Weekly Wal-mart Trip

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Talin342

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Every Wednesday I trek across the road from my office and visit the Wal-mart. It's mainly to re-stock my office freezer with frozen dinners, grab a coke, and pick up anything that the wife might need mid-week. I usually swing past the outdoors section and peruse anything that might be of interest. (Garden area this time of year and ammo cabinet year round).

Wal-mart, being what it is, is usually poorly stocked on ammo. It seemed that they had just gotten a shipment of WWB. Having recently acquired a XDm 9mm I was looking for some inexpensive range ammo to burn through. To my pleasant surprise the also had .45 ACP in WWB, which is usually very hard to come by in Wal-marts around these parts. So joy for all! In all $19 and change for 100 rds 9mm and $32 and change for 100 rds of .45 ACP. I thought it was a pretty good deal.

I do have some complaints though. I do recognize that this is Wal-mart so please take these with a grain of salt. The Wal-mart is in a very nice area of Plano, it's literally down the street from the former polo fields (yeah the ones that had the 1 million+ subdivion grow up around it). I get not having someone working the sporting good area full-timeit was a bit irksome to have automotive page someone back to their area. Once I did get a person though they produced keys to the ammo cabinet quickly and got me what I needed.

Second gripe, one of their boxes of 9mm looked like the glue securing the bottim had come up. The clerk asked if I was okay buying that box. I really wasn't but it kinda irked me that he asked. I'm probably being picky and as I write this, I'm like "eh, no big deal that he asked." At the time (20 minutes ago) it really irked me.

Okay now random question. I usually get the "when were you born question" when I buy handgun ammo. This time I got the "Is this for a handgun?" Funny thing was that they specifically asked regarding the .45 ammo. I thought that was kinda weird, any thoughts.

I know it's Wal-mart and I know that many of the folks working there may barely know how to tie a shoelace, but I welcome any comments to generate discussion.

I guess the take away is: "Yea! Now I have ammo to shoot my new XDm." In all a good trip to Wally World...off to lunch to enjoy my Lean Cuisine.
 
Okay now random question. I usually get the "when were you born question" when I buy handgun ammo. This time I got the "Is this for a handgun?" Funny thing was that they specifically asked regarding the .45 ammo. I thought that was kinda weird, any thoughts.
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Depends how the law is written. If you have a .45 ACP A-15 that you are buying the .45 for then you are not buying handgun ammo and the date question doesn't apply.
 
You ever look at how many calories are in TV dinners?

Anyway. It's also been my experience that when people with little to no knowledge of firearms are faced with a firearm related task (selling ammo) they say some pretty dumb <removed>. I usually just smile and give them whatever info they need.

Whatever you do, don't get all tight in the pants about it.
 
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Uteridge said:
Depends how the law is written. If you have a .45 ACP A-15 that you are buying the .45 for then you are not buying handgun ammo and the date question doesn't apply.
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Very good point. Although i've never seen any leeway given towards handgun ammo in regards to what type of firearm you're buying it for.
 
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I've been asked that same question at Wally world the last few times I've bought ammo there. I tell them yes, or no, depending on how I feel, and have never gotten treated any differently based on my answer.

When I bought a brick of .22lr they asked, I said it's for both a hand gun and a rifle. I got a slightly raised eyebrow in response.
 
I was more curious than anything about the "Is this for a handgun?" question. I usually get the "When's your birthday?" question.

To NelsonS02:

Yup, generally the Lean Cuisine have around 300 calories. Not too bad for lunch. Now "Hungry Man" that's a different story.
 
I get nervous questions everytime I go to the post office to ship a gun. Doesn't help that only one employee knows the proper quesitons to ask me.
 
Hey, it's Walmart. I don't expect competent service, just cheap.

It could pay to make a daily check of the sporting goods at wallyworld. I get a lot of my practice ammo there. I even get my reloading primers and powder there. Internet dealers may be a couple of bucks or so cheaper here and there, but it still beats paying shipping and hazmat fees from your friendly internet dealers.
 
I think that they (Walmart, some "big box" sporting goods stores) have a different age limit for handgun vs long gun ammo. I believe that the script they are reading from asks them to verify that you are over 18 for long gun ammo and over 21 for handgun ammo. The more intelligent or more practiced tellers used to just skip the handgun/long gun question for us older folks, knowing that we were well over both age limits. The register now may make them hit a key after asking the question.


The correct answer is: "guns, oh no, we don't have any guns. " Then let your eyes unfocus a little and slowly murmur "bullets. shiny. shiiineeee bullllletttts."
 
