first gun show

[The Wiz]

going to my first gun show. I may buy something that catches my eye. Any advice would be appreciated when buying a gun at a show. Also, should I trust ammo bought there?

[JEBar]

name brand ammo is name brand ammo .... I've never found that it makes any difference from where ammo or components are purchased .... when one is going to a gun show (boat show, RV show, or whatever) it pays to keep in mind that the sellers are (usually) professionals who are there to make money .... they have to factor in show related expenses which must be covered by the products they sell .... the pluses are, if they are selling the same products, they are subject to competition .... in addition one usually is able to see a much wider selection .... waiting to buy until the last day can result in lower prices

[BrokenolMarine]

Waiting to buy until the last day CAN result in lower prices, but can more often result in lack of stock in the gun shows around here. I used to attend two major shows per quarter with a couple of my fellow competitors, as we would sometimes order reloading supplies from a distributor from GA that would bring our orders to the show at no extra charge if we pre paid. A huge savings if we got together and ordered fifty or sixty thousand bullets, primers, and bulk orders of powder.

We would go the first day and back the trucks up to the trailer they towed to the event and load up then wander thru the gun show. If I saw something I needed, I picked it up then if the price was fair, because it was apt to be gone when you made your second pass thru the show.

I don't go anymore... the gunshows aren't what they used to be.

[North Country Gal]

Buyer Beware! Write that with magic marker on the back of your hand. You are totally on your own when buying a used gun at a gun show. If you don't have a lot of experience buying used guns, this is not a good place to shop for a gun. Gun shows are great places to buy accessories and old parts, but you're still on your own with these items.

The problem is not so much crooked sellers when it comes to buying the guns. Crooked sellers get weeded out quick within the gun show community. Folks that sell at these gun shows all know each other and see each other at every gun show. They're a community. It's not in their interest to be associated with a crooked seller.

The problem with buying used guns at a gun show is that many of these sellers can't offer you much in the way of knowledge about the guns they are selling. Sellers trade back and forth with other sellers or they take used guns in on trades from customers. In some cases, they made bad buys and thus ask prices that are way out of line. In some cases, they can be surprisingly ignorant of what they are selling.

So here's NCGs advice when buying guns at gun shows.

1. Don't buy used guns at gun shows if you lack the experience in how to evaluate the condition of used guns. This is a bad place to learn. Instead, buy used from a local dealer who will back up their sales or from a local individual who can give you a history about the gun and how it shoots. If you can find a seller at a gun show who can talk to you about the gun and who has shot it and is willing to work with you as to any problems, fine, assuming you cover the other bases.

2. Stay with brands and types of guns you know. Know the potential issues on any type of gun you buy. Don't assume the seller does. A great tool for researching this one is being able to get online and do some research via a smart phone or tablet.

3. Educate yourself on going market prices for gun models. Can't stress this enough. If you want to see ridiculous prices on used guns, a gun shows a great place to find them. Again, a smart phone or a tablet is a great tool for checking the going prices on specific guns.

4. Unless you are a a true blue expert collector, stay away from high dollar collectible guns. The high dollar collectible market is plagued with fraud. Some of these frauds are amazingly good and it takes a true expert to spot them. Leave these guns to the experts. Again, it's not that the seller is crooked, here. It's just that they may have taken such a gun in on trade and paid top dollar without knowing any better.

5. Ammo is another prime example of knowing the going market price before you buy. A lot of name brand factory ammo being sold at gun shows was bought on speculation, back when the ammo supply was tight. It's often overpriced, now.

Bill and I enjoy going to local gun shows, now, because we personally know a lot of the sellers. We enjoy visiting with them and talking guns and business. Now and then we find a gun to buy and accessories, too. For us it's a lot of fun to get out and rub shoulders with other folks in the shooting community.

[bmsma]

EVERYTHING NCG said:

we also hit the shows some, great place to compare if you looking at different models and want to shoulder them. but the only "Deal" i have found in the last 5 years or so at a show has been a individual not a dealer. Oklahoma has very low restriction on individual to individual sales.

have what your local prices are up front. the lgs's around here can beat any table price at the show. the night before you go do some research on gunbroker and armslist and check current prices.

the more information the better

also and this is a "i have the best wife in the world trick, and forget sometimes" i leave my gun money locked in the truck, if i see something im real tempted on it forces me to walk back out and kinda cool down, maybe even use my cell and call my lgs for a quick price check.

dont get me wrong, i enjoy the shows, you can see and touch some real neat stuff, go and have a great time, but know the value of what your looking at.

[The Wiz]

How about selling a personal gun at a show?

[North Country Gal]

How about selling a personal gun at a show?

Most shows allow it. You can carry the gun around and not have to buy a table. You do have to check the gun in at the front desk, first, though. Always stop, there, first. Some shows and/or local regs may not allow it.

