Gander Mountain experiances and opinions?

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phantomak47

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I went to Gander Mountain the other day and I did not know what to expect. I have read several posts here and on other sites which were mostly negative, but I went with an open mind looking for some extra ammo for Rita(since all of my ammo is at my parents house in Ma).

I was impressed with the ammount of firearms that they had in stock and there was a good amount of rifles and shotguns to pick from. They had a mixed , but decent pistol selection, although they didnt seem to have standard guns.What I mean by stating this is, there werent any standard Glocks to be found, a 17 or 19 wasnt to be had. Their pistol prices were overpriced by $40.

But what I did find was a good selection of ammo, lots of gun cases to choose from which was nice because I get kind of sick of buying stuff out of catalogs. I like to be able to see what I am actually going to buy. They seemed to have just about everything in the way of firearms which was also nice.

I was wondering what is the general opinon of Gander Mountain???
 
I've had mixed results at the one on the north side of Indianapolis but good enough that I always "shop" there if looking for something.

I've bought 2 used firearms from them that were good deals for this area. But buyer beware as usual, some of their used firearms are not good deals (i.e. a used RUSTY Marlin 336 30-30 for $339 vs the exact same model at Wally-World for $279).

The crew is also mixed. There are a few that really know there stuff and others that don't. Strangely the ones that don't know much are more quick to ask me if I'd like to see anything. :confused:

So GM won't take the place of the local dealers but I do like to visit and occassionally buy stuff from them. I can even buy Aussie 7.62x51 surplus there ($70/400rnds) without waiting for a gunshow.

I would think that like any retail buisiness the quaility of the store will depend largely on the quality of your local teen and twenty-somethings and the managers that herd them.

Otherwise the things that make one Walmart better than another.
 
I go to Gander MTN alot, it's a fairly new store out here. I bought a used gun there not to long ago and it was a good deal. I will say however their service sucks I have stood at the gun counter to buy knives and guns and watch clerks walk buy me and finally 20 min later they ask if they can help me, I have gotten pissed and left but the prices are good for around here and I can usually find what I'm looking for. :what:
 
Generally my experiences with Gander have been good, although there service can at times leave something to be desired, and they will try to beat you up on a gun trade in.
As far as buying guns there, I reserve my new gun (or bow, etc.) purchases for a local shop. However, used guns are where you find them, and I've found a couple of real sweet deals at Gander.
 
On the average, I like Gander Mountain. Prices on firearms seem to run from very reasonable to highly overpriced, but this is the case just about everywhere. Service can be a real wild card though. I have run into sales associates that are very helpful, and I have run into ones that cannot even be bothered to struggle to their feet and assist a paying customer. Ammo prices are pretty reasonable at the stores I have been to. They may not rival gunshow prices, but they still aren’t bad.
 
They did some polishing work on a pistol for me. Picked it up yesterday. PERFECT and best of all about 1/2 the price I was expecting to pay. I will continue to do business with them.

Kevin
 
Good selection of ammo, decent stock of shootin' irons, lots of other stuff needed for general oputdoor life hunting/fishing/camping, etc.

Used gun prices too high. Saw a Century Arms POS...ahhh knockoff of US Rifle Cal .30 M1, tagged as a Springfield, for $600. Wise N. Heimer behind counter insisted that Century was a division of Springfield, so it was correctly marked, and that International Harvester NEVER made M1's.

Then, Mr. Heimer insisted that I broke the rifle when I attempted to open the action, and the op-rod came dismounted from the bolt.

So, on used arms from Gander, it is a definite 'caveat emptor' . . .Buyer Beware. If you know what you are looking at, then OK. Otherwise, not a bad place to get outdoor stuff.
 
I inquired about possibly workong for them as a gunsmith.
Their offer was $10.00 an hour to start, some benefits, and a contractual agreement to do no side work while in their employ.
I declined the offer.
 
I would like to second the "they try to beat you up on the trade in's" comment. At the Geneva store, there is one guy who I bought my Taurus from whos great service almost makes up for the bad service from virtually everyone else there. As for pricing, they are relatively even with most gun stores.
 
I've only been to the one in Spring, Texas. The staff there is very friendly and for the most part know their stuff pretty well. They aren't THRers, but they also aren't Wally World clerks either. Regardless, they are always present and always willing to help.

Prices are OK. Not as cheap as Wally World or Academy but very competitive with most gun stores.

phantomak47, which store did you go to?
 
I buy my 7.62x39 from G.M.. Get it at $2.50 a box. Cheaper elsewhere,but cheapest here. Also have bought 3 handguns from there. To be honest, I find their counter service to be a little lacking. Either They have kids who don't care about service in a timely manner or seniors who don't look like they want to be bothered. I go looking there just as a place to stop. As I said, sometimes I get lucky. Although I have mixed feelings if I find something that I'm really interested.
kid
 
most guns there are over priced but sometmies they do have really good sales.
I like the store as far as it has a varity of things. They now have a gun smith in our local store which it nice. I have no quams with the Gander.
Some of the staff could be a bit no knowledgeable.
 
I have to say that I have shopped the three bigger chains.

