Gun Show, Phoenix, AZ
Went to my second gun show at the AZ State fairgrounds today and spent 4 1/2 hrs there. The first 1/2 hour was to get INTO the lot. The next two hours were spent in total futility trying to navigate around through the thousands and thousands of people AND KIDS!!!! Couldn't get close to most of the tables that had guns and the rest were a cacophony of swords, Chinese-made knives, rare ammo, flying helicopters (toys), real cheap flea market crap, air guns, miltary surplus, etc. in which I had zero interest.
But then, magically, after 2 1/2 hrs there, the crowds diminished sharply and I had the opportunity to actually see the guns there and speak with the dealers.
I just wish that parents would be attentive enough to tell their kids to stand behind them instead of in-a-row with them at the counter if mom or dad are looking at a particular gun. A few even hang onto the counters like they're ready to collapse so you can't even look over their shoulders.
And, the kids don't move for s*it even if you politely say excuse me. The parents occasionally give you a dirty look, too. I don't have a problem with kids going to the gun show - as a matter of fact, it's probably good exposure for them within a controlled environment - but I really do wish that mom and dad would be a bit more considerate of others who paid to get in as well and are looking to buy something.
Just venting a bit. I know.[}:)]
But then, magically, after 2 1/2 hrs there, the crowds diminished sharply and I had the opportunity to actually see the guns there and speak with the dealers.
I just wish that parents would be attentive enough to tell their kids to stand behind them instead of in-a-row with them at the counter if mom or dad are looking at a particular gun. A few even hang onto the counters like they're ready to collapse so you can't even look over their shoulders.
And, the kids don't move for s*it even if you politely say excuse me. The parents occasionally give you a dirty look, too. I don't have a problem with kids going to the gun show - as a matter of fact, it's probably good exposure for them within a controlled environment - but I really do wish that mom and dad would be a bit more considerate of others who paid to get in as well and are looking to buy something.
Just venting a bit. I know.[}:)]
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I also made it to the show in PHX. Man - zillions of people but the weather was perfect. Bought some ammo, but that's it. Guns were crap, or $3500!! 0 -
I don't mind kids at the shows so much. In fact I kinda like the idea of dad bringing them and exposing them to guns. I have tables and what I hate is dads with coffee and kids with soda leaning over the guns with the cup tilted so you're afraid that any second they are going to slop their drink onto the guns. I wish that they would stop allowing drinks in the shows or at least have a restricted area for food and drinks around the consession stand. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by 41 nut
I don't mind kids at the shows so much. In fact I kinda like the idea of dad bringing them and exposing them to guns. I have tables and what I hate is dads with coffee and kids with soda leaning over the guns with the cup tilted so you're afraid that any second they are going to slop their drink onto the guns. I wish that they would stop allowing drinks in the shows or at least have a restricted area for food and drinks around the consession stand.
As that suggestion (in red) would make good sense, it will therefore never be enforced. BTW, I'm okay with kids tagging along with mom and/or dad, just not hogging the precious space in frot of the gun tables. Since only dad or mom can buy one, they should simply stand behind their parent(s) so that adults with the ability to buy a gun can get a look at the guns.0 -
I quit parking in that freekin lot in the fair grounds. The last time it took me 10 minutes to get in, and half hour to find a parking spot.
I park across the street, ( south of McDowell ), on 16th Ave. Next to that school they are demolishing.0 -
I agree! That's why I never go to the gunshow. Crowded, either junk or high prices. It's better to shop on Gunbroker.
JM[:)]0 -
My partner and I went too, but with better results it sounds like.
We both accomplished what we went there for, ran into some old friends I hadn't seen in years, and hooked up with a local source for buying bullets in bulk.
I don't mind the kids at the shows, as long as the parents keep them under control. What I don't like is the damn strollers up and down the aisles. It was crowded enough without having to dodge those things.0 -
I used to live in phoenix and i know exactly what you are talking about being crowded. That Swap-mart was the same way.Is it still there? I'll go back to see mom but other than that i don't like phoenix at all. Those hills between Camp Verde and Strawberry is where I did a lot MEDITATING as a teenager. 0 -
I was there. I got there at 9:00 and stayed until noon. The crowds really picked up around 11:00. I was looking for some grips for my SA 1911, couldn't find the ones I wanted. I did pick up a sling for my AK and a bayonet I was looking for.
