Moral dilemma - Ruger 10/22

Status
Not open for further replies.
W

Wedge

Member
Joined
Oct 6, 2003
Messages
1,611
I really want to get a .22 rifle and the Ruger 10/22 is pretty much tops on my list. The problem is that I don't want to buy from Wal-Mart but they are over $100 less than the gunshop I like. $139 at WM vs. $259 at local gun shop.

I have pretty much decided that I should buy from the local shop where the staff is friendly, knowledgable and did I mention friendly. My biggest beef is spending $100 more for the same thing...

So who would buy from the gun shop and who would buy from Wal-mart given the very large price difference?
 
Buy the gun at WallyWorld and spend the difference at the gun store on ammo, a scope, a case, whatever. Seems fair to me.

I'd pay $100 more at the gun shop on a $1000 rifle, but not $100 more on a $150 rifle.

John
 
I frankly don't get the problem many have with Wal-Mart. Sure, they're big and unions hate them and they're the target of the left wing media. In my book, that makes them A-OK.

Smaller shops can compete on service, which is what Wedge's shop is doing. So this really isn't a moral dilema as it is a perceived value dilema.

And I say that's no dilema.

Buy the 10/22 from Wal-Mart for roughly half of what your local shop would charge you. Spend the difference at the local shop on ammo. I'll bet the local shop makes more profit on the $120 worth of ammo than they would from the $260 gun sale.
 
My problem isn't necessarily with Wal-Mart, it is with all the big chains. I like to see my money go directly back into the community I live in. But then again I don't like to throw money away either...you gotta be competative. The store does offer superior customer service.

You guys are smarter than I am :) I bet you guys are also right that they would make more profit from the ammo. Heck I could even splurge and buy good ammo (that Wal-Mart doesn't carry) instead of Remington Thunderbolt and maybe spend a whopping $0.04-$0.08 a bullet instead of $0.02.

The gun store has nice prices on handguns and the nicer longarms but they just can't compete on the cheaper stuff.
 
We live in a free market economy (sort of).
Walmart is big because they know how to manage their resources. It did start off as a small mom and pop shop.

I would buy from Walmart. I have had good experiences with them, each store has at least one sporting goods employee who will at least try to help me. Some are actually very knowledgable and fun to talk to.

$100 more is absurd. I would pay as much as $10 more at a mom and pop shop. $100 is enough for a decent scope or bull barrel and aftermarket trigger.
 
I do not like Wal-Mart because of the customer service. I know that, of course, in order to keep the prices down they have to lower the quality of service. I also appreciate that people often cannot afford the luxury of paying for customer service. I usually can't either, but I like to when I am able to.
 
if that's the gun shops bottom line, i would have zero problem buying from wal-mart.

most gunshops intentionally mark their prices high (aka: the sucker price). most will quickly knock some dollars off as soon as you ask them to, and then after that negotiations start.

when you feel you have reached their rock-bottom price, then decide for yourself if it will be worth it. they'll still be higher than wal-mart, but may come within $20 or so. if you think they can do better, then ask for a brick of ammo, or an extra factory mag, or a soft case, etc, until you think a fair value has been reached - or at least until you reach the most you want to spend.

remember, they can't compete directly w/ wal-mart, so you should expect to pay more from the gun shop...
 
I concur with the others. Buy the 10/22 from Wally World and support your local gun shop through other means.

Wal-Mart doesn't sell much of anything related to handguns, for example.
 
If a gun shop is pricing the same basic model 10/22 for $260, they are trying to rip you or someone else off. I've seen a few gunshops that price this way and I just walk out and never walk back in. In my area, they sell for about $150-160 no matter where you go. Say what you will about Walmart's business practices, they aren't the unscrupulous one's here.

There is nothing morally wrong by not being ripped off.
 
Another vote for buy the 10/22 from Wally world, then support your local gun shop with the ammo and accessories.

jojo
 
Wedge...

I did some checking on Ruger's webpage and worked some figures on a Ruger 10/22 40th Anniversary model I just bought.

