Problems with Bud's Gun Shop online deals

Solomon Heriger · September 9, 2009, 08:27 AM

Curious to hear about anyone having issue with online shopping deals at Bud's Gun Shop.

I have only had one dealing with Bud's, and wasn't happy. I had a great customer service rep, Josh McFadden, who did his best to take care of my problem, but I still ended up with a defective gun after two tries.

First gun ordered was a Knight KP1 with the camo stock. I got the gun and the camo laminate was cracked, split and even missing in several places. Plus it had been fired and very poorly cleaned. I returned the gun for a replacement, and the new Knight was the stainless steel model with black composite stock. I went to dry-fire it with a primer, but the hammer wouldn't cock. Turns out I was sent another defective gun, as the transfer bar between the hammer and the firing pin had snapped loose (I'm guessing that someone at the store dry-fired it without a primer...a real no-no in a KP1). I could tell that the gun had been test-fired by the factory, so it worked at one point, but was shipped from Bud's with the defect.

Rather that deal with Bud's again, I just treated it as a warranty issue with Knight, who took care of the problem.

Based upon the firearm selection and the lack of inspection before shipping, I won't buy from them again. I was happy with the price and the call center rep, but not the products they were shipping me.

NGIB · September 9, 2009, 09:04 AM

I've bought a couple from them with no complaints. Good price, reasonably fast delivery, what's to not like...

Solomon Heriger · September 9, 2009, 11:03 AM

The problem was that both muzzleloaders arrived with dirty, uncleaned barrels, beat up boxes that had been opened and taped shut repeatedly, guns that were covered with dirty fingerprints and grease smudges, and the guns were shipped without inspecting them for these problems. I talked to Knight, and they assured me that all the guns leaving the factory are fired and inspected and in perfect working order. The guns I got from Bud's have chipped stocks and other defects that appeared to have happened after leaving Knight and before getting to me. I've bought other Knight products at stores and never had these problems. I was simply curious if anyone else had experienced these issues.

If the gun was dirty, it had apparently been fired at least once, which means it was working at some point. Even if Knight's at fault for not cleaning it better, I would have to assume that if it was test-fired, then the firing mechanism worked when it left Knight, or they wouldn't have released it.

AWP79 · September 9, 2009, 03:54 PM

I have never had a problem with Buds. I have bought 2 handguns from them and was very happy the only thing that I did not like was the 3% hike up for using bank card.

DiscoRacing · September 9, 2009, 05:58 PM

Ive got two pistols from there... both used.... didnt have any problem at all... items were just as described.

hoytinak · September 9, 2009, 06:06 PM

I've bought a total of 17 firearms (some new, some used) from Bud's over the years and never had a problem with any of them.

passintime · September 9, 2009, 07:16 PM

I have bought about 8-10 guns from them. Sometimes they are super slow, but the last time I won a S&W M&P .40 with leather gould and goodrich holster in an auction on their site for $417 delivered. The gun arrived in 3 days. I must say, the guns I have ordered from there typically have poorer fit and finish than guns I have bought from gunshops and CDNN.

UniversalFrost · September 9, 2009, 08:39 PM

bought 2 new guns from them and opted for fast shipping option both times and both times they sat on my orders for 2 weeks before shipping and then didn't ship expediated. both times called them and complained and got the extra cost back and an appologie. they have great prices on guns, but sometimes they are not in stock even though they say they are (that was the case in both my orders).

might buy from them again, but with the cheap price on guns recently on the auction sites (lots of folks trying to cash out their guns to pay bills) I have not needed to even look at buds except to get a price point for a new or near new gun (they do have some of the lowest new prices around).

JOE

Rebailey · September 9, 2009, 08:55 PM

I have bought 6 guns from them and no problems. Will buy again.

rantingredneck · September 9, 2009, 09:49 PM

I've bought one new and 2 used guns from them, as well as some shotgun barrels and other accessories. Never had a complaint.

Logs · September 10, 2009, 06:07 AM

Typically Bud's takes your money and then has their warehouse ship the guns to you. Usually they never see the gun so not sure how they can be blamed if it was the factory's fault for defective gun.

I have bought several guns from their store in Paris and the new one in Lexington and have had zero issues.