All and all it was pretty much a disaster. It was impossible to move in some areas and the prices were outrageous.Good thing I had a free pass to get in.0 -
Some of the vendors seemed annoyed to even be there. I guess to those few malcontents, we're simply pond scum. One guy acted like he was doing me a big favor by telling me what he was asking for a small auto on his table. Unlike the others that he had lying there, this one wasn't tagged. This was around 4:30PM and the show's over at 5PM.
He doesn't get up off his chair, looks me in the eye from around six feet away and blurts out a price that's $100 over the highest price on GB and another site. I know when someone doesn't want to do business with me and I simply moved on. I kept thinking to myself, "Why did this guy get up this morning, schlepp out to the show, set eveything up and go through all of this if he doesn't want to do business?" It's not like I was there for ten minutes, wasting his time, busting his chops, touching everything and driving him nuts.
Another guy had guns all over his table and a few very, very, very low prices - much lower I suspect than the cost of a new one. I asked him if one particular small auto was new, used or a demo and he snaps back at me with "All my stuff is new!" Now, IMO, if you put a price for "new" that's roughly $20 lower than the best price on the web or GB or in a gun store or at the show, I think it begs a simple question as to whether it's new, used or a demo. He could have taken a pen and marked the tag as "New" just as easily. Am I missing something?
I think some of these vendors might want to take a straightforward Marketing 101 course as well. Merchandising and display means a lot and the tables with the biggest crowds were well-staffed, the folks friendly and helpful, the guns and other stuff were neatly arranged, tagged as new or used or collectible, priced and grouped together logically or by caliber, etc. Others looked like they dumped over their bins onto the tables and left it up to chance.
And then there was the guy flinging the helicopter way up into the air and circling it all around our heads as he brought it back down to his table - over and over and over and over again. Or the Asian massage therapists set up to do back rubs in-between the AR and surplus tables.0 -
I went by that guy with the helicopter, couple of times in my travels. Couldn't quite figure out what he was doing there? Didn't seem like he was selling a whole lot of them. Doing that for hours at a time, 2 days in a row would definitely get on my nerves.
Don't knock the Asian Massage Parlor folks. I bought a bunch of quality books from the guy who was sharing tables with the one, in the freestanding building on the South side. She did quite a bit of business, just during the time I was going through all the books.0 -
quote:Originally posted by rufe-snow
I went by that guy with the helicopter, couple of times in my travels. Couldn't quite figure out what he was doing there? Didn't seem like he was selling a whole lot of them. Doing that for hours at a time, 2 days in a row would definitely get on my nerves.
Don't knock the Asian Massage Parlor folks. I bought a bunch of quality books from the guy who was sharing tables with the one, in the freestanding building on the South side. She did quite a bit of business, just during the time I was going through all the books.
Admit it. She was a real cutie, wasn't she?[^][:D][:D]0 -
As long as we're touching on kid/parent behavior, HOW ABOUT AT AUCTIONS?! Three examples:
Kids throwing rocks into the blower of an antique forge I eventually bought,
Kids slamming the pedals on an antique John Deere pedal tractor that I didn't buy,
A kid tearing the fragile canvas on the frog/sheath of an antique Jap bayonet I did buy............parents seem to just turn their kids loose at auctions!
I wish ta hell auctioneers would announce at the beginning of the auction along with "cash or good check, nothing leaves without being paid for", "KEEP YER KIDS IN CHECK, THEY'RE YER RESPONSIBILITY!!!!"0 -
Don't mind the kids my self, they make more challenging targets than the adults.[}:)]
I work the gun check table at local shows, so it does not cost me to get in. Otherwise, I am rapidly reaching a point where paying $5-$10 to look at overpiced junk is somehow losing its charm.0
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