horge
Member
I thought it would be nice to share what a Philippine gunshow is like,
with the other folks on THR.
First day of the Gun Show at the Mega Mall (MegaTrade Hall) in Metro Manila.
As expected, the place was fairly crowded--even by Philippine standards, though the air was nice, fresh and cool. I and my wife got there just after it opened, and well, here are the few pics I could snap that weren't completely obscured by the milling throng.
P50.00 entrance ticket for adults. That's about 90 cents US.
The Armscor booth was a little better laid out than last year, spreading the autoloaders over a longer stretch to prevent overcrowding. Their Tanfoglio showcase generated moderate interest. The rest was still too crowded to get a good pic, so I shot their large display area from the shotguns side. Customer service was excellent this year, despite the inquiry overload. The Armscor GI's were massively-improved over last year's. The park was so much better, and the rattle was almost all gone. The barrels are still this funky chrome-finish, and the triggerguard isn't as rounded as it should be, but I nearly bought one on the spot. Maybe Monday, when the crowds are thinner/saner.
Across and further down the aisle, the large SAM booth wasn't quite set up yet, but there was a lot of interest in their SAM pistols and their spare, forged slides, and questions as to whether those would drop-in fit an Armscor frame. Nice selection of imports (BUL, Para, etc.) though their Jennings and Lorcins were as always, good for many yuks.
The Twin Pines booth was less centrally-located than last year's. Their home-brand Rock Island Armory (RIA) 1911's and their imported S&W's (with some very nice Ruger 44's ---did I really see those .480's?) commanded a lot of attention, but the people manning the long counter seemed a little drained (within the first couple of hours of the GunShow?? Setup must have been a nightmare.)
Magnificent World got a quieter, central-aisle booth location this time, and reaped the dividends with female consumers. Their display counters were a little too low, though... Nice friendly staff, compensting for the sour air in the PPSA (Philippine Practical Shooting) booth nearby. Good selection of Israeli firearms (IMI, Jericho).
I think this was the Trust Trade (or was it True Weight?) booth. I was probably suffering from sensory overload at this point
Glock, Beretta, Colt, Taurus, and pretty much everything else.
I liked the Weapons Systems Corp booth, nice pistol selection,
Advanced Weapons Systems was badly mobbed because of their various Bushmaster M4's and their mainstay, folding-stock MP-5's. Too crowded for photos. Hahn had a very nice display of Colt's NRM's, Norinco's, though (like Armscor) they needed to spread the pistols out to prevent crowding.
P.B.Dionisio showed off its broad selection of scatterguns, rifles, and a few SMG's. It was unfortunately right next to AWS's M4a1-nutty crowd. Too hectic to get a pic: I was getting jostled left and right. But if you like shotties and rifles... wooohaaaa!
There were more outlets carrying Bersa and Llama pistols than last year --they must be selling well enough. There were fewer outlets offering GI Norincos, though the two-toned versions (NP27) were fairly well-represented. I didn't see the much-maligned Art Lantin's this year --maybe I just missed it. I was hoping CLIP Merchandising would offer a bigger gunshow discount on its magazines, but...
The tiny Secure Arms booth featured a .380 autopistol bonanza:
Browning BDA's, Sig P232's, Bersa Thunder 380's, Llama Micromax 380's
and an interesting Daewoo 380, along with the usual .45's and wondr9's.
I was missing the Walthers, HS2000's, CZ Skorpions, Steyr's, NAA's and Kahr's of last year --maybe I missed them in the controlled confusion.
Normally I wait til the last day of the show --les crowded, with generally better-educated (firearms-wise) shoppers. First couple of days there are always one or two clowns pointing deliberately at you and pulling triggers. I don't care if the display models are empty --I can be a good Christian about it, but I don't like it, and make it known. If anyone had pointed at my wife, they would have gotten more than an earful.
Loads of LEO's in attendance, more than happy to relate that their service nines had largely been replaced or seconded with 1911's, funded at the station level.
Notable standouts I ran into?
The Armscor GI (5", park) is selling for only P10,800 ($192), w/ 2 mags
There was a Colt Pony selling for P40,000 ($716)!!! Eeek.
Norinco NP-27 Special Two Tone Compact P22,000 ($392)
As always, the full auto CZ-75 was nice.
Ditto the many small (and i mean SMALL) SMG's
The Armcor AK-22 was interestingly light for its size.
There was some interesting Buffalo prefragged JHP that might be worth looking into (P150.00 up per round --nearly $2.70!!-- depending on caliber). Never heard of that brand before.
The GunShow runs til Monday, and is usually held twice a year.
