First Gun Show

S

Shadi Khalil

New member
Hello all,

I've been shooting for over 10 years now but never made it out to a gun show. Today, I went to my first at the Dulles Expo center in VA and it was a pretty neat experience. It kinda felt like walking around a live action Internet; lots of weirdos mulling about and weirdos selling weird stuff... I went with a few friends who were really interested in the modern stuff; I broke away so I could check out old S&W and Colt revolvers. To my dismay, there wasn't very much older stuff around but I did get to handle some very cool stuff.

All the guns ranged from typical retail to over priced; there were a few deals to be had but nothing that caught my interest. There was a lot of beef jerky, junk jewelry and Nazi Regalia. I spent a lot of time rooting through boxes of old S&W grips but could find anything in good enough condition that I liked.

The best deals to be had was on ammo. I intended on buying a few hundred rounds of some cheap .38 special but I was able to find some good deals on SD ammo and really stocked up. Now I have around 200 rounds of various SD and another 200 of some assorted semi and full wadcutters. I couldn't for the life of me find a box of GD short barrel but plenty of other good stuff was around.

All said and done, I had a good time. While the lack of guns that interested me was disappointing, the ammo deals made up for it. The show is going on again tomorrow so if you are looking for Glocks, XD's, Ruger's (no SR1911 that I saw, sorry guys) beef jerky, nazi regalia and some of the best people watching this side of the Potomac, stop on buy.
 
Shadi Khalil

Was the short balding NAZI guy in camo still selling his stuff? I haven't been to the Dulles show for a few years but he was a fixture there.

I miss the Gypsy girls selling jerky, my wife doesn't though. :p

Last time I was there I got a good price on a spam can of .303 $168 IIRC.
 
Last Week

Sounds like you did it right! - now let me ask you, if you search your memory did you hear a crackling noise as someone brandishes/demonstrates their 4.5 jiga-watt stun baton?

I went to the gun show last week down in Fishersville. Or was it Farmersville? Probably different crowd but I too passed by the quirky stuff and saw something totally new:

Brass casing jewelry :D They were peeled back like KaBooms into a blossoming flower pattern. And there were cut off cartridge bases / headstamps that had jewels set in the primer pockets - either for cuff links or ear rings (for ladies of course).

I could've had a Winchester 1300 for $200 bucks. That's the only thing that caught my interest within my budget. But for fun, I handled a couple Chiappa Rhinos, a Raging Judge, those expensive PPQ's / PPS's and 1911's, all the Glocks...

You know, those service size Glocks don't quite feel as bad in my hand as I remember... (uh oh)

I was on a mission. Primers. While $30 / 1000 isn't an awesome deal, it's better than $40 - $50 for 1000 which is the best I can find locally.

I should mention there was a very kind older gentleman just passing out the admission coupons that he'd collected at the door. God bless him.

Edit-
Almost forgot: People selling shotgun reloads, one was called "The Kitchen Sink" because it must have had all manner of oddly shaped projectiles inside.
 
Egro,

He was certainly there and so was the jerky but I didn't see any girls :(

Dyl,

Yes! The taser crackling! I actually played with one and listened to the ladies pitch. Pretty neat little devices but nothing practical. I too fondled a PPQ and the Rhino, both are very cool. I also got my hands on a Bisley for the first time and absolutely loved the feel of it. After holding one I decided it would make a great companion to my Vaquero. It's now on the short list :)
 
Shadi, I was there too yesterday. It wasn't as crowded this time. I went to the last one a month or so ago and it was so crowded that you almost couldn't move.

Got a few thousand rounds of ammo (9mm and 5.56) and a few more mags. Pretty decent prices overall.
 
pturner67 said:
Shadi, I was there too yesterday. It wasn't as crowded this time. I went to the last one a month or so ago and it was so crowded that you almost couldn't move.

Got a few thousand rounds of ammo (9mm and 5.56) and a few more mags. Pretty decent prices overall.
Click to expand...

I agree, certainly a lot of people but not hard to move around. I'll go next time just for the ammo.
 
If you want really good prices, get more than 400 rounds. Shows are good for bulk ammo deals. You can often do better on-line, but then you have to add in the shipping. I don't consider the admission charge as a factor, it's my ticket to a few hours of fun. Anything I get is gravy.
 
My wife and youngest son and I went to the Chantilly show on Friday, thinking it would be less crowded than on the weekend, and we were right. This time we could see, and at times get close to, the tables! Last show we gave up after an hour because it was just too crowded to enjoy the experience. We go to gawk, people-watch, fondle firearms we can't afford, reminisce on seeing guns I used to own and let get away (or had stolen) and can't replace, buy bulk ammunition, and -- very rarely -- find a gun we want for a price we can afford. It's fun to go to small gun shows as well as big ones, and our family looks forward to them.
 
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