Gun Store Attitude

[Dog Confetti]

I just read the thread about the racist gun store salesman, and it reminds me how few pleasant/tolerable gun store experiences I've had. Is it just me or is the average gun salesman about the most surly jackass you've ever had to do business with? I honestly avoid gun stores now because I'm tired of the attitude...I'm thrilled to see them tank. I'll stick to mail order through the local FFL holder (slow though he may be). Let the crusties stick together, and go down with the ship together...

 

[Brian D.]

The wise words of a friend's father are on point here: "It doesn't take all kinds to make up the world, we just got all kinds, like it or not!"

That said the number of surly gunstore owners here runs about 18% + or - a couple. Counting the stupid and/or obnoxious employees of same, it jumps up to 23%, last survey I took.

 

[utaherrn]

Some surly/crusty gun store owners aren't born, they're bred. Considering the number of stupid comments I've heard from other gun store customers while shopping over the years, I wonder what I'd be like if I spent a career tending shop.
Granted, it takes a conscious choice to become a jerk behind the counter, it's just that they have my sympathy to some extent.

That is, until I ask an intelligent, reasonable question and get treated like the idiot before me. Then all bets are off.

 

[Majic]

Stand on the other side of the counter for a few days and get a taste of what many have been dealing with for years.

 

[KHarmon]

They're the car salesmen of the gun world. I've met two in my entire life that I not only trust...but have become friends with, and when it comes to guns...they get all my business, including receiving the orders for the few guns I have purchased over the internet.

My biggest problems with gun dealers is, like a used car salesmen, they try to put you into something you don't want, like, or need. They, like anyone else in business, are profit driven. Their biggest concern is "how can I sell a guy this $1,000 gun when he's shopping for a $700 gun?" I love going to a gun store, shopping, finding what I want, and buying it without some pompous a$$ trying to sell me something that I don't want or need. That's why I will always give my business to the shop owner that lets me purchase what I want on my own terms.

 

[CobrayCommando]

Two words: Gun Show

Most people there are stranger than fiction, because fiction has to make sense...

 

[blackmind]

For the most part, the people I've dealt with at gun shops have been alright to deal with.

My best experience was at a store on Long Island called Campsite Sport Shop in Huntington, on Route 110. There was a big fella there named Joe (what was his last name?), who wore flannel shirts and suspenders. REALLY helpful guy, very knowledgeable, very friendly. Not the kind of guy you expect to meet on Long Island in a gun shop. More of like an upstater kinda guy, but maybe he was raised by the right kind of people. Anyway, he sold me my first handgun, and steered me from 9mm to what was then the recently released .40 S&W. I thank him for that.

Down here in Palm Beach county, FL, I have been to only a couple of shops, but they were okay. That is, until the shop I used to like, Delray Shooting Center, pulled this bulls#!t shenanigan of requiring that if you shoot in the range there, you have to buy ALL of your ammo and targets there! (This, they claim, is how it is at all indoor ranges in PB co. now. If it is, I'll be shooting out-of-county from now on. They can shove their greedy bullying up their @$$3$.)

-blackmind

 

[sterno]

Most of the gun shop salesmen I've dealt with were big jerks, until they saw I was actually going to buy something. Then they were so nice and helpful.

 

[Wildalaska]

The one behind the counter feeds off the one in front, or..one receives what one begets.

Heres my mental thoughts on a daily basis..

99% of the time I know more than you do so your not either gonna impress me or embarress me with the depth of your knowledge. If I discern you know more than me, Im gonna make friends with you

I'm not here to vindicate you. if you thing a 17 rimfire is adequate for bear, dont ask me what I think and then argue with me when I say its not.

Your Nazi regalia makes me want to shoot you.

If you ask me if you can "jew me down", Ill tell ya no since you arent jewish and I am. Then Ill ask you to leave.

Telling me you cant afford the only SKS in the shop (at $150) is not the best way to convince me that you are interested in buying a Steyr AUG so no, you cant play with it.

If you let your toddlers run unsupervised through the shop, then you probably arent a responsible enough parent to own a gun

Stupid is not written on my forehead. You cant get AUGs for $1500 on the net, so no I wont give you that one for $1200.

Telling me you can get it "cheaper on the net" is not the best way to get an FFL from me.

Asking us to make a 226 Loudenshootzenshutzenboomer magnum one of a kind Marlin lever rifle is fine, just dont whine about the cost.

No $30 is fair for a precision drilled and tapped hole, you wanna do it yourself on a drill press, go ahead.

WildicouldgoonandonAlaska

 

[ebd10]

Having been on both sides of the counter, I agree with WildAlaska. If you come into a shop just to look, fine. LOOK! Don't get greasy fingerprints all over every gun on the rack. My time is valuable too!

On the other hand, if a potential customer asks a stupid question, derisive comments and insults are not going to encourage them to spend money at your establishment. No one is born knowing about firearms. Everyone on this board probably had some mistaken impressions about guns until they acquired the necessary experience to disavow them of those notions.

Bottom line; the Golden Rule still works.

 

[Bravo25]

I have had similar situations here as well. I have only one shop that I go to. I have known the owner for years, and I call him a friend. I can go in to shoot,or look, or discuss, and get repect from him. We have many political discussions, and if I am buying a firearm, I ask his opinion. I may not take his advice, but we both know that the bottom line is that a firearm purchase is a personal chioce, and that the buyer should make him, or herself aware of all the required knowledge beforehand. If I am not settled on a model, and he has a used one to sell, he will let me fire it on the range.

He is one of the nicest most repectful people I have ever met when it comes to a gun shop. I can ask him his bottom price on something, and he looks at his profit margin, and makes me a deal. Not everyone gets this treatment as we have known each other for years. I know his dogs, and they comming running up to me when I walk in. Sure he wants to sell me the Sig 229 when I ask about a .40, but he doesn't change his attitude when I decide on the Glock.

