People who work at gun stores

[Swing]

My first impression from reading the exchange in the original post is "that's pretty tame compared to some I've seen over the decades". There are reasons why some of us buy 95%+ of our firearms online and transfer through a kitchen table FFL. One of those reasons is the unbelievably idiotic behavior at local shops. And there are plenty more.

 

[JohnhenrySTL]

I think a lot of the mom and pop places are even worse.

I recently had a old friend take up interest in my shooting. He was the last I would have guessed. He decided upon a Sig 229 in 9mm. He asked me to find him a decently priced one.

I called around and attempted to price some online sources. I had 2 simple questions. What is the price and how long? My first response was "what about the sig interest you?" It's what I'm looking for. "Well we have lots of better guns for cheaper" Me "oh okay sounds good." Click.

The next guy, "we carry premium defensive systems." Do you sell sigs? "You'll have to come in"

I gave up after "bring in about 1300 cash."

My friend bought it from my gunsmith for about 950, and it showed up in 2 days. He was a special forces guy in Vietnam. He took up an interest in my friends shooting and spoke to him for over an hour. It was bad ass.

I'm not trying to jack the thread. As I talked to all these gun dealers around here I honestly felt bad for them. I wondered what made them so slick and wordy. There seems to this growing trend around here where people are more concerned with what I payed for my guns than how good they shoot their own dam guns. It annoys the heck out of me.

 

[mnrivrat]

I was going to post a rather long story of personal experience but decided it is best to say this without a lot of fanfare.

Put a sales person behind the counter who is very knowledgable regarding the guns, ammo, and sporting goods products you are selling. If you can't do that, then hire the best looking young lady you can find.

 

[Old Guy]

Many years ago..' In the west end Gun shop, in Toronto.

A young (I thought gang banger) came in as I was looking at a used S&W Mod 65 4" revolver (to add to my class guns) he was bringing back a box, 50 rounds, of 38 Special ammo "It don't fit" he said.
The store owner swapped it for a box of WW2 38 short, I think that was what it was. "I thought this is what you needed"
This kid was maybe 18. No money changed hands. I kind of kept out of that store.

 

[guyfromohio]

Just like anything, you must be your own expert before walking in. I don't expect the car salesman or the TV guy at Best Buy to have any more knowledge than price and discounts. Unless you are lucky to find a retiree working there for fun, it's going to be hard to find a $12/hour expert on anything. Except at Game Stop.

 

[Tirod]

Retail shopping isn't a matter of finding experienced gun clerks who are combat veterans and still tier 3Gun or patrolling evenings as a ride along. Expecting that level of knowledge at the retail level and then forcing the situation to get even worse by "schooling" them with your abundance of knowledge only gives them reason to move on as quickly as the next better opportunity comes up.

I can read between the lines in posts, some genuinely take the clerks on as an apprentice and for your diligence, thank you. You are few and far between.

Take the OP's request - apparently no wadcutters on the shelf. If it's NOT on the shelf in retail, that means its NOT in stock. Retailers don't warehouse the inventory in the store room. The CORPORATION puts it on the shelf and there's nearly nothing left over eating up turns in profit not making money. They manage things that tightly in retail now - and they aren't hiring gun experts with decades of experience to sell it, either. Those guys cost $50000 a year and for the most part the average customer won't respect him, either. They hire clerks with no experience because they are going down the road in a few months anyway. The turnover is huge and for the most part that is why these threads keep popping up - because there is always another rude customer who comes in demanding high levels of knowledge about things even they only recently discovered, and taking it out on someone who was hired to work another department and just spotting someone's lunch hour there.

Y'all asking for too much is the reason so many new gun haters are born - keep treating them like trash and you just created another liberal anti gunner.

I work auto parts, it's worse, too many of my customers aren't even qualified to open the hood. Yet they demand that I have factory level training on ANY make and model they own, with a precise answer to whatever noise they attempt to sputter as a problem. Do I have a degree in auto mechanics, have I worked in a garage, did I even manufacture parts for a living?

I'll never say. You give respect you get respect. Keep abusing retail clerks and you get the service you deserve.

