Good gun store stories?

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croyance

New member
Okay, we have had the idiot on the range threads, the threads about stupid (not unknowledgeable, but stupid) shoppers, and horror stories about bad gun store workers.
Good stories? Ones where the worker took the time to correctly explain things?
Not as fun to talk about, but instances where you were impressed.

Recently, while exiting the range and doing some window shopping, a woman came in looking for a .38 Special with a laser sight. She came in with a friend (guy) who had owned some guns himself. Instead of just showing her various choises and the Crimson Grip catalog, the clerk explained the plusses and minuses. He actually took the time to explain that you can't use the laser to search out where an intruder might be, because it traces back to you.
He actually talked to her when most clerks would talk to the guy. He explained stuff without being condecending to a person who was inexperienced with guns.
 
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Fremmer

New member
Not a gun store story, but a gun show story.

I bought a new rifle last Summer at a gun show in Des Moines, Iowa. It was a pretty big show. Most of the folks at the tables were pretty nice. But one table was held by a small gun shop owner who had a variety of rifles to sell. There were 3 guys working the table (it was a big table), and they were really nice. I looked at a Remington Classic rifle three (3) different times, and each time they were really patient and didn't mind letting me look at the rifle. Then I observed that they had a couple of unopened boxes containing the same make and caliber of the rifle I was looking at. They opened the boxes and let me compare the rifles to pick out which particular one I wanted.
 
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Bob F.

New member
Slow learner

Last summer swmbo and I were on our way to a car show (her hobby) and stopped at my favorite gun shop for something or the other (my idea). First thing I know she's snuggling up to a very nice E.German Makarov for $200 IIRC. It replaced her SP-101 as her primary CCW.

Last week we stopped at same shop to layaway a ca.1975 Marlin Mod 39D in vgc for my son who completed 1st semester of grad schol with too many credit hrs, and a 30hr/wk job with a 3.66 GPA (my plug!!). He likes lever guns. First thing I know she's fondling a Khar 9mm. Loves the slim grip. I'm not even sure what model. but it's also on layaway.

Gotta quit taking her to gun shops with me!!
 
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Nicotine

Moderator
I man I used to know told me this story. If I didn't know the man as well as I did, I would have sworn it was made up...

The story starts out with him as a kid, about 17. He is just getting into guns because his grandpa is teaching him about them. His grandpa has a collection of old western movies so naturally the kid is interested in a revolver. After seeing how excited the boy is about the revolver and how eager he is to get into guns, the grandfather's pride takes over and agrees to purchase the kid a handgun after he has earned the money for it.(two lessons with one stone, I guess.) Anyways, being the kid that he is, he can't wait till he can afford one, he has to run out and pick one out right away, so that he has an image of what he's saving for. He and his grandpa go to the local gunsmith and look through what he has there and the kid sees the gun of his dreams. A Ruger Blackhawk. Try to imagine what it must have been like for him. He worked his a$$ of to get the money for the gun, the gun his grandfather was going to get him, the one like in the movies. He was so obsessed with it that he went back every other day to look at it, he drew pictures of it in his notebooks, he even had the serial number memorized. Then finally, his grandpa decided to take him down there and pick it up for him.(even though he had not quite earned ALL the cash yet:D ) They made the trip down there and the gun was gone!!! Of course, the kid tried not to let his grandpa see how disappointed he was, and they did end up picking up a gun that day anyways(S&W, I think), but it was still a huge let-down for both of them.

Years later, the kid is now a man, and his grandpa is no longer with us. The man goes to a gunshow and sees a Ruger Blackhawk just like the one from before. He asks the guy selling it about it and he says "Yeah, nice little gun. never been fired, I got it for my grandson back in 19--, but he moved away and never got it." The man/kid buys the gun right there, just for the story which kinda reminds him of his own. While filing out the paper work, he notices an amazing thing. The serial number! Thats right, the SAME gun his grandpa was going to get him, in the same never-fired condition, for the same price.

I am not an overly emotional guy or anything, but when I heard the story, especially told with the emotion of the man who lived it, I had a very difficult time keeping a manly "no-crying" composure.
Best story ever, I will keep it with me till my grave.
 
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Kiel_Everett

New member
I dont know if this really counts but it just happened yesterday..My girlfriend and I went to a local store to buy some 'plinker' ammo. The range clerk asked if we were interested in taking the basic handgun class. We told him we have already taken it. He then asked, "Who was your instructor?" We told him, " A.J." He then stated, " Oh, A.J., hes a good guy, hes now a Henderson police officer. I hated losing him, but he needed to get his career going."

Why is this a good story? Because, A.J. was an awesome instructor, and taught my g/f and I alot. And, his goal in life was to be a LEO. So, I am happy for him.
 
