[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Local Gunshop Observations (rant) (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 1/10/2012 11:21:13 AM EDT
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There was a gunshow this past weekend here in my hometown of Richmond, Virginia. Me and a good buddy of mine went. I ended up picking up 1200 rounds of Port. .308 and a new Springfield M1A for pretty good prices on both. My buddy sold his EOTech Holosight and was looking to get a Colt 6920. As usual, I always like to justify my purchase by reminding myself how much money I saved. I guess it's a way of making me feel better for spending as much as I did.
So, the following day, I stopped by my local gunshop in Mechanicsville to see if they had any mags for the M1A as the gunshow only had those M14 Korean knock offs. I walk in and an older gentleman asked if he could help. Told him what I was looking for and he looked through a filing cabnet drawer and pulled out a M14 mag in an open plastic baggy. Price on it was $41. Whe asked if he knew the name of manufacture he said he did not. I guess he could tell by the look on my face that I was shocked at the asking price. I took the mag out of the bag and inspected it. The name "Check-Mate" was stamped on the bottom. Now, I know they make good mags and have a contract with the govt. But the price was considerably higher than where you can get them else where. I then asked if it was OK that I see how the mag fits in the M1A he had behind the counter. I did this on purpose because, I noticed it was exactly the same model that I had just purchased at the gunshow, except their asking price was just over $500 more!! I tested the mag and then I asked if the price was negotiable on the mag and he said, as he pointed across the room, "you'll have to ask that guy over there...". Apparently, that is the owner and when I asked him if the price on the mag was negotiable he flatly said, "No", and then shot me a look like I was from outer space to have even asked that question. I placed the mag back on the counter and politely said "thanks anyway" and walked over to look at some ammo they had. He followed me accross the store and went to the same filing cabinet and pulled out a Springfield Armory mag and held it up and said, "... I have these Springfield mags for $52." I looked back at him and said "no thanks". But the tone of his voice was rather indignant. I guess he could tell that I didn't like his pricing. I left there thinking to myself that I will never do business in there again. Namely because of their outrageous prices and secondly because of how they made me feel. My buddy called another gunshop near Ashland and inquired about the model Colt Ar-15 he was looking for and they were over $400 more than you could buy it online. I had been in that one before looking at M1A's and they were just as overpriced and with the same attitude. I don't know how these guys stay in business with the pricing they offer and their customer service. I understand about overhead and all that but, it doesn't need to come with an attitude. I know the guys (vendors/gunshops) online and at gunshows also need to make a profit and believe me they aren't going to sell you anything unless they make a profit. It leads me to believe that the guys at the local gunshops sell to those who don't know much about weapons and don't do their research about pricing before they buy and so therefore are taken advantage of by paying higher than normal pricing. I about fell out when I saw the price tag on the same model M1A; they were asking $2099.00 for it and I paid just over $1600 out the door for mine. I would prefer to buy local. It helps out the community and keeps the local business in business, but these guys at some of these local gunshops need to wake up, cause money is walking out their doors. [per the paragraph nazi's requests - now with paragraphs] |
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Buy online....you will most likely save a lot of money and I will have less of a headache. How much was the Port? The port was $329 for 800 rounds in sealed battle packs.... Best price I've seen in a long time! Have you opened any of the battle packs? The last few packs of Port I have bought had a lot of tarnish (Still worked fine though) |
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Quoted: I understand about overhead and all that but, it doesn't need to come with an attitude. I know the guys (vendors/gunshops) online and at gunshows also need to make a profit and believe me they aren't going to sell you anything unless they make a profit. It leads me to believe that the guys at the local gunshops sell to those who don't know much about weapons and don't do their research about pricing before they buy and so therefore are taken advantage of by paying higher than normal pricing. I about fell out when I saw the price tag on the same model M1A; they were asking $2099.00 for it and I paid just over $1600 out the door for mine. I would prefer to buy local. It helps out the community and keeps the local business in business, but these guys at some of these local gunshops need to wake up, cause money is walking out their doors. [per the paragraph nazi's requests - now with paragraphs] There's your problem. Stop caring. Gunshops are generally for first time buyers and suckers. Online and the occasional gun show deal are for experienced buyers. |