The lowest MSRP Ruger quotes is $259 for a basic carbine. I imagine that leaves a lot of room for a volume buyer (e.g., Walmart) to establish their price and possibly use a low price as a "loss leader" to bring you, the buyer, in to look. Of course, what kind of after-sale support does Walmart provide? If your Ruger has problems, what will the local Walmart staff do to help you solve your problem?

IF your gun store is offering the exact same model for $259 it may well be because they cannot buy in volume and must therefore make more on each purchase to keep going. Or is it a different model with more than just basic features? To balance this, does your gun store offer after-sales support? Will he/can he help you with any problems? If so, this is a consideration.

The MSRP for the 40th Anniversary model is $279. One of my local stores offered me this model with a Simmons 3x9x40 scope for $250 plus tax. Of course they also are a big store with many other offerings and can deal on certain things. And I know that if I have a problem they can help me resolve it, not just shrug their shoulders.

Not a cut-and-dried answer, but some things to help you decide, I hope.
 
A lot of it does come down to "volume buying".

F'rinstance, Home Depot/Lowes/Any Big Home Improvement Chain can buy say model 123ABC Deluxe Power Saw from Skil-Bosch/Milwaukee/DeWalt for $50, in railroad boxcar quantity, while "Big Daddy & Son" hardware, that can only buy & stock 1 or 2 of model 123ABC saw at a time, would probably pay $75.

I would buy the 10/22 from Wally World, if the difference on the same model was $100, but would use that $100 savings for ammo & stuff from the gun shop....Best of all worlds...

Wally makes a buck, gunshop makes a buck, & I get the rifle I want. :D :D
 
I have more of a problem buying a new Ruger and supporting that company than I do with WalMart. But I DO want a 10/22.

I have just been keeping my eye out for a used 10/22.
 
FPrice and Wedge

FPrice said "IF your gun store is offering the exact same model for $259 it may well be because they cannot buy in volume and must therefore make more on each purchase to keep going."

The logic doesn't really work: the owner of the local shop could easily walk into the Walmart, buy the gun for $139 plus tax (plus his time), and then sell it for a nice fat profit to Wedge. He doesn't need to buy in volume from Ruger or a firearms distributor to do this. Also, he might buy in volume from Walmart, and get an even better price than $139. Further, since he's a merchant who is buying the gun for resale, he should be able to get out of paying the sales tax on his purchase, and just charge you the tax on the price you pay.

Wedge, I say that you should go into the local shop, tell them that you can get the same gun for $120 less (plus tax on the $120, so it is likely closer to $130). Negotiate it down, and don't buy the gun from them if they won't come within $20. If you can get the deal, great, buy from them and keep the dollars in your town. If not, buy at Walmart and then get ammo and any accessories at the local shop (or not, depending on their attitude - just because they're local doesn't mean that they're deserving of your dollars).

Oh, BTW, some of the dollars spent at any Walmart stay in your area: wages, state income taxes on those wages (to the extent that your town/county receive state funds), property taxes and utilities; also, some products (mostly groceries) are bought from local farms, depending on what crops are grown and the season.
 
When I was looking for a 10/22, the dealer I usually go to told me straight up, for something like a 10/22 or a Rem 870, go to Wal-Mart and save your money. He told me he hates to say that, but losing out ont the few popular guns that everyone sells isn't going to cost him alot, and he could get nowhere near their prices anyhow.
 
I have bought several 10-22s from from Walmart for $139. Walmart tends to have good prices on long guns and ammo. When a local dealer is charging too much for a gun I tend to just shop elsewhere. I do buy a lot of accesories from my local dealers.
 
Are their other sporting goods stores around? The local Big 5 Sporting Goods store (which is located right across the street from Wally World) has 10/22's for $174 and change. I have never had to wait for more than a minute for somebody to ask what I want to look at there and I get to carry a rifle out by myself :D

My 10/22 came from W-W and I saved over $100 from a local gun shop who did not want to deal that much. My next one will probably come from a sporting goods chain store like Big 5, Sportman's World, G.I.Joes, GART Sports or such that are around the Pacific Northwest.

I did have my favorite gun shop (out of town) install a Power Custom hammer and sear and the guy worked on smoothing out everything for about a half-hour and only charged me $10 plus the parts. When I decided on a barrel and stock, that was an on-line purchase (Green Mountain barrel and Boyd's stock) as I could install that stuff by myself.

