Author Topic: Gun Shows ain't what they used to be (Read 3936 times)

pneuby · « **Reply #30 on:** May 19, 2010, 03:12:57 PM »

I'm in the 5th largest city in the nation. We once had 3 gunshow promoters, though I wouldn't want to mislead anyone that it was 'competitive'. However, the big one now bought out the other two smaller players. I don't even think the collectors organizations or Shriners even DO any shows any more. Parking is $10, and admission is $13! IF you get to 'save' that much over a gun store purchse, you're lucky.

The pluses are dwindling. Lots of private sellers that may be hawking something you want. Rummage boxes full of parts, holsters, grips, etc. Running into old friends. However, few...as I said.

BIGDAVE54 · « **Reply #31 on:** September 29, 2010, 08:39:53 PM »

Here in Columbia,SC there are 7 or 8 gun shows per year. One group is a guy named Mike Kent that does gun shows and reinactments of the Civil War battles. His shows are held at the state fair grounds about every 3 months. They were the new comers about ten years ago and started out small,but have grown to a fairly decent show.Gun prices are high...just like every where else. There is one mega sized dealer that rents about a dozen tables and has about a dozen clerks working for him. They have decent prices compared to the smaller guys,but they are set up to do the paperwork and background checks. I find good prices on brass and powder at this gun show....
The other place here in town is held at the Jamil Shriners temple. It literally stinks inside this place because there is a bunch of old timers that haul the same old rotten tents and boots from WW2 and Korea in. They take it back home and throw it in the barn or basement for 3 months until the other shows 3 months later come. One of the biggest rackets with them is buying old military rifles through the CMP and charging 3 to 4 times the price they paid for them. I saw a worn out M1 carbine for $1100. I quit going there a few years ago when I bought 2 $5 raffle tickets for a car they were supposed to draw a name for. A month or so later I asked one of the chosen few up there who won the car and he got real defensive and told me just to call the lodge and ask them if I was so worried about it...Sorry old man ....that is the wrong attitude to have if I am going to have anything to do with any of them.Their attendance has fallen drastically the last few years...We really don't have that great of a gun show here for an area of over a million people with approx. 175,000 CCW holders statewide.

FN in MT · « **Reply #32 on:** October 05, 2010, 08:54:32 AM »

Like a lot of things, Montana is 20 yrs behind the rest of the Country. Gun Shows are no exception. they are surely changing here...for the worse, but still worth attending. Two main Promoters with a show basically every 2-3 weekends someplace in the State. $5 to get in...NO parking fees. Uniformed LE Officers and uniformed Active Duty Military..get in for free.

Montana is a huge state, but with relatively few people. So the Shows are a nice opportunity to visit with fellow gun nuts who attend all the shows.

Prices on many of the tables are crazy...but there are also still deals to be found. EVERY show, no matter where.... has delusional sellers with over priced crap. We are no different.

Lots of folks walking around wanting to sell items as well. Few yrs back in Bozeman I bought a 90% Smith M-58 for $300. That same show in the parking lot I met a guy with a box full of Lyman casting supplies including three older 4 cavity moulds w/handles. He wanted a hundred bucks for the lot...Gave him the C note....in the bottom of the box were three Protchko 2 cavity LBT design moulds and three 2 cavity true Keith design moulds. Still use those ten moulds I got from the guy.

There are delas to be found if you look.

FN in MT

dickttx · « **Reply #33 on:** October 05, 2010, 10:34:38 AM »

I had not been to a gun show in several years. This year I have been to 2 in Ft Worth.
Several large dealers with 10 to 20 tables each, all with the same pistols. Prices were not all that bad.
Virtually no reloading equipment. All accessories were for AR, etc. Very few individuals with used stuff to sell. City is now charging for parking. Probably won't go again.

SHOOTALL · « **Reply #34 on:** October 05, 2010, 10:48:08 AM »

Went to a gun show in Fishersville Va. not a big show but it was like shows were years ago. Lots of guys selling off guns they didn't need or for needed cash. This location is in the mts. The people who attend are mostly from there . they are nice and have mannors . It was a great time. Several tables were guys selling off a collection not dealers.

