What happened to gun shows?

[crystalgayleguy]

I live in FL. Gun shows here are a booming biz. There is a show circuit. Google FL gun shows. 1-2 big shows weekly within driving distance. There are no good deals at the big shows. Its entertainment. Its the movies. If you can find a small local Elks or club show its still somewhat old school.

Everything is overpriced. There are no good deals. 1/2 the tables here are pawn shops. Largest gun dealer in Florida (Shoot Straight) runs a traveling show (Florida Gun Shows) like Barnum and Bailey. Probably has 100 employees or more at each show just for his gun tables. The Tampa show probably has 20,000 ppl a day or more. Its all pistols and ARs. Hundreds of tables. No bolt guns. No hi grade rifles or shotguns. Funniest thing is there will be 5-10 ppl selling hi end glass. NF/SB/US/Votex ext. i needed a NF mount for a project a while back that popped up at the show. While there was probably 2 million dollars or more in hi q glass for sale and none of it you would put on a gas gun, not one vendor had a NF mount or even $20 one or two pc mounts for a rem 700 short action. Not a single action, Remington or anything for sale. People have old guns in 70% condition at exhibition prices.

There is not a thing there new or used a person cannot find cheaper on line or at small gun shops and have in hand in 2-5 days.

I watch local gun trader sights to find bargains.

If I didn't have to be at gun shows, I wouldn't ever go.

What you are seeing is Google/internet killing the "Gun Show". There are few deals to be found because you can not only research every gun, scope, nut, bolt and part, you can also find a dozen places to sell them to people who want whatever you have. Deals used to come from knowing something the seller didn't or the buyer being the bird in hand. Those days are gone.

I low what you mean but on the other hand a least the gun shows haven't been banned

 

[zb338]

If people keep paying then sellers will keep on asking
high prices. I went to a very popular store that every
one knows. A used Remington 700 with no scope was
for sale for a $1000.00. That's pretty high priced.
Zeke

 

[crystalgayleguy]

If people keep paying then sellers will keep on asking
high prices. I went to a very popular store that every
one knows. A used Remington 700 with no scope was
for sale for a $1000.00. That's pretty high priced.
Zeke

probably cabelas right

 

[one3]

I, see a lot of people looking, and no one buying.

 

[manitou]

I have been to a lot of gun shows... in large venues and small, big cities and small towns. None ever impressed me. Only one was even worth the entry fee. Mostly pawn brokers trying to unload old crap for new prices.

 

[robert l]

Yeah I'm from SW Washington but I've lived in Idaho for the last 6 years. It was supposed to be temp move for work move but couldn't stomach moving back there once I got here. The Rose City Gun show was always pretty good though.

Well guys i live in sw,florida and its the same here to.And there are alot of guns to be had because of the people retire here and some one snapps them up from estate sales or some thing.No one knows hows these dealers get ahold of them.But you will find them on the tables at gun shows all at top dollar.You know its bad when you can buy a rifle cheaper brand new.These dealers sit on these prices until that fool walks though the door.

 

[1greywolf]

Vendor's are a little nutty at most gun shows . I was at a gun show in Ontario last year , a guy was taking a Ruger 44 mag. semi , tube feed , to a vendor, 8 asked how much he sold it for . He sold it to the vendor for $400 . That's not a super bad price considering they aren't made anymore . Then , I went to the vendors fifteen minutes later , there was a new price on that gun $850 . I chatted with the vendor for a few , asked him if it was a good shooter . Oh ya , he shot a ton of deer with it , but then that's when he told me it needs work so it will shot properly. I questioned the price , that's when he told me , if it was in good working condition, it would be $1200 . There's something wrong with that picture . I didn't mention I knew what he paid for it . That's just one vendor , i'm not saying all vendors are like that , but .

 

[Rhino55]

I think It is all about the money nowadays. Time was that if you bought a rifle and paid $500.00 dollars for it, used it for 10 years and decided to sell it to buy a bigger more powerful rifle/cartridge. you would try to sell it for 3 or $400.00 dollars and consider it a good deal considering you got 10 years of good service out of it and you got to use it for 10 to 15 dollars a year. So if anything it was essentially free.