SW by far has the best prices on all the firearms related stuff! Although they do not trade guns. The one store in the North Metro I have been to has a few people that ought not be allowed to be behind the counter! He was spreading pure BS to unsuspecting customers! A real credit to CHL instructors in MN, NOT! I respect them for being EBR friendly!

GM is hit and miss. GM will look to find a specific gun in the metro for you. But, their prices are not the best although they have some sort of price matching? What I do not like is that only a few stores in the metro have reloading stuff! The two newest stores are sort of mini Cabela's. With more of SW flair to it! They do have a bunch of guns on display! But they are not EBR friendly!

Cablela down south of the metro has a nice selection, but lack handguns. They have their gun library. Their prices are not that great. The reloading selection is pretty darn good! And, the prices about the same as buying from the online catalog. They are EBR friendly.

Over all the customer service as GM is hit and miss. I asked to buy some thing from behind the counter at a location going out of business, and they guy was more interested in talking on the phone. The only gun purchase I have made at a GM was nice and easy. They had what I wanted for fair price!
 
Check That Headstamp!!!!

Hello,
Look carefully at the 7.62x51 at Gander Mountain. I thought that it was Aussie, but what I bought was not. It was apparently Indian stuff in Aussie cans! Check the headstamp on the rounds and look around on the web. Ammo sellers can buy ammo cans too, not just us!

Regards,
Hammerhead
 
Good and bad at Gander. When they were closing out one of their stores, I wanted to buy a safe. For some reason, they couldn't find the keys, so I should just call them tomorrow. When I did, the guy let it slip one of the guys on the night shift ended up buying the safe. *******!

When I did finally buy a safe, with the discounts and whatnot, I got a steal! But the delivery guys were terrible and the manager even admitted that. But, they still use that company to move safes.

GM is hit and miss. GM will look to find a specific gun in the metro for you. But, their prices are not the best although they have some sort of price matching?
Click to expand...
I think this is "advertised" price, like in a newspaper. I was told it does not apply to sticker prices. So if Cabelas is selling a Joe Sixpack .357 revolver for $350 and its in a flyer, then yes, they price match. But, if Cabelas has one on display for that, well, they don't - at least that's been my experience.
 
I have found their prices for handguns to be usually the best in my area (Southwest Michigan) and the sales staff is quite knowledgeable and eager to help. The selection of rifles and shotguns is excellent and pretty good in handguns, although they seem to run out of certain models too often but will order anything you want.

One thing I just can't stand is the assinine requirement for all the handguns in the cases to have trigger locks. Every time you want to try out a piece the sales clerk has to remove the sorry thing. Trying out a handgun involves hefting it in your hand, feeling the balance and how the grip fits, AND how the trigger feels. That stupid lock negates all the sensory inputs for what you picked it up for in the first place. Lastly, the metal rod of the lock scratches the inside of the trigger guard. If I want to purchase something I always ask for an untouched example in the box from the back room. I wonder how many sales they have lost because someone fussy like me won't buy the only one in the case because it allready has scratches all over the trigger area? A new gun shouldn't look a year old, right?

They also have a policy against anything that "looks" military, oh how horrible, a MEAN lLOOKING firearm!! Its okay for firearms to do what they do, as intended, but don't look it. That means Gander never has AR's or AK's. I've been told Gander Mountain handles guns only for hunting and sporting purposes. Now there's a contradiction-CCW pistols and revolvers aren't for sport or hunting, but they sell those. Someone in the corporate office needs to be given a little better understanding about what the Second Amendment really is about.

And, finally, their ammunition prices aren't very good. Walmart kicks their hind end bad! BUT they have a good price matching policy-will match any competitor's price and then double the difference.
 
As with any other chain store, customer service is going to be hit or miss. And to be honest, lately I have been getting crappy service even at the mom and pops gunstores.

Selection is pretty good, prices are usually better than others in the area. When I was looking for my CZ452, they had it $30 cheaper than my other dealer. Looked it over there, because they had it in stock, and went and bought it from my dealer.

Used guns are hit or miss. They will have their gunsmith look it over, put a value they can sell it at on it, and give you 70% of that value to sell it to them.

I think that just like any other place, there are a few people that have had a bad experience, and beat that one bad point over and over everytime someone asks.

They are probably the second best store in the area for selection, but we have one enormous privately owned sporting goods store that has probably thousands of guns on display.

That means Gander never has AR's or AK's. I've been told Gander Mountain handles guns only for hunting and sporting purposes.
Click to expand...

I have seen AR's there. Someone doesn't know what they were talking about (not you, whomever told you that).
 
huge selection of rifles and shotguns, LOTS of black powder and reloading accessories.

I thought handguns were overpriced a bit, but the shotguns/rifle selection was impressive.
 
Last weekend I was at the local Gander Mtn in Rochester, MN and made the observation out loud to the gun counter guy (after he refused to bend on an overpriced S&W 686) that I really missed the former gun Mgr because he was very good at "negotiating" a price.

The counter guy stated that it is not because of the new gun Mgr, but that it is a corporate-wide edict that they may not give the good deals that they used to up to only a few months ago!
:barf:

I used my last Gander Mountain $25 coupon earned from earning 2500 charged spending points (now that program is also discontinued - and I had earned MANY in the past as I was a very regular customer) And I don't intend to shop there much anymore unless/until they revert back to what they were like before.
:(
 
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