Which is better?

Online firearm purchase, or store purchase better?

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Dave21

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Feb 25, 2011
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Location
Beautiful Colorado
Is it better to buy online for a lower price and yes i've included shipping, and ffl transfer fees, or is it better to go into my local store and buy it in person?
 
Personally I would never even consider buying a gun without examining it in person. I've seen how many crooks are on the internet.
 
If the prices are within 50-75$ of each other I'd buy instore. If it was more there are some great online dealers as well.
 
I agree with Drail, I could never buy a gun without holding/examining it thoroughly. No internet buys for me no matter how cheaper.
 
I would notify your ffl of what you want to purchase, and maybe he'll come down on price to somewhere near what you were going to pay online.
 
I would never talk about internet prices in store. Two separate types of business. I would try to get the in store best price but I'd never say "but on Buds I can get it for 100$ cheaper".
 
I buy whatever is the best deal. 90% of the time that is used from classifieds like THR.

My local stores make money off of me via transfers, ammo, targets etc....

If I am looking for something NIB I will ask what my local what he can get it for. If he is within $25 I get it from him. Otherwise he make $10 for the transfer. He is cool either way.
 
If it's 10%-15% then it's worth it to support the local dealer and to see and feel the weapon before buying it. If it's 25% or more then I buy online, I've never been burned. The last one I bought, the store price was 35% higher, the Davidson's price (sold through my local shop) was 20% higher so I went with the online deal.
 
Online, mostly.

Never been burned. Any issues have been with manufacturer. I'll fondle all of them at Cabelas, or Bass or LGS and I support those guys by buying ammo, targets, gear, clothing, etc there.

Excellent experiences with Buds, Cheaper than Dirt, Centerfire Systems, J&G Sales (police trade-ins) and local classified service called Midwest Gun Trader (face to face to do the deal).

Never bought from GunBroker. Too time consuming to find a good deal. A lot of sellers trolling for the uneducated with sky high prices, fees, shipping, credit card up charges....
 
Buy from a reputable dealer online if the price is considerably better. I'd agree with posters saying that if the price is within like twenty five bucks, buy local. If it is much more than that though, I'd buy online every time. I gave my LGS a chance to come down in price on their M&Ps when I was buying one but when the still ended up $75 more than online, it left me with little choice.

The last two of my gun purchases were online and both went very smoothly. In both cases I got either a better product than what was locally available (BCM) or a better price (M&P). In both cases, Grant at www.gandrtactical.com treated me right.
 
I've bought probably 8-10 guns online, and have not had a single issue. I don't understand the whole "pay more to support the FFL" attitude. I'm trying to support a family and a gun habit. I don't have room to support a grown man/woman I'm not related to.
 
I've bought probably 8-10 guns online, and have not had a single issue. I don't understand the whole "pay more to support the FFL" attitude. I'm trying to support a family and a gun habit. I don't have room to support a grown man/woman I'm not related to.
Click to expand...

The concept is that if all the locals go out of business where are you going to do your transfers and but accessories etc. If the small shops go away we will be left with only the big box retailers like Cabelas, Bass Pro, Gander Mt etc... who certainly do not do transfers.

I do not buy into this entirely. I think there is a middle ground and room for lot so reasonable type of FFLs in the market place.
 
I would absolutely go to a local dealer. Sure, I like to examine what I'm buying before I buy it, or have a local place to physically walk into if there's something wrong with what I've ordered. However, for me at least, it basically comes down to supporting your local economy. Where you live would economically be better off if we supported local businesses, because they expand and put the money back into the local economy.

My reason isn't really gun related, but that's my opinion.
 
I voted Neither since there wasn't an option for a gun show. Do GSs count as local stores?

I've bought two of three pistols from my local gun store and I like to do my part to keep them in business. On the other hand, I also want a sweeter deal than my LGS is bound to offer sometimes.

Also, the LGS where I live doesn't do transfers, they rely on range fees and general sales of guns and ammo. With that, their stock is usually priced to include a transfer fee type difference vs. other places.
 
My LGS has very good prices so I try to buy from him. I have to pay sales tax and his prices are for cash or check only, but I've bought four pistols from him over the last year or so at prices well below the best prices I could find online. The other day he offered me a SIG P220 Carry Elite Dark for $780 OTD ... a great price for sure. I recently bought (paid for anyway) my fifth pistol from him, an Ed Brown SFC (SF-SS-G3) with an OTD price of $2,042 ... that's hard to beat. Sometimes I have to pay shipping and a flat rate FFL fee of $25 if the item is hard to find, such as a Kimber Stainless Pro Raptor II.

I voted neither 'cause I do both (about 50/50) and you don't have a button for that.
 
In store -

while you can look at it and hold it, it's like buying a car with the windows rolled up, doors locked and the keys hidden. Pop the hood? maybe. See anything? You can walk around all you want, but....

Field strip it? maybe, but the dude will probably do it. Bring it back after it malfunctions - you're fault. "Have you ever shot a blah blah before?" "There's a break-in period" "What kind of ammo did you use? Cheap-ass Walmart stuff?" "Sorry." "We've never had one of these returned in 30 years..."
 
I have purchased a number of guns online from Davidsons.

Davidsons includes a lifetime warranty on all their guns. The only gun I had a problem with was a Taurus I purchased from Davidsons and when I called them they said to bring the gun back to the original dealer they shipped to and he would have a replacement waiting there the next day.

Now that's service!
 
Here's reality.
There are probably 50 gun stores within 30 miles of my house. Most of them are crap. No selection, staff attitude of "You should buy what we have, or you're stupid." Beyond that, their price is above retail. Okay, that's your choice.
But my choice is Gunbroker, or Bud's or Davidson's, or Top Gun Supply. No sales tax, low price. Yes, I pay shipping and a FFL transfer fee, but I'm still way ahead.
And they don't tell me how dumb I am for not buying the Llama in the showcase for $1000.
YMMV.
 
"better" is a poor choice of words unless you define exactly what YOU mean by "better"

If your bechmark is pure price, then online is probably "better".

If you want to handle the gun, check the bore, and otherwise fondle, then the shop is"better"

Personally, I prefer a mix, I buy mostly online these days as the things I tend to be interested in are pricey around here, or non-existent, BUT, that wouldnt stop me from buying local when I find something that trips my trigger.
 
I chose "both"

Yes it is harder to make a decision of a purchase online...normally i will research the individual selling it online...and I try to stick to firearm stores that are selling online. I understand there are people out there trying to scam you, just be cautious like everything else

I also buy from in store...however if I really know what I want, and I see that an online seller like from gunbroker as a firearm I want, and he has a 100 percent good review rate, and has sold 6,000 firearms, I won't hesitate to make the purchase, especially if it's a good deal
 
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