My first gun show tomorrow - what to expect?

Be prepared to be disappointed. Often that’s the case. Then there is the one time you find an amazing deal. You probably will find primers at a high price. Buy a brick and be thankful to have them.

I’d love to find a box of top punches for cheap. Or for that matter, a mess of vintage gun cleaning gear.

thunderbyrd

One thing you might want to do, given that it's a large enough venue, is to bring along a pad and pencil to write down where you maybe found something interesting to come back to for a second look. It doesn't have to be a real precise description either. Just something like "halfway down on third table that's to the right of the main entrance".

Expect high prices on just about everything but consider making an offer on anything that you really want to get. It never hurts to make the offer.

Bring as much cash as you have because sometimes "cash is still king" to some table holders plus no CC fees either.

Be polite and even if there isn't any notice on the table about handling the guns, you should still ask permission if you can pick a gun up to look it over.

If you're planning to buy some things take along a backpack to carry it all in. That way you don't have to walk around with it in your hands and have to set stuff down if you want to look at guns or accessories. And you won't have to take it out to your car either.

It's been awhile but at the last gun show I went to I bought a Beretta Stampede and a Rossi Model 92, both in .45 Colt, for a really great price on the two of them!



Let us know how you make out and good hunting!

A sea of plastic is what you're likely to see

Outsiders don't know this, but gun shows are always clothing optional.

even a bad show is better then staying home doing chores.

There are usually a few deals, a lot of way over-priced and some crap that doesn't belong a gun show.

Yes, take a notebook, unless you find a deal on something you really wanted (buy it, it will be gone as soon as you set it down), make note of what and where. Sometimes, if it isn't important enough to go back, it wasnt worth buying. Having a comp close by helps you negotiate price.

You may (likely) find nothing.
Know what you are interested in and what it is worth. Stick to your price.

Have fun

The best clip on sunglasses I ever found were at a gunshow.

Other than that expect

Jerky
Sham-Wows
Cheap gas station knives
Ridiculously over priced ammunition.

Occasionally good used books.

The things I mostly look for at shows are still reasonably priced.

Old reloading gear
Old casting gear
Old reloading books
Old optics

Sometimes I find guns I like at prices I am willing to pay. Hardly any great deals of yesteryear though.

I check every single Remington 760 there to see if it is in .280. Found a Carbine once that was marked as 30-06 on the tag but 280 on the gun. Walked off with it for $300. It was a $1500 dollar gun at the time and more now.

I think it depends a lot on location. I have never been to a show in Kentucky. Presumably it would be better than the jerky and fake Nazi memorabilia that make up the majority of Southern California shows - or at least did 30 years ago, when I stopped bothering with them.

The best purchase I ever got was some home made licorice, it was fantastic!!

Last gun show for me was fall 2018, was a small show walked entire show in about 45 mins. Two separate guys were selling used M&P police trade ins 50 bucks higher than what I could buy a new one for.

@thunderbyrd
Take the advice of @bannockburn and @Seedy Character and take a pad snd pencil or put notes in your phone on deals locations and prices.
Something I always do if not looking for guns is I peruse the entire show making notes on prices then I go back to the tables with the best deals and buy what I was looking for.

I highly recommend you don’t drink beer at the show. I had 3 beers at a show once and bought some really useless stuff that seemed like a good idea at the time.

Primers: perusing the entire show then buying might be a bad idea on primers. I would say buy when you find what you’re looking for or you may not get any.

Good luck and have a good time.

We are having the first since covid began right here in town Saturday week. Like already mentioned it beats staying at home doing chores. I might find a rare jewel at a bargain am but certainly not going to hold my breath hoping.

Tallball said:

Outsiders don't know this, but gun shows are always clothing optional.

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And deodorant too

Seriously though. I like to look in boxes off stuff, looking for gems. My only advice is to have a decent knowledge of the market value of what you are looking for. This way it doesn’t matter if you get distracted by shinny objects you can still recognize a deal.

Congrats on your first gun show! Your info. says you are in Kentucky, but now exactly where in Kentucky. There are shows in Lexington and Somerset and another in Newburgh, In. this coming weekend. Unfortunately, none of these shows are very big and therefore you may not find anything but the selection of jerky that other folks have already mentioned. You just missed what is probably the biggest show in Kentucky -- National Gun Day (Feb. 26-27) at the state fairgrounds in Louisville. The show in Lexington, this weekend says it will have about 150 tables. National Gun Day advertises 1650 tables. You're more likely to find what you're looking for at the larger shows. The next National Gun Day show is scheduled for October 1-2. There is an even bigger show coming up in Tulsa, Ok., April 2-3, and a smaller but very nice show in Colorado Springs, May 21-22, but both are certainly a lot further for you. Best of luck and give us a full report after the show.