Knight went out of business so that might be the cause of the issues and not Buds.

You mentioned the Great customer service in helping you try to fix a problem that a Manufacture Caused so the title should really be ISSUES WITH KNIGHT and not BUDS.

**Shane Tuttle** · September 10, 2009, 05:31 PM

Quote:

You mentioned the Great customer service in helping you try to fix a problem that a Manufacture Caused so the title should really be ISSUES WITH KNIGHT and not BUDS.

The OP specifically stated why he suspects the problem stems from Bud's.

Quote:

Typically Bud's takes your money and then has their warehouse ship the guns to you. Usually they never see the gun so not sure how they can be blamed if it was the factory's fault for defective gun.

Both the person that takes the money from you and the warehouse employee shipping the gun to you is, in fact, an employee of Bud's. Therefore, it's more than likely it's Bud's fault if the gun was not defective when they received the firearm and was defective when the buyer receives it.

Logs · September 10, 2009, 08:15 PM

Budsgunshop.com is separate from the Retail Store. For Example Wild Alaska sells guns that he has in stock at his retail store. Budsgunshop.com is tied into the inventory of a distributor and the take your order and the distributor ships from there. Buds is only the middle man I don't believe Buds Retail store ever laid hands on the gun so they would not have know if wasn't clean or defective.

I have been in Buds Retail store and they prices are typically higher in the store then online. He even use to charge a handling fee if you picked up at the store.

I still don't believe any employee of Buds touched the gun it was at a third party warehouse IMO

Quote:

All items advertised on www.budsgunshop.com or www.budspolicesupply.com are NOT necessarily in stock or on display at our retail store. To check price and availability of an item in the retail store, please call 859-368-0419.

eclipsetactical · September 10, 2009, 08:41 PM

They have a warehouse location they own. They stock some of thier guns in thier 2 retail shops and the others are stocked in the warehouse. This gentleman I met knows Gurney and grew up with Bud. From what I gather they are all really good people things just happen sometimes when you are running an operation that big. I would just right it off as a bad experience that could have happened anywhere not just at Bud's and move on with it. 99% of the time you are going to get a good deal and good service with Bud's.

**Shane Tuttle** · September 10, 2009, 09:48 PM

Quote:

They have a warehouse location they own. They stock some of thier guns in thier 2 retail shops and the others are stocked in the warehouse.

If this is the case, then I stand by my statement. If the warehouse they pulled the firearm from was a distributer that Bud's does not have any ownership, then I will be the first to admit I'm wrong.

Master Blaster · September 11, 2009, 07:05 AM

Quote:

Budsgunshop.com is separate from the Retail Store. For Example Wild Alaska sells guns that he has in stock at his retail store. Budsgunshop.com is tied into the inventory of a distributor and the take your order and the distributor ships from there. Buds is only the middle man I don't believe Buds Retail store ever laid hands on the gun so they would not have know if wasn't clean or defective.

A month ago I called Buds to inquire about an Anschutz 1712, now that is a $1600 .22lr rifle, and they told me that the warehouse sends it to them, they would open and inspect it, and then ship it out, so it would take about 6 business days. Not sure if they inspect less expensive firearms or not.

I did not order it from them, a local shop could get me the same price.

Solomon Heriger · September 11, 2009, 10:08 AM

First, I want to thank everyone for their responses, both pro and con. Customer experience is always subjective and dependent upon how things unfold in each transaction. This was my first transaction with Bud's, and although not a great experience overall, I will probably try them again anyway, particularly since the customer service rep was top-flight and made a strong effort to solve the problem. That's worth a lot...

I guess some misinterpreted what I was trying to say. I feel that if someone is going to sell you what is listed as a brand new factory-tested gun, as the middleman they should at minimum ensure that it's shipped in that condition. It's true that it is Knight's responsibility to see that the gun is firing properly before it leaves Knight Firearms. As the gun had clearly been fired, I can only assume that it was working when Knight released it. Therefore, my only issue with Bud's is that they don't appear to have control over, or direct access to, their inventory for closer inspection of the firearms before they ship, as noted in several posts.

