My LGS has Guns They WONT Sell Me

[weblance]

I have been interested in buying a FN FNX-45. My LGS has one in the Law Enforcement case. Its listed at $620, which is an excellent price. I handled it last week, and its the pistol I want. So... today, I went in with $700 in my pocket. Sorry... NO SALE. Its for Law Enforcement only. HUH? I ask, "whats the difference?" Oh... well, theres no difference, wait... Yes there is a difference, it comes in a blue box. And its serialized for Law Enforcement.

I expected the only difference to be the discount price for LE. I was certainly ready to pay the regular price, what ever that would have been. So, they didnt sell a gun they had in stock, and I didnt buy a gun that was locally in stock. Thats too bad, I wonder how they feel about losing the sale?

[ClydeFrog]

Author, sworn LE officer & legal use of force expert: Massad Ayoob once put out a gun press article about "POLICE ONLY" & "LE ONLY" titles/marketing.
Ayoob said in most places(USA) these titles have little or no legal bearing & a private citizen who meets all other legal requirements can lawfully own or possess these items(holsters-duty gear, OC spray, ammunition, firearms, etc).
Sometimes these boxes or packages have LE ONLY because they are part of a contract order or are meant to satisfy a procurement request & are not meant for retail sale to the general public.
In Feb, 1997; I purchased a NIB/unfired "surplus" 96D .40S&W pistol for approx $580.00 USD. The Beretta 96D .40 was a "Police Special" & had Robar NP3 with bright Tritium 3 dot Trijicon sights.
I was a happy camper. The gun shop sales clerk later told me the state agency that ordered the modified Beretta sidearms & put them on the open market wanted the gun shops to "sell" them back to the LE agency.
The gun shop managers said; "good luck, Chuck"

In recent years, I've seen Glock USA's "Blue Label" program(for sworn LE officers, licensed-certified security officers, firefighters/EMTs, US military service members & documented retirees) that claims to sell NIB Glock sidearms(19/17/22/23/21/30/etc) at a discounted sale price.
Do FFL holders or gun shops in CONUS use this Blue Label program? NO!!!
Most retail locations say; "we don't use the Glock program due to high demand" or "what's the Glock Blue Label program?"

CF

[richardcorey]

I have a great aversion to bureaucratic nonsense and have been known to revert to sarcasm when I confront it (or them). I would ask the owner if he has a camera handy, and if so would he take a photo of my face because today will be the LAST TIME he sees me in his place of business, and then stroll on out the door.
I sometimes wonder if the world will end due to stupid people in positions of power or if Political Correctness will be our final nail-in-the-coffin. Nuff Said.

[dogtown tom]

The serial# of the gun has nothing to do with law enforcement.
Just as Colt, Glock, S&W have law enforcement pricing.......so does FN. Some of these "program guns" are LE only, some (like Glock) include military, private security, firefighters and other first responders.

That dealer got special pricing on that firearm from FN. As part of that program, sales are restricted to qualifying purchasers only. This is nothing new and has been going on for decades.

[dogtown tom]

ClydeFrog

In recent years, I've seen Glock USA's "Blue Label" program(for sworn LE officers, licensed-certified security officers, firefighters/EMTs, US military service members & documented retirees) that claims to sell NIB Glock sidearms(19/17/22/23/21/30/etc) at a discounted sale price.
Do FFL holders or gun shops in CONUS use this Blue Label program? NO!!!
Most retail locations say; "we don't use the Glock program due to high demand" or "what's the Glock Blue Label program?"

Absolute nonsense.
There's dozens of Glock LE dealers across the US.
Just Google "Glock Blue Label" and you'll read hundreds (if not thousands) of posts from guys who purchased their Glock this way.

You aren't going to find a Blue Label Glock at Academy or your typical LGS........look for a cop shop (ie police supply store).

[ClydeFrog]

I agree that there may be Glock authorized retail locations that DO use the Blue Label system, Im saying when I've checked around my area, that is the response I've got from FFL holders/retail locations.
If a TFL member wants to use the "Blue Label" program & meets the criteria, they should post a reply on the forum & say what the gun shop staff or FFL holder near them says.

And this includes the "LE supply" shops & retail stores that say they cater to first responders & LE.

[Noreaster]

Special pricing from the manufacturer for law enforcement. These firearms are logged/accounted for at the factory and sell at a different price. There is sometimes a federal tax exemption, (Pittman/Robertson act of 1937.) There is also a marketing pitch behind the practise, (my local Sheriff's Office issues XYZ pistol but all the guys carry glock/FN/Sig for off duty.)

[laytonj1]

If a TFL member wants to use the "Blue Label" program & meets the criteria, they should post a reply on the forum & say what the gun shop staff or FFL holder near them says.

Gulf State Distributors in Montgomery Al. is a Blue label Glock dealer. I bought a brand new Glock 19 for $393 plus tax.
They also have LEO and Military active duty pricing on Rugers. $599 for a SR1911.
The guns are purchased at a discount price from the manufacturer and can only be sold as such. Non LEO/Military discount guns are sold to them at regular price and can be sold to civilians.

Jim

[Kreyzhorse]

Thats too bad, I wonder how they feel about losing the sale?

Like stated above, they couldn't sell it to you due to manufacturer restrictions. I'd guess they didn't lose any sleep over it either.

[dogtown tom]

ClydeFrog I agree that there may be Glock authorized retail locations that DO use the Blue Label system, Im saying when I've checked around my area, that is the response I've got from FFL holders/retail locations.

Again, Google "Glock Blue Label" and the first result is Glock's website where you can discover all that goodness yourself.

