Is a Wal-Mart Gun Equal to a Cabela's Gun? - Page 3

Rob3 · January 13, 2011, 07:36 PM

No one believes that Remington or any other manufacturer would send out an unsafe gun, no matter where it is destined. However, I think it is entirely possible that certain guns recieve more QC than others. My Walmart 700 would not pass anyone's quality inspection that wasn't walking around with a red and white cane. Are all 700s created equal? I am certainly no expert, but does a ADL, BDL, and CDL all recieve the same amount of QC and craftsmanship? Is it possible that a special run destined for Walmart that must meet a price point get a little less attention to details to speed production and hold down costs? I don't pretend to know the answers but I will never buy another gun from a big box store.

Quentin2 · January 13, 2011, 08:04 PM

Some of the replies talking about K-Mart, etc. reminded me that way back in 1971 I bought a Marlin Glenfield 60 at I think Globe Shopping City. I think it was on sale for about $30 with a scope. It was a store brand for K-Mart and others but otherwise identical to the regular Marlin Model 60. Never had any trouble with it and it still shoots great today.

Fast forwarding to recent history I bought a Marlin Model 60 at Walmart a few years ago and guess what ... another great shooter at a great price.

Fusion · January 13, 2011, 08:41 PM

Quote:

No one believes that Remington or any other manufacturer would send out an unsafe gun, no matter where it is destined. However, I think it is entirely possible that certain guns recieve more QC than others. My Walmart 700 would not pass anyone's quality inspection that wasn't walking around with a red and white cane. Are all 700s created equal? I am certainly no expert, but does a ADL, BDL, and CDL all recieve the same amount of QC and craftsmanship? Is it possible that a special run destined for Walmart that must meet a price point get a little less attention to details to speed production and hold down costs? I don't pretend to know the answers but I will never buy another gun from a big box store.

In all honesty, this is why I don't like Remington. I've been less than impressed in the quality of any Remington I've owned, or handled in the last 5 years. I've also got several friends that have bought Remington's in the last few years and all have had issues right out of the box. None of them have come from Walmart. So I suspect you should be blaming Remington not Walmart, but that's really a moot point.

Rob3 · January 13, 2011, 08:50 PM

I don't blame Walmart, I like Walmart a lot. Nor am I a Remington hater, I just bought a 700 VTX a few months ago from a gun show and it is a great gun. I think I just got a gun that was made to a price point and no one bothered to look down the sights to see if they were remotely straight. If anything I blame myself for not checking out the gun before I bought it. I never made that mistake again.

langenc · January 13, 2011, 08:58 PM

If you want to buy a gun from WM ask the dept mgr to look at the gun ordering book.

I had the mgr place the book in my hands and say "see if you can find anything in here that you like. I can order and get it in 3-5 days."

It was arranged by gun maker sections. It didnt seem to look like all guns (models) my a mfgr were listed but I only looked thru it for couple minutes. That was about 5 yrs ago at Sault Sainte Marie, MI (on the Canadian border). We had just talked and the mgr found I was from 'over here' ie-US citizen.

MisterPX · January 13, 2011, 09:16 PM

They're teh same guns. WM just has better purchasing leverage than your local FFL.

Whether you buy from WM is up to you, just don't try to bring it back in when there's a problem with it like you could at a local FFL.

Quentin2 · January 13, 2011, 09:36 PM

I dunno, it's not that easy to return a gun anywhere. That's why you have to inspect them first or take along a buddy who knows guns.

Fusion · January 13, 2011, 10:57 PM

Quote:

They're teh same guns. WM just has better purchasing leverage than your local FFL.

Whether you buy from WM is up to you, just don't try to bring it back in when there's a problem with it like you could at a local FFL.

This used to be my theory, but I've since learned it's not true after having to deal with a local shop. You basically have to send the gun to the manufacturer no matter where you buy it if there is a problem. My problem turned into a huge headache because of the horrible customer support from the local shop, but I know now all local shops are that bad. A friend also saw this with his Remington 750 he bought last year from another gun shop that wouldn't function right out of the box. They wanted him to send it in to Remington even though Remington said it would be a 2 month turn around time. It was right during hunting season, so he ended up getting it fixed himself.

