I will NEVER go to another gun show again

Truth. The more I go to gun stores and shows, the less I trust my fellow humans. Sweepings everywhere!

Safety?

I take it you will also avoid public roads

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That's not really sound logic. "We already do things that are unsafe so we might as well do some more things that are unsafe." So if I drive on the highways and attend gun shows, should I take up snorkling with sharks?

Stay away from those unprepared types.

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At gun shows, they are everywhere. The last two shows I attended, there have been negiligent discharges. The last one was where a dealer shot off one of his shotguns, shattering a couple of his (and someone else's) gun cases. He also wounded a patron.

Security escorted him out and rumor has it, banned him for life.

Two three years ago, I no more then walked in the door when a dealer had a ND with a .45 ACP!

While laying on the floor, I was amazed how long the bullet ricocheted around the concrete exposition hall before it finally ran out of steam without hitting anyone!

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As another poster pointed out, it's dangerous enough just driving on the highway. I don't need that kind of crapola!

BTW, you must be pretty fast for an old guy to 1) hear the discharge and 2) drop to the floor before the bullet came to rest.

Me: 1) hear discharge, 2) stand there looking around, "duh, was that a gunshot?" 3) Feel a "plop" in my butt and wonder, "what was that?"

Some things you never forget how to do.

Dirt diving when unexpected gunfire erupts close to you is one of them.

You can tell old GI's from old civilians that way.

rc

This concerns me as well. Monkey see, monkey do. A large percentage of the cases I've seen the customer follows how the dealer handles the firearm they're selling. If the dealer is unsafe with it the customer is as well. If I were to handle a gun show I'd handle it the same way I handle our paintball field. I would call the dealers together and give them a lecture/orientation on how to safely handle their merchandise and would encourage them to instruct their customers to do the same. Simple, but I believe it would be effective based upon my experience on the field. I can't recall how many times I've walked into a gun store and started talking to another customer and had to instruct them on basic firearm safety rules because they had handled a firearm incorrectly. They almost never resent you telling them if you inform them the right way without degrading them. Then I'd ask the salesperson who had just been speaking with that customer if I could see a firearm and he'd hand it to me muzzle first or carelessly point it at me as he pulled it out of the case.

CraigC said:

There's no excuse whatsoever for going to a gun show with a loaded firearm, unless it's your carry weapon that remains holstered.

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At ours I think you have to go unloaded anyway. They will ask for your weapon and cable tie it. You could lie of course, but I prefer not to do so. I have taken my cc weapon in, to 'try on holsters.' Cable-tied.

I gave up on the local Gun Shows about a decade ago... but not because I ever experienced any dangerous/negligent behavior.

I found that the actual firearms & related selection had gone down, the prices had gone UP, the average Gun-IQ appeared to have noticeably dropped and the carpark was full of Beemers (probably one of the reasons for the prices going up).

It had changed enough that any enjoyment I derived failed to, at least, equal the hassle of attending the thing, so ...

The most enjoyable show I ever attended was in Medina, OH in 1988(89?). I still have the fine .44 Marlin 1894 that I found there.

I was at the show in Kingsport, TN today during a ND by a dealer at a table. First for me at a show.

We've had a ND at the WAC gun shows a year or two ago. Not everyone who owns a gun is competent, unfortunately. It's the price of freedom though.

Gun shows are private entities. Their rules, their (rented) house. Most have no-loaded-guns policies to satisfy some sort of insurance mandate to hold such events.

Bay County Sheriffs department here in Panama City does all the checking at the door.

Ten years ago i was at a gunshow and came upon a private sellers table. He got a used 1911 pistol. So i asked to see it. Once i released the mag out , what a surprise ! The mag was loaded with FMJs . I said in amazement, This is loaded ! The guy immediately took the loaded mag away from sight and grab the gun and put them under the table.

What an experience it was ! My first in a gunshow to see things like this slipped in. The guy said it was a gun from a someone earlier who traded it in. I wished i reported the seller to the show sponsor so he could get booted out. Anyway, i ve never been in a gunshow when you will hear a pop. That be scary.

The only time I literally had the hell scared out of me was doing the Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds show in Berea, Ohio. The show consist of normally 3 large fairground buildings. My wife and I always had 5 tables with an end cap right beside the rear entrance to the show. Really a great location. Tina always worked that entry point and there was Don the Cop always there. Hell, we all knew each other.

It was a hot day in July that year and everything is going along fine. Then came the loud bang! My heart sank as I dropped to the deck behind our tables taking my wife with me. Poked my head up and saw Don in a crouch and Tina down in a crouch. Here, someone parked a bicycle by the entry and a rear tire blew. I never knew a bicycle tire could make such a loud bang, it sounded so much like a shot. Talk about freaky! That had to have been 15 years ago plus.