As noted, I was very happy with the Bud's employee's efforts to get my issue resolved. He told me he personally inspected the second gun before shipping, but I don't think it occurred to him to check for firing issues, as the gun cocked just fine without a 209 primer. It's only when you install the primer that the gun would not cock.

In any case, I finally got through to Knight. The rep listened to my problem, then very quickly offered me an "upgrade" of an new trigger assembly group as part of the warranty issue. It appears to be a defective workmanship issue that they're working to correct with the upgrade, although he didn't come right out and say it.

So, with all things taken into consideration, I'm happy that Knight acknowledged the issue and replaced the trigger group, and with the exception of the fact that Bud's shipped me "new" two Knight KP1s that both had defect issues (the first cosmetic, the second mechanical), I'll probably give Bud's another try and hopefully have a different experience next time.

However, since Bud's is the seller, I do feel they have some obligation, however minor, to make sure new guns are shipped without having such issues.

Solomon Heriger · September 11, 2009, 10:19 AM

As a follow-up, if anyone owns a KP1 and is having firing issues and problems with the transfer bar in the trigger assembly, Knight had manufactured a replacement trigger assembly "upgrade" and has them available for anyone having these problems. When I spoke with the Knight rep yesterday (9.9.09), before I'd even finished describing the problem, he cut me off and said, "Send it in! We'll get the new upgrade to you right away." This may be a case of me reading between the lines, but it would seem that this issue is more widespread than just my new gun, particularly since they have these "replacement upgrades" available.

eclipsetactical · September 12, 2009, 04:06 AM

Usually you have a retail front and then a warehouse that not many people know about infact you try to keep it as secert as possible from the general public. You use it to have all your stuff shipped to and do inventory. Only other way is to have a huge huge store warehouse combo. Which you hardly ever see. Or obvious option 3 you have no store front for the public really. Your business has became mail order, internet and wholesale at that point. You have to have this warehouse because how can you run a business with constant flow of tractor trailers in and out of your store. Some truck driver lets just call him Buck for wins and grins, Buck comes up in the wrong door and coming up to your counter and kinda loudly sayin "Hey we got these here shippin crates to drop off, dont know whats in em but they say something about some AKM things, I dont know I just need to know where to drop these off at". He has just disturbed buisness andyou now have to dela with him instead of being with a customer. Not even to mention the sheer liability of keeping insurance on that amount of firearms that are in a location open to the public, an underwriters nightmare.

Bud's can't be hooked into the inventory of anyone's warehouse but themself. When it says available in warehouse that means its sitting in THIER warehouse, when it says not available all that means is there is not on in the store or THIER warehouse. However that does not mean the manufacturer does not have it in its warehouse. I can tell you Bud's is cool but they are not cool enough to have an uplink into different manufacturer's databases. No gun manufacturer is going to give you that kind of clearance. You have to make a telephone call or drop an email and ask for stock info. If they gave you an access link they would be nuts unless you were a company selling maybe 80% of thier gross product per year. Otherwise no database link for you. Now some but not many manufacturers have a website area where you can access stock, they are few and far between though. So Bud's website is only giving you thier inventory of what they have in stock not some hypathetical we can get it we think its in the warehouse thing.

This being said actually guns in the store are nicer. Because they have been handled a bit and if something if funky it has a chance of getting spotted. If you get things out of the warehouse yeah a Bud's emloyee has touched it because they had to record thier transfers and NICS info all that. But was that gun taken out of the box for in inspection? Very un likely, so there lies the I agree with Tututle its a manufacturer issue. Bud's cant open every box. I have seen Mosins piled to the ceiling (50ft) crate after crate after crate....would be hard to inspect those guns really well.....Would take days if not week depending how many guns you are talking they keep in stock which I have no idea of.

Nightowl · September 12, 2009, 04:44 AM

I was searching for magazines on the Internet and ran across the page below that directed me to Bud's Gun Shop.

They had the magazines for the advertised price so I went through all the motions to purchase several of these just to find out that there was a charge for not paying cash, which was not a major issue, but what disturbed me was the addition of over $10.00 for shipping. I was under the impression that there was "Free Shipping", but that was not the case. I suppose a phone call is in order.

