Recommend a gun shop in Portland, OR that cater to females?

[mwsfarm]

Can anyone recommend a shop in the Portland OR area that would be a good place to send my sister to for her first handgun purchase? Somewhere where they cater to females? She has been to the range there, and has shot a variety of handguns, both revolvers and semi-autos.

She is leaning toward an XDm in either 40 or 9mm. I know of a few instances here where females are not treated the best in a gun shop.

Thanks in advance,
signed:
big brother who worries about his little sister in the big city

 

[glockdriver]

gun shops

either Gun Broker store, there is one in Tigard and in Clacamas. Very friendly and knowledgeable staff. Hate to think what I've spent there over the years

 

[amkus]

Brightwater Ventures in Vancouver are good people.

 

[SASS#23149]

Portland? shooters' service center on Lombard.Call first,John is in and out a lot.
vancouver..L and L guns,Dollars Corner,a few minutes east of I-5. I REALLY LIKE L and L,and so does my wife.
If she's an Oregon resident,stick with Portland shops.No extra transfer fees.

 

[kd7nqb]

I need to second Gun Broker, I go to the one in Tigard since thats closer to where I live. I would STRONGLY urge against Keiths in Gresham. There prices are good but the customer service leaves much to be desired and the rudest I have ever seen them was when I my girlfriend was wish to by a 1911 from them, the guy in there did everything he could to talk her out of it until she finally walked out on them.

 

[taliv]

search for posts made by "pax" and also visit her corneredcat website

i think she's from WA, but that's pretty close to OR

 

[joshk-k]

I would not recommend Shooter's Service Center in St. John's. I have never, in multiple trips there, had a good experience. Whether it is gunsmithing service, FFL transfer, etc. I have been displeased every time. I kept going back thinking "support my small, independent business,...." but enough is enough. I've enjoyed both GunBroker stores. I also was in Albany a week or two back and enjoyed Albany Guns. All of these stores have women working there, whether or not that means they cater to females.

Josh

 

[Judicator]

+1 on the Tigard Gunbroker. You'll find some decent deals in there fairly often, and the staff is very helpful. I recently picked up a Star Firestar in .45 there for $299. Good selection of CCW handguns.

 

[garyhan]

Another vote for Gunbroker and more importantly against Keith's. Keith's motto is "If we don't have it, you don't need it". Advice will invariably be "you get what you pay for". Unfiriendly and unhelpful>

gary

 

[66912]

+1 for Gunbroker Yay! +1 Keiths sporting goods-Nay!

This opinion is based soley upon the OP saying he wanted his ladies first purchase to be a smooth one.

I was in Keiths this last week to pick up a transfer. There was a lady in there in very much the same situation. I watched my most unfavorite employee there side eyeing her while ignoring her at the very same time.

Keiths is a nec. evil in my opion. Gunbroker, always friendly while sometimes more expensive. Money well spent INMHO.

 

[joshk-k]

Sid:

My girlfriend was in the market for a new bicycle. She had some dough saved up and some more from her deceased grandmother and wanted to get a nice, new, good-fitting bike to replace her old, junky, heavy, slow one.

She went to four different bike shops in Portland, but finally bought from River City Cycles. The saleswoman there spent three hours just with my GF, helping her narrow down the selection by type and price, helping her make adjustments and talk about her needs and likes, and patiently waiting while she test rode 9 different models. She ended up dropping almost twice as much money than I've ever dropped on a gun buying a bike that she loves. A week later we read that that bike shop had just been rated the most women-friendly bike store in the country.

What I envision when I think of a women-friendly gun shop is one that A)treats any woman who comes in just like any man who comes in. B)If it turns out that the woman is a newb or has questions, does not treat her in a patronizing, disparaging, or exploitative manner. For people in the retail business with good customer service skills, this isn't even an issue. However, we all know some knuckleheads who work in gun stores and I'm happy to help steer the OP's sister away from them and towards people who I think, based on their general customer service, will be a better, more uplifting experience for her.

Josh

 

[joshk-k]

For what it's worth too, the Fisherman's MArine and Warehouse in Delta PArk has the best prices on new handguns in town every time I've been in the market. Their selection is reasonable, some of their sales staff are way better than others, but I paid $80 less for a Mk. III there than the asking price for the same gun at GunBroker.

JOsh

 

[j_charles]

Another vote here for the Gun Broker. I primarily patronize the one in Clackamas on 82nd Dr. They are very helpful and respectful. I was in there with my wife once while shopping for my CCW. She has no real experience or interest in firearms. She happened to comment on a (IIRC) Walther PPK (said it was cute), and the clerk, who was an older gentleman (don't recall his name) took it off the rack, cleared it, and handed it directly to my wife, not to me first. He was not condescending in any way. Simply showed her the respect of being a competent adult. I was impressed. Also was more than happy to answer all my dumb newb questions at the time, and show me anything I wanted to look at.