FWIW,
horge
with the other folks on THR.
First day of the Gun Show at the Mega Mall (MegaTrade Hall) in Metro Manila.
As expected, the place was fairly crowded--even by Philippine standards, though the air was nice, fresh and cool. I and my wife got there just after it opened, and well, here are the few pics I could snap that weren't completely obscured by the milling throng.
P50.00 entrance ticket for adults. That's about 90 cents US.
The Armscor booth was a little better laid out than last year, spreading the autoloaders over a longer stretch to prevent overcrowding. Their Tanfoglio showcase generated moderate interest. The rest was still too crowded to get a good pic, so I shot their large display area from the shotguns side. Customer service was excellent this year, despite the inquiry overload. The Armscor GI's were massively-improved over last year's. The park was so much better, and the rattle was almost all gone. The barrels are still this funky chrome-finish, and the triggerguard isn't as rounded as it should be, but I nearly bought one on the spot. Maybe Monday, when the crowds are thinner/saner.
Across and further down the aisle, the large SAM booth wasn't quite set up yet, but there was a lot of interest in their SAM pistols and their spare, forged slides, and questions as to whether those would drop-in fit an Armscor frame. Nice selection of imports (BUL, Para, etc.) though their Jennings and Lorcins were as always, good for many yuks.
The Twin Pines booth was less centrally-located than last year's. Their home-brand Rock Island Armory (RIA) 1911's and their imported S&W's (with some very nice Ruger 44's ---did I really see those .480's?) commanded a lot of attention, but the people manning the long counter seemed a little drained (within the first couple of hours of the GunShow?? Setup must have been a nightmare.)
Magnificent World got a quieter, central-aisle booth location this time, and reaped the dividends with female consumers. Their display counters were a little too low, though... Nice friendly staff, compensting for the sour air in the PPSA (Philippine Practical Shooting) booth nearby. Good selection of Israeli firearms (IMI, Jericho).
I think this was the Trust Trade (or was it True Weight?) booth. I was probably suffering from sensory overload at this point
Glock, Beretta, Colt, Taurus, and pretty much everything else.
I liked the Weapons Systems Corp booth, nice pistol selection,
Advanced Weapons Systems was badly mobbed because of their various Bushmaster M4's and their mainstay, folding-stock MP-5's. Too crowded for photos. Hahn had a very nice display of Colt's NRM's, Norinco's, though (like Armscor) they needed to spread the pistols out to prevent crowding.
P.B.Dionisio showed off its broad selection of scatterguns, rifles, and a few SMG's. It was unfortunately right next to AWS's M4a1-nutty crowd. Too hectic to get a pic: I was getting jostled left and right. But if you like shotties and rifles... wooohaaaa!
There were more outlets carrying Bersa and Llama pistols than last year --they must be selling well enough. There were fewer outlets offering GI Norincos, though the two-toned versions (NP27) were fairly well-represented. I didn't see the much-maligned Art Lantin's this year --maybe I just missed it. I was hoping CLIP Merchandising would offer a bigger gunshow discount on its magazines, but...
The tiny Secure Arms booth featured a .380 autopistol bonanza:
Browning BDA's, Sig P232's, Bersa Thunder 380's, Llama Micromax 380's
and an interesting Daewoo 380, along with the usual .45's and wondr9's.
I was missing the Walthers, HS2000's, CZ Skorpions, Steyr's, NAA's and Kahr's of last year --maybe I missed them in the controlled confusion.
Normally I wait til the last day of the show --les crowded, with generally better-educated (firearms-wise) shoppers. First couple of days there are always one or two clowns pointing deliberately at you and pulling triggers. I don't care if the display models are empty --I can be a good Christian about it, but I don't like it, and make it known. If anyone had pointed at my wife, they would have gotten more than an earful.
Loads of LEO's in attendance, more than happy to relate that their service nines had largely been replaced or seconded with 1911's, funded at the station level.
Notable standouts I ran into?
The Armscor GI (5", park) is selling for only P10,800 ($192), w/ 2 mags
There was a Colt Pony selling for P40,000 ($716)!!! Eeek.
Norinco NP-27 Special Two Tone Compact P22,000 ($392)
As always, the full auto CZ-75 was nice.
Ditto the many small (and i mean SMALL) SMG's
The Armcor AK-22 was interestingly light for its size.
There was some interesting Buffalo prefragged JHP that might be worth looking into (P150.00 up per round --nearly $2.70!!-- depending on caliber). Never heard of that brand before.
The GunShow runs til Monday, and is usually held twice a year.
FWIW,
horge
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