, 100% correct)

We got a pretty good laugh about the "world famous hunter". Still doesn't know what he's talking about.

I recently added my 2 cents to a man and his wife looking at semi auto home defense pistols. I asked the Clerk first if he minded. I was able to offer some good advice regarding an issue the woman was having with her handgun. Ran into them a few days ago at the same shop and she Thanked me as my advice HAD worked for her. I try to assist where I can, but DO try to not be a pest.

FN in MT

 

[williamlayton]

Remember the times you were stupid and were glad folks just ignored you.
Blessings

 

[Rutgers]

Gun Shop Lurkers

Was in a LGS a few days back. Another fellow was trying to talk to an employee about different revolvers in the showcase. Within earshot was a local "self appointed expert" who "knows(?)" more about any gun (model, performance, history, etc.) in the store than the people working there. The guy keeps interjecting his "expertise" and won't hush. How do you folks deal with a situation like this without getting "ugly"?

Oh... you must be talking about Adam

 

[Doug627]

EugeneNine:

I hear you brother. You never know how you are going to be treated at Aumiller.

 

[yaktamer]

Car battery. Jumper cables. Bucket of water. Pair of sponges.