I don't get the Evil Empire (WallyWorld) prices, but I know who has sold me my weapon, where I can shoot it, where I can find a solution if something is wrong, and I enjoy supporting him. I can bring my own ammo, targets, or anything else. I can shoot all day for one low fee, and I can sit around the BS table, and learn from others.

I wish I could say the same for his employees but I can't. So if you are ever in Wichita, KS stop by the Bullet Stop, and ask for Don.

*Disclaimer* I do not work for him, and recieve no compensation for my conveying this message.

 

[dr.magnum]

I've been on both sides too. I've had the guys come in that assumed you could take $100 off the price of that used pistol, or the shop in the next town was selling that for half your price.
I've had guys swear they were going to buy that pistol, they just had to go home and get the money, only they never came back.
I've had a guy come in to trade his lever action Marlin, point it at me when he wanted me to look it over, only to find out there is still a round in the chamber.
I've had a gal insist her .32cal Walther was pre-civil war, and was worth alot of money.
I've had guys come in with a copy of Shotgun News and couldn't understand why they couldn't get that gun at the wholesale price.
And don't even get me started on Walmart---!

 

[CarbineCaleb]

I have only been to 4 gunshops - two big ones and two little ones. In the little ones, yes, I was downright amazed by the attitude - in other businesses, competition among vendors would usually weed those types out real quick. In the big ones (hmmm, the successful ones ), people acted professional and polite.

At least in the Northeast, gunshops are not as thick as pizza places... and I think that may explain things - there is not enough competition among vendors to drive a jerk out of business. So a place can get away with having surly employees - customers otherwise may face a 45 minute drive to go to the next place (which I will do rather than take undeserved crap and then hand over money).

You can say what you will about unreasonable customers, and yes, I believe it, but the bottom line is, those same customers buy from every other type of retail business in existance, but it doesn't seem to produce the same result in every business. I think it's lack of competition - I have also noticed a tendancy for Federal employees to have an attitude, and the thing there is - where else are you going to go if you don't like it? That captive customer base allows an awful lot of latitude for ******* behavior.

As someone else above said, in the case of any retail business, I think the best thing to do is, vote with your feet and wallet. The bad places will tank then.

 

[joab]

Stand on the other side of the counter for a few days and get a taste of what many have been dealing with for years.

No excuse. I've been in customer service for over 20 years.

Half my customers think that they know more about my job than I do, a few have told me so and then proceeded to prove that they did not.
Half of the other half are pissed because I make money doing what I do.

In all those years I could count on one hand the number of customers that have gotten so much as a harsh word from me, and two of them were attempting to physically assault me

 

[zeisloft]

The way I see it, you get what you give. If you walk through the door with a "I know more than you do" attitude, you will more than likely be prooven wrong. However, the "I am a knowledgable gun owner seeking more info" attitude will gain respect. Some people are asses and some people have bad days. But chances are the guy behind the counter knows more than the guy infront.
~z

 

[johnbt]

The only bad experience I've had was in a little shop - now closed - during deer season. It was 2 p.m. when my father and I dropped in and woke the guy up. He just wasn't very happy to be awake while we browsed. Tough.

I learned many years ago that the key to success in gun shops is to limit questions to: Do you have? and May I see?

Don't get me wrong, I'm friendly. I'll certainly answer questions if somebody behind the counter has one.

John

 

[Trip20]

Go to the gunshop to buy guns. I don't enter the shop unless I'm purchasing ammo/accessories, browsing for fun to pass the time, wanting to hold/feel a firearm that I've been reading about, or actually purchasing a firearm...etc.

I do not go there for advice, a friendly chat, or to get in a p3nis measuring contest. I don't go there to tell them I can get it cheaper somewhere else (although when I hear "you won't find it cheaper" I'm eager to correct). I don't go there to impress the unfortunate counter-person with my wealth of knowledge ( ) either.

Get your info elsewhere. Use the internet, books,...etc. Yeah it takes some digging, and you have to sift through the BS, but good information is readily available for you to find on your own - so I've learned. Besides, half of what other people tell you is BS anyway (i.e. buddies, co-workers, relatives, gunshop owners...etc).

So, when I enter the gunshop, it's usually a simple no-stress process that I'm sure my gunshop owner appreciates as much as I do.

 

[K-Man]

I tend to agree with the theory that you should treat people the way you wish to be treated, and that goes both ways.

My recent experiences in one particular shop have been severely negative - to the point yesterday that I was having holsters thrown at me (literally). I tend to not get along well with people who are dishonest and lie to me, especially when given a chance to own up to it and still decide to carry on in a dishonest manner.

I know too many other gun shop owners to worry about the moron mentioned above. I'm fortunate to live in a geographical area where there are a large number of gun shops within an hour's drive, the majority of which provide excellent customer service.

 

[Eghad]

WE have several shops in town but I prefer Shooters Supply. The prices are competitive with Gander Mountain the big new store that moved into town and pretty competitive with Internet prices. If they dont know they will ask someone who does. They have a good stock of surplus and used rifles and dont ask an arm and a leg for them. I would rather pay 15-20 more bucks to them than a large store. I would pay the premium because they will take care of you if you have any problems....

 

[tjhands]

I have bought 3 or 4 guns from my local dealer. His employees are so rude! Whenever I've called out there to ask about the price of a gun, they act like they are doing me such an enormous favor by calling their supplier about a price for me. I figured if they don't need my business, they won't GET my business.

Lately I've been buying my guns online and having them shipped to a guy who FFL's out of his house. No hassles, no favors, just $15 for the FFL charge and I'm on my way.