In nashville for a couple days....what gun shops to visit?

[SavageSig]

I bought a P238 from G&L that had major issues. They told me to keep breaking it in. My only option was to sell it back to them for a loss of 200 or send it to Sig until they fixed it. I opted for the latter.

Most manufacturers these days will send you a pre-paid shipping label for your firearm. If you're looking for a used weapon, Phil is not the man to see anyhow.

[Guest Moody]

I never lean on gun stores to help me with technical issues anyhow, so it's a moot point for me. When the other gun stores I've been to can't even show me how to break down a gun for cleaning, I'm not going to ask them about extractor issues or mags that don't fit right. I know what they're going to say anyways: send it back to the manufacturer. If that's what they're going to do, then why bother giving them extra money for help I don't need?

I have purchased 2 pistols brand new that had issues right out of the box. Both times, the gun store was unable to help and I was directed to use my warranty with the company. Phil would do the same thing, except he doesn't charge an extra percentage.

Now, if you need some hand holding and some extra BS thrown your way to buy a gun, by all means, visit some of the other fine establishments in town. I had a guy at On Target tell me that carrying on campus is only illegal if you get caught...now what kind of sales pitch is that?

At Bellshire....I knew I wanted a LCP, he had a LCP, he quoted me a price that included tax, and it was extremely fair. He had it in back, did my background check, I paid, and I left with it. No muss, no fuss, just a nice straight transaction. Gun works perfectly out of the box.

It's wonderful that you can get a great deal at Bellshire - I've been wanting to get over there myself and check some pricing, but I will agree with David on one very important aspect (even though you said that you didn't consider it a selling point): Service. Guns and Leather can help the customer, or send the firearm off to be fixed ASAP, and have done so for friends of mine that purchased used guns that had feeding issues, extraction issues, etc. I also try to support local shops that sell a variety of firearms and offer great customer service, because I simply enjoy seeing good people make things right (within their power/ability), and know that Daniel at Guns and Leather, Joe/Jeff at Hero Gear, or Mike at Outpost will do it right and be there for me. Certain shops/management have more clout with distributors/manufacturers, in order to make something right...

As far as Franklin Gun Shop, there is a sign (understood, as well) that they will not service a firearm, but will send it off of the manufacturer in order to have it repaired (and you're paying for it, too). I've only bought one firearm from Franklin Gun, and it was because it was priced right, and was a hard one to find at the time, but when there are places like Hero Gear and Guns and Leather - I don't need to go anywhere else, honestly. Only my Two Cents...

[TGO David]

I didn't mean to steer the thread off topic. Sorry.

[Guest HexHead]

I bought a P238 from G&L that had major issues. They told me to keep breaking it in. My only option was to sell it back to them for a loss of 200 or send it to Sig until they fixed it. I opted for the latter.

Most manufacturers these days will send you a pre-paid shipping label for your firearm. If you're looking for a used weapon, Phil is not the man to see anyhow.

Lots of people buy used off of gunbroker and use him for the transfer.

[Metalhead]

Just to clarify, our policy is:

New guns - if you bought it here, it doesnt work, we will a.) Cover freight back to the factory and get it fixed, b.) Have our gunsmith fix it if he can, or c.) replace the gun entirely - it's up to the customer.

Used guns - if you bought it here, it doesnt work, we will a.) have the gunsmith fix it, if possible, b.) send the firearm back to the company if it's still under warranty, or c.) refund the money on the gun towards something else - it's up to the customer.

[Metalhead]

I bought a P238 from G&L that had major issues. They told me to keep breaking it in. My only option was to sell it back to them for a loss of 200 or send it to Sig until they fixed it. I opted for the latter.

Who did this to you and why? I need to know who it was so I can set them straight.

[SavageSig]

Look, I like G&L a lot. I have purchased 3 firearms from there, and I will likely purchase more. But, the level of knowledge of some of the staff leaves a bit to be desired. One fellow was unable to tell me if a gun had a parkerized finish because he claimed to have never heard of Parkerization before. One friend was looking at buying a compact pistol, and chose to not buy one because the salesman said, "I don't know how to break that down, I just get my boy to do it for me."

If I have to look up stuff like that myself, then why pay a premium for service.

