Pops and I Had A Good Time At Our First Gun Show

[CB900F]

Fella's;

I regard gunshows as some of the cheapest entertainment around. The local show is five bucks to get in for the run of the event, Friday night thru Sunday mid-afternoon. Care to compare that to anything else? Yes, there's all kinds there, from ammo tables to Zebulon Pike's personal firearm. But, to me, that's part of the fun, designating shysters, listening to utter B.S. stories, and just hanging out. It's perfectly possible to find a good deal, but you do have to know what you're looking at, and what the market really is. One of the ways to learn the market is to go to the shows. And if you see a shop's booth at the show & they're not engaging in highway robbery, just might be worth going to their normal place of business & checking out their full inventory.

Good for you Potatohead, time spent like that is some of the best time there is.

900F

 

[Potatohead]

Zdc, I'll be glad to PM you the next time my uncle forwards me gun show emails. He's under strict orders to let me know of any gun shows in the area that he is privy to.

Thanks for the kind words Aarond, Im starting to think about that a lot more lately, not having him around. It's almost unimaginable.

APache Todd, that's pretty cool...and they probably could tell we were a couple suckers from a mile away!

CB, you make some fine points, I would have been twiddling my thumbs at the house had I not been there.. Also, on the way home my dad said something to the fact that he had learned more in that hour or so about different guns and how they feel, than in the past couple years of just reading about them (and hearing me blab about them), and going to our little gun shops.

Again Aarond, thanks for those words.

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

APache Todd, that's pretty cool...and they probably could tell we were a couple suckers from a mile away!

I know what you mean but I never got that from family involvement at a gunshow. I get the same vibe off you types if I've got a car in a car show or a bike in a bike show. Family just diggin' a common interest together. I crack up when families, very apologetically, tell me that they really can't buy anything but could they... Or, "Can he sit in the car", or, "he had one just like that".

Makin' some money is fine but passing the time of day socially with someone with whom you have no commercial relationship whatsoever really moves the days along.

Then sometimes, less more and more unfortunately, you get the: "didn't you carry one of those dad?" interactions. Gonna be interesting if not profitable.

Moms and knives though are priceless. Watching her try to steer her child towards something attractive and not too dangerous looking while the kids usually want a "Rambo" in their pockets.

In our family it was always the moms who gave the final nod when a boy had passed certain stages;
pocket knife
fixed
hatchet
BB
Pellet
.22

Watching it as an adult is damn fun. Sometimes 20 minutes or more poring over my inexpensive vintage pocket knives trying to find common ground on what he thinks his friends will declare cool and what Mom doesn't mind her boy having in his pocket.

 

[Delford]

My dad passed in 1991 and my son lives 90 miles away so we haven't been to any gun shows. I have a friend that I go with and we went Saturday. Prices on guns are inching downward but ammo was bought high and they're trying to sell high. We had a good three hours which is good for two old guys. I got to handle and compare lots of subcompacts and changed my mind about a couple. XDs .45 just lays so nicely in my hand. I'm going to get my daughter a purse gun someday soon so I liked the show for all the variety. I got a great knife sharpener made by a local old guy. I'll be looking for a show to take my son to. His son is 16 months old. I'll see if he can go too. Thanks for a great post!

 

[CB900F]

Delford;

My son used to carry an XD, he doesn't now. The reason for that occurred last year fairly late during hunting season. He'd shot a deer, but didn't immediately kill it & decided to dispatch it with his pistol, the XD. He pulled the trigger, but no bang. Again, same result. He then shot it again with his rifle.

Later in the day we examined both the gun and the situation trying to determine what had caused the misfires. It was the fact that he was wearing gloves & therefore the grip safety would not then fully depress & allow the gun to fire. He now carries a CZ.

900F

 

[Potatohead]

I know what you mean but I never got that from family involvement at a gunshow

Right on. And i didnt take it that your first post was negative. More just an observation of myself from myself of the way we probably look to the table folks.

 

[Sniper66]

Glad you found the shows to be so entertaining. If you get the chance, you should try the Wannenmacher show in Tulsa, OK. It happens twice a year, spring and fall, and has over 4,000 tables, a spectacular 2 day event. I go with the same friends, who have become like family, and we have a ball. My dad died many years ago, but I still feel the bond we had around guns and hunting. I also enjoy that bond with brothers and friends.

 

[Potatohead]

Thanks Sniper.