[TailGator]

That dealer got special pricing on that firearm from FN. As part of that program, sales are restricted to qualifying purchasers only. This is nothing new and has been going on for decades.

That is the very likely explanation. And if they had taken just a few seconds to explain that to the customer, they wouldn't have had a customer leave mad.

[guy sajer]

We don't participate in the FNH LE program so I can't comment on that one but we are a Glock Blue Label supplier . Glock is very specific as to who can purchase these . There is a special form to fill out and then after the sale we have to send the paperwork to the distributor that supplies us with the BL guns . If we sell to someone not meeting their requirements it terminates our agreement and we can no longer handle the LE guns . I'm sure the FNH program is similar .

I agree , the dealer should've done a better job of explaining why the sale couldn't be made .

The excise tax is still included in the cost . Glock takes the loss themselves by selling them at a discount .

[Spats McGee]

Originally Posted by ClydeFrog

. . . .If a TFL member wants to use the "Blue Label" program & meets the criteria, they should post a reply on the forum & say what the gun shop staff or FFL holder near them says.

And this includes the "LE supply" shops & retail stores that say they cater to first responders & LE.

If a TFL member wants to use the Blue Label Program, he or she can also go here, http://us.glock.com/dealer-locator, click the "LE Dealer" tab, put in your zip code, and hit "enter."

In Arkansas, it's either Cruse Uniforms in Little Rock, or its satellite shop in Springdale.

[Theohazard]

weblance posted
So, they didnt sell a gun they had in stock, and I didnt buy a gun that was locally in stock. Thats too bad, I wonder how they feel about losing the sale?

I'm a little confused by the OP. It was in the law enforcement case, they explained to you that it was for law enforcement only, and it came in a special box and was serialized differently. So why would you be annoyed they didn't sell it to you? I would think that the different packaging and labeling would make it clear that it's not intended by the manufacturer to be for civilians; they CAN'T sell it to non-law enforcement without severely violating an agreement with their distributer.

richardcorey posted
I would ask the owner if he has a camera handy, and if so would he take a photo of my face because today will be the LAST TIME he sees me in his place of business, and then stroll on out the door.

So you'd leave an LGS in a huff and never come back just because they wouldn't break a contract with their distributer and sell a law-enforcement-only gun to someone who isn't law enforcement?

[Winchester_73]

Weblance,

I wonder if your wife or significant other had something to do with this

[FoghornLeghorn]

if they had taken just a few seconds to explain that to the customer

The OP didn't specify, but a lot of gun stores I frequent employ people who really don't know why things are done. These guys work for minimum wage, after all.

[weblance]

Originally Posted by Theohazard

I'm a little confused by the OP. It was in the law enforcement case, they explained to you that it was for law enforcement only, and it came in a special box and was serialized differently. So why would you be annoyed they didn't sell it to you? I would think that the different packaging and labeling would make it clear that it's not intended by the manufacturer to be for civilians; they CAN'T sell it to non-law enforcement without severely violating an agreement with their distributer.

I never said I was annoyed. They never explained that it was for LE ONLY. When I asked what MY price would be, only then was I told it wasnt available to me, unless I was LEO. When I asked what the difference was in the gun, I was told there was no difference. I now understand the pricing differences from the manufacturer. The packaging wasnt visible, and I was told that only the color of the box is different. No where on the labeling of the pistol does it say "Law Enforcement Only" or "For Police Use". Its the exact same gun.

[Theohazard]

weblance posted
They never explained that it was for LE ONLY

I understand that you thought it was just a normal pistol that could either be sold at normal price to a non-LEO, or at a discount to a LEO. If that had been the case, I can understand your initial frustration. But this part makes it look like he explained it was for LE only:

weblance posted
Sorry... NO SALE. Its for Law Enforcement only. HUH? I ask, "whats the difference?" Oh... well, theres no difference, wait... Yes there is a difference, it comes in a blue box. And its serialized for Law Enforcement.

I would assume from the facts that he said it was for law enforcement only, that it came in a different box, and that it was serialized for law enforcement, it would be clear that he COULDN'T sell it to you, not that he WOULDN'T sell it to you.

But my assumption is only from what you wrote in your first post, obviously I wasn't there; apparently either the clerk was completely unclear or there was a miscommunication there. Besides, you know what they say about people who assume?

weblance posted
When I asked what the difference was in the gun, I was told there was no difference.

There is no difference in the gun itself, there is just a difference in how it's packaged and sold. But I agree that part can be confusing: The LE guns are different guns but the gun is no different.

[Corrections Cop]

We have that same glock deal available to us in MI as LE we can get a deal on a new glock but you must be LE, and its through a police supply store that supplies firearms to the State Police and DOC and other agencies. You need you dep. ID to purchase. I have not gotten one yet but I would like to.

[natman]

In effect what's going on is that they offer a discount for LE. You're not eligible. Buy the same gun in the "civilian" version.

[CUBAN REDNECK]

I would go somewhere else. Obviously these clowns aren't business people and refuse to accept you as a legit customer.

[Loronzo]

I'm not trying to sound smug but if its in a law enforcement only case (that's clearly marked as such) and refuse to sell to you because you aren't law enforcement they are just doing their job. Maybe they can order a non leo one for you at a non leo price?

[csmsss]

No one else is bothered that LEO's are provided a gratuity/discount that is not available to the general public?

[MLeake]

No more than I am bothered by getting veteran's discounts. It's a business promotion, or perhaps even a true expression of gratitude for service - but it is NOT compelled by the government.

[natman]

No one else is bothered that LEO's are provided a gratuity/discount that is not available to the general public?

No.