CMDrew6115 · September 12, 2009, 05:11 AM

I've only dealt with Buds once when I purchased a Beretta Cx4 Storm from them. I had a great experience, I chose to save the 3% and sent them a check. It took a little longer because they couldn't ship until the payment cleared, but I was very pleased with the entire process. The 3% mark-up isn't uncommon for firearms dealers. If you look on GunBroker, most of the gun sales also add a 3% mark-up for the use of credit cards because it's not free for them to process the payment like it is with a check or money order.

Sorry to hear about your bad experience with Buds, but I understand why you wouldn't want to shop there anymore after your experience. I'm glad to hear your manufacturer's warranty covered the firearm although it shouldn't have had to. Good luck!

kiov · September 29, 2009, 11:51 AM

2 guns, new, both perfect. no problems. best price i could find.
I'd do biz with them again.

goodspeed(TPF) · September 29, 2009, 05:32 PM

I have ordered from Buds in the past and all went smoothly. -Goodspeed

Double Naught Spy · September 30, 2009, 07:03 AM

Quote:

If the gun was dirty, it had apparently been fired at least once, which means it was working at some point. Even if Knight's at fault for not cleaning it better, I would have to assume that if it was test-fired, then the firing mechanism worked when it left Knight, or they wouldn't have released it.

While the problem may be with Bud's, it is very naive to assume that a gun is not shipped from the manufacturer with defects or problems. I have seen it happen with production guns and custom guns.

As with most of the others, my dealings with Bud's has been good, and like the OP, it has been twice.

JoGusto · October 18, 2009, 06:35 AM

I have only ordered from Bud's once. I bought a bunch of PMC Bronze 223 ammo and everything went smoothly.

Yea, I don't like the 3% markup if you use credit cards. Most businesses aren't doing this pricing dance, but I suppose Bud's is trying to preserve what are probably very thin margins. 3% might be a lot compared to their actual markup.

Can you imagine, though, if restaurants charged this extra 3% if you whip out your credit card? That's what happens in Romania; the price for your meal goes up by quite a bit when you whip out the plastic.

I agree with the OP's basic premise. If a box is factory sealed, the factory should have shipped a quality product. If, however, the box has been opened and taped shut again, then the retailer takes responsibility for making sure the customer's time isn't being wasted on something foolish, like a defective product that's been returned and being resold. I would hate to think that Bud's is just pawning off a reject rifle to a 2nd customer.

And yes, sometimes things fall thru the crack, but when they do, the retailer should take care of it, immediately.

September 9, 2009, 08:27 AM	#1
Solomon Heriger Junior Member Join Date: January 14, 2009 Posts: 7	Problems with Bud's Gun Shop online deals Curious to hear about anyone having issue with online shopping deals at Bud's Gun Shop. I have only had one dealing with Bud's, and wasn't happy. I had a great customer service rep, Josh McFadden, who did his best to take care of my problem, but I still ended up with a defective gun after two tries. First gun ordered was a Knight KP1 with the camo stock. I got the gun and the camo laminate was cracked, split and even missing in several places. Plus it had been fired and very poorly cleaned. I returned the gun for a replacement, and the new Knight was the stainless steel model with black composite stock. I went to dry-fire it with a primer, but the hammer wouldn't cock. Turns out I was sent another defective gun, as the transfer bar between the hammer and the firing pin had snapped loose (I'm guessing that someone at the store dry-fired it without a primer...a real no-no in a KP1). I could tell that the gun had been test-fired by the factory, so it worked at one point, but was shipped from Bud's with the defect. Rather that deal with Bud's again, I just treated it as a warranty issue with Knight, who took care of the problem. Based upon the firearm selection and the lack of inspection before shipping, I won't buy from them again. I was happy with the price and the call center rep, but not the products they were shipping me. Last edited by Solomon Heriger; September 9, 2009 at 08:48 AM. Reason: needed to correct a certain point

September 9, 2009, 09:04 AM	#2
NGIB Senior Member Join Date: November 30, 2007 Location: Ft Stewart, GA Posts: 932	I've bought a couple from them with no complaints. Good price, reasonably fast delivery, what's to not like... __________________ Proud to be a veteran. (USAF Retired, Army Civilian) I'm old, grumpy, and jaded - still vertical though...

