Gun show this weekend? Opinion?

[BradGroux]

Had no idea there was another High Caliber in Pasadena next weekend, I may hold off for that one since I have my CHL class with Tom this weekend which will keep my plenty busy...

[boomerang]

I say attend all of them, cause that's what I do.

If they were free to enter and had free parking (like shopping malls) I would go to all the ones nearby. However, they all charge admission and some charge for parking. I'm not willing to spend my time and money unless I get something in return. In this case I'm looking for a j-frame or equivalent at a good price. If I find what I want at the first show, I don't need to go to a second. If I don't find what I want, I won't be in the mood to pay to shop at a second show (unless the first show refunds my money. )

But the best choice would be between the High Caliber show on the 12-13th at Pasadena or the HGAC show at Reliant on the 19-20th.

Thank you for the suggestion. Do both of the shows allow private sales?

[Mike1951]

Nothing is done at any of the shows to discourage private sales once inside.

Some of them have taken to trying to prohibit deals struck outside or in the lobby.

At the last GRB High Caliber, you could buy either a S&W 637 or 642 for $349.

A blued Taurus 85 will run about $275.

[3dfxMM]

The High Caliber Gun Show in Pasadena is only $7 to get in and parking is free. :)

[stevie_d_64]

And no one has yet stepped in to fill the reloaded ammo void left by T's. Collins only brings the most common calibers in limited quantities. In the past, if you bought a gun in an odd caliber, you could almost always count on T's having some ammunition for it.

Who is Collin's??? Is that an individual, or someone working for a reloading outfit???

Soory for my ignorance...A I have also been wondering who is going to step up in these local shows in the ammo market...

I know that "Texas Munitions" had a fairly good spirited competition with "T's" on prices at the shows around here...I used to play them off each other to save a few buck on plinking ammunition...

To fend off the negative comments about the mass ammo reloading retailers at the shows, I have only had about 1-2 squibs out of a case on average...So I have not had anything too bad to say about that stuff...And their stuff cleans up better than the Winchester white box stuff you can get at Wally World...

I'm going to run to Pasadena today and see if they got some things at that show this weekend...

[Mike1951]

Who is Collin's??? Is that an individual, or someone working for a reloading outfit???

http://www.cccammo.com/

But they tend to bring only common handgun reloads and very popular ammunition, while T's carried a very broad selection.

Collins, nor any other reloader, was at this Pasadena show.

[Mike1951]

On a separate note, the Real show was very disappointing today.

There were noticeably fewer vendors. Beside the empty floor space where tables should have been, attending dealers were allowed to spread over adjacent tables to conceal the fact that they were empty.

The new gun dealers, Schramm's and AJC, brought less inventory, due, I'm sure, to also setting up at Market Hall. They were also less competitive, as prices were higher than normal.

Still, I was told that yesterday's attendance was very large. But one dealer said that while everyone had Christmas money to spend, they didn't have enough to buy anything.

If the new owners of Real don't succeed in attracting more dealers, I foresee its continued decline.

[stevie_d_64]

On a separate note, the Real show was very disappointing today.

There were noticeably fewer vendors. Beside the empty floor space where tables should have been, attending dealers were allowed to spread over adjacent tables to conceal the fact that they were empty.

The new gun dealers, Schramm's and AJC, brought less inventory, due, I'm sure, to also setting up at Market Hall. They were also less competitive, as prices were higher than normal.

Still, I was told that yesterday's attendance was very large. But one dealer said that while everyone had Christmas money to spend, they didn't have enough to buy anything.

If the new owners of Real don't succeed in attracting more dealers, I foresee its continued decline.

I think the Dallas show drew a lot of the vendors wares away from our area for this weekend...

Considering we have a great cyclic occurance of gunshows in our area, I'm not too put back by the lack of "things" at this weekends show...

I can't think of too many consecutive weekends where we don't have a gunshow somwhere in our area...GRB, Reliant, Pasadena and even Conroe way up there...

To me it would be interesting to see if there could be some places down towards Galveston, Galveston County (that would host) in the future...

I know some folks down there come north for these things, but it might be interesting bring the shows to them a few times a year...

Just an idea...

[Mike1951]

The first show I ever attended was at the Moody Center in Galveston.

I miss those days.

There was a good show in Angleton, but the original promoter died and the next show was much smaller.

I don't think any furthers shows were held.

[tex45acp]

One thing I have found is that at the Pasedena Gun Show has no vendors selling grips or decent leather holsters. At the GRB gunshow I have always been able to buy grips and there is a guy there that sells Don Hume holsters. At one of the GRB's there were three grip vendors, one a little old lady with just about every kind of Hogue available in Wood or rubber. I wish there were more accessory vendors like that at the Pasadena Gun Show.I have never bought a gun at the GRB, prices were much higher than elsewhere, but have come out of the Pasedena Gun Show with some great gun deals. Does anyone know if they still hold the show at Shriners Temple off Loop 1604 in San Antonio??

tex45acp

[Mike1951]

Does anyone know if they still hold the show at Shriners Temple off Loop 1604 in San Antonio??

Only one scheduled there for 2008 will July 12-13.

http://www.saxetshows.com/_schedule.htm

[Tactical_Texan_CHL]

I know our gun shows have become awful! They have maybe 30 tables, and there's never anything really good. I went to the Ft. Worth Gun Show last spring, and it was pretty good. But still not as good as it had been in the past. I got a ton of stuff to set up my brother's AR as a killer patrol rifle for his birthday, and a Glock 21 SF when they were still pretty new. About the only GREAT deal I got was NIB Insight M6X for $200.

Also, it was at the Will Rogers Center. It wasn't posted 30-06, but like mentioned in another post, I think about a stock show, there was a table with Ft. Worth PD zip tying guns. My mom was with me and we were both carrying. She was concerned so we asked. Of course, they told us no, even CHLers had to disarm and have their guns zip tied. I was going to go to the bathroom and disarm privately in a stall so I didn't draw a loaded weapon at the table, but they told me to just do it right there. It was a little wierd disarming in front of everyone, and now that I look back on it, I realize I really shouldn't have, and they shouldn't have asked me to right there. I also realize that it wasn't a properly posted no carry sign, and "concealed is concealed" and I should have just gone on in. Hind sight is always 20/20.

Good luck with finding a good gun show. It seems like they're on the downhill slide.

[boomerang]

I hope the Pasadena show this weekend is worthwhile.

[CompVest]

I think all gun shows are worth while. You can handle all kinds of firearms, people watch, and run into a bunch of your friends. A great way to spend an afternoon in my opinion.

[Mike1951]

Exactly! Even if I don't buy anything (RARE!), I enjoy attending a gun show more than going to a movie.

At the last GRB show, I restrained myself only to buy a S&W 622 from dws1117.

At last week's Pasadena show, I didn't buy anything only to buy a S&W 27-2 from orionengr.

This forum is costing me more than the gun shows. (But that's a good thing!)