Sticker shock

J

jimmy

New member
I had a case of sticker shock when visiting the local gun shop the other day. It's important to note that this shop is a mom and pop establishment whose prices are generally very good. In fact, its fair pricing has allowed the shop to cultivate a loyal clientele and remain in business when other gun shops in the area have come and gone. Regardless, I have to wonder if this shop is gouging. Or maybe we've reached a higher plateau of gun prices from the manufacturers. Or maybe some of both.

Anyway, what I saw was a new Colt 1991A1 for $600, a new S&W Model 629 Mountain Gun for $590, and a new S&W Model 342PD for $580. With sales tax these guns are now over $600 each! A year ago the same shop sold 1991A1s for under $450 and Mountain Guns for $480. Okay, the 342PD is probably a hot item and is partly constructed of titanium. But $600 for a J-frame!? Yipe! :eek:

Something tells me that even if handgun ownership is not outlawed outright, it'll soon be too expensive for any but the well-heeled to afford. Sounds like a dream come true for the Clinton Administration, and a waking nightmare for the rest of us. Anybody else get the same feeling? :confused:
 
Yes it is becoming a very expensive hobby.
As of recent I've bought some new stuff,but
I've also been buying alot more used stuff.
Been finding some real good buys on used guns. Bottom line To many guns not enough money :D

Happy Shooting :)

------------------
We preserve our freedoms by using four boxes: soap,ballot,jury, and cartridge.
Anonymous
 
Hi, Jimmy,

There are a number of problems for any specialty store. They have a price they have to pay for an item. Small stores cannot get quantity discounts because they don't buy enough. They must make enough money to keep the lights on and make a decent living, so they have to charge full retail prices. They, too, can't give discounts because they don't sell enough.

Prices have gone up at the manufacturer and wholesale level; the dealer must raise his prices or eat the difference, not an attractive choice for a small shop.

Your choice as a customer is whether to buy cheaper somewhere else and force the local dealer out of business, or pay a little more and keep a local store where you are known and where they might order from Shotgun News at a resonable charge. K-Mart won't do that.

I vote for putting out the money and keeping a local friendly dealer. If the trend toward large chains going out the gun business continues, and internet and gun show trade is cut off, the local store may the only choice. If we force them out of business, there will be a gun sales ban in effect, whether we call it that or not.

Jim
 
I can't comment on the others but dealer cost for a new 1991A1 is now $556.50. :(

------------------
Gunslinger

We live in a time in which attitudes and deeds once respected as courageous and honorable are now scorned as being antiquated and subversive.
 
Jimmy

As a retail FFL dealer and to coin an old Ronald Reagan saying (I think he said it). "You ain't seen nothing yet."

UPS next day air; Charges and increases for gun industry lawsuits; Increased regulations; and hidden charges on you don't see if you write checks or use credit cards for the retailer; Just to name a few items going up for the retailer.

This is not whining but this is the cost of doing business.

Any retail business has to face similar threats to business. As far as the small gun store. When was the last time you saw a "service" station. Not a food mart with gas as a side line. The small gun store faces the same future if the current trend of increased regulation continues.

My prices on most of the Kimbers I stock have increased as much as $60 a gun since December. Makes me wonder what to restock or if to restock, change product line, etc. Again a business decision. Bottom line drive s the train.

You can only survive so long with a negative cash flow.

Production costs are down as the human element is eliminated through automation. So the increased costs are due to increased regulation and to many increased costs of doing business.

You, the consumer pays the additional charges when I the retailer add it to prices or I go under.

Yup. It ain't gonna get any better over the long run.

Be safe and keep the brass flying

Terry Peters
http://www.pt-partners.com

P.S. Drive a liberal nuts, buy a gun. Put a liberal on heart medication buy two.
 
Anyone who buys a new COLT should be ashame d of themselves. Why support a company who would sell the citizen gun owner down the river to guarentee more government contracts!
 
PT is right.

Between the added costs of shipping and preparing for litigation,the gun makers are passing it on. Cant blame them really.

As for the cost of Colts, a guy asked this week whether a 1991A1 was worth the $500.00 a dealer was asking. His interest was as an investment.

Nothing will increase in value over the long term if it aint worth a damn to begin with,and the 1991A1 falls in this catagory.

Unlike many folks,I had to work on the wretched things in our shop every day. That last 6 to 8 months,was brutal.

As a footnote,please support the makers who have come out flatly and said "we will support the civilian market" To my knowledge,at this point,that means Springfield,Beretta,Smith&Wesson,Ruger---and in the realm of handguns,cant think of any others who have made statements.

Geezz,can you guys beleive we are even having to discuss this in America?
 
etc

You made a very profound statement. Can you believe were are even discussing this in the land of the free. Supporting the "Civilian" market.

Wow. Government control through one form or another.

Enough of that. Shoot on, shoot straight and
vote this fall.

Terry Peters
 
Amen! Vote this fall and definitely support your mom & pop shops. What they fail to give you in cheap price, they pay you back with knowledge, a friendly staff, smiles and most of all, trust. You put them out of business and you help the anti's in the long run.
 
Owning guns is NOT a hobby.


It's a CALLING!

(just pay the money and quit whining LOL)

------------------
"All my ammo is factory ammo"
 
PT-Partners

Just for the record, I wouldn't include Ruger as one of those companies supporting the "civilian" market. If Ruger had wanted to support the civilian market, Bill Ruger wouldn't have supported (or even helped draft certain portions if some reports are true) the magazine and "assault weapons" ban. Nor would the company voluntarilly ban selling weapons to dealers who sell at gun shows. I'd intended on buying a Ruger P97 but I'll be damned if they get any of my money now.
 
buzz_knox

Notice who (me) does not carry/sell the "Ruger" product line.

Bill Ruger and Company is in this thing strictly for the bottom line.

I work a lot of gunshows here in central Texas. There is no shortage of Rugers with any of the retailers. Appearantly spoken policy is not practised and that may have been said for public consumption only.

Terry Peters
http://www.pt-partners.com
 
Thanks, folks, for the responses. I think I now have a better understanding of the pricing at mom-and-pop gunshops. They are indeed worth preserving, even if we have to pay extra. I'm afraid, though, that one day soon handguns will be too expensive for many or perhaps most of us, regardless of the source.

BTW, the mom-and-pop in my area is, or was, an S&W stocking dealer that probably sells a a couple of hundred S&W handguns per year. It will be hurt by S&W's pact with the devil, in that it will no longer sell the company's products, and will therefore suffer from the loss of business. The terms of the pact betray S&W's sorry disloyalty to its dealers.

Also, I've learned that this mom-and-pop is being investigated by BATF. Why? Because 10 or more of the guns it's sold have been used in crimes. Never mind that this is 10 guns out of 15,000 sold over 15 or 20 years. Never mind that that the guns involved passed through several hands or were stolen since the shop sold them. Never mind that the Feds count a gun as having been used in a crime even if it was merely found in the possession of the criminal. And never mind that the shop is completely law-abiding and that its owners are model citizens. Unless I miss my guess, the Clintonian agenda here is to harrass FFLs out of existence altogether. The announced goal of tracing the guns used in crimes comes across as nothing more than a political ploy.

Of course, when Clinton & Co. stick a knife into the heart of America, they don't care who bleeds.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top