September 9, 2009, 08:39 PM	#8
UniversalFrost Senior Member Join Date: February 20, 2006 Location: Ohio Posts: 2,300	bought 2 new guns from them and opted for fast shipping option both times and both times they sat on my orders for 2 weeks before shipping and then didn't ship expediated. both times called them and complained and got the extra cost back and an appologie. they have great prices on guns, but sometimes they are not in stock even though they say they are (that was the case in both my orders). might buy from them again, but with the cheap price on guns recently on the auction sites (lots of folks trying to cash out their guns to pay bills) I have not needed to even look at buds except to get a price point for a new or near new gun (they do have some of the lowest new prices around). JOE __________________ Lifetime member VFW and NRA "Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati" (when all else fails play dead) -Red Green

September 9, 2009, 08:55 PM	#9
Rebailey Junior member Join Date: February 29, 2008 Location: Hernando, Ms. (Northwest Ms.) Posts: 26	Bud's I have bought 6 guns from them and no problems. Will buy again.

September 9, 2009, 09:49 PM	#10
rantingredneck Senior Member Join Date: January 12, 2007 Location: North Carolina Posts: 4,728	I've bought one new and 2 used guns from them, as well as some shotgun barrels and other accessories. Never had a complaint. __________________ NRA Member NC Hunter's Education Instructor PCCA Member (What's PCCA you ask? <- Check the link)

September 9, 2009, 11:03 AM	#3
Solomon Heriger Junior Member Join Date: January 14, 2009 Posts: 7	The problem was that both muzzleloaders arrived with dirty, uncleaned barrels, beat up boxes that had been opened and taped shut repeatedly, guns that were covered with dirty fingerprints and grease smudges, and the guns were shipped without inspecting them for these problems. I talked to Knight, and they assured me that all the guns leaving the factory are fired and inspected and in perfect working order. The guns I got from Bud's have chipped stocks and other defects that appeared to have happened after leaving Knight and before getting to me. I've bought other Knight products at stores and never had these problems. I was simply curious if anyone else had experienced these issues. If the gun was dirty, it had apparently been fired at least once, which means it was working at some point. Even if Knight's at fault for not cleaning it better, I would have to assume that if it was test-fired, then the firing mechanism worked when it left Knight, or they wouldn't have released it.

September 9, 2009, 03:54 PM	#4
AWP79 Member Join Date: January 9, 2009 Location: Rosehill, Texas Posts: 15	I have never had a problem with Buds. I have bought 2 handguns from them and was very happy the only thing that I did not like was the 3% hike up for using bank card.

September 9, 2009, 05:58 PM	#5
DiscoRacing Senior Member Join Date: December 19, 2008 Location: milton, wv Posts: 3,640	Ive got two pistols from there... both used.... didnt have any problem at all... items were just as described.

September 9, 2009, 06:06 PM	#6
hoytinak Senior Member Join Date: July 5, 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 5,721	I've bought a total of 17 firearms (some new, some used) from Bud's over the years and never had a problem with any of them.

September 9, 2009, 07:16 PM	#7
passintime Senior Member Join Date: September 14, 2008 Location: WV Posts: 352	I have bought about 8-10 guns from them. Sometimes they are super slow, but the last time I won a S&W M&P .40 with leather gould and goodrich holster in an auction on their site for $417 delivered. The gun arrived in 3 days. I must say, the guns I have ordered from there typically have poorer fit and finish than guns I have bought from gunshops and CDNN.

September 10, 2009, 06:07 AM	#11
Logs Senior Member Join Date: November 26, 1999 Location: BLUEGRASS STATE KY USA Posts: 1,780	Typically Bud's takes your money and then has their warehouse ship the guns to you. Usually they never see the gun so not sure how they can be blamed if it was the factory's fault for defective gun. I have bought several guns from their store in Paris and the new one in Lexington and have had zero issues. Knight went out of business so that might be the cause of the issues and not Buds. You mentioned the Great customer service in helping you try to fix a problem that a Manufacture Caused so the title should really be ISSUES WITH KNIGHT and not BUDS.