Uteridge said:
Depends how the law is written. If you have a .45 ACP A-15 that you are buying the .45 for then you are not buying handgun ammo and the date question doesn't apply.
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Sorry, but that is incorrect. The age limit CHANGES, but does not go away:

18 USC 922 (b)(1):

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/18/usc_sec_18_00000922----000-.html

(b) It shall be unlawful for any licensed importer, licensed manufacturer, licensed dealer, or licensed collector to sell or deliver—
(1) any firearm or ammunition to any individual who the licensee knows or has reasonable cause to believe is less than eighteen years of age, and, if the firearm, or ammunition is other than a shotgun or rifle, or ammunition for a shotgun or rifle, to any individual who the licensee knows or has reasonable cause to believe is less than twenty-one years of age;
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tyeo098 said:
They always ask me "is this for a handgun"
Even if it is, I lie, its not law, its policy. For all they know I have a hi-point 9mm carbine, or an MP40.
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1. It is not policy... it is Federal law. See 18 USC 922 (b)(1) above.
2. If you lie about it to a licensed dealer you commit a Federal felony violating 18 USC 922 (a)(6):

(a) It shall be unlawful—
(6) for any person in connection with the acquisition or attempted acquisition of any firearm or ammunition from a licensed importer, licensed manufacturer, licensed dealer, or licensed collector, knowingly to make any false or fictitious oral or written statement or to furnish or exhibit any false, fictitious, or misrepresented identification, intended or likely to deceive such importer, manufacturer, dealer, or collector with respect to any fact material to the lawfulness of the sale or other disposition of such firearm or ammunition under the provisions of this chapter;
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Walmart is an evil corporate giant that doesn't care about anyone (and the epitome of a capitalist success story).

That being said, I buy boat loads of tula there...glue, water, kool aid or whatever else comes on the box. Figuring their price per round with tax, I haven't found any bulk ammo that beats their price. Granted, for target ammo I want quantity and "good enough." Tula usually fits that need or WWB if they are sold out.
 
"Walmart is an evil corporate giant that doesn't care about anyone (and the epitome of a capitalist success story)."

Very true. I mean...duh...I love Wal-Mart...best place ever.

As soon as the barcode is scanned the questions are prompted:

Rifle/Shotgun rounds: Is customer 18 or older? Yes/No Enter birthdate
Pistol rounds: Is customer 21 or older? Yes/No Enter birthdate

The customer can lie to the employee. The employee can just press "Yes" and skip the question. I still don't know if they can sell 9mm to an 18yr old with a carbine or not, will find out.
 
Wal-mart has tired prices meaning that the price items higher at stores in more affluent areas. On a whim I checked it between a couple of stores around the dallas area. Sure enough there was about a 5 to 10 cent difference between prices.

Might help ya save a few bucks if you go to the Wal-mart on the other side of the tracks. It seems that the "country" Wal-marts have better ammo availability and selection too.
 
When I bought a brick of .22lr they asked, I said it's for both a hand gun and a rifle. I got a slightly raised eyebrow in response.
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You're lucky they didn't get confused and say "There's no button for that" They just listen to the box and do what it said. If it asked for your favorite color they wouldn't even think it was a strange question, they would just punch in what you said.
 
I have bought 9mm in Watertown NY that had it accessible to the public and they asked me if it was for a handgun. Here in CO. the ammo has always been behind the counter or locked up but I've never been asked what it was for.
I was surprised to the easy access in NY.
 
I happen to work at Wal-Mart(Hey, don't hit me. It's a job.), and let me tell you, when I went up to the counter to buy some ammo for my dad's 9mm, I was hoping the buddy system would shine through. Nope. No one came to my aid to unlock the mythical glass ammo case, until I flushed someone out of the electronics department. Yet a few days later when I came up there to try and hunt down some .303 for my rifle, there were three guys standing around like two monkeys [bleep]ing on a coconut. It all depends on who schedules who on what days.

Don't blame us lower guys and girls that work the sales floor, blame the management that can't figure stuff out. Trust me, we hate management sometimes as much as some people hate Wal-Mart as a whole.
 
I imagine just about any pistol caliber has had a rifle made for it. But when my brother in law worked at wal-mart and a hoodie wanted to buy a box of .25ACP, and he said it was for a rifle, he got quite the laugh.
 
I have found that very, very few sporting goods departments are staffed at Walmart. The one at Gainesville, TX is about 90% of the time. The ones in Fort Worth and surrounds never are. However, .22 550 packs are $3.50 cheaper in the Fort Worth area than at Gainesville (20%)!! I talked to a guy in one of the Fort Worth stores (when I finally found him) who told me that the stores inside Loop 820 are considered metropolitan stores and the ones outside are considered rural and can carry a larger variety. I never could see much difference though.
It seems to me that the staffing is a vicious circle. They don't staff, so people give up and don't buy. Since people don't buy, they don't staff.
I thought accountants were pretty set in our ways, but I go to Walmart any time I want to, not just on Wednesday!!!!!!!!
 
I really wish walmart would get it together with their ammo sales. It is such a pain trying to find the elusive employee with a key. One guy who works that department has been selling me ammo for years and he always asks to see my ID like he has never seen me before.
 
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