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farmall

New member
Had a gunstore owner point out a very minor bulge in a shotgun barrel. Couldn't figure out why the price was so low. I didn't buy it, but bought one like it w/o bulge. Had no end of problems with it. Store owner called his 'smith, told him to rebuild it, and not to cut any corners. I saw the price of his work when I picked it up, the store owner went into the hole a long ways on it. Has functioned flawlessly ever since, and that store has gained a pretty loyal customer!
 
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marlboroman84

New member
Just a little thing, but the other day when I went to Sportsman's warehouse to look at a semi-auto I had some very excellent service. Alot of the clerks there seem to be a bit lacking in the "expertise" department as I related in another thread about the "gun down the pants" story.:eek: Anyway the first clerk, an older gentleman, helped me for a moment then had to leave and passed me off to a younger girl about my age 22-24 and she asked me what i was interested in and what not. We had a very long discussion about calibers,styles,holsters,CC,ranges,etc. She finally sold me on a Springfield XD 9mm sub-compact and thanked me for the business,the conversation, and told me to come see her if I needed anything else. really great,knowledgable service was great, the fact it was from someone in my age range was better, and the fact she was just downright beautiful didn't hurt either.:cool:

p.s don't tell my girl i said that....:eek: ;)
 
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rugerdude

New member
I went to a gunshow in Tulsa when I was 14 with my dad, because I had convinced him to let me get a "big gun" (centerfire) and that it would only be a "collector piece" (I'll ease him into letting me shoot it). Anyway, I just HAD to have a mosin nagant after hearing that they were used in WWII and that they were sooo frikin' cheap that I could afford one.

I oogled at them on AIM surplus for weeks waiting for the gunshow, deciding on a 91/30 opposed to the M44.

Well I get there and we start walking around (Me almost running around with excitement and my dad following) looking for mosin nagants and I was kinda upset when we had covered about 2 thirds of the showfloor (at a very, very large gun show) and the lowest price on a 91/30 I'd seen was 100 bucks, and I had looked at A LOT of them. I was getting to be pretty dissapointed, but I did find a beauty of a 91/30 for 85 bucks and I asked to see it and the guy at the table was extremely helpful, he even showed me how to properly check the bore and let me use his bore light.

What really impressed me was that he was talking to ME, 14 year old ME and not my dad (until it came yellow form time that is). Now I've got a very nice 91/30 and even if I could've payed a little less for one, the great service was well woth the extra dough.
 
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armedandsafe

New member
I took Grandma's pistol in to the 'smith, because I had finally found one I trusted to work on it. It has been i the family (distaff side) for several generations and I didn't want just any hammerhand working on it. It was built by an ancestor for his wife back in the late 1700s.

When I got it back, he mentioned he had had to make a screw for it. I asked him what size and thread, just because I was interested. He said, "Well, it started out about 26tpi and ended up about 30tpi." When I asked him why he didn't just ream the hole and retap it to common size, he said, "Because it just wouldn't be right." I think I chose the proper craftsman for the job.

Oh, yeah... he charged me $10 (in 1985.)

Pops
 
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Kato_Guy

New member
I had bought a rifle from scheels sports in minnesota. I used to work at one myself and they had always told us to talk the customers into buying from them not the "marts" because the outfitters have qualified people working there. So after college i left and wanted to buy a gun and went there cause they think they know what they are doing. I bought a 270 wsm love the gun the scope and everything. I went to sight it in and had my groups 1 inch high at 100 yards, i was going to montana mulie hunting. I took it out and shot it a couple more times and it was all over the place it was in the middle of summer and bugs and hot so i just figured it was me.

We drove out to montana and we were driving to town i had my gun on my lap admiring and i saw that my scope had slipped 1/2 inch forward and that pin that goes from the mount to the base of the gun broke out the back of the base and ding ding thats why my gun was off.

I spent all afternoon on saturday at the local gun shop trying to get it figured out 3 guys that know squat about mounting a scope, and mind you i have a tikka and malta montana doesn't have much for the odd stuff. After 3 hours of screwing around the lady working must have called her husband but he came in and he fixed my mounts and saved my trip for free but i still gave him some money plus parts. we had his shop ripped apart trying to find anything that would work. I was new to rifles at the time and didn't know what was up and i shoulda checked my mounts but i figured thats what i was paying for at scheels but apparently a person can trust noone.

I still got my mulie, and would never point anyone to scheels ever again. Ohh yea the guy that mounted my scope got promoted to manager. I just hate going to places where it is all college kids working with something a person puts so much money into. Scheels especially makes their salesmen sell at least 140 dollars an hour or puts them on probation then fires them.

Needless to say i have a little resentment, but yea. Good gun stores. malta montana has a great gun shop with a great owner who didn't know me from adam and helped me out in a bind. if you are out there thanks a lot man!!


ohh yea i forgot to say that they tried blaming me for the broken mount and said i must have bumped it and i lost it you cannot bump metal and have it bust out the back of the mount ahhh i was sooo pissed
 
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