 

[Omaney]

Any employee that doesn't know what I am asking for is either truly ignorant (I mean that literally), or I haven't articulated my wants adequately. I'm generally going to err on the side of civility and what I hope is maturity when dealing with a young, ignorant employee. I consider it my little opportunity to make this planet a little bit better.

Wadcutter is a word that isn't very common, nor are you going to find many <40 year olds that have heard it. I'm apt to guve a guy or gal a break on that one.

But then, I'm a people person! (That's funny cuz it's not true).

 

[Ryanxia]

That's what I always liked about our LGS where the regulars hung out at, the owner/employees definitely knew what they were selling and were knowledgeable but if someone was asking very specific questions they would just look around the room for one of us regulars that they knew had a background in that area and pointed them our way.
And we were glad to help out when things got busy, means the owner doesn't have to hire more people and charge more for the products.

 

[GAF]

I've thought about a job as a clerk/counter guy but my problem is I tend to over explain the facets of firearms,reloading and the like. Figured I wouldn't last long as I'd spend to much time with 1 customer making sure that the made the right selection ammo choice etc.
45 years of owning rifles,handguns and various reloading equipment gives me a bit of an edge. Have to admit shotguns I lacking.

When I am out shopping for guns, ammo or other firearms accessories you are just the kind of sales person I want to talk with .

 

[Carl N. Brown]

One local gun shop operator grew up on the farm, served in VietNam, owns a farm, stocks his freezer with game for winter victuals (locally known as vittles). He has made a hobby of firearms design and history.

I am sorry you guys get stuck some of the people you have to deal with. At least most are just ignorant (and correctable with kind wisdom) unlike the barber shop/gun shop blowhards
.
Most big store clerks may have briefed about hunting and self-defense ammo carried in stock, but big stores usually sell ammo for the most common uses in the most common calibers. I remember counting on Sears, J.C.Penney, Montgomery Ward, Western Auto, KMart, only having in stock ammo for the guns they had in stock. Yeah, I'm that old.

 

[lpsharp88]

Had a similar experience a week ago. Walked into Sportsmans Warehouse in Lexington, looking for what is now my new Range Officer. I get to the gun counter and just start browsing, a guy around my age asked if I was looking for something in particular, so I say "Yes, do you have any Springfield Range Officers in 9mm?" He says that he didn't think so, and asked the other gentleman at the counter, and he said "No" as well, they didn't bother to look either. I thanked them and kept on looking. Got down to the 1911 section, saw one that said 9mm on the tag, and guess what it was? A 9mm Range Officer. Not a big deal, I don't expect them to know off hand everything they have in stock, but if I wouldn't have looked, they would have lost out on a sale. Great gun by the way

 

[GBExpat]

When I enter a LGS I carry with me all of the firearms-related expertise that I require.

If I encounter an employee with knowledge gaps I will endeavor to assist them, if it appears that it will be welcomed.

That said ... I can easily understand the OP's feeling and imagine myself just smiling & shaking my head as I walked out of that store.

 

[Dog Soldier]

I have to wonder? Is it the dumb customers or dumb clerks? Which one of these groups are responsible for closing down so many gun shops?

 

[GBExpat]

I have to wonder? Is it the dumb customers or dumb clerks? Which one of these groups are responsible for closing down so many gun shops?

I think that is primarily a combination of shrinking margins & the Internet.

IMO, dumb customers would represent a boon to gunshops.

 

[entropy]

Here's my thing when it comes to retail: It is NOT the clerk's job to educate the customer (sorry if any of you Best Buy employees are offended). It is the customer's duty to already be educated so all he/she has to do is find the best price on the desired goods.

At WalMart, I agree with you. At the LGS, I highly disagree. (I've worked at both.) Most people go to the LGS because they are (Supposed to be) knowledgable. I've heard idiocy from both sides of the counter at LGS's, and I have holes in my tongue from biting it so hard. I will step in when I hear something dangerous, and I will enforce safety rules, even if the shop doesn't.