People have very mixed emotions about Wally World and that's fine. Personally, I hate the way they steamroll over community government when they want to build a store. Just last night in Tumwater, WA the city council passed an ordinance that placed a morotorium on building big-box stores because there had been a lot of citizen concerns about traffic problems and unmanaged growth. W-W got their paperwork in 3 hours before the council meeting knowing that the action was coming. The W-W rep at the meeting sort of infered that they may seek legal action if they didn't get their way.

This same sort of thing happened last year near my home (About 5 miles from where this new store will apparently be going in). The land that W-W wanted was not zoned for their store size and when they asked if the city would consider a re-zoning and was told the city would not, W-W unleashed their lawyers with threats of lawsuits against the city and began to send out mailings to some local senior citizen groups telling them how great W-W was for seniors but absolutely refused to talk to the residents around the area where the store would have been built. And W-W did not offer to assist the city with improvements to roads in the area which were already clogged. W-W finally gave up after much screaming and yelling and built a store on the other end of town where land and zoning were available and easy access with little traffic.

People can say what they want, but Wal-Mart is the 800-pound gorilla when it comes to moving into an area. It's too bad that W-W doesn't understand the concept of being a good neighbor right up front.
 
Sam Adams...

"The logic doesn't really work:"

The logic works, and is true. You just found a way around the problem of big volume buyers vs. the small, local gun store. IN ONE CASE.

BUT, the gun store owner is STILL going to have to charge the buyer more money than he pays if he wants to stay in business.

Think about it for a minute. The gun store owner has to leave his business, go to Walmart, hope he can find that rifle, buy it, complete the papwerwork, take it back to his shop, enter it into his book, then turn around and sell it.

Not really very logical Sam. Or efficient.
 
Wedge,

I've got to respect your philosophy. The world needs more people who feel the way you do about your community.

I'm of similar mind. In my case, I'd likely drive to a couple of other local stores and see what they can do about the price. If that is not an option, you should check into mail order and have the gun shipped to a local FFL. Of course, now they're going to charge for shipping and handling, but it's worth a shot.
 
A 10/22 is only a starting point.

Buy at the wal mart and see what goodies the gun store can add to your rifle for $100

I would have no moral problem at all in saving $100 for myself.
 
Your real moral dilemna is deciding if you REALLY want to support Ruger, the company that helped WRITE the assault weapons ban..

And before somebody mentions that that was years ago, and Bill Sr. is now departed, let me ask you this:

Do you want to support a company that STILL won't sell you an 11 round rifle magazine?

If they don't trust you with 11 rounds, why trust them with your $$$$?


Larry
 
My favorite local gunshop has given up competing with Gander Mountain (and some other, new chain) on long-rifles in common calibers such as .22, .30-06, .270, and shotguns. It's possible that WallyWorld had something to do with their decision as well.

They've decided to concentrate on pistols and revolvers, plus a good inventory of USED rifles and handguns. Works for them, and they are happy to tell customers to go take a look at Gander...
 
DT Guy...

"Do you want to support a company that STILL won't sell you an 11 round rifle magazine?

If they don't trust you with 11 rounds, why trust them with your $$$$?"

One simple question, has Ruger re-designed their rifles so that they cannot accept a magazine with higher than 10-round capacity? Have they prevented the after-market industry from filling this need?

Kinda shoots a bit of a hole in your arguement. Pun intended.

We now take you back to your regularly scheduled thread.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

A
  • Locked
New 10/22 question
Replies
4
Views
449
areandare
A
T
  • Locked
New Ruger 10/22, Wally World Exclusive?
Replies
12
Views
5K
CajunBass
CajunBass
B
  • Locked
New 10/22: To Wal Mart or not to Wal Mart?
Replies
23
Views
1K
RP88
R
S
  • Locked
Ruger 10/22 bolt hold open on last shot
Replies
7
Views
20K
Dimis
D
B
  • Locked
Pre-warning 10/22 or new 597
2 3
Replies
54
Views
3K
JHansenAK47
J
Back
Top