After seeing how bad of customer support most, not all, but most of the FFL's I've dealt with have had in addition to outrageous prices, I've started shopping for the best price. If you have a problem you are going to pretty much deal with the manufacturer no matter where you bought it.

Jim243 · January 14, 2011, 01:50 AM

To answer the question, yes, Walmart rifles are of less quality than those found at Gander Mt. and Cabelas. Not because the rifles are of less quality, but because Walmart carries the lower end of a manufacture's line of products. You will never find a Remington 700 CDL for sale on display at Walmart (Almost never) or your favorite 22-250 or 25-06 or Marlin 336C in 35 Remington. It is not what they sell. You will find Remington 770s and Charles Daly's and end of runs of models from various manufactorers. Price point is a way of life for Walmart and when you can order 10,000 of any one rifle at a time it makes a difference.

I have never meet a gunsmith that ever worked for Walmart, so yes you are on your own with your purchase, but you knew that when you walked into the store. It's just you and the manufacturer. But, I think it's the same way on their flat screen TVs as well they are just not equiped to handle service and repair.

Jim

Cousin Toad · January 14, 2011, 11:01 AM

Wal mart does not keep but a limited number of firearms on hand, I expect
those on hand are probably the most sold in that area. You can order just about any model of long gun from the major manufacturers. I ordered a
Marlin 336SS last August and it arrived about a week after I ordered it. Any firearm you order from Walmart is 50% down on a layaway plan and the balance when it arrives. The Marlin seems to be of good quality and identical to the ones I have seen in the local gun shop. It worked, no problems out of the box!

When you inquire about ordering a firearm from Walmart, they pull a page up on the computer in the Sporting Goods section and you select from their catalog and they enter the upc for order. I think the distributor for Walmart is Sports South, but not sure.

This a link I have found to download the Walmart Special order catalog for those interested.

http://i.walmartimages.com/i/if/hmp/...GunCatalog.pdf

theinvisibleheart · January 14, 2011, 11:50 AM

don't know about dealers other than Wal-Mart, but Wal-Mart's inventory scheme depends on high inventory turnover.

They stock and sell what doesn't sit on the shelf too long. I believe they have a store dependent discount policy, based on how long the item sits.

So to answer your question(for Wal-Mart), what Wal-Mart sells is not necessarily low quality, but something which, at the time of inventory, they judged is in demand and can sell quickly.

You can figure this out by reverse engineering their income statement.

January 14, 2011, 01:50 AM	#59
Jim243 Senior Member Join Date: January 5, 2009 Location: Just off Route 66 Posts: 5,067	To answer the question, yes, Walmart rifles are of less quality than those found at Gander Mt. and Cabelas. Not because the rifles are of less quality, but because Walmart carries the lower end of a manufacture's line of products. You will never find a Remington 700 CDL for sale on display at Walmart (Almost never) or your favorite 22-250 or 25-06 or Marlin 336C in 35 Remington. It is not what they sell. You will find Remington 770s and Charles Daly's and end of runs of models from various manufactorers. Price point is a way of life for Walmart and when you can order 10,000 of any one rifle at a time it makes a difference. I have never meet a gunsmith that ever worked for Walmart, so yes you are on your own with your purchase, but you knew that when you walked into the store. It's just you and the manufacturer. But, I think it's the same way on their flat screen TVs as well they are just not equiped to handle service and repair. Jim __________________ Si vis pacem, para bellum Last edited by Jim243; January 14, 2011 at 02:00 AM.

January 13, 2011, 07:36 PM	#51
Rob3 Registration in progress Join Date: January 2, 2011 Posts: 218	No one believes that Remington or any other manufacturer would send out an unsafe gun, no matter where it is destined. However, I think it is entirely possible that certain guns recieve more QC than others. My Walmart 700 would not pass anyone's quality inspection that wasn't walking around with a red and white cane. Are all 700s created equal? I am certainly no expert, but does a ADL, BDL, and CDL all recieve the same amount of QC and craftsmanship? Is it possible that a special run destined for Walmart that must meet a price point get a little less attention to details to speed production and hold down costs? I don't pretend to know the answers but I will never buy another gun from a big box store.

