We seem to do a gun show thread every couple of months or so, and invariably, most people chime in to disparage the shows they claim to have attended, or simply to note that they haven't been to a show in years because they're not any good anymore...
I pay an annual fee to the WAC and get free admission to each show, can carry (unloaded) inside and bring firearms in (non-members do not have these privileges) Some of the shows are better than others; typically, if there hasn't been a show for two or three months (or longer, during the "pandemic") there are more vendors and attendance is much higher.
The thing that's killing our shows up here are all the new laws (there's now a requirement to take a safety class simply to buy any firearm), especially the background check requirement and now the mandatory waiting period. No more private sales. Oh, and no sales of centerfire semi-automatic rifles, period. No magazines with over ten round capacity for any firearm.
Still, even $20 -- to me, anyway -- is not too much to pay for maybe a half-day's entertainment, walking around, talking to like-minded, patriotic people, hearing stories, fondling the latest and greatest new firearm, and occasionally finding the exact gun you've been seeking, even if it's not the best deal in the world. I can still get decent prices on bulk ammo - pay cash, carry out, no paper trail, which is always good.
Me, I always stop on the way and have a huge breakfast, that way I don't have to pay for the over-priced, mediocre food.
Yes, the old days of getting excited about hitting up the gun show because you could usually score a smokin' deal on something you wanted are probably gone, never to return, given the current political climate and increasingly restrictive laws (in most states). I'm not saying everyone should lower their expectations for gun shows, but maybe revise them a bit and look at the shows as social and networking opportunities with our community with the occasional chance to check out an actual firearm in person, rather than online.
Some of us will miss the gun shows when they're gone. It's a part of Americana that future generations will never know, and to me, gun shows have always represented freedom and liberty, with the opportunity to show support for the RKBA -- in person -- and where else do you get that opportunity? Down at your LGS with Bob, his crony Dave and the two customers who come in to do some quick tire-kicking? At Cabela's, where you have to take a number and stand three deep at the counter while everyone is engrossed in their smartphone's screen and not talking to anyone else?
(Czech VZ-58) which would have been cool to handle a first time, and probably buy (therefore i had to use Gunbroker…). Bought nothing except burger and Mountain Dew for caffeine.