FN in MT · « **Reply #35 on:** October 05, 2010, 12:26:50 PM »

Also try to hit a few LARGE, out of state shows each year for a change of pace from the local shows.

The Spring Big Reno Show has become a tradition with a few of us from MT attending and a few good friends from NJ coming out to meet us. Nice to see some different items, and be able to look at 1000+ tables.

Reno has been a good show overall. Every one of us have made a few screaming deals over the past few years on mostly older Smith revolvers but we have all picked up tough to find S&W accy's like screwdrivers/boxes for give away prices too.

I'm taking a bit of a leap and going to attend the upcoming November TULSA Show. 4000 tables. That should be a shock for a guy used to 400 table shows! Hoping to snag a few of the hard to get Smiths I'm unable to find here locally.

FN in MT

mrussel · « **Reply #36 on:** October 07, 2010, 06:34:27 PM »

Quote from: v-man on May 02, 2010, 11:00:12 AM

Not finding deals like I used to. New and used guns are well above going rate. New rifles marked above MSRP and they won't budge. Used GP 100 marked at $625. He came down to $600. They're all over the auctions for $300 to $500. Fed 550 pack .22's now on Walmart shelves for $18.97 all between 25 and 28 bucks. Not against capitalism but these guys are all complaining that everyone is looking but not buying. It's no wonder. The local gun store is offereing better deals and they don't even set up at the shows anymore. Hardly any revolvers on the tables. All AR's and SA handguns. I understand why but every show for the last year has been a boring waste of time. What are you folks seeing in your neck of the woods?
Sorry if this should have been posted somewhere else.

I get some decent deals. They have primers for around 20 a box for the name brands and some off brands for a few bucks less. Surplus ammo is always popular. Someone actually had 50 rounds of 8x56R on clips he wanted 30 dollars for. I passed as it was more of a collectors item. While someone else may have bought it to shoot,and the price was better than buying commercial boxed ammo,I just didn't want to be the one to shoot it and I dont collect cartridges. I got my JC Higgins 12 ga at a gun show for around 70 dollars. Not bad for a nice pump action 12 ga. I found a marlin 30-30 lever action for 220 in great shape except someone had scratched/carved a logo onto the stock,but I hate the stock on those things so if I had bought it I would have replaced it anyway. Unfortunately I had already spent my money on optics,a Carcano (for 70 dollars),mounting accessories,and primers. The show before I got a Super Blackhawk,brand new for $450. Best I can get around here is $525. I consider that a good price. (He was asking 500,I offered 425)

I think there are two kinds of people that go to gun shows. Those that want great deals and those that want selection and are willing to pay the prices. (after all,the vendors are not stupid,they dont pay the fees and travel expenses to NOT make money) In fact I bet many people go there wanting to buy a gun and maybe not knowing as much as they should,see something they like and buy it. Then there are people like me and I assume you,that want a really good deal. However, 'm willing to pay more than I would pay on gun action sites for used guns becuase I can inspect it before I buy it. I do expect a better deal than I could get from my local gun stores. If not,I will just buy from them.

mrussel · « **Reply #37 on:** October 07, 2010, 06:43:11 PM »

Quote from: FN in MT on October 05, 2010, 12:26:50 PM

Also try to hit a few LARGE, out of state shows each year for a change of pace from the local shows.

The Spring Big Reno Show has become a tradition with a few of us from MT attending and a few good friends from NJ coming out to meet us. Nice to see some different items, and be able to look at 1000+ tables.

Reno has been a good show overall. Every one of us have made a few screaming deals over the past few years on mostly older Smith revolvers but we have all picked up tough to find S&W accy's like screwdrivers/boxes for give away prices too.

I'm taking a bit of a leap and going to attend the upcoming November TULSA Show. 4000 tables. That should be a shock for a guy used to 400 table shows! Hoping to snag a few of the hard to get Smiths I'm unable to find here locally.

FN in MT

How does that work? Dont most states have laws and regulations regarding sales to out of staters? Do you have to have an FFL ,which presumably would exempt you from those laws.

