Went To My First Gun Show Today

[PistolPete]

Well I went to my first gun show today and let me say it was not what I expected. It was mostly all gip-gop and crap. I was def. not impressed at all. I was hoping there would have been better vendors and such and not just all old WWII items. I thought there would have been a better variety of reloading accessories and targets, and competition accessories. It was mostly just old memoribilia etc. I don't know if I would go to another show or not. I was quite disappointed.

Pete

[Sam]

Bummer Pete! But, you still might want to try another show sometime. I usually find out who is sponsoring a show before I make plans to attend. Some shows around my part of the country seem to be mostly new guns at new prices, which I find dissappointing. Other shows are organized by weapons collectors and both the attendees and guns bear a strong resemblance to the History Channel.

Once in a while is the kind of show I like, which has tons of reloading components & ammo, 1911 parts, and AR-15's of all kinds. It's hard to tell sometimes but if you have a good local grapevine, you might be able to zero in on a show you'll like.

[SiG Lady]

Sam's right. There are slightly different kinds of shows put on by different kinds of groups. Some are definitely "History Channel" collectors who specialize in older collectibles, some specialize in reloading or ammo-oriented product, some with outright new guns... or all of the above at once. It kinda depends on what you're looking for. For me right now it's this-'n-that to do with reloading--translucent cartridge boxes and fine-grit corn-cob media. A few months ago it was Hogue grips for the Ruger Mark II and brass. Before that it was a belt sheath for a favorite pocket knife. I also run into my friends and local FFLs there so it has a bit of social value. I also look at gun prices for research if nothing else. It's ALL research. Besides, I have a product photo service that specializes in guns and knives and I'm always looking for customers of my OWN.

Take stock of what kinds of things you see at the shows then make a list of a few things you think you need... then see if they mesh.

[Vince Pinto]

Hi guys,

The best gun show in the USA is the annual SHOT Show, and the next one is in Las Vegas in February. It's supposed to be for "Trade Only" but I know many of the attendees are not dealers etc.

[Flexmoney]

The central Ohio shows suck too.

I can't even get primers there.

Sometime there is some good jerky for sale....

[Stu Love]

Pistol Pete-

I couldn't help but laugh a little about your post. I always had basically the same experience at local gun shows. There used to be one every month or so real close to where I lived in southern Louisiana 12 years ago. I'd go there with a shooting buddy and we usually couldn't find anything related to the supplies or equipment used in IPSC except maybe some reloading stuff. Sometimes we would leave with something like a bottle of Hoppes solvent that wound up costing $10-$12 after the admission fee was considered. Still, the vendors were good folks just trying to make a living and I did find some good stuff on occasion that wasn't in the stores.