As others have said, deals can be found, it just takes a lot of patience. I picked up a near mint, used 4" S&W Model 15-3 for $309 when they were consistently selling for $375 everywhere else. Found a 2.5" S&W 66-1 for $430 when they were $550 and up at other places. Also picked up a mix master Jan '44 M-1 carbine (inland) in very good condition for $530 recently (usually $600-ish in my parts). You can also find rare, hard to find guns that you just don't see other places. I'd never seen a 3" Taurus 431 (.44 special, 5 shot, blue, fixed sights) until I attended my local gun show. Paid $268 for it.
Of course, rip offs are much more common, so watch yourself. I still laugh over the $1,000 Russian SKS I saw a few years ago.