FN in MT · « **Reply #38 on:** October 07, 2010, 06:55:56 PM »

We take a handful of FFL's with us.

ole 5 hole group · « **Reply #39 on:** October 08, 2010, 08:20:43 AM »

Here’s my take on gun shows. Most people come to the gun shows for the same reason they go to county fairs – it’s a cheap afternoon and they get the added benefit of socializing with people they seldom see. Most come with either no money or they don’t intend to spend any money.

The out of town vendor will probably have around $300 in expenses (motel, food, gasoline & table rent) and when you consider how many sales a vendor will have in those 2 days – he’s not putting much money, if any, in his pocket and that just might be the reason he won’t come down much, if any, on his prices. Some will mark up their main high item products 3% to 10% knowing the average gun show buyer likes to “haggle” the price down some.

When you consider that you can handle & inspect the firearm, take out your blackberry and check various prices on different auction forums or distribution sites and then if you do purchase the firearm, you probably do so with no shipping fee, sales tax or transfer fee. Not a bad deal if you ask me.

If you want to purchase a firearm related item, you can surely do so at a gun show for probably less money than you can anywhere else. I know for a fact that at some gun shows the vendors having a retail business in the area or surrounding area will purchase a lot of the “cheaper” items from the guy just selling his “stuff” prior to the show opening its doors on the 1st day - for resale at their normal place of business.

The people who pass up these prices at the show are usually the same people who will go into a retail business and purchase this same item marked up 40% plus tax because they feel better about purchasing it from a known business than from a stranger at a gun show table – and they haven’t a clue the retail business may have purchased the item at the same gun show they were at. Why else would anyone pass up CCI, Federal or Winchester primers marked $19 to $25 a thousand, Hodgdon Powder at $18 a pound, Winchester Super Match 38 Special wadcutters (box of 50) at $15 a box, a used but like new 3.5X15X50 NXS (Night Force scope) for $550 or a Colt Python at $950 etc?

There are some vendors who price their stuff very high and they don’t sell anything – why they rent tables at local gun shows is a mystery, as they lose money every time and keep coming back. I think it’s those individuals most people talk about, as there’s a few of them at every show.

mrussel · « **Reply #40 on:** October 08, 2010, 07:25:58 PM »

Quote from: ole 5 hole group on October 08, 2010, 08:20:43 AM

Here’s my take on gun shows. Most people come to the gun shows for the same reason they go to county fairs – it’s a cheap afternoon and they get the added benefit of socializing with people they seldom see. Most come with either no money or they don’t intend to spend any money.

The out of town vendor will probably have around $300 in expenses (motel, food, gasoline & table rent) and when you consider how many sales a vendor will have in those 2 days – he’s not putting much money, if any, in his pocket and that just might be the reason he won’t come down much, if any, on his prices. Some will mark up their main high item products 3% to 10% knowing the average gun show buyer likes to “haggle” the price down some.

When you consider that you can handle & inspect the firearm, take out your blackberry and check various prices on different auction forums or distribution sites and then if you do purchase the firearm, you probably do so with no shipping fee, sales tax or transfer fee. Not a bad deal if you ask me.

If you want to purchase a firearm related item, you can surely do so at a gun show for probably less money than you can anywhere else. I know for a fact that at some gun shows the vendors having a retail business in the area or surrounding area will purchase a lot of the “cheaper” items from the guy just selling his “stuff” prior to the show opening its doors on the 1st day - for resale at their normal place of business.

The people who pass up these prices at the show are usually the same people who will go into a retail business and purchase this same item marked up 40% plus tax because they feel better about purchasing it from a known business than from a stranger at a gun show table – and they haven’t a clue the retail business may have purchased the item at the same gun show they were at. Why else would anyone pass up CCI, Federal or Winchester primers marked $19 to $25 a thousand, Hodgdon Powder at $18 a pound, Winchester Super Match 38 Special wadcutters (box of 50) at $15 a box, a used but like new 3.5X15X50 NXS (Night Force scope) for $550 or a Colt Python at $950 etc?