[steelersfan97]

BrokenolMarine,

You can admit you bought some things you really didn't need.....it happens to the best of us.

I have never been to a show. There is one in the area that makes a regular appearance but I always seem to have something going on when they are in town.

[BrokenolMarine]

BrokenolMarine,

You can admit you bought some things you really didn't need.....it happens to the best of us.

I have never been to a show. There is one in the area that makes a regular appearance but I always seem to have something going on when they are in town.

Usually it's another Marine Tshirt or Hat. I didn't need it... ... but you can't have too many tshirts with your service logo, and I live in Tshirts.

Guns? Nah... I didn't buy guns at the gunshows, our gal is right, I didn't trust the used guns there, and my new gun prices were better than most used gun prices for years. As a LE Instructor, I got special factory pricing. One thing I would add... no matter where you go to look at used guns, take a bore light, even if it's just the bent piece of plastic that reflects light into the bore. You'd be surprised how much more you can see. Sometimes it's very illuminating. yes... pun intended.

[steelersfan97]

I am more curious about seeing what goes on and what is available than I am in buying something. Maybe look around some, check out what is offered and prices.

[North Country Gal]

Good point on the bore light. I carry one in my purse, in fact. I get teased a bit when I pull it out to inspect a gun. They guys think its a hoot for a gal to carry a bore light in her purse, but that's just the kind of gal I am.

[The Wiz]

I like the idea of the bore light and I think I will just wander around and get a feel for what a gun show is like. I am looking forward to it.

[bmsma]

just whatever you do, and this in of major importance STAY AWAY From the Jalapeno Turkey Jerky, its a real weapon of mass destruction

[The Wiz]

Sage advice from one who knows?

[bmsma]

yes my wife reminds me at times, was a long drive home it was

[BrokenolMarine]

When you are buying factory ammo at a gun show, look for a few things.

Look closely at the condition of the boxes... they should look crisp and new. Worn boxes can be indicative of surplus/older factory ammo thats been long stored and moved about, or reloads.

Open the box and before you do anything else, look at the head stamps on the cases, they should all be exactly the same, and match the brand on the box. If the aren't all the same... suspect reloads.

Pull a few rounds and check the cases, they should be bright and shiny, no discoloration, no dents or scuffs. You find those, again, suspect old ammo or reloads. Look at the case rims, check for extractor marks... shouldn't be any.

Yeah, yeah... anal... but AMHIKT.

A buddy of ours came home bragging about buying a bunch of factory ammo at the gunshow at amazing prices. He was new to shooting. Guess what we found when we checked his boxes?

[The Wiz]

Some observations about my first show:

Should have been called a knife show. For every gun, there was 10 knives.
Most of the ammo were reloads and over priced. And the boxes were as describe above.

As far as prices for guns they seemed high but not overly excessive. That was on new stock. Can't comment on the used stock as I am not familiar enough with going prices. A lot of used Ruger .22's for sale. More rifles than hand guns for sale. One guy had 7 new Henry's on the table with prices on par with LGS. I almost pulled the trigger on a .327. The only thing that stopped me was the word "divorce".

Overall, I really enjoyed myself. looking thru all the stuff on tables, listning to guys and gals talking guns, eating a really bad hot dog. The coffee wasn't bad, though. Bought some survival licorices (?). Tasted the same as store candy. And by reading reloading info on this forum , I knew what I was looking at when I came upon reloading stuff.


All in all, I had a good time and will go again.

[North Country Gal]

Good for you, Wiz. We enjoy going to our local guns shows, though we tend not to buy anything, either.

[Mistered]

So here's NCGs advice when buying guns at gun shows.

And Mistered concurs with ALL of NCGs advice - and more.
guns shows vary in content depending on the area they are in. In my small 'city' (!650 POP) we have two small gunshows a year and surprisingly they are like 'old school' shows with a lot of older & classic guns, neat gun related curiosities & loading stuff. Even in a larger area about 45 minutes north are a couple shows a year at our county fairgrounds and while larger they still maintain the true 'gun show' feel with a few dealers with some new - but still a lot of classic stuff.
Regardless of the size & content of the shows one thing I despise (and have seen it at every show I have been to) is there is always a few tables that are run by some overweight, slovenly self-righteous 'fellow' who talks to everybody like they are stupid and thinks everything he has is gold plated.
Gun shows take a little 'time in grade' by going to several to learn the process - but never loose sight of NCGs excellent summation of gun shows in general.

[bmsma]

Wiz:
glad you had a good time, and the more you go to the more you learn like anything else. we also hit 2-3 a year and have a good time of it, we hit the "big show" in tulsa its about a hour drive then 30 min to get in the door, but we make a day trip and do other stuff.