no local sales. anyone ever heard of this

[saddlebum]

i tried to purchase a pistol i found on gunsamerica from a dealer in my home town. i contacted him by email and he replied that he doesn't sell locally only internet orders to be shipped
but that he could ship it to another dealer in the same town and i could pick it up from them, which would add shipping and transfer fees to the price.
anybody ever heard of a dealer with a policy like this before. makes no sense to me.:banghead:

 

[Mal H]

He's probably not a retail dealer, but a wholesaler. There's a bunch of them around. Even though their ads might sound like they sell to the public, they are only geared (and perhaps licensed) to sell only to retailers.

 

[saddlebum]

nope, he has an online store and sells to the public on gunsamerica and gunbroker. told me i could pay by c card, mo , or check but couldn't pick it up from him

 

[carebear]

He may not want to deal with the public and may not actually have a storefront, just his house. It certainly is less expensive and safer.

 

[saddlebum]

He may not want to deal with the public and may not actually have a storefront, just his house. It certainly is less expensive and safer.

this maybe the case.but, if your in the business of selling items does it make sense to turn away customers with case in hand because they live to close?

 

[CB900F]

Saddlebum;

If he can't handle a face-to-face, I'd ask him why. He could have legitimate reasons, or not. Depending on his answers I'd either reason with him or drop it. He might be handicapped & fear a f-t-f for that reason; just one of the things that come to mind as an understandable reason for him to behave that way. However, if he cops an attitude, no reason on your part to put up with it. If the item is available to you from another source at reasonable cost, I'd almost certainly not put up with his stance & take my money elsewhere.

900F

 

[carebear]

saddlebum,

It may to him. I can't speak for the guy but if his practice works for him so be it. If you let him know why you aren't going to buy from him, and enough others do as well, then he may change.

Until then, I'm sure he has his reasons.

 

[Brad Johnson]

It's all about liability. In requiring that all the guns go directly to a third party (another dealer) he is insulating himself with an extra layer of liability protection. He is also insulating himself from having to deal with customers on a face-to-face basis.

Some people are just like that.

Brad

 

[hotpig]

I do not advertise in my area because my wife does not want strangers around our property. I have a web store, a small shop behind my house and I sell on gunbroker also. I do transfers and sells locally but it has been pushing two years since the last customer came to my shop just to look around. Everybody that I deal with has already purchased or wants a specific item. This is what works the best for me.

 

[saddlebum]

i guess he can do what he wants. i found the same pistol $1. cheaper but i have to drive 20 miles to get it.
so i'll go tommorow and buy it. but i hear alot of dealers complain about customers not supporting the local dealers , just thought it odd he didn't want my money.

 

[saddlebum]

hotpig, i told him what i wanted and just wanted to come get it, not look around.
he advertised an item for sale then wouldn't sale it to me. if he doesn't want my money so be it. if he goes under, i wont lose any sleep over it.

 

[EghtySx]

I'm gonna guess it's an insurance thing. As you know, lawyers and insurance companies run this country now.

 

[hotpig]

hotpig, i told him what i wanted and just wanted to come get it, not look around.
he advertised an item for sale then wouldn't sale it to me. if he doesn't want my money so be it. if he goes under, i wont lose any sleep over it.

You can not pick it up because he does not have it. When you pay him he buys it from the wholesaler. While the FFL's are being exchanged the gun is being shipped from the warehouse.

There is not enough markup on a new gun sale for a Internet Dealer to keep stock unless they do lots of sales.

 

[saddlebum]

in his email he said " i have them in stock and they are still on sale" it was only when i said i would come pick it up that he said no local sales.

 

[hotpig]

I have 99 Springfield XD 40's in stock. You can not pick any up today because they are at Davidson's in AZ. They have real time web inventory so I know what is in stock and can order 24/7.

 

[carebear]

Not that it matters, but what did you buy?

 

[saddlebum]

nothing yet i'll have to drive 20 miles tommorow to buy it. fn hi power 40cal

 

[hotpig]

The only one that I ever sold new was around 400.00 for the 9mm. There is no cc in Illinois so handgun sales are few.

 

[carebear]

Didn't CDNN have them?

 

[saddlebum]

yes cdnn has them, but these are cheaper than cdnn.

 

[saddlebum]

yes but these are cheaper than cdnn. wholesale from RSR $379. the local guy priced his at $400. r and g $399 but i'd have to drive to r and g. and these have 3 mags . cdnn only 2

 

[Car Knocker]

The terms of my wife's home business license in our residential neighborhood requires that she not have anyone come to the house. If she were to want to have people to come to the house, it would require a variance and a public meeting, including notifying everyone within a certain radius of the house of the proposed business. The same would apply if I were to attempt to operate as a FFL. Perhaps the same applies to the Internet dealer in the OP.

 

[hotpig]

The terms of my wife's home business license in our residential neighborhood requires that she not have anyone come to the house. If she were to want to have people to come to the house, it would require a variance and a public meeting, including notifying everyone within a certain radius of the house of the proposed business. The same would apply if I were to attempt to operate as a FFL. Perhaps the same applies to the Internet dealer in the OP.

There are some towns like that around here also.

 

[a1abdj]

I have discussed this issue with many friends of mine in various businesses.

The internet is the internet, and brick and mortar is brick and mortar.

You can save money online, but don't expect to get the same benefits as walking into a store.

You can get the benefits of walking into a store, but don't expect to get online pricing.

My safe business is the same way. We sell safes all over the country from our website, and also sell them locally. The terms of sale on the website are different than our terms if you would walk in the office and buy one.

 

[sierrabravo45]

I used to buy Class 3 stuff from a guy he lived about 1 hour away, exchanges were always made through another party until I got to know him on a more personal basis. Most communication was by telephone and e-mail. It turned out he was paralyzed from the waist down and really didn't like people coming to his house just to look at class 3 stuff. I understood completely.

Many people hate "window shoppers." And many people just like to make money, (I do) they don't want to have a bunch of guys come down to their shop just to BS and drink coffee and not buy anything. You don't make money on these people and waste a ton of time "talkin 'bout thirdy-thirdies". The internet is the place to make money and lots of people realize that. Yes, it eliminates a personal connection with a gun shop, but you coming down to his shop ties up his time. Plus if you live in a non-concealed carry state and don't for some reason pass a background check, the dealer then has to wait or send the pistol back. Lots of hassles. It is so much easier to receive and FFL in the mail and ship the pistol. He made some money with no hassle.