There are some vendors who price their stuff very high and they don’t sell anything – why they rent tables at local gun shows is a mystery, as they lose money every time and keep coming back. I think it’s those individuals most people talk about, as there’s a few of them at every show.

Im sure even those guys ARE making a profit. Perhaps not as much as they would like,but if they were not making a profit,they just would not come back. There was a guy at the last one selling bayonettes. He said he lost money there and was not coming back. Apparently his goods sold well where he was from,but people here did not want them. (he had an excellent selection BTW,and his prices did not seem that bad)

His lordship. · « **Reply #41 on:** October 10, 2010, 11:00:16 AM »

I was hoping to attend one of the big shows in Dallas or Houston, TX, now I am not so sure. It has also been pointed out on the abundance of AR-15 stuff, the last few years at all the shows I have been to there is so much of it. I know that the AR's are the fashion fad right now, but it has been a little too much on that item.

dickttx · « **Reply #42 on:** October 10, 2010, 11:57:21 AM »

Despite my previous post (#33 above) I did go to a Fort Worth gun show yesterday.
I was looking for primers and brass. $30 for primers, $20/100 for brass. I didn't buy any.
I had been looking for a .22 handgun for some time, first a semi-auto, then changed my mind to DA revolver. Couldn't find one of those. Finally settled on SS single six but had not bought yet.
On the last row of the show yesterday, 30 minutes before closing, a DA caught my eye. I picked it up and it was a S&W 617, 4 inch barrel. The price was too much so I walked on a few steps, came back and asked the guy if could handle it, and try the trigger. He unclipped the zip tie, I cocked it and pulled the trigger once and bought it.
Got 60 shots in before the Cowboys game started.
Beyond a doubt the finest gun I have ever fired.

Dogshooter · « **Reply #43 on:** October 16, 2010, 08:54:34 AM »

My best friend and hunting buddy owns a small sporting goods store in Wyoming and he takes most of his guns from his store and buys table space at a different gun show every week. He never changes the prices for his guns from the store prices except at MOST gun shows he gives a show discount. I usually go with him to help him out when I am home and I am always amazed at how cheap some people are. I understand that haggling is a big part of gun dealing but if a dealer can't make a prifit he had better not do the deal or he won't be in business long. I can bet if you had the chance to see just how much profit there really is in most of the gun deals made at gun shows you'd be suprised. Most small gun shops owners I know are not driving expensive vehicles or living in huge houses because they don't make enough money in the gun business to do so. They are in the business because, like most of us here, they love guns. I know many of them and they are all struggling to pay their bills. The next time you are haggling over a few bucks on the price of a gun, keep in mind that if these folks can't make a decent living, they won't be around for long and then we can all start buying the guns Walmart is willing to carry at the prices they want to charge because all the competition has been forced out of business.

Range Rider · « **Reply #44 on:** October 16, 2010, 09:21:11 AM »

From my place here in SW Wyoming its a 200 mile round trip to any gun show. I only go these days in off seasons when there is nothing else to do or to beat cabin fever. The days of quality guns shows are gone here in the Rocky Mtn. country. They are nothing more than over priced flea markets run by money grubbers who think gun buyers are stupid. I walk around for a while thinking things might get better they don't. I then visit a couple of gun and shooting out lets in Salt Lake City and buy what I need at far better prices. Too bad the gun shows have turned into a racket thats only directed at selling tables and admisson fees. The good news is attendence to these things is falling off. Just maybe some one will get the message, we can only hope.

RR

fknipfer · « **Reply #45 on:** November 01, 2010, 04:38:48 AM »

Used to go to gunshows to browse around looking for bargains and usually would find something I couldn't live without. No more though, I am not paying $7 to $10 each for myself and wife to go in and look at prices on things I can beat at home or on Gunbroker. Sorry guys but you have and are going to lose more business with prices and entrance fee's.

fknipfer1

SHOOTALL · « **Reply #46 on:** November 01, 2010, 09:21:16 AM »

So what 7-8 bucks , spend more than that to take wife to a movie and would rather see gun stuff

mrussel · « **Reply #47 on:** November 01, 2010, 04:44:47 PM »

Quote from: pneuby on May 19, 2010, 03:12:57 PM

I'm in the 5th largest city in the nation. We once had 3 gunshow promoters, though I wouldn't want to mislead anyone that it was 'competitive'. However, the big one now bought out the other two smaller players. I don't even think the collectors organizations or Shriners even DO any shows any more. Parking is $10, and admission is $13! IF you get to 'save' that much over a gun store purchse, you're lucky.