Ron

Five gun shows in 15 months? Where do you live, the boonies? There are 1-2 gun shows here every month. I go to gun shows because even a blind pig can find an acorn now and then.....chris3

When I go to gun shows it is to stock up on beef jerky and candles.

I think part of it is ignorance, part of it is genuine stupidity and part of it is lack of mentoring.

A lot of us grew up with guns and by the time we were old enough to carry a gun off our own property, we were competent and capable. There's a large group of people who grew up isolated from firearms of any type and are spending early adulthood and sometimes middle age playing catch-up. They simply lack the experience and it's not second nature to them.

As for the others, you've either got to educate, tolerate or avoid.

Pointing a firearm in a safe direction should be second nature,i cant believe there are that many stupid people out there.....

Drail said:

I have worked behind tables at gun shows all over the Midwest for years and it is truly ubelieveable that people can be so stupid and unthinking and yet be issued a driver's license and allowed to vote and raise chiuldren. Several times I have been in huge auditoriums with an incredibly loud background noise level that forced you to almost yell at anyone to converse. Suddenly, BANG. The immediate silence is almost spooky. But the promoters and the cops can't possibly really check every person or gun that enters the building and so it happens. More than you would think. Someone fired a .223 in a show in Illinois and hit two people. Keep your head on a swivel folks. Going to some gun shows can be the riskiest thing you ever do next to going to a public range on a busy day. I gave that up too.

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At our gun shows every weapon brought into the show is checked by a police officer then the action is zip tied open before being allowed into the show.

I'm disappointed with some of the things I've been reading about gun frenzy related behavior lately. Reflects badly on the gun community. Thankfully, the only ones witnessing such behavior are, for the most part, other members of the gun community...so far.

I've found lots of other good reasons to avoid gun shows, too, so I'm rarely in attendance.

ball3006 said:

Five gun shows in 15 months? Where do you live, the boonies? There are 1-2 gun shows here every month. I go to gun shows because even a blind pig can find an acorn now and then.....chris3

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wow, in the Memphis area we have around 4 a year

Thankfully, the only ones witnessing such behavior are, for the most part, other members of the gun community...so far.

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Not here. At the shows here in Tulsa it always hits the local news.

Geeze!

You'd either avoid going to the show or wear a plate carrier and risk being seen as paranoid.

Being swept like that would scare me to death.

I was completely shocked in basic training when we first got our rifles at how common muzzle sweeps/flagging was. I know that hyper controlled environment the guns aren't loaded except for the range where it has to be strictly pointed down range.

But we know we should always treat them as loaded.

At a military school. We kept blanks chambered at all times w a mag in. They were trying to make sure people were exhibiting good safety. We had to drop the mag clear the chamber and fire into a barrel to show empty. Heard a couple pops there.

People don't respect just how dangerous firearms are if not handled safely and many people simply do not understand how guns operate. So many don't understand that with a dropped mag the gun is not safe. (Then you have the mag disconnect safety which is another mess)

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Get a grip guys.

I've been to hundreds of gun shows and never been shot, seen someone shot, or heard of anyone shot.

Yes a few, very few, people are shot over the years at gun shows.

But I bet far less than are killed on the highways per hour of driving!

There are literally hundreds of shows per year and maybe a million people in all attending, so think about it.

Deaf

People will make mistakes, it's up to responsible people to pull em aside and say hey holmes, really?? You people sound like Feinstein, and you really should phrase your thoughts different. You're making it look like every person that attends a gun show is a nut, and that's just not the case.

Knee jerk reactions to dangers at guns shows are much like the psychology of people overreacting to those one-in-ten-million shooting sprees we have. I guess it is just human nature to forget the odds, and think we can prevent things. With all the security, police, guns being checked, rules, gun ties, etc, guns still go off sat gun shows.....and that is with thousands of people CONCERNED with safety in attendance. Is it any wonder we SHOULD NOT think that we can ever prevent a random violent act by a fool with a gun? Crime, mental illness, recklessness, and evil WILL happen, no matter how much we fuss, cry, surrender freedom, or think we can change anything.

not a gun show but I went to buy a LPK for a ar at the local gun store. while there the guy behind the counter asked if I'd like to look at any rifle. I asked to see one in a display case, the guy takes it out, goes to clear the weapon and BING a live round pops out of the chamber. The surprise in his eye, you could tell this just doesnt happen, but we both saw the round pop out. jim