Wal Mart Guns

[Dead-Nuts-Zero]

Such post as this will go on forever. There are several points on each side. I have bought guns at WM and have no problem with them. I buy them to shoot and hunt and don't really care if it's real walnut. If I want a good brand fancy gun to polish and brag about I will go to the local dealer. That is if there were one within 30 miles. I do much of my shopping at night and on weekends and the WM store is open. I can get bait, licenses and ammo whenever I need it. If I go away on vacation, and I need a new fish pole for the kids, I don't know where to find the local shops so I go where I can pick up everything I may need for the week of r & r. Beer, bread and bedspreads all in one stop. My vacation time and money is valuable to me.

I have had my own businesses for many years and I know both sides to most of it. I think of many of my small town business owners, they drive the new big cars and have the better house in the best part of town. There kids go to the big schools etc. etc. etc. When you shop at a big box store, you are helping support dozens of families, not just one, and they are often families who need the support. Every time a new big box store opens, I hear how they have thousands of applications to fill only 2 or 3 hundred jobs. They can't be that bad of a place to work. My son worked at one right out of school and he made a decent wage, had all kinds of benefits availible to him. Not as good as the union boys in Detroit, but a good place to start out at with no college education. And he had fun working there and learned alot too. WM was a small town business when it started. They knew what they were doing and are still doing it, and doing it very well. I remember 30 years ago pre-WM days, when the local gas station became 7-11 and they sold grocery items, fresh hot pizza, sweatshirts, beer, ice cream Sundays etc. much like WM. Now try to find a gas station who will check your oil. Who cares? Yea some do care like my mother, but most don't, they care about saving a few bucks. What about the small local shoe store owner? Does he call up the Buick dealer across town and say I need a car, when can I pick it up? My bet is that the shoe store owner checks out the Sunday paper new car ads and checks the city dealers as well as the local guy because he can save maybe thousands. Is this any different?
I believe that with guns, they will become harder to get every year because of the anti's. It will be the big box stores that can afford to lobby and they, if anyone will get the guns. I could be wrong, but that's how I see it. One store vs. 20 small individual gun dealers for the feds to govern? We all know they don't know what's going on most of the time.

Just my 2 cents and this is the way I see some of it. I am sure there are many who will disagree with everything and I respect that. And one last thing, my local WM has two licensed (very successful) hunting and fishing guides who work/run their sporting goods sections. They work mostly in the off season and they love to talk gun talk at the store and they know the difference between 12 and 20 ga. If it weren’t for flexible hours and seasonal work, they may not have the job (as an outdoor guide) they love, because it won't support their families year round. WM has tons of employees that are seasonal and part time. Some of them even live in the better part of town! FWIW IMO.

[Tommy Vercetti]

I just choose to deal with someone who knows me personally

[rhoffler]

was looking at Beretta's web page wrote down there order numbers went to walmart exactly the same numbers. Remington didnt have there numbers listed.Walmart's buyers buy for aleast a region at a time if not for the whole network of stores. It's simply supply and demand if you like your local gun supply then you should support them but a store making an order for six 870's can't compete with one ordering 5000.buy where you feel your getting what you want and at your price.

[Earnhardtjr3829]

I have bought 4 guns at Wal Mart. A Rem 870 Express Super Mag, Rem Spartan 12 gauge single shot, Savage .22 model 62f, and Marlin .22 model 60. I have been very satisfied with all except the Savage, which I have posted about before. It jammed every other round when I bought it, and after being sent back 3 times, It hasn't been fixed at all. I hate what Wal Mart does to dealers as much as the next guy, but it's hard to turn those prices down. I buy enough guns from shows and dealers though to do my part.

[Texas9000s]

From the manufacturing side of all this. I work for a rather large tire company on the retail side. I see what some tire companies call "club models" these would be the major brand "x" tires that you see at Costco, WalMart, Sams, etc. The "brand" is the same, the model is similar, maybe with an extra letter thrown in. These are tires that are made for "them" and not "us". I cannot factualy speak about diferences in what goes into these "club" tires, only that they are, in fact different. If you bring me, one of my companies "club" tires, I don't have to warranty it. I would suspect the same of many of the other name brand products they sell. That said, my company also makes a no name "brand" that I sell and warrant, just less features in the product, no marketing costs lower selling price. Every other tire company does the same thing. If you call Discount Tire they sell a Pathfinder tire that is visually identical to a Kelly Springfield, they are the same, yet different.