September 10, 2009, 08:41 PM	#14
eclipsetactical Junior member Join Date: January 5, 2009 Location: Fox Hole, KY Posts: 125	Buds They have a warehouse location they own. They stock some of thier guns in thier 2 retail shops and the others are stocked in the warehouse. This gentleman I met knows Gurney and grew up with Bud. From what I gather they are all really good people things just happen sometimes when you are running an operation that big. I would just right it off as a bad experience that could have happened anywhere not just at Bud's and move on with it. 99% of the time you are going to get a good deal and good service with Bud's.

September 11, 2009, 10:08 AM	#17
Solomon Heriger Junior Member Join Date: January 14, 2009 Posts: 7	Follow-up and resolution to my original post First, I want to thank everyone for their responses, both pro and con. Customer experience is always subjective and dependent upon how things unfold in each transaction. This was my first transaction with Bud's, and although not a great experience overall, I will probably try them again anyway, particularly since the customer service rep was top-flight and made a strong effort to solve the problem. That's worth a lot... I guess some misinterpreted what I was trying to say. I feel that if someone is going to sell you what is listed as a brand new factory-tested gun, as the middleman they should at minimum ensure that it's shipped in that condition. It's true that it is Knight's responsibility to see that the gun is firing properly before it leaves Knight Firearms. As the gun had clearly been fired, I can only assume that it was working when Knight released it. Therefore, my only issue with Bud's is that they don't appear to have control over, or direct access to, their inventory for closer inspection of the firearms before they ship, as noted in several posts. As noted, I was very happy with the Bud's employee's efforts to get my issue resolved. He told me he personally inspected the second gun before shipping, but I don't think it occurred to him to check for firing issues, as the gun cocked just fine without a 209 primer. It's only when you install the primer that the gun would not cock. In any case, I finally got through to Knight. The rep listened to my problem, then very quickly offered me an "upgrade" of an new trigger assembly group as part of the warranty issue. It appears to be a defective workmanship issue that they're working to correct with the upgrade, although he didn't come right out and say it. So, with all things taken into consideration, I'm happy that Knight acknowledged the issue and replaced the trigger group, and with the exception of the fact that Bud's shipped me "new" two Knight KP1s that both had defect issues (the first cosmetic, the second mechanical), I'll probably give Bud's another try and hopefully have a different experience next time. However, since Bud's is the seller, I do feel they have some obligation, however minor, to make sure new guns are shipped without having such issues. Last edited by Solomon Heriger; September 11, 2009 at 01:13 PM.

September 11, 2009, 10:19 AM	#18
Solomon Heriger Junior Member Join Date: January 14, 2009 Posts: 7	Knight KP1 issue As a follow-up, if anyone owns a KP1 and is having firing issues and problems with the transfer bar in the trigger assembly, Knight had manufactured a replacement trigger assembly "upgrade" and has them available for anyone having these problems. When I spoke with the Knight rep yesterday (9.9.09), before I'd even finished describing the problem, he cut me off and said, "Send it in! We'll get the new upgrade to you right away." This may be a case of me reading between the lines, but it would seem that this issue is more widespread than just my new gun, particularly since they have these "replacement upgrades" available.

September 12, 2009, 04:06 AM	#19
eclipsetactical Junior member Join Date: January 5, 2009 Location: Fox Hole, KY Posts: 125	When you get into large operations Usually you have a retail front and then a warehouse that not many people know about infact you try to keep it as secert as possible from the general public. You use it to have all your stuff shipped to and do inventory. Only other way is to have a huge huge store warehouse combo. Which you hardly ever see. Or obvious option 3 you have no store front for the public really. Your business has became mail order, internet and wholesale at that point. You have to have this warehouse because how can you run a business with constant flow of tractor trailers in and out of your store. Some truck driver lets just call him Buck for wins and grins, Buck comes up in the wrong door and coming up to your counter and kinda loudly sayin "Hey we got these here shippin crates to drop off, dont know whats in em but they say something about some AKM things, I dont know I just need to know where to drop these off at". He has just disturbed buisness andyou now have to dela with him instead of being with a customer. Not even to mention the sheer liability of keeping insurance on that amount of firearms that are in a location open to the public, an underwriters nightmare. Bud's can't be hooked into the inventory of anyone's warehouse but themself. When it says available in warehouse that means its sitting in THIER warehouse, when it says not available all that means is there is not on in the store or THIER warehouse. However that does not mean the manufacturer does not have it in its warehouse. I can tell you Bud's is cool but they are not cool enough to have an uplink into different manufacturer's databases. No gun manufacturer is going to give you that kind of clearance. You have to make a telephone call or drop an email and ask for stock info. If they gave you an access link they would be nuts unless you were a company selling maybe 80% of thier gross product per year. Otherwise no database link for you. Now some but not many manufacturers have a website area where you can access stock, they are few and far between though. So Bud's website is only giving you thier inventory of what they have in stock not some hypathetical we can get it we think its in the warehouse thing. This being said actually guns in the store are nicer. Because they have been handled a bit and if something if funky it has a chance of getting spotted. If you get things out of the warehouse yeah a Bud's emloyee has touched it because they had to record thier transfers and NICS info all that. But was that gun taken out of the box for in inspection? Very un likely, so there lies the I agree with Tututle its a manufacturer issue. Bud's cant open every box. I have seen Mosins piled to the ceiling (50ft) crate after crate after crate....would be hard to inspect those guns really well.....Would take days if not week depending how many guns you are talking they keep in stock which I have no idea of. Last edited by eclipsetactical; September 12, 2009 at 04:17 AM.

