You know that feeling like you just got ripped off?
- Thread starter Onslaught
- Start date
I think that Onslaught is being too generous. What happened is no different than buying a Chevy that comes standard with alloy wheels and then having the dealer replace them with steel wheels, thereby reselling the alloy ones and increasing his profit. If you bought the Chevy for the factory price, then you got ripped off. If the refurb Glock came with a hi-cap mag from the factory then that's how it should be sold.
I know--and am concerned--that small gunshops (and smiths) are going out of business at an alarming rate. In my area (Houston) that's partly due to the large number of gun shows, with prices that local dealers can't compete with. But, that's still no excuse for shady business practices.
I know--and am concerned--that small gunshops (and smiths) are going out of business at an alarming rate. In my area (Houston) that's partly due to the large number of gun shows, with prices that local dealers can't compete with. But, that's still no excuse for shady business practices.
P.S.
Not all refurb Glocks come with non-gelded mags.
Sometimes they get switched or removed at the distributor. (KY Imports is selling used HK P7M13's right now for $800ish. Guess the catch...)
Sometimes the police department that traded them in in the first place knew what they had and sold them separately.
The Chevy analogy is somewhat flawed as the car business operates differently. Cars go from manufacturer to dealer. Guns go from manufacturer to distributor to dealer. And if you think an off-lease BMW has never been stripped of aftermarket BBS wheels and Michelin Pilot XGT's before being put out for sale, well, think again.
Not all refurb Glocks come with non-gelded mags.
Sometimes they get switched or removed at the distributor. (KY Imports is selling used HK P7M13's right now for $800ish. Guess the catch...)
Sometimes the police department that traded them in in the first place knew what they had and sold them separately.
The Chevy analogy is somewhat flawed as the car business operates differently. Cars go from manufacturer to dealer. Guns go from manufacturer to distributor to dealer. And if you think an off-lease BMW has never been stripped of aftermarket BBS wheels and Michelin Pilot XGT's before being put out for sale, well, think again.
In economics that’s called maximizing your utility. The seller derives more satisfaction (in eco-speak, “utility”) by being in possession of X amount of dollars rather than the product, and the buyer derives more satisfaction (or utility) from being in possession of the product rather than X amount of dollars.
Or to really say it in eco-speak, "the seller gains more utils of satisfaction from possessing the money rather than the product, and the buyer gains more utils of satisfaction from possessing the product rather than the money."
I promise, utils are an actual unit of measure in the world of economics (nobody ever said we were cool).
"Quote"
I hope you don't do any investing. After all, you wouldn't want to try to get over on anyone by
actually making any money on them. If you bought Microsoft for 25 cents a share, you should
sell it for 25 cents a share. That's only fair. We need to learn to come together as a nation
and unite as socialists. Lennin would be very proud comrade."
Yes I guess Lennin would be proud of greed in
America and for sure it is making this country
a better place.:barf:
Honest profit fine, but most have forgot what
that is and we have seen the past 12 years of
some of the worse greed,please use common sense.
I hope you don't do any investing. After all, you wouldn't want to try to get over on anyone by
actually making any money on them. If you bought Microsoft for 25 cents a share, you should
sell it for 25 cents a share. That's only fair. We need to learn to come together as a nation
and unite as socialists. Lennin would be very proud comrade."
Yes I guess Lennin would be proud of greed in
America and for sure it is making this country
a better place.:barf:
Honest profit fine, but most have forgot what
that is and we have seen the past 12 years of
some of the worse greed,please use common sense.
Marko Kloos
Inactive
How much profit should be allowed in private enterprise, then, in order to not be "greedy"? Where do we draw the line between fair business and greed? More importantly, who gets to draw that line, and with what right? Do you want to be able to use the guns of the state to force businesspeople to sell items to you for a profit margin you would consider "fair"?
bullet44
I was a little harsh there, but to me it is common sense that if you are selling a piece of personal property, that you have the right to sell it for whatever you want. And, if you sell it without all the goodies, that is your business. And likewise, the buyer has the option to not pay your asking price and also the option to not buy it at all. This is the way business is done in a fair country. If you feel that someone is taking advantage of you, if you think the price is too high, if you think you are being cheated, don't buy it. This country is sometimes called a free country. The freedom in this case is mutual. He got a great deal on the pistol in question without the standard capacity magazines. He knew the whole story and never the less bought it. That sounds like a perfectly fair deal to me. I would have definitely bought it myself. You never know when a good deal might come along on some mags. You might even practice with the klinton mags and buy one standard cap to carry. A gun dealer is in business. He is putting food on the table for his family. He wants to make as much money as he can just like everybody else. He invested his money in his merchandise, therefore he has the right to sell it at a profit margin he sets. If it is too high, no one will buy it. If it is too low, he can't remain in business. That is the beauty of our economic system. It tends to adjust itself to market trends without any outside intervention.
I was a little harsh there, but to me it is common sense that if you are selling a piece of personal property, that you have the right to sell it for whatever you want. And, if you sell it without all the goodies, that is your business. And likewise, the buyer has the option to not pay your asking price and also the option to not buy it at all. This is the way business is done in a fair country. If you feel that someone is taking advantage of you, if you think the price is too high, if you think you are being cheated, don't buy it. This country is sometimes called a free country. The freedom in this case is mutual. He got a great deal on the pistol in question without the standard capacity magazines. He knew the whole story and never the less bought it. That sounds like a perfectly fair deal to me. I would have definitely bought it myself. You never know when a good deal might come along on some mags. You might even practice with the klinton mags and buy one standard cap to carry. A gun dealer is in business. He is putting food on the table for his family. He wants to make as much money as he can just like everybody else. He invested his money in his merchandise, therefore he has the right to sell it at a profit margin he sets. If it is too high, no one will buy it. If it is too low, he can't remain in business. That is the beauty of our economic system. It tends to adjust itself to market trends without any outside intervention.
Do you work for minimum wage, or are you "greedy" and try to get as much for your labor as possible? If you work for more than mimimum wage, how are you any different than the man or woman trying to sell their goods for as high a price as the marketplace will bear? Didn't you do that with your personal services?
Then please remind us. What is "honest profit"?
How far up the line are you going to "enforce" that ideal? To the wholesalers? How about the manufacturers? What about the landlord to whom the shop-owners pay rent, since the vast majority of them don't own their own building?
The double-standard is truly sickening.
I once entertained the idea of buying an existing gun shop in Falls Church, VA. The owner talked me out of it in about three minutes by showing me his gross sales and walking me down the page to "net loss". The clincher was, I realized that my livelyhood would depend upon tightwads like myself.
Jay
Jay
I had planned on writing a response myself, but then I decided that rather than take my word for it, why don’t you peruse the ideas of some more prestigious individuals? With that in mind might I suggest a little reading?
http://www.mises.org/fullarticle.asp?record=274&month=11 (short)
http://www.mises.org/fullarticle.asp?record=573&month=27 (short as well as entertaining given this time of year)
http://www.fee.org/about/ipencil.html (I, Pencil)
http://www.capitalismmagazine.com/2001/january/ww_virtue_greed.htm (short article by Walter Williams)
And even more important, who are you to decide just what is "honest profit"?
glockorama
New member
If I have to explain it................................
Oh, I understand it fully. I just completely disagree with it. And that's cool; we don't have to agree, you know...
P.S. For a different way of looking at it or a 'point to ponder', "Remember: You have to make money off your friends, because your enemies won't let you."
P.P.S. Did you read the articles from the Ludwig von Mises Institute? Really, really good stuff.
Last edited:
glockorama
New member
Bob: NO
TAMARA: YES
TAMARA: YES