gun store ignorance

B

bacardisteve

New member
So i have a friend who has been into shooting for years but is just getting started in hunting. He owns a ar15 that he has used when we go ground squirrel and predator hunting but lacks anything for deer. Last year he used my sks to get his first deer and he likes the gun but wanted one of his own. He stopped by one of the LGS on his way home from work to see what they had. He told the dealer he was looking for a sks or possibly just an upper in x39 for his existing gun so he could hunt deer. The dealer tells him X39 is a poor choice then trys to sell him a 7.62x40 wilson upper for $1100!!! It makes me sick that this store which is one i did have respect for tell him X39 was no good but X40 was a great choice when the two cartridges are ballistic twins. Tomorrow i plan to pay them a visit with my friend just to let them know i will no longer be coming in for my monthly purchase. Sorry had to vent anybody else ever have a store try something like this.
 
Did he even remotely explain WHY he said those things, or did he just do the typical

"I'm an expert, this thing is a poodle patty, and you must take my advice, or God will see that you are an idiot."

I'm not even going to go there beyond to ask, does the guy have a legitmate reason for pressing what he did? or was he just trying to screw with someone who didn't know his stuff?
 
His explanation was that the x40 would hit much harder and shoot much flatter. I believe he just wanted to make money off of someone that was not very knowledgable on the subject.
 
maybe he was referring to ammo choices in x40. I don't see where he was out of line in suggesting something. He didn't tell you you couldn't buy it.
 
I had a similar experience in a sports shop here in WI. I was scoping out a 24/47, trying to think of a way to explain the purchase with the lady when another customer came to the counter. He told the person behind the counter that he wanted to look at one of the service grade M48s for a hunting rifle. The 'kid' behind the counter said, "The M48 is a underpowered pea-shooter built on a poorly made action that shoots an obsolete round and couldn't kill a deer point blank. And you need to go with one of the Winchester 70 in 30/06." Needless to say I let out a snort of a laugh and the 'gun guy' said, "Am I wrong?" In a cocky 'I own the world and because I sell guns I'm an expert' tone.

I just said, "The Model 98 action is one of the strongest actions made and has been for the most part copied multiple times from multiple companies, Including that Winchester 70. And the 8mm Mauser round is comparable to a 30/06 with a heavier bullet and bigger punch in most cases. It will kill a deer at over 150 yards." The guy looked at the rifle and the counter idiot, then added. "Well if it's such a great rifle why did America do so much better with the Springfield 03?"

I laughed again and said, "The 1903 was a 1895 Spanish Mauser copy all the way down the to round it fired. The only real difference was the use of a two-piece firing pin. The 1903 was in fact a Mauser design, and after that company brought suit, and Mauser won." I then put the rifle down and said, "And tell your boss that $350 dollars is ridiculous for this rifle... the barrel is smooth..." And left the shop.
 
I shop long and hard to find a gun store and a gunsmith. I never found a store in Phoenix. I have only found two gunsmiths that I trust in with my life.

Unfortunately they are both out of business due to age.
 
The last time I was in Cabella's I had to take a number and wait 15 minutes so I could have a private moment to argue with a particular clerk that had been feeding my friend a line of BS.


The only gun shops that I will trust the clerks in are within 20 miles of my house. The reason that I say I trust them is because they aren't afraid to say "I don't know."
 
That's why you do all your research online, like in this fine forum. Decide what you need, and how much you need to pay for it. So when you walk into the shop, all you need to do is point to the shelf, say "I want that one", and put the money on the counter. The less talking that's done, the better.

They don't need to know why you want it or what you want to do with it. That's my personal policy when I shop for pretty much anything.
 
That's why you do all your research online
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Just keep in mind just because you read it on the INTERNET does not make it true/right/correct as with this forum. At times folks will give opinion and not facts. Be careful out there the waters deep.:eek:
 
What's that saying? "Don't ask me, I only work here"

I try to do all of my research on line before I start talking with people who are going to profit more from the holes in my knowledge than from filling those gaps in my knowledge.
 
I don't want to pass up a deal just because some salesman doesn't know his stuff. I don't have to take his advice. I don't have the diversity of choices that I have the luxury of just cutting off a dealer that carries stuff I'm interested in.
 
Just keep in mind just because you read it on the INTERNET does not make it true/right/correct as with this forum. At times folks will give opinion and not facts. Be careful out there the waters deep.
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There is of course plenty of misinformation on the net (that's why it's called the MISinformation superhighway). But I think it's safe to say that the ration of truth to BS is much better online than with most any gun shop. The benefit is that here, you can get a second and third and fiftieth opinion on your decision in a matter of seconds. In the shop , you're just going by what the guy behind the counter tells you. Of course it helps to be good at researching things.
 
The "ratio" of BS to truth is better online than in *some* gun stores because if there's one guy in the store and he's full of crap, you have an infinite, undefined ratio 1:0.... On the Internet, it's only like 1,000,000,000 parts BS to 1 part truth.
There are good places, yes, TFL being one, but to believe that "the Internet" as a whole has a good ratio of truth to BS is a bit naive.

Personally, I completely ignore negative product reports/reviews unti I get the feeling that they outnumber positives like 10:1.... and I don't put much stock in the positives either, unless I know a little about the source.

Knowing the source is why TFL (and similar sites) can be so helpful. Once someone has been a member and posted for awhile you can get an idea of how full they are of "it".
 
The one thing that suprises me is that there are so many gun store owners and/or dealers that do not know BATF regulations. They claim this or that, but you can tell that they either have never read the laws, or just don't understand them. It's sad when someone who would go to a gun store for advice, and they tell them something that could potentially get that person in a lot of hot water.
 
I went in to the store today with my friend to see what they had to say. The salesman that was pushing the x40 on my friend is a new employee they hired for the holidays/hunting season and is working on commission.... Go figure. The owner apologized and told my friend to take 10% off whatever it was he wanted and we walked out the door with a nice new savage 30/06.
 
If the owner keeps that commission guy for just the short term, he is likely to lose business. I commend you for talking to the owner. It is good to hear the owner appears to have tried to make things right. Savage is a decent rifle, and there is nothing wrong with a 30-06 for a deer rifle.
 
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