The pluses are dwindling. Lots of private sellers that may be hawking something you want. Rummage boxes full of parts, holsters, grips, etc. Running into old friends. However, few...as I said.

Ok,I didnt read your message carefully enough. That IS ridiculous. Here,admission is 8-10 dollars and parking is free. Its a little high,but that's crazy.

mrussel · « **Reply #48 on:** November 01, 2010, 04:52:07 PM »

Quote from: Dogshooter on October 16, 2010, 08:54:34 AM

My best friend and hunting buddy owns a small sporting goods store in Wyoming and he takes most of his guns from his store and buys table space at a different gun show every week. He never changes the prices for his guns from the store prices except at MOST gun shows he gives a show discount. I usually go with him to help him out when I am home and I am always amazed at how cheap some people are. I understand that haggling is a big part of gun dealing but if a dealer can't make a prifit he had better not do the deal or he won't be in business long. I can bet if you had the chance to see just how much profit there really is in most of the gun deals made at gun shows you'd be suprised. Most small gun shops owners I know are not driving expensive vehicles or living in huge houses because they don't make enough money in the gun business to do so. They are in the business because, like most of us here, they love guns. I know many of them and they are all struggling to pay their bills. The next time you are haggling over a few bucks on the price of a gun, keep in mind that if these folks can't make a decent living, they won't be around for long and then we can all start buying the guns Walmart is willing to carry at the prices they want to charge because all the competition has been forced out of business.

I haggle,but I understand,if the seller feels he can make the profit he wants and needs,then he will accept,if not,then he will turn me down. I dont take it personally when he wants more than I am willing to pay just as I hope he wont take it personally when I want it for less than he is willing to sell it for. Thats how it works,if we cant come to a deal,I go somewhere else.

dickttx: Around here,30-35 for 1000 primers is typical in the local stores. At the gun shows you can get them for around 20,or even slightly less for the Tula ones. I dont consider 30 high,just average. I get them for 20 if I need them when the show is coming up,but for 30 I would just buy them locally. If the prices are the same on something,I will always support the local gun stores becuase they are always there when I need them. (But for the difference between 20 and 35 dollars,I just cant refuse the deal)

billy_56081 · « **Reply #49 on:** November 01, 2010, 05:52:31 PM »

Gun shows are good for finding oddball ammo. It seems they have calibers that the big shops and retail stores don't carry. Oddball guns are another thing you find there. And also you meet some of the best folks in the world.

Czech_too · « **Reply #50 on:** November 02, 2010, 01:20:13 AM »

While visiting out of state, I had the opportunity to go to the Davenport, IA show. While not as big a show as some here in Ohio, it was a refreshing change. No tables filled with woodworking items nor extensive displays of cheap pocket knives. Reasonable prices on a couple of Contenders and I even found a box of primers for $25!

Range Rider · « **Reply #51 on:** November 02, 2010, 09:20:47 AM »

Maybe their are only a few of us left who remember. The Gun Shows were in their shining Days during the late 1950s and into the 1960s. This was when you went to a gun show and got an education on any fire arm you wanted to know about. This was also the center for real poltical information on gun politics. The men who had tables were experts and teachers on the guns they sold. It was a real pleasure to attend a show and leave with a head full of gun knowledge if you could not afford anything else. The years of antigun attacks the SS tactics used by the then new BATF. The almost loss of all gun rights to the power of Lyndon Johnson and his Austin Elitest. THe end results? Most of the real gun show vendors gave it up and moved on to other things. We were left then with a group of gun dealers making an extra buck on weekends. These folks for the most part will sell anything that turns a dollar. It is rare to find one of them that have any real firearm knowledge beyoned the last imported cheap .22 pot metal pistol. They prevail up on buyers with credit cards to pay high prices. This is because they are getting a deal, after all its a gun show. The promoters of these shows are filling their pockets by renting low cost rooms charging $50 to $100 dollars per table and $10 dollar entry fees. Some of them charge parking fees. Why are we supporting these rip-off gun shows, well fewer of us are. Lets send these guys a message.

