Worst Gun Show Ever

[max]

I have been going to gun shows for 60 years or so. I will never forget my first one, I was a teenager and had never seen so many interesting and different guns. There was a Mauser Hsc and I had just seen one on the cover of some spy book I was reading. It was in my hometown and it was combined with a coin show. I was a Boy Scout and we were manning the kitchen and making some money.

I now live in a county of approx 175,00 people with over 90% of them in the twin cities I live in. I have been going to shows here for 50 years and have never been so disappointed as I was today. The show went from 2 large buildings at the fair grounds to 1/3rd of the smaller of the 2 buildings. I got there around noon today and there were maybe 15 dealers and about that many attendees. I heard yesterday was about the same.

In addition some guy was there with a very vicious acting German Shepherd. I was leaving and complained to the young lady at the door that she had robbed me of $5.00 and the dog had no business there. She told me the dog's owner told her it was a service dog in training. I told her she had been lied to.

I had not been to a show in 4 year and was looking forward to better.

 

[Truckman]

Bummer...That makes my experience this weekend look like a God-sent cakewalk......Ben

 

[DWalt]

The last two local gun shows I attended last fall convinced me that it was now time to quit going to gun shows. Nothing there was even close to being worth the greatly inflated admission price.

 

[Golddollar]

I've been going to gun shows since my dad took me as a boy. After I grew up and started working, if there was a gun show within about a 4 hour drive I was probably there. Now between the price of gas, price of admission and prices of things, I'm pretty much limited to going to gun shows in adjoining counties and Harrisburg. But I'll probably not stop going within those ranges. I know a bunch of the vendors and the lady at the entrance of one of the shows likes the Golden Dollars I pay the admission fee with.

 

[venomballistics]

I remember one that was inundated by anti gunners that bought tables to sell scraps from crushed guns

 

[pantannojack]

I am sorry you were offended by the erratic mood of the dog. He was likely uncomfortable in the setting as well. I also miss the big shows in Maricopa County. And being close to a "behind the iron curtain" state we have less than vivacious attendance here. I am still grateful for the one I saw this last WE. For 5$ after 100 mi turnaround I scored a box of Speer 130g .277 dia projos. I cudda done worse, like picking up used #"s of powder not knowing who certified what was inside, <not worth the risk>. When at a show I feel at home. How much longer can this be. I wonder where the anti's feel at home.

 

[pasound]

Last good show close to my home was 4 years ago. After covid closures, it tried to come back, but couldn't. A co-worker still goes to shows in KY and OH, a 100+ mile round trip. Says he's seeing better deals at Cabelas and pawn shops. I'm not spending the gas money and admission to be disappointed.

 

[sophie]

There was a Walther Hsc and I had just seen one on the cover of some spy book I was reading.

Max, do you think it might have been a Mauser Hsc on the cover of that book.

 

[margethatcher]

I think I skipped this show if it was bloominton normal. Its too big a hassle to transfer and whatnot. Plus any gun in Illinois will be worth about twenty percent less next year. Gov. Pricker done us in.

 

[ACORN]

A bad gun show is better than a good day at work.

 

[Maddog 521]

I think some of the vendors bought high and are now trying to make money on inflated prices. It sure makes me wonder why they take that much time setting up their wares and driving long distances and then selling very little.

 

[gjgalligan]

A bad gun show is better than a good day at work.

I will respectfully disagree.
I have never been a fan of being required to to pay an entrance fee for somebody else to try to sell me something. That aside, it has been several years since I have attended a gun show as they have pretty much disappeared around here.
But a bad gun show really tics me off as a total waste of time & money. Work never affected me this way.

 

[robvious]

over time they have evolved into social enterprises for me... I try to go to most within 2 hours or so with my hunting buddy cousin.. not so much a shopping spree anymore, just visiting dealer friends, with the occasional bargains.. knives, ammo, holster and the occasional firearm... I don't really "need" any more stuff..

 

[max]

The reason I typed Walther was it was on the cover of a James Bond type spy novel. I was thinking of the PPK. I knew it was a Mauser, just forgot.

There was a Walther Hsc and I had just seen one on the cover of some spy book I was reading.

Max, do you think it might have been a Mauser Hsc on the cover of that book.

 

[sceva]

Many years ago (1980's 1990's) my friends and I would go to the Bill Goodman shows at Hara Arena in Dayton, Ohio. They got bigger and bigger and were one of tha best shows around. Then in the mid - late 1990's they started going downhill. I move out of state for a job coming back to Ohio for a while mod 2000's and wend to a Goodman show. Paid my money, went in and 15 minutes later I left. It was just a shadow of what they used to be.