September 12, 2009, 04:44 AM	#20
Nightowl Senior Member Join Date: August 17, 2009 Location: New England Posts: 113	Bud's I was searching for magazines on the Internet and ran across the page below that directed me to Bud's Gun Shop. They had the magazines for the advertised price so I went through all the motions to purchase several of these just to find out that there was a charge for not paying cash, which was not a major issue, but what disturbed me was the addition of over $10.00 for shipping. I was under the impression that there was "Free Shipping", but that was not the case. I suppose a phone call is in order. __________________ Nightowl NRA Life Member & GOAL Supporter Proud Veteran Always - Safety First!

September 12, 2009, 05:11 AM	#21
CMDrew6115 Member Join Date: September 1, 2009 Location: Concord, NC Posts: 40	I've only dealt with Buds once when I purchased a Beretta Cx4 Storm from them. I had a great experience, I chose to save the 3% and sent them a check. It took a little longer because they couldn't ship until the payment cleared, but I was very pleased with the entire process. The 3% mark-up isn't uncommon for firearms dealers. If you look on GunBroker, most of the gun sales also add a 3% mark-up for the use of credit cards because it's not free for them to process the payment like it is with a check or money order. Sorry to hear about your bad experience with Buds, but I understand why you wouldn't want to shop there anymore after your experience. I'm glad to hear your manufacturer's warranty covered the firearm although it shouldn't have had to. Good luck!

September 29, 2009, 11:51 AM	#22
kiov Senior Member Join Date: September 14, 2004 Posts: 283	2 guns, new, both perfect. no problems. best price i could find. I'd do biz with them again.

September 29, 2009, 05:32 PM	#23
goodspeed(TPF) Senior Member Join Date: January 19, 2009 Location: WI Posts: 1,162	I have ordered from Buds in the past and all went smoothly. -Goodspeed __________________ It's a trick. Get an axe. http://www.thepiratefleet.com/index.shtml

October 18, 2009, 06:35 AM	#25
JoGusto Junior Member Join Date: October 18, 2009 Posts: 2	Good experience ordering ammo; agree with the OP... I have only ordered from Bud's once. I bought a bunch of PMC Bronze 223 ammo and everything went smoothly. Yea, I don't like the 3% markup if you use credit cards. Most businesses aren't doing this pricing dance, but I suppose Bud's is trying to preserve what are probably very thin margins. 3% might be a lot compared to their actual markup. Can you imagine, though, if restaurants charged this extra 3% if you whip out your credit card? That's what happens in Romania; the price for your meal goes up by quite a bit when you whip out the plastic. I agree with the OP's basic premise. If a box is factory sealed, the factory should have shipped a quality product. If, however, the box has been opened and taped shut again, then the retailer takes responsibility for making sure the customer's time isn't being wasted on something foolish, like a defective product that's been returned and being resold. I would hate to think that Bud's is just pawning off a reject rifle to a 2nd customer. And yes, sometimes things fall thru the crack, but when they do, the retailer should take care of it, immediately.