 

[buck460XVR]

Gentlemen it is your job to educate the customer. You are not being paid to condemn the source of your income. If you are intrusted by investors to stand behind the counter you are to represent the owner's best interest. The store invest in bricks and mortar and inventory to sell to the public. The public is your customer.

While I agree about the not condemning your source of income, for the most part, you are not getting paid to instruct and educate but to sell. If there's one thing most of us hate more than an ignorant customer, it's a "know it all" store clerk. While most stores want the clerks to know what's on their shelves and the correct price, they don't demand clerks are highly educated in the use of those wares. Kinda where the minimum wage thingy comes in.......

Again, these "dumb clerk behind the counter" and "stupid person at WalMart" threads generally appear only as an attempt to display the Author's superior knowledge and superiority over said "dumb clerk" and Stupid person". We are expected to think that we are being told the whole story from an objective point of view. Yeah, right.....

I've worked construction for over 40 years. When I go to Ace Hardware for fasteners, I don't expect the young girl behind the counter to tell me the appropriate size and product for the application, only to point me in the right direction to where the assortment is kept. I'd expect if she knew more than me, she'd be out in the world making more than $7.25 a hour.

 

[375supermag]

Hi...
My experience with clerks at places like Gander Mountain,Bass Pro Shop, etc is that most of them are just that...clerks. They most often are there for a paycheck and have very little or no knowledge of firearms.
The LGS around this area have pretty knowledgeable people working the counter...their knowledge may be restricted to a specific type of firearm, mostly tactical...but, every local shop has at least one gunsmith on duty most days. And the one shop that caters to cowboy action shooters has a couple of guys with extensive knowledge and experience working on just about anything you could reasonably expect to be brought in to the shop.
The more LGS I deal with the more I find that at least one guy there knows his stuff...it may require a couple of purchases to actually build a relationship with that guy but once you do, you find that if he doesn't have the knowledge or experience to help you, he's knows someone who does. And he is OK with sending you to another shop if that is what it takes.
Like most relationships, it requires an investment of time and some mutual respect.

 

[natman]

This happened to me on Thursday...

"Hi my name is *** let me know if there's anything I can help you with."

"Yes, I'm looking for either full wadcutters or at the very least semi wadcutters in 38 Special, I didn't see any on the shelf, so wondering if you guys are out or there might be some in the back?

"Did you say wadcutter? I don't know what that is..."

"You've never heard of wadcutters?"

/Sarcastic tone

"NO. Is that a word you made up?"

Sigh... I walked away.. tough week.

At most stores you're not always going to find somebody who knows everything about every product.

I might point out that had you calmly explained what a wadcutter was, the clerk would have learned something and you might have gone home with some wadcutters.

 

[230RN]

and I will enforce safety rules, even if the shop doesn't.

I once asked a clerk to open the action of a revolver before he handed it to me. "Oh, don't worry, it;s not loaded," he said, but I insisted that he open it and he looked at me as if I were the biggest pain in the butt in the world.

Well, that's true, but I already had my one ND/AD twenty years before and didn't want any more.

Terry

 

[rugerman]

I worked for 28 years as a pharmacist with Kmart. Way back when they had guns one day I was back in the sporting goods dept. and the clerk was trying to put together a 870 shotgun for a customer, they had the Manuel out trying to figure it out, I walked over in my white jacket and asked if I could help, put it together and walked away. From then on if a customer needed a gun put together they were told to go to the pharmacy. Met a bunch of nice folks that way, and got invited to a bunch of dove shoots. All Kmart ever had was clerks, any few knew any thing about guns, or as a rule anything in that dept.

 

[Sunray]

"...me on Thursday..." In one of the 'big box' stores?
People who work at gun stores get paid minimum wage(shockingly low Stateside too), get no training, benefits or have any kind of job security and are usually hired because they or somebody they're related to knows the owner.
"...gun owners are just about as ignorant..." Yep. Years ago, the shop I was in had a bunch(dozen or so) of excellent condition 1903A4's. At $175Cdn.(Yes, I did. HAHAHAHA.) Long time ago. A very new kid bought one(ya'll had best sit), cut the forestock with a hand saw, then came back with it complaining it didn't shoot. Just happened to be at the same range as him when he was shooting it. Lotta lack of skill involved too.

