your only PARTLY right on buying guns online.
Alot of local dealers are small time mom and pop shows, that had to sign an agreement to only buy from on particular distributor chain to get guns from.
Having had my 01FFL for ten years I have never seen this
online stores have the benefit of
1. they can sell any brand, model that they want to
Online stores get their guns largely the exact same place mom and pop shops do, so which is it, they have to sign exclusive deals or buy from anyone??
2. shipping can be an issue, but most reputable companies seem to 'include" the shipping fee inside their list price. Buds does.
Some do some don't, even true at Buds, not every gun has "free shipping"
3. Honesty is different with online companies. Some companies will let you pay a yearly fee to get "privileges" like prefered customer status that lets you get quicker order processing.
Not sure how this relates to "honesty" quite frankly, its a marketing technique to ensure future sales.
4. online companies do seem to treat everyone the same way.
true enough, but each company represents itself, and the way they treat their customers may or may not represent the way the next online seller treats customers
pros and cons of local stores
1. cant always get what you want from them. A 30 dollar transfer fee from an online store is quite reasonable when the guy behind your local store counter says "ill have to charge you a 18 percent special order fee based on the msrp"
think about it, if you want that .357 mag j frame, the list is 800 dollars, and buds has it for 500, and the local dealer wants 800 dollars plus nearly 20% extra to order it for you....
2. Service. local gunstores arent always going togive good service. Its wonderful when the 'gun expert" doesnt even know that a company makes a 6 inch barrel 357 with adjsutable sights when hes reading the new company catalog.
You would be amazed at the number of "special runs" that distributors/Large Chain stores ( think Cabela's ) order that are exclusive to them, meaning
(1) Those distributor runs are not typically cataloged, many do not even show up on the Company websites.
(2) the local guys may or may not know about them, it will depend on if they use that particular distributor.