January 13, 2011, 08:04 PM	#52
Quentin2 Senior Member Join Date: June 18, 2009 Location: NorthWest USA Posts: 1,996	Some of the replies talking about K-Mart, etc. reminded me that way back in 1971 I bought a Marlin Glenfield 60 at I think Globe Shopping City. I think it was on sale for about $30 with a scope. It was a store brand for K-Mart and others but otherwise identical to the regular Marlin Model 60. Never had any trouble with it and it still shoots great today. Fast forwarding to recent history I bought a Marlin Model 60 at Walmart a few years ago and guess what ... another great shooter at a great price.

January 13, 2011, 08:50 PM	#54
Rob3 Registration in progress Join Date: January 2, 2011 Posts: 218	I don't blame Walmart, I like Walmart a lot. Nor am I a Remington hater, I just bought a 700 VTX a few months ago from a gun show and it is a great gun. I think I just got a gun that was made to a price point and no one bothered to look down the sights to see if they were remotely straight. If anything I blame myself for not checking out the gun before I bought it. I never made that mistake again.

January 13, 2011, 08:58 PM	#55
langenc Senior Member Join Date: August 19, 2007 Location: Montmorency Co, MI Posts: 1,551	If you want to buy a gun from WM ask the dept mgr to look at the gun ordering book. I had the mgr place the book in my hands and say "see if you can find anything in here that you like. I can order and get it in 3-5 days." It was arranged by gun maker sections. It didnt seem to look like all guns (models) my a mfgr were listed but I only looked thru it for couple minutes. That was about 5 yrs ago at Sault Sainte Marie, MI (on the Canadian border). We had just talked and the mgr found I was from 'over here' ie-US citizen.

January 13, 2011, 09:16 PM	#56
MisterPX Senior Member Join Date: April 25, 2006 Location: Amerika's Doyleland Posts: 809	They're teh same guns. WM just has better purchasing leverage than your local FFL. Whether you buy from WM is up to you, just don't try to bring it back in when there's a problem with it like you could at a local FFL.

January 13, 2011, 09:36 PM	#57
Quentin2 Senior Member Join Date: June 18, 2009 Location: NorthWest USA Posts: 1,996	I dunno, it's not that easy to return a gun anywhere. That's why you have to inspect them first or take along a buddy who knows guns.

January 14, 2011, 11:01 AM	#60
Cousin Toad Member Join Date: December 28, 2008 Location: Eastern NC Posts: 45	Wal mart does not keep but a limited number of firearms on hand, I expect those on hand are probably the most sold in that area. You can order just about any model of long gun from the major manufacturers. I ordered a Marlin 336SS last August and it arrived about a week after I ordered it. Any firearm you order from Walmart is 50% down on a layaway plan and the balance when it arrives. The Marlin seems to be of good quality and identical to the ones I have seen in the local gun shop. It worked, no problems out of the box! When you inquire about ordering a firearm from Walmart, they pull a page up on the computer in the Sporting Goods section and you select from their catalog and they enter the upc for order. I think the distributor for Walmart is Sports South, but not sure. This a link I have found to download the Walmart Special order catalog for those interested. http://i.walmartimages.com/i/if/hmp/...GunCatalog.pdf

January 14, 2011, 11:50 AM	#61
theinvisibleheart Senior Member Join Date: December 19, 2005 Location: virtual internet world with a Daisy Red Ryder, LOL Posts: 683	don't know about dealers other than Wal-Mart, but Wal-Mart's inventory scheme depends on high inventory turnover. They stock and sell what doesn't sit on the shelf too long. I believe they have a store dependent discount policy, based on how long the item sits. So to answer your question(for Wal-Mart), what Wal-Mart sells is not necessarily low quality, but something which, at the time of inventory, they judged is in demand and can sell quickly. You can figure this out by reverse engineering their income statement.