 

[Old Dog]

At WalMart, I agree with you. At the LGS, I highly disagree. (I've worked at both.) Most people go to the LGS because they are (Supposed to be) knowledgable. I've heard idiocy from both sides of the counter at LGS's, and I have holes in my tongue from biting it so hard. I will step in when I hear something dangerous, and I will enforce safety rules, even if the shop doesn't.

Well, let's agree to disagree here. Frankly, I don't think it wise to go shopping for any type of appliance, tool or device expecting the sales clerk to be the fount of wisdom when it comes to what I am looking to buy ... I want to rule out any type of personal bias or lack of knowledge on the part of the person trying to sell me something. I might want to know how a particular product is selling or if they've had bad reviews or returns on it, but learning about any high-priced something one is buying from the person selling it to you is not necessarily in a consumer's best interest. Unless one establishes a relationship with a particular retail store, knows the experience levels of the employees and trusts them, I am not going to believe the guys working the counters at my LGS because they are "supposed to be knowledgeable."

When I went shopping around for another SIG Legion pistol, I was told by a counter guy at a local shop, "No, we have none in stock now, but you should look at these Glock 19s, they're way better than SIGs and you'll save half your money." Really?

Of course, I hear (and see) more idiocy from the customer side of the counter as a rule, but only because I've learned which of my area gun stores to avoid. My area is positively rife with gun shop commandos and I don't need to hear about how great Glocks are from some twenty-something dude who might have survived one enlistment in the Army and thinks he knows more than me about guns ... And once, a few years back, I too made the mistake of asking why the store didn't stock any .38 SPL wadcutters or semi-wadcutters and got that "Huh?" response ...

 

[jeepnik]

We like to yank the chains of customers who act like they know it all too.
Remember that the next time you go in a store and need something
I could easily help you find it, or just as easily tell you we don't have it

Ok, you tell me you don't have it. I buy it somewhere else. I win, your employer loses. Now imagine your employers reaction should he find out. Were you working for me, you wouldn't be, and no one in my industry would ever hire you. Law says I can't say anything bad about you. But it doesn't say I have to say anything good. Smart employers know what that means.

 

[coyotehitman]

It never ceases to amaze me the arrogant pukes, tactical teds, and know it all types I see shopping at gun stores. You know, those guys who seem to want to "one up" the clerk and prove they know more than him instead of uniting and educating by sharing knowledge with someone. Those same pompous pukes who exude their superiority on internet forums (where there are more pompous pukes that chime in and reaffirm superiority complexes) by badmouthing store clerks. Hell, some of these forums hide the fact that they are havens for the pompous with catchy names like "The High Road" and claim to exist for higher purposes. Yeah, it never ceases to amaze me...

Were you working for me, you wouldn't be, and no one in my industry would ever hire you. Law says I can't say anything bad about you. But it doesn't say I have to say anything good. Smart employers know what that means.

And certainly a smart previous employer would also realize there are some people you can get away with black balling and some who will "settle it out of court" without giving it a second thought.

 

[blarby]

Hi...
My experience with clerks at places like Gander Mountain,Bass Pro Shop, etc is that most of them are just that...clerks. They most often are there for a paycheck and have very little or no knowledge of firearms.
The LGS around this area have pretty knowledgeable people working the counter...their knowledge may be restricted to a specific type of firearm, mostly tactical...but, every local shop has at least one gunsmith on duty most days. And the one shop that caters to cowboy action shooters has a couple of guys with extensive knowledge and experience working on just about anything you could reasonably expect to be brought in to the shop.
The more LGS I deal with the more I find that at least one guy there knows his stuff...it may require a couple of purchases to actually build a relationship with that guy but once you do, you find that if he doesn't have the knowledge or experience to help you, he's knows someone who does. And he is OK with sending you to another shop if that is what it takes.
Like most relationships, it requires an investment of time and some mutual respect.

Can we make this a banner ad, or a bumper sticker, or something ?