I have been to my last gun show!

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warnmar10
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Re: I have been to my last gun show!

#16

Post by warnmar10 »

It was a shame when gun shows posted 30.06 signs years ago. I complied by not spending my money where I wasn't welcome. No different than movie theaters or shopping malls who posted 30.06 signs. I do most of my shopping online these days, from clothing to ammunition to video.

I couldn't care less what happens to gun shows. :tiphat:[/quote]This.

Soccerdad1995
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Re: I have been to my last gun show!

#17

Post by Soccerdad1995 »

Personally, I think the wave of the future is moving toward online retail. Convenience items that you really need "right now" will always be sold in a B&M store, but most other purchases will continue to move to online with delivery to your house, or in the case of guns, your local FFL. Gun stores will adapt, or they will go out of business. Just like all other retailers. Gun ranges can't be replaced with an online option, so that, and other value add services will be something that smart gun store owners focus on.

I have a membership with Boyert Shooting Center in the Houston area (no, they haven't changed their name yet). I pay them a fee for the use of their range as well as unlimited FFL transfers. These are both things that can't be replaced with an online option. I am also talking with them about a targeted, in person, class for my entire family on situational awareness, gun safety, and some shooting basics. That is something that I could probably get online, but I am willing to pay more for an in person experience.

But if I want a new gun, going to a gun show or visiting a bunch of retailers makes little sense. I can spend less time finding the gun online, usually at a better price, and then spend 15 - 30 minutes at my range / FFL, usually also getting in a range session while I am there. Heck, even private sales are generally easier to find online through this or other sites, than at a gun show.

I am not saying that all of this is a good thing, but I do believe it is the direction we are headed. I have been to a total of 2 gun shows in the last 10 years. And I'm not in a huge hurry to spend a Saturday at another one anytime soon.
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LDB415
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Re: I have been to my last gun show!

#18

Post by LDB415 »

I haven't been to the HGCA show in over a decade. When they built the Astrodome they said parking would be $1 to pay for the cost of the parking lot, would never go up and would become free when the lot was paid for. All lies. It now cost at least $10 to park, probably more since I haven't been for so long. I'm sure they've collected enough parking money to pay for the lot, the land, the buildings, the utilities and the taxes all combined. Lying scum.
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MechAg94
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Re: I have been to my last gun show!

#19

Post by MechAg94 »

Parking at Houston NRG Arena and Center is $12. Usually $8 or $9 to get into show. You are going to pay similar parking at the George R Brown Convention Center unless you don't mind walking a good ways. Pasadena shows have free parking, but are not as big.

Most of the Houston area gun shows have 2 or 3 dealers who do volume selling and have pretty good prices. What I see is mostly dealers selling new stuff and most used guns are overpriced. There may be an expectation that you will negotiate the used prices, but I suck at that so I avoid it.

IMO, if you are expecting dealers to have online prices, your expectations are a bit off. I find if you factor in shipping and transfer fees, the gun show prices aren't that bad. But it depends on what you are looking for. Some gun show dealers have pretty attractive prices, some are overpriced. It amuses me when I see the same gun on two different tables at quite different prices.
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LDB415
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Re: I have been to my last gun show!

#20

Post by LDB415 »

Yeah, I've been to Pasadena a time or two. It's smaller but free parking as you say. I just refuse to pay $12 to park where it's supposed to be free or at most one dollar.
It's fine if you disagree. I can't force you to be correct.
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A pistol without a round chambered is an expensive paper weight.

equin
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Re: I have been to my last gun show!

#21

Post by equin »

I went to my first Dallas Market Hall Gun Show this past Spring and was amazed at how much more stuff I saw compared to the other gun shows I’ve been. But to be fair, I had only been to a few smaller gun shows in my lifetime, so I never got to experience what it must’ve been like in their hey day.

I missed the one this past weekend, but at Iast Spring’s show I found a great deal on an almost pristine, excellent condition Winchester Model 12 that looked like it had been rarely ever shot. It felt good in my hands, length of pull seemed right and cycled great. I wouldn’t have been able to see and check any of these things out had it been offered for sale online. I also saw a great deal on a new Colt 1911 I had been wanting, but regretfully passed. Granted, I also saw sky high prices for battered, extremely worn looking older shotguns and rifles, including some beat-to-heck Model 12s that were priced more than three times what I paid for mine. But I guess that’s just part of our free-market capitalist system.

As to the older gentleman with his Lego table, that was the perfect thing to keep my Lego-loving young son mildly interested as I drag him throught the aisles. I got him a WWII Pacific-theater themed Lego figure in honor of our Uncle Juan who fought and survived the Battles of Guadalcanal and Okinawa.

Anyway, it would be a shame if these shows went away. Hopefully that won’t happen for a ling time.
Ed
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