how to sell at a gun show?

Status
Not open for further replies.

Axis II

Member
Joined
Jul 2, 2015
Messages
7,175
I have only been to maybe 2 gun shows and thinking about packing up 2-3 rifles to try and sell them at the Berea gun show but I have no clue how to go about trying to sell them there.

any tips?
 
Walk in holding one or some and have a price in mind. Signage helps, but displaying them will usually get enough attention. Walk around until you get tired or someone presents a reasonable offer.
 
You can sling a rifle (or 2 or 3) and put a for sale flag sticking out of the barrel, that catches people's eye. I prefer that since you never know if someone just bought that and is toting it around or wants to sell it.

If private sales are legal in your State like mine, I check ID to make sure they are a resident of my State, then cash for gun. If you want or if your State requires it, stop by a table with an FFL and pay for a transfer.
 
I put a tag on my coat one time. One of those pin on type "My name is ________________"
kind and put a blank paper inside the plastic sleeve.

It said something like:

I am selling my Winchester Model 71
and the date it was made and caliber.
I have it with me if you are interested.


I kept it locked in the trunk of the car.

Lots of people/dealers commented and a couple wanted to see it but I didn't sell it that day. I finally did sell it by word of mouth. Somebody who knew me there told somebody else who knew me that I was selling it.

This way you don't exactly step on the dealers toes who pay money for their tables. You don't have to carry around the firearm either. But you could and save yourself a trip to the car.
 
I thought about walking around with it but I have never really seen anyone do that the only 2 times I went. I will probably do the sign thing and pin it to me that's a good idea.

its not anything collectable its just a couple cheap hunting guns.
 
Walk around if it's allowed. Know a guy who just walked into a Montreal show, long ago, with a .243 M1A Supermatch in his hand and was mobbed. Any kind of battle rifle, even copies, were rare in Quebec. Otherwise, you need to talk to the show operators about renting a table. You could talk to another seller about sharing at table too.
It's essential you know what your stuff is worth used too. Too low you get robbed. Too high and it won't sell. Plus condition is everything. The assorted auction sites and your local gun shop can help with that.
Probably a good idea to write out a bill of sale as well. Bit of CYA. And be very clear to anybody who makes an offer that you accept but doesn't have the cash in hand that the sale is provisional. If he's going to get the money from an ATM or whatever, the gun is not sold until he hands you the money. Know a guy who got sued, up here in that situation. Mind you, he didn't go to court either. Instant loss.
 
Check with the organizers of the gun show to see if they have any rules or expectations on how you conduct yourself if you are a casual seller.

I don't go to a lot of gun shows any more because the sellers at the shows (at least from my past experience in the Dallas area) seem to be asking astronomical prices and don't really seem all that interested in negotiating. Of course, that could be good for you if you are a seller with something appealing.

I was at a show in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and while I couldn't buy any guns (Texas resident at the time), the sellers were willing to vigorously negotiate on the accessories, parts and components I wanted. The surprising thing was they were some of the same sellers that had been in Dallas only months before. I guess the fact Dallas is wealthy and Pine Bluff is impoverished had an effect on their viewpoint.
 
Check with the organizers of the gun show to see if they have any rules or expectations on how you conduct yourself if you are a casual seller.

I don't go to a lot of gun shows any more because the sellers at the shows (at least from my past experience in the Dallas area) seem to be asking astronomical prices and don't really seem all that interested in negotiating. Of course, that could be good for you if you are a seller with something appealing.

I was at a show in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and while I couldn't buy any guns (Texas resident at the time), the sellers were willing to vigorously negotiate on the accessories, parts and components I wanted. The surprising thing was they were some of the same sellers that had been in Dallas only months before. I guess the fact Dallas is wealthy and Pine Bluff is impoverished had an effect on their viewpoint.
Yes, some vendors want more than MSRP. Makes my guns look better.
 
Get a wooden dowel that will fit down the barrel. Put a piece of paper on it to make a little flag and put the name of the gun and the price. Use a highlighter or something to draw attention to it. Place in muzzle. Put sling on rifle and walk around the gun show.
 