Seedy Character said:

....unless you find a deal on something you really wanted (buy it, it will be gone as soon as you set it down)

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I was at a show in Walla Walla, Washington many years ago. I'd looked at a long gun of some type, then set it down and mentally prepared for my standard, annoying negotiating technique. Some dude walked up, grabbed "my" gun, and handed the seller a wad of cash. Hahahaha! I've since refined my technique.

If you don't find a service six at the show there is always gunbroker.

https://www.gunbroker.com/Revolvers/search?Keywords=ruger service six&Sort=13

And if you are wanting a fixed sight 357 don't overlook the Taurus model 65. The best way to buy a Taurus is to look it over in person and try out the trigger. I have owned 3 of the model 82, the 38 special version of the gun and I had of kept at least one of them.

https://www.taurususa.com/revolvers/taurus-65

Have fun at the gunshow and don't forget to check out the Beenie Babies.

tinhorn said:

I was at a show in Walla Walla, Washington many years ago. I'd looked at a long gun of some type, then set it down and mentally prepared for my standard, annoying negotiating technique. Some dude walked up, grabbed "my" gun, and handed the seller a wad of cash. Hahahaha! I've since refined my technique.

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Been there, done that. I missed out on a couple of nice deals because I hesitated. The worst was a Shiloh Sharps for $425. Not kidding. I walked away wondering what the heck might be wrong with it at that price. Walked 20 feet, stopped and decided to go back and get it and a guy was putting money in the seller’s hand.
The guy selling the Shiloh Sharps had taken it in trade for an AR-15 upper. He had no idea what the Sharps was worth and just wanted the full retail of the upper he had sold.
Oh well.

The next gun show I got an almost brand new Winchester 94 carbine for $220. The guy shot 5 rounds out of it and didn’t like it. Yay for me!

Win some, lose some.

thunderbyrd said:

Do you find good buys at gun shows? Am I likely to find primers?

I want to buy a 38 super, a Ruger sp101, a .327. and other things I can't remember until I see them.

Am I a sheep going to the shearing?

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I've always had good luck at the gun show that comes through here about 5 times a year. There is a lot of non-gun stuff starting to show up in larger amounts, but there are several sellers who show up at every show with a nice selection of wheel guns, and there is a Palmetto State store that has a bit of everything new. They had a RIA .38 Super 1911 at the last show of the year last year; I missed getting it as I found a vintage revolver I wanted more. I visited their store a month later and bought it there (same price). There's lately been more ammo at the shows, at outrageous prices, and hit-or-miss on reloading stuff. I found small pistol primers at the last show, bought the last two bricks they had at $.12 a primer, ouch. There are a few "prepper" tables, too, with all kinds of survival and tacticool items.

Take more money than you think you'll need (X2), in case you do find something you don't want to leave without, do your best to bargain them down, but the most I've gotten a seller down was $100 on a $1250 price tag; some will tell you they'll do "out the door" price for the tag price, if you have a CC permit. That works in NC as your background check, so it's cash and carry. If the seller is not a FFL and dealer, and he has a CC also, it's a straight sale without the paperwork.

thunderbyrd said:

I was thinking a speedo and some flipflops.

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Maybe your girlfriend, but then she'd be overdressed.

I've occasionally run across a good deal on a firearm but I mostly go to shows looking for odds and ends.

I found a couple of magazines for my Star BM and a military surplus (crossed sword) mag for my CZ82 at the show I stopped by today. The previous show I went to, I finally came across a butt-plate to replace the chipped one on my Winchester model 50 shotgun.

Been to many gun shows and usually there is nothing worth my time or the entrance fee. However, once I went to a show in Virginia Beach and a dealer had a pallet of brand new Model 29-3's for sale, $200 each. Going price at the local shops back then was about $450. Wish I had bought more than one. That was 1987 and the last time I bought a gun at a show.

There was a time, decades ago, when a gun show was the best place to buy a gun. Gun shows anymore are not really gun shows but rather a flea market stand that sells guns. The gun shows today aren't worth the drive with one exception. And that's the Ohio Gun Collector gun shows.