 

[OregonJohnny]

I can't believe that no one has mentioned Northwest Armory on SE McLoughlin. It's a good store with pretty decent selection and the best prices outside of sporting goods superstores like Fishermans, Joes, Bi-Mart, Sportsmans, etc. They ALWAYS negotiate price with me when I go in there, or at least throw in a box of ammo. I believe it's owned and operated by a family and the wife and daughter have been behind the counter half the times I've been in there. Maybe call ahead and ask if the female owner is working that day, and have your sister go in and ask for her directly. She seems to know her stuff. As far as Gun Broker Tigard: knowledgable staff, almost always very crowded, and they will NEVER negotiate price, even though they're usually 5-10% higher than other local gun shops. Maybe just because their inventory is smaller...

 

[powermad]

The Gun Room http://www.thegunroominc.com/ is a nice place to stop in as well. They have always been friendly and helpful even if I am just kicking tires.
There always seems to be a bunch of old men just hanging out and shooting the breeze.

Gun Broker is a good place as already stated.
And as also stated avoid Keith's unless it is something only he has and is able to get. You don't know how bummed I was when I found he was the closest FN dealer. No one else had The FNP45 but would order it for me.
As I won't buy a gun with out checking it out first I had to go to Keith's to get it.
They do have a lot of stuff but their customer service is a big fat fail. Been that way for quite some time too.

 

[Nightvisionary]

GUNBROKER, GUNBROKER, GUNBROKER. Keiths is awesome for me because when I arrive at a gunshop my only question is "Do you have it". I am the 5% of the population that has never learned anything firearm related while at a gunshop. I have learned many things about weapons but I never picked up the knowledge at a gunshop. For a Greenhorn I would recommend the GUNBROKER. They are good people.

 

[mwsfarm]

Thanks for all the responses, this is her first purchase, she is really excited about it. She told me again that she is going to get an XDM40. (since I'm paying for it, i thought she should get a hipoint- just kidding)

so- congratulations Oregon, you are getting another gunowner!

 

[Lupine]

I haven't been in to GunBroker (yet) though I drive by them all the time. I CAN highly recommend Northwest Armory. I've bought from them, had FFL transfers done there, gone in to kick tires many times, had them help me troubleshoot a Surefire that I didn't buy from them, and have ALWAYS been treated with respect and courtesy.

In fact, I can be described as the kind of customer that most retailers would roll their eyes at and say, "don't spend too much time on her, nine times out of ten, she's a lookie-loo". Still, they take great care of me.

Having said that, I've never had a bad experience anywhere worth mentioning. I've been to the Fisherman's place in Delta Park and have been dissed while my non-gun-owning boyfriend was assumed to be the customer, but at the Fisherman's in Oregon City, I was treated fabulously by another clerk on more than one occasion.

 

[ClonaKilty]

mwsfarm I take it from your post that your sister is new to guns, yes? If so may I recommend that she not buy a gun right away?

If she is new to guns then what she needs is a good basic one day training class which will teach her safety, and expose her to the MANY different gun types available. In my learned experience, being new to guns and then buying your first gun on a gunstore clerk's recommendation is one of the worst ways to get into gun ownership. Yes, GunBroker is good people (I go there all the time) but I strongly advise she learn HOW to shoot first (take a class) and then shoot a bunch of different guns (in a class or at a rental range) before buying anything.

Please, please, please have her read the following link from Pax (referred to above):

http://www.corneredcat.com/TOC.aspx#FirstGun

It is free to read and she can read in the comfort of her own home. In fact, have her peruse Pax's whole site. For class recommendations she can call up the stores (GunBroker, Keith's etc) and ask. Or I can list some here if you like.

PS - for the negative reviews on Keiths, it is a high volume place. If you know what you want when you walk in, you are good to go. If you want to dawdle and fool around and just chew the fat, it's not the place you want to be. I just called them an hour ago to ask if a certain gun was in inventory and the man on the phone was very helpful - he double-checked inventory, told me it wasn't in and when I could expect it. They also have a large selection. I will continue to shop at Keith's, and at Gun Broker too.

 

[mwsfarm]

Thanks ClonaKilty- its ok,
she is signed up for classes, has been to the range, shot a number of handguns, etc. She really appreciated the cornered cat website. which also has good info for everybody (including men)

I totally agree with you, by the way, and did STRONGLY encourage exactly what you typed.

have a good day!

 

[ClonaKilty]

OK sweet. In that case GunBroker is a good place, but if she knows what she does & doesn't like and is willing to go during slower hours, Keith's may be a good option because it has a wide(r) selection. Sportsman's does too, but the guys at Sportsmens are ... nice but a tad Fudd-ish.

 

[Magic79]

Remember that you can only buy handguns in your state of residence.

Sportsman's Warehouse on 82nd has inventory on the XD(M) when I was in there on Wednesday.

If your sister hasn't discovered the Public Safety Training Center (PSTC) near Clackamas Mall, she should do so (you both should). Operated by Clackamas County Sheriff, they have a great, clean range, lots of classes and actually have a lot of stuff aimed at women. They have a Women's Carry Class that I've heard is very good.

http://www.clackamas.us/sheriff/pstc.jsp

Mark