I think just walking around with the rifle slung over your shoulder will attract some interest. I know from years past when I have bought rifles at a show and continued to walk around with them, that any number of people would come up to me and ask me if it were for sale.
 
A .243 M1a supermatch would get you mobbed where I am at as well!


I know it may cost me.a.sale, but I refuse to be the guy with a dowel in the barrel. Depending on the show, there may already be a line of buyers waiting on folks walking in.
 
A .243 M1a supermatch would get you mobbed where I am at as well!


I know it may cost me.a.sale, but I refuse to be the guy with a dowel in the barrel. Depending on the show, there may already be a line of buyers waiting on folks walking in.
whats wrong with the dowel rod?
 
One show here in Akron, Ohio, I sold four handguns before I ever reached the first table.
Other times I have walked till I got tired and went home and didn't sell what I brought.
I have done it both ways, but usually if I have more then one for sale I wear a sandwich cardboard, front and back with details listed, but no prices.
 
Some kind of for sale signage or indicator and walk around with it.

Works for me.
 
I know from years past when I have bought rifles at a show and continued to walk around with them, that any number of people would come up to me and ask me if it were for sale.

Yes, it aggravates me a bit when I have just bought a new-to-me firearm and I keep getting approached by folks trying to buy it. But, I guess it is part of the culture.

I appreciate the folks that have some kind of sign, card, hat tag, flag in the barrel, etc., that indicates what the gun is and that it is for sale. I do want to bother them if I am not interested in the firearm or if it is not for sale.
 
The best way to prepare to sell ordinary guns at a gun show is to prepare to take about half (or less) of the lowest number you feel like the gun is worth. Because that is the number that dealers will offer you.

If you are wed to the idea that the deal has to be in-person (no shipping), you will get better $$$ if you write a good ad, and post good pics, and post it on a site such as http://forum.kygunowners.com/forums/firearms-for-sale.13/ At least there, you can disregard low-ball offers.
 
Before you leave your house, check that all guns that go with you are unloaded. Before you get out of the car to go into the gun show,verify that all guns are unloaded.

News stories of negligent discharges at gun shows are shameful.
 
Research the value of the firearms. Not the asking price, but the actual "SOLD" price. Use that as your basis for what is acceptable as an offer or your asking price (not the same).

Get into the show without making a deal with any Yahoo standing out front "Hey Buddy"ing you.

Sling the firearms, put a dowel/chopstick with a description flagged so people know you know what you're lugging around.

Understand that the guys at the tables have to offer you 50 to 60% of what you think it is worth so they can resell it and make some money to pay for their tables/hotel/gas/meals/losses. A dealer can not offer you "retail" since they have to sell your firearm to some other guy for a profit.

Be open to guys walking around the show making an offer. Get a phone pic of their ID and make sure they're from the same state as the show.

Understand that your guns don't need to be watered and fed so you can walk out with them without losing any money and come back again when people are willing to pay for them.
 
Before you leave your house, check that all guns that go with you are unloaded. Before you get out of the car to go into the gun show,verify that all guns are unloaded.

At the semi annual gun show closest to where I live, at the table where you pay to get in, staff check guns carried in by individuals at the door.
This was a good post to put up in this discussion though. Common sense but well worth mentioning.
 
My favorite way is to take a bright neon postcard, slot it with a razor on each end and slip it over the barrel then find a good spot to lean against a wall or post near the concession stand or near the exit. Small, simple, catchy, cheap, effective.
 
You didn't mention the state that you live in. In Washington, in order to sell a gun, there has to be a transfer through a FFL. So know what your laws are; which you should be able to find out from whoever is sponsoring the gun show.
 
drec

Good advice but I believe the OP is in Ohio and I don't think there's any sort of FFL transfer requirement there.
 
I'd carry at least one inside the show and have a sign on me that lists the others. If you sell, go back outside and bring another one in or carry two if they have slings.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top