Now People want to make a profit even if they enjoyed it and want more than the original purchase price. Nothing wrong with making profit, but it does seam like most people want more than they paid for it new.

So a person needs/has to know the original price and the deprecation of the used rifle and its condition before buying.

There are very few good/fair deals to be had any more and you just have to resist paying to much and just keep looking. And if you are looking for something very popular at the moment, you probably wont find any good deals.

J E CUSTOM

JE
Those are days of the past. The shows here in Oklahoma are full of guys that sell stuff 10% higher than you can buy in the store. Telling people they are getting a good deal.i have quit going to gun shows except for the Bi annual one in Tulsa .

 

[NDAR15MAN]

I sat up table last weekend in Cedar Rapids Iowa. Worse show I have ever been to in my life. $50.00 per table. $45.00 if paid in advance. I seen some gun dealers with 12 to 20 tables. We all lost are butt. The thing is a lot of guys will not even admit it.
Guy across from me said he did ok.
I had a tablet of paper. I saw him sale 1 gun in 2 days. 380 used S&W.
I think just a excuss to get away from wife. I don't know how people are even paying for their tables.
I am getting to old to hunt and shoot for that matter and I Am trimming the heard . Trying to sale some guns , good guns. No takers. All mint.
70% off new prices. rifles and pistols all mint safe queens. I guess the going price is 50% off new even mint guns. Still not enough of of a discount ? Maybe people getting scared because of the politics ? Marty

 

[ba19500]

Sellers want too much and buyers don't want to pay anything. Kinda like those who don't understand why a landowner won't allow them to go hunting for free, like it is their right. ( like buyers, everything has to be cheap).

In Il we have to run a background check so that throws a wrench into the works.

If people want to make money, hunting and fishing sales isn't the way to go.

I would like to modify a few points about what I said. Not all sellers, buyers, and hunters are like I described, but most of them are.

 

[James L Holzhauer]

Go to Gunbroker and get an honest price or just walk away.

 

[crystalgayleguy]

I sat up table last weekend in Cedar Rapids Iowa. Worse show I have ever been to in my life. $50.00 per table. $45.00 if paid in advance. I seen some gun dealers with 12 to 20 tables. We all lost are butt. The thing is a lot of guys will not even admit it.
Guy across from me said he did ok.
I had a tablet of paper. I saw him sale 1 gun in 2 days. 380 used S&W.
I think just a excuss to get away from wife. I don't know how people are even paying for their tables.
I am getting to old to hunt and shoot for that matter and I Am trimming the heard . Trying to sale some guns , good guns. No takers. All mint.
70% off new prices. rifles and pistols all mint safe queens. I guess the going price is 50% off new even mint guns. Still not enough of of a discount ? Maybe people getting scared because of the politics ? Marty

everybody brought up during the panic 5 years ago

 

[Holycity73]

Has anyone addressed how most of us stroll the aisles of the virtual gun show a la the classifieds?
I personally started using them because of things like the current gun show mentality.
I've sold and bought way more than I should have from this and another two sites.
It's worth it for me to not have to deal with the nonsense.
The buyers and sellers tend to be more knowledgeable too.

 

[wv270wsm]

I can remember going to our local gun show when I was young with my dad. He'd always say look but don't touch. It was actually a auction put on by the state police and dnr. Of firearms that they had confiscated during crimes. I can remember some of the prettiest wood stocks . Now looking back I bet all those people whose guns they were are thinking why the heck did I do that. Maybe ! They always made a weekend out of that sale there was tents set up and this one ol guy dressed up like and Indian he had a huge tepee and a fire roaring in it. I don't know if dad knew the man or not but we always wound up in his tepee setting around the fire talking. Until sell time.
The last couple gun shows I've been too in recent years is pretty well just a big flea market . With a bunch of cheap junk on tables. It's hard to believe that in the 30+ years I've been around to see such a downward spiral of humanity.