RR

mrussel · « **Reply #52 on:** November 03, 2010, 12:14:16 AM »

Quote from: Czech_too on November 02, 2010, 01:20:13 AM

While visiting out of state, I had the opportunity to go to the Davenport, IA show. While not as big a show as some here in Ohio, it was a refreshing change. No tables filled with woodworking items nor extensive displays of cheap pocket knives. Reasonable prices on a couple of Contenders and I even found a box of primers for $25!

I got some decent deals at Ohio gun shows,but felt that there were some real problems with them. I went to one and about 1/4 of the show was shrink wrapped Nazi paraphernalia. Not historic things like say,Nazi marked weapons,original Nazi uniforms,medals flags or insignia,or things like that which are fine, but brand new shrink wrapped items from Taiwan, like T-shirts and hats with swastikas or pictures of Hitler. Now,I am the first to defend their right to sell it and would oppose for instance any law or ordinance that would restrict them from doing so. Still,I go there for guns,not to get glared at by some woman reading the turner diaries when I joke about using the Mosin Nagant rifle I just bought on the Nazis should they get bogged down in the NE Ohio winter. (Parts of Cleveland already LOOK like early 1943 Stallingrad) I'm all for freedom of speech,but I have freedom of speech to and dont have to support speech I dont agree with from admission fees and the gun show organizers dont have to support it either. When its no longer the "Gun and Knife Show" but instead the "Gun,Knife,Nazi Paraphernalia and Racist Literature Show" it makes us all look bad and gives certain people an excuse to try to lump us all together and label us a bunch of nutcases. The problem is,a show like that one I went to in Ohio (I dont know if they all are like that in Ohio,but the ones I went to were) is the one that makes the national news. People get a little worried when they see table after table of Nazi flags and giant posters of Adolph Hitler,and slightly more so when they see all that along with large qualities of guns. The gun shows here are different. Its common to see grandpa and the grand-kids there,with grandpa saying "What did I tell you,dont touch the guns,if you want to handle one ask me first" Its more of a family friendly atmosphere. These ones wont make the national news unfortunately.

While I prefer more guns and less wood working gear (OK,there's always a big table here with baked goods,which are always really good, and another with dehydrated food products,which are surprisingly not too bad, and storage equipment) that's the least of my worries about the shows I went to in Ohio.

frankjg · « **Reply #53 on:** November 08, 2010, 03:54:39 PM »

I have hit the local gun shows in Monroe WA but after 3 trips I do not see any reason to go again. Prices were foolishly high and the dealers were not willing to sell at even the list price. Prices were 10 to 25% higher than what you could buy at the LGS.

I even wrote to the agency who puts on the show and told them I would no attend again because of the high prices.

Frank

Dogshooter · « **Reply #54 on:** November 08, 2010, 04:31:25 PM »

Range Rider, If you really beleive what you posted I can certainly understand why you wouldn't want to go to a gun show. My experience has been that most gun dealers (yes there are a lot of vendors at gun shows that are not "gun dealers") are very knowledgable regarding firearms, their operation, their history, and are generally honest people trying to make a living. I have seen instances where a dealer has actually talked a novice out of buying a gun that would obviously not fit the need the newbie has expressed, even at the loss of a sale. If a dealer happens to carry and sell a lot of "pot metal" pistols it is because there is a market for them and any business can't stay in business without providing what the purchasing public wants. Things HAVE changed since your haydays (and mine as well, yes I am probably almost as old as you) but they are not necessarily "worse" times. We all share a fantastic heritage in our right to keep and bear arms and ANYTHING that supports, protects, or furthers that right is something we should ALL support. As for myself, I hate movies and all the Hollywood crap that produces them. So I just don't go to them. If guns shows are that disgusting to you...............