I am amazed at how the quality and behavior of gun shops changes with geography.

South Florida has the biggest jerks in the gun business. I went to a gun shop to look at some korth revolvers - got a bs line about euro exchange rates and how the guns are now cheap ect. This is a $8K gun. They did not bring it out of the display. The used korth revolver had no price on it. Everything else was tactical - lots of good guns but nothing with a price tag on it. Other gun shops in South Florida have the same attitude - pushy sales guys with a lots of bs tactical talk, sloppy on pricing - lots of ask for a price. Felt like they are in the business of selling guns to NY transplants (NYC/Long Island and Westchester - not upstate).

Central Florida is much better - still tactical and handgun dominated.

Maybe I spent most of my time in NYC at the Beretta gallery and a little at Holland and Holland. Same in London. MY gunsmith and gun dealer was a small store in Honesdale, PA. All these varied places and in Central Florida you get treated well. I can say the same for Carter in Houston. You go to South Florida and its a f*cking joke.

Mike

I've seen the same behavior in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, California, Wyoming, and here in Las Vegas.

The folks in Maine, New Hampshire, and Texas were great across the board.

We don't owe these clowns a living, and I will them they lost my business and shop elsewhere.

After a few dozen customers tell them this, the store owners will get the message.

George

so far, so good, in Idaho. But, I've known most of the owners since the late 1970's.

I seldom frequent gun shops any more couldn't tell you what is trendy these days

quote:

Originally posted by p dog shooter:
I seldom frequent gun shops any more couldn't tell you what is trendy these days

I will be buying on the classified section of AR.

I had a work dinner in Miami and it was on the way.

Problem with the gun retail business is someone with a lot more hunting, gun or financial experience can be on the other side as a client. Dont treat your customer like its your average village idiot.

Mike

Amen on that.

Poor gun salesmen though have been around for ever.

I listened to a young man at Gibson's (now defunct) years ago telling a lady all he knew about deer rifles. She was buying a first gun for her son. From the discussion I wasn't sure the salesman had ever owned or shot a gun, and certainly hadn't ever hunted deer. He was trying to sell her a .22 Long. After two or three minutes I stepped in, and got the discussion on track.

My favorite sporting goods salesman though was the guy showing me all he knew about fishing rods. I was looking for something for peacock bass. He snapped the rod in half at the butt showing me his "technique". We were both speechless. He was as red as a tomato. I excused myself and eased-out the door.

I think the whole south florida gun shop tacti-cool stuff is aimed at North Eastern shooters who have been denied some types of guns and some who have a lot of $$.

There were selling a Knight Armament S-25 E2 APR with 20 inch for like $6K - price on request only. They will probably sell a night force scope for 4-5K to go with it. But the joke was they had side mounted iron sights. So someone can flip the sniper rifle on the side and use it for cqb.

They had a ton of high end tactical rifles - any stacked 5 deep on the wall. So the place was real. But the sales pitch was a joke.

Mike

Little gun shop in WV. Not much larger than a closet but the guy had a little bit of most everything and was happy to order anything he didn't. But what really impressed me was once as I was leaving with some "stuff" he'd ordered for me, he told me "you know, you don't have to buy something to come in and visit."

Kensco,I remember Gibson's quite well.And you correct;they were quite a bit like Wal-Mart in theis sporting goods dept. in that the counter help did'nt have a clue on the products.That is to be expected when they hire the ignorant. In the "real" gunstores however that should not be an issue although I have witnessed salesmens arrogance on numerous occasions. Hell,some of those guys would drive business away from a free liquor store.That is not conducive to good business practices (+staying in business) + is certainly no way to introduce new shooters into our fraternity.

My brother and I were is a small shop many years ago we were looking through used firearms rack.

I picked up a rifle to look it over the owner in a loud voice said if your not buying don't handle them.

At the time my brother and I both had cash in our wallets.

I placed the rifle back in the rack and we walked out never went back heard a few years later the shop went belly up.

I even found some of the vendor representatives at the DSC Convention a little too full of themselves. I don't cut any slack to people that start talking down to me.

Beretta's comment is Rule #1 in sales. You don't know who you are talking to, so find out by listening and asking questions. The phrase we always used in the oilfield was, "Don't let the old clothes fool you".

I was disappointed in Cabela's at the DSC. They had a lot of "shirts" working their booth, but not anyone that knew one of the guys that had been running their own Outdoor Adventure operation (Ed Beattie). I had booked four hunts with Ed at the time. Why would I want to waste my time talking to people that didn't even know their own product. That is the problem with conventions and gun shops, some people get put behind the counter that never should be there. They run-off more business than they attract.

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The phrase we always used in the oilfield was, "Don't let the old clothes fool you".

Yes indeed! I had an uncle (had more money than Croseus)but dressed like all the cattlemen in Wichita Falls.He bought a new Cadillac convertible every year. He liked to sit on top of the headrest + use a stick to work the accelorator while he was pasture hopping shooting at jack rabbits with his .22.The story in point was that one day after gelding calves he decided to go to town + buy a new car.Don't even try to rationalize that decision.He shows up at the dealership looking + smelling like you can imagine.Some new young salesman sees the old man + gives him the bums rush.He is walking out of the dealership when the owner sees him + rushes out.HE knew my uncle's peculiar purchasing habits.Uncle said he would accept the appology providing that the caddy was ready at 4:00 that afternoon + painted pink.He got it too.GOD,it must be nice to have that kind of money.

Too bad most of the colorful oil and cattle barons around Wichita Falls have faded away in time along with the oil and big money.

We had a great Gibsons store down town. A.G.Huffine ran the gun department. He was a knowledgeable sporting goods salesman and well liked.

Yeah,all of it has gone straight to hell. My other uncle had the propane dealership as well as the Massey Ferugusen tractor dealership.Dealt in combines as well.That's all.

Several years ago, there was a gentleman we'll call "Bruce" who got on at a very highly regarded gun shop in Boise. He was a mall ninja of the highest level, and a self-proclaimed expert in all things firearms related. I was in there to look at an OM 70, and this young couple came in.

They wanted to look at a small handgun for the wife, who was a nurse and worked swing shift at one of the local hospitals.

Our man Bruce, immediately launches into a classroom lecture on not only twenty options, but the best way to carry concealed. Since she wore scrubs, he tells her the ONLY way is an ankle holster, and proceeds to whip his right leg up onto the glass counter top to show her.

He is wearing regular shoes, and the leg whip is so forceful, that his heel shatters the glass. His leg is thru the glass up to nearly his knee, shards of glass fly all over, and his leg suffers a couple of serious gashes. So, here's Bruce, flailing around like a fish on the bank, blood everywhere, and this young couple jumped back ten feet.

In the end, it took three of us several minutes to get all of the stray glass shards out of the way so we could extricate Bruce, and the young lady (nurse) several minutes to get the bleeding under control. They ended up having to call an ambulance and haul him off to one of these "Doc-In-The-Boxes" to get him stitched up.

Fortunately, the young couple did not bail, and another sales guy and I suggested a snubby in 38 Spl. I saw them a few months later at a gun show, and they were still ill at ease over the incident. She did buy a hammerless Smith, and he was looking for something similar.

This sort of thing continues to amaze me...

Rich