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Buy online....you will most likely save a lot of money and I will have less of a headache. How much was the Port? The port was $329 for 800 rounds in sealed battle packs.... Best price I've seen in a long time! Have you opened any of the battle packs? The last few packs of Port I have bought had a lot of tarnish (Still worked fine though) I haven't opened it yet.... but I plan to go shooting this weekend so I will know more then.... |
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Buy online....you will most likely save a lot of money and I will have less of a headache. How much was the Port? The port was $329 for 800 rounds in sealed battle packs.... Best price I've seen in a long time! Have you opened any of the battle packs? The last few packs of Port I have bought had a lot of tarnish (Still worked fine though) I haven't opened it yet.... but I plan to go shooting this weekend so I will know more then.... Here is what some of mine looked like, not all of it. I would say a few rounds out of every box 
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So when you find that deal online, where do you end up once its shipped to you? Also dont bitch when theres one gunshop left open because internet retailers with no overhead have put them out of business and.you have to pay a 100.00 transfer. How else will you get that great deal into your possession. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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I haven't asked at the Mechanicsville shop, but the Ashland shop charges (last time I checked) $50 per transfer, too.  GT usually does okay on gun prices, though, I'm surprised the AR was so high there.Yep... you are correct sir $50 a transfer and I am ashamed to admit I did one through them.... That won't happen again. and GT was just as high on their prices for the M1A. |
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I like gunshow weekends we are just down the street from the hall they are held everyone comes to our shop and buys after going  at the prices at the gunshow or they do the math on online purchases and once ya figure transfer fee (if applicable) and shipping its pretty close to what we have for sticker price sales tax is what fucks us YMMV of course |
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It's a free market.
Here's how it works: Somebody buys stuff from one source and sells it to somebody else. The seller calculate how much money he wants to earn for his work. If the local market for the stuff is sufficient and there isn't much competition, the seller is free to raise prices as long as the stuff continues to sell. If you don't like the price, you are free to not buy it. Elegant how freedom works, isn't it? There's no need for hurt feelings, drama, long rambling posts on ARFCOM, or indignation. 
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Quoted: ^ So when you find that deal online, where do you end up once its shipped to you? Also dont bitch when theres one gunshop left open because internet retailers with no overhead have put them out of business and.you have to pay a 100.00 transfer. How else will you get that great deal into your possession. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile Plenty of mom and pop internet gun stores in the local area who will transfer for < $50 and who may also have the gun in stock themselves. |
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^ So when you find that deal online, where do you end up once its shipped to you? Also dont bitch when theres one gunshop left open because internet retailers with no overhead have put them out of business and.you have to pay a 100.00 transfer. How else will you get that great deal into your possession. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile I'll have it shipped to a FFL here locally that I found who does them for $25.... Don't get mad at me because the local gunshops are over pricing and I go where I find a better deal..... you would do the same. |
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I like gunshow weekends we are just down the street from the hall they are held everyone comes to our shop and buys after going at the prices at the gunshow
or they do the math on online purchases and once ya figure transfer fee (if applicable) and shipping its pretty close to what we have for sticker price sales tax is what fucks us YMMV of course Any ARFCOM/NFOA discounts on transfers? 
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I figure out landed cost on guns that I buy. If it's cheaper to transfer them in I do so if not I buy locally. Sometime a dealer just can't compete if they are smaller or just don't want to and would rather just make their $25-$35 on a transfer.