 

[TIMETRIPPER]

There is hope. Went to the York show this past weekend and the place was packed. It was the busiest show I've seen in the past year. Found some 348 Winchester brass and a couple boxes of jacketed bullets for reloading my 25-20. Both at very reasonable prices. Lots of guns, old and new. S&Ws, Winchesters, military and polymer black guns. Most gun prices were up. Ammo is coming down. Primers were still 10 cents a piece and scarce.
The York show is an Appalachian Promotions show and is usually two big halls.
The other big show sponsor in my area is Eagle Arms, with shows in Gettysburg, Lebanon, Bloomsburg and elsewhere. Their largest show in at Oaks, outside Philly. The past few shows I've been to were a real disappointment. A total bust. The Bloomsburg show last spring had three packed small halls at the fairgrounds. Last December they barely managed to fill one. Reportedly they raised the table prices along with entrance fees. Might have been a change of ownership involved too. I will not go to any more of their shows until I hear that things improve.
Lately, I've found the better venues are the small shows sponsored by local fire halls and Fish & Game clubs.

John

 

[sceva]

I should add that the Ohio Gun Collectors Assoc meetings / shows are always great. Limited to members and their guests though.

 

[BSA1]

I think some of the vendors bought high and are now trying to make money on inflated prices. It sure makes me wonder why they take that much time setting up their wares and driving long distances and then selling very little.

During the Great Obama 22 Ammunition Panic I remember overhearing a vender telling a patron why he was selling a brick of 22 Ammunition for $80.00.

I probably should say he was trying to sell it for $80.00. The person he was talking to didn't seem convinced. I had to stifle my laughter.

 

[Rammer Jammer]

Gun shows are becoming obsolete like the horse and buggy.

 

[martyd]

I have been to almost every gun show location over the past 3 years in Arizona.

There were 4 which were usually really good.

Now there are only 2 which are not a sea of black plastic dealers, with each selling exactly the same stuff.

The grand individuals who you could talk with and had the nice vintage stuff are slowly vanishing.

 

[Retired W4]

I should add that the Ohio Gun Collectors Assoc meetings / shows are always great. Limited to members and their guests though.

I agree. Unfortunately I only make it up there a couple times a year. The May display show is on my to-do-list.

 

[LVSteve]

I don't think we've had $5 gun shows in Vegas in the 25+ years I've lived here. Maybe I went to one like that in Pahrump. The thieves at Cashman Center charged $11 entry and $3 to park 20 years ago. Guess again.

 

[Ameshawki]

The circuit is still pretty good in Iowa. There's a half a dozen big players that will hit the major shows. Some of the smaller shows can be hit or miss. I can almost always find a deal I like. I generally don't go looking for a specific item. I'm just hunting for deals.

 

[Truckman]

I generally don't go looking for a specific item. I'm just hunting for deals.

Whether buying, selling or trading, making the deal is the fun part......Ben

 

[Venom6]

In Oregon you can't presently buy a gun at a show legally. The so-called "instant check" (which, when implemented, was promised to take only a few minutes) is now backlogged for weeks. Been that way for several years now, so it's not a matter of a glut of panic buying. They won't answer letters or the phone, so I am left to the conclusion that it is deliberate; the state police unit conducting the checks works for the superintendent, who serves at the (Democratic) governor's pleasure.

 

[Skeet 028]

I still go to shows out here in Wy. Some are good...some not as good...but I always find a deal. I buy lots of littles

 

[quikdraw67]

I've given up on gun shows a long time ago.

 

[austintexas]

gunshows

I generally try to hit any show within 100 miles of the house. Waco and Kerrville are about as far away from my house I want to travel. Getting out of Austin is the biggest hassle, lots of traffic and it seems like there is a stoplight every 100 yards. Once in the country its alright. Going to a gunshow and paying to get in is like playing the lotto, If you don't play you don't win. After 1 or 2 trips around the show I generally end up sitting with friends and BSing. Last show there were 5 of us sitting behind a buddys table BSing a lady walked up with 9 firearms, we all bought 1 or 2.
SWCA 892

 

[pharmer]

Over the years I have had several "gun show buddies." Back in the '80's and 90's, holding an 01 FFL made it a real party, with everybody happy and me winding up with a pile o' cash. For the last 20 or so years the ranks have thinned out, one "promoter" bought the circuit and trashed the "hunker-dicker" business.
However, there's a show in 2 weeks, a local "independent" show absent for many years starting back up end of April, and the Lakeland show 1st weekend in May. "The Doc" (75 and still working!) will be waiting for me to pick him up, take him to the shows and share belly laughs in both English and Spanish. We've agreed to keep going at least until at least one of us is dead. Incidentally, I ain't been inside a movie theater in over 10 years. Joe

 

[ACORN]

I will respectfully disagree.
I have never been a fan of being required to to pay an entrance fee for somebody else to try to sell me something. That aside, it has been several years since I have attended a gun show as they have pretty much disappeared around here.
But a bad gun show really tics me off as a total waste of time & money. Work never affected me this way.

I go to a gun show and spend time with my childhood friend.
We don't get to see much of one another but we generally make arrangements to hook up and go to a show.
Doesn't really matter if the show is bad or not, really.
My buddy had a stroke a couple years back. I'm not in the best health.
Going to a show gives us a chance to hang together.
Who knows what tomorrow will bring.
So I'll stand by original post.
Of course YMMV.