Powder/primers are a totally different story though. The last two orders I have placed through Graf's I have literally saved > $1300 combined versus buying it at the local shop during free hazmat sales and while CCI primers were on sale. Granted that is for 50K primers and 80lbs of powder but that is a crap load of money that I didn't waste. |
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Quoted: Quoted: I haven't asked at the Mechanicsville shop, but the Ashland shop charges (last time I checked) $50 per transfer, too. GT usually does okay on gun prices, though, I'm surprised the AR was so high there.Yep... you are correct sir $50 a transfer and I am ashamed to admit I did one through them.... That won't happen again. and GT was just as high on their prices for the M1A. Both D's & GT (why are we not saying the names?) charge the same for transfers. There's a store in Sandston that only charges $25 and one in Richmond that's $15 but he wants tax on the purchase price as well... As for GT's pricing, they're not usually THAT high on new firearms, and they are always willing to negotiate if asked politely. Short story about the Mechanicsville shop, I have an old commercial mauser action that I rebarreled several years ago to 30-06. Well the Ashland gun smith (not GT) is notorious for taking FOREVER to complete work so I asked the M'ville shop what they're price would be for the work. The actual barreling and finish chambering wasn't that bad, only $80. The outrageous part was they didn't own a 30-06 finish reamer and wanted to pass the cost for them to purchase the reamer to me. I asked if I'd get to keep the reamer and was told no, which is coincidentally the same answer they received... I stop in there every now and then, but aside from my Kel-Tec s2000 I bought several years ago for well below retail, they're very overpriced... |
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It seems like most gunshops in Virginia overprice their stuff. There is really only one small shop in my area that I know of, and it's right down the street from a gander mountain, so they can probably mark up their prices quite a bit and still get away with having lower prices than GM. I try to be reasonable when appraising prices at smaller shops because obviously they're going to have to charge more just to stay afloat. However when they're selling wasr's for almost $550 and GSL-21s for $900, I've got to wonder if they even move enough volume to turn a profit. Too be honest, it doesn't seem like it. Unless they're very prompt with restocking, it seems like most of the same guns are still there every time I walk in. There's been a tec-9 there for months. I know tec-9's suck, but still, I always assumed they'd be rather quick sells due to their cool factor among young adults with money to blow. Evidently, they're turning a profit somehow though, or they'd have gone under by now. |
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Snip - another gunshop near Ashland - Snip ] Try maybe the Blackbird in Medford, or Good Guys Guns? I got nothing else. I heard there is a place off of Hull Street that may be reasonable... It's just hard to get past the prices and attitude that I have been finding... |
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With a lot of local gunshops being pretty pricey (I usually check out Academy first, they're usually not infuckingsane with their pricing), and finding an FFL who will do transfers for $10... and having a friend who will soon have his own FFL and will do transfers for free... it's just not worth it to me to support local guys if I can save hundreds of dollars shopping online.
I've gotten into the habit of checking Budsgunshop.com, since they usually have great prices and often times include shipping in the price. |
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Quoted: I don't mind a little higher price at the brick and mortars, but an attitude will make sure I never step foot in there again. Same here. I shop fairly often locally when buying things like AR mags. I can get Pmags at a local gun shop for a buck or two more than online. But i enjoy looking at some guns and talking to the people who work their so I don't mind spending a few extra dollars. |
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I don't mind a little higher price at the brick and mortars, but an attitude will make sure I never step foot in there again. Same here. I shop fairly often locally when buying things like AR mags. I can get Pmags at a local gun shop for a buck or two more than online. But i enjoy looking at some guns and talking to the people who work their so I don't mind spending a few extra dollars. unfortunetly at the shops I've been to the mark for mags is almost is bad on their guns.... 
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Quoted: I haven't asked at the Mechanicsville shop, but the Ashland shop charges (last time I checked) $50 per transfer, too. GT usually does okay on gun prices, though, I'm surprised the AR was so high there.The Mechanicsville shop is $50 for a transfer as well, and they won't transfer anything that they can order. I stopped going to either unless I need some reloading supplies in a pinch. |
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Degoff's (there, I said the name) customer service back in the day (when Curtis owned/ran it) was top notch. Now I do get a lot of attitude in there. They seem to think they are doing you, the customer, a favor by letting you in the door. They also seem to think we should be honored to pay their prices. I only go in now to kill time, they wont see another dime of my money. |
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Quoted: Degoff's (there, I said the name) customer service back in the day (when Curtis owned/ran it) was top notch. Now I do get a lot of attitude in there. They seem to think they are doing you, the customer, a favor by letting you in the door. They also seem to think we should be honored to pay their prices. I only go in now to kill time, they wont see another dime of my money. Yeah, pretty much this. |
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Quoted: Degoff's (there, I said the name) customer service back in the day (when Curtis owned/ran it) was top notch. Now I do get a lot of attitude in there. They seem to think they are doing you, the customer, a favor by letting you in the door. They also seem to think we should be honored to pay their prices. I only go in now to kill time, they wont see another dime of my money. Agreed. I can't remember the exact discussion, but I was looking for a Heritage Arms .22lr for a plinker at the range. Checked at Degoff's and was just about laughed outta there. |
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There's your problem. Stop caring. Gunshops are generally for first time buyers and suckers. Online and the occasional gun show deal are for experienced buyers. Sadly this. As much as I would like to be able to shop local, I can't justify paying 160% or more then I would online. None of my other local shops are even 110% of online, I mean like auto parts, lumber, plants, ect.. It only seems ot be gun shops and it's nearly a nationwide problem. |
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Quoted: It seems like most gunshops in Virginia overprice their stuff. There is really only one small shop in my area that I know of, and it's right down the street from a gander mountain, so they can probably mark up their prices quite a bit and still get away with having lower prices than GM. I try to be reasonable when appraising prices at smaller shops because obviously they're going to have to charge more just to stay afloat. However when they're selling wasr's for almost $550 and GSL-21s for $900, I've got to wonder if they even move enough volume to turn a profit. Too be honest, it doesn't seem like it. Unless they're very prompt with restocking, it seems like most of the same guns are still there every time I walk in. There's been a tec-9 there for months. I know tec-9's suck, but still, I always assumed they'd be rather quick sells due to their cool factor among young adults with money to blow. Evidently, they're turning a profit somehow though, or they'd have gone under by now. It's a bit of a drive from F'burg but head up to Manassas sometime. Shops there have good people and fair prices. |
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Quoted: If you know your prices, sometimes you can actually find things cheaper at your local fun shop. They might have everything else marked up as high as giraffe genitalia, but for some reason they got those things priced cheaper than the internet. Oddly this can be true... I went in Degoff's one time and found several AK magazines in cosmoline (don't remember the origin beyond NOT China) for $5/each. Bought several since the Best I could do online was nearly $10 with shipping. |
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Buy online....you will most likely save a lot of money and I will have less of a headache. How much was the Port? The port was $329 for 800 rounds in sealed battle packs.... Best price I've seen in a long time! Have you opened any of the battle packs? The last few packs of Port I have bought had a lot of tarnish (Still worked fine though) I haven't opened it yet.... but I plan to go shooting this weekend so I will know more then.... Here is what some of mine looked like, not all of it. I would say a few rounds out of every box http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff283/dcs12345/414683249_photobucket_15620_.jpg http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff283/dcs12345/414683249_photobucket_15621_.jpg http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff283/dcs12345/414683249_photobucket_15622_.jpg I opened a battle pack last night just to inspect some of the rounds and sure enough it has the same type of tarnish on mine as I see in the pictures you posted. Looks like at some point these may have been stored somewhere where moisture could get to them briefly. Who did you buy your .308 from? If I remember correctly the name of the people were rareammo.com or something to that effect... Looks like I will be wiping down some ammo before I go shoot it....
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Quoted: Quoted: It seems like most gunshops in Virginia overprice their stuff. There is really only one small shop in my area that I know of, and it's right down the street from a gander mountain, so they can probably mark up their prices quite a bit and still get away with having lower prices than GM. I try to be reasonable when appraising prices at smaller shops because obviously they're going to have to charge more just to stay afloat. However when they're selling wasr's for almost $550 and GSL-21s for $900, I've got to wonder if they even move enough volume to turn a profit. Too be honest, it doesn't seem like it. Unless they're very prompt with restocking, it seems like most of the same guns are still there every time I walk in. There's been a tec-9 there for months. I know tec-9's suck, but still, I always assumed they'd be rather quick sells due to their cool factor among young adults with money to blow. Evidently, they're turning a profit somehow though, or they'd have gone under by now. It's a bit of a drive from F'burg but head up to Manassas sometime. Shops there have good people and fair prices. Yea, Manassas arms and Guns and Ammo warehouse are pretty good shops. He can go further south to Trader Jerry's, they're pretty damn good as well. 90% of the time I buy a firearm at a gun show, it's at their booth. ETA: you also have Bass Pro Shops, Dick's Sporting goods, and WM in FB. The regular shops are virtually non existant. But it only takes ~40m to get to manassas |
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I haven't asked at the Mechanicsville shop, but the Ashland shop charges (last time I checked) $50 per transfer, too. GT usually does okay on gun prices, though, I'm surprised the AR was so high there.The Mechanicsville shop is $50 for a transfer as well, and they won't transfer anything that they can order. I stopped going to either unless I need some reloading supplies in a pinch. I stopped by there once after attending the Showplace show......Talk about your sticker-shock! 
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It's a free market. Here's how it works: Somebody buys stuff from one source and sells it to somebody else. The seller calculate how much money he wants to earn for his work. If the local market for the stuff is sufficient and there isn't much competition, the seller is free to raise prices as long as the stuff continues to sell. If you don't like the price, you are free to not buy it. Elegant how freedom works, isn't it? There's no need for hurt feelings, drama, long rambling posts on ARFCOM, or indignation. +1 This is the wrong place for sympathy about the free exercise of choice. |