On the other hand, Daniel was a pleasure to deal with. It was just a question of whether you can get him, because it's a very busy store and he's a very busy fellow.

And I like that they let you test fire used pistols before you buy. That's probably why they were so helpful with your EMP, HexHead. A used pistol they can take back, but not a brand new one.

It's wonderful that you can get a great deal at Bellshire - I've been wanting to get over there myself and check some pricing, but I will agree with David on one very important aspect (even though you said that you didn't consider it a selling point): Service. Guns and Leather can help the customer, or send the firearm off to be fixed ASAP, and have done so for friends of mine that purchased used guns that had feeding issues, extraction issues, etc. I also try to support local shops that sell a variety of firearms and offer great customer service, because I simply enjoy seeing good people make things right (within their power/ability), and know that Daniel at Guns and Leather, Joe/Jeff at Hero Gear, or Mike at Outpost will do it right and be there for me. Certain shops/management have more clout with distributors/manufacturers, in order to make something right...

As far as Franklin Gun Shop, there is a sign (understood, as well) that they will not service a firearm, but will send it off of the manufacturer in order to have it repaired (and you're paying for it, too). I've only bought one firearm from Franklin Gun, and it was because it was priced right, and was a hard one to find at the time, but when there are places like Hero Gear and Guns and Leather - I don't need to go anywhere else, honestly. Only my Two Cents...

[Metalhead]

Savage, if I have employees telling people things like that I need to know who they are. That is very unacceptable. Even if you do not know their name, what do they look like? PM it to me if you dont want to say anything publicly, but if this is happening I need to know who it is, now.

[TGO David]

the level of knowledge of some of the staff leaves a bit to be desired. One fellow was unable to tell me if a gun had a parkerized finish because he claimed to have never heard of Parkerization before. One friend was looking at buying a compact pistol, and chose to not buy one because the salesman said, "I don't know how to break that down, I just get my boy to do it for me."

I've worked inside an industry where no one can possibly be an expert in every aspect of every product-line, so I guess I have become more tolerant to the simple honest fact that no one knows everything there is to know about every item up for sale.

A younger salesperson more in tune with "tactical tupperware" style firearms really has no reason to know what parkerizing is, since not many of that type of firearm is park'ed anymore. If they are, the parkerizing is covered by another finish.

An older salesperson may not know much about the latest combat-style carbine or sub-compact pocket pistol, but he may be the shop authority on sporting rifles, shotguns and revolvers. Because of that, if I have a question about a firearm I try to (a.) research it online myself first or (b.) ask at the shop, "Who here is the authority on these types of guns, and may I speak with them?"

Just because a shop employee can't tell you everything there is to know about one of the two hundred firearms they have in stock, that you have chosen at random, it doesn't mean that there is not a value to dealing with a brick and mortar authorized distributor of whatever it is you're wanting to buy.

I didn't expect the guy at the used car lot to know everything about my Ford F250 either. If I had walked off the lot because he couldn't tell me how to replace a glow plug in the Diesel engine, I would have been an idiot.

[SavageSig]

Anyways, if I get a broken brand new gun, I would blame the manufacturer, not the gun store. Nor would I expect any gun store to do anything for me besides send it back to the manufacturer for me. I didn't think any less of G&L for not taking back the 238. I actually thought their offer to buy it back was rather generous.

I just swore off Sigs forever.

Well, new sigs. I still have my sights set on a German P220

[Metalhead]

I actually thought their offer to buy it back was rather generous.

If that was the offer I'd have been pissed.

For the record though, if anyone has an issue with something that happens with one of our sales guys - or he's saying something that isnt right - I or Dennis need to know. Can't make it better if we're in the dark about it .

[SavageSig]

I suppose I should write some positive moments with G&L salesmen too, which far outnumber the less than stellar moments. The owner at G&L has been really swell when he's around. He's hooked up some of my friends with free rental pistols and range passes before. He even let a girl friend of mine shoot for free a used USP 9mm back when they had tighter control of which used guns could be taken down to the range.

Back when you couldn't get a lane there to save your life, he would give me a free range pass and tell me to come back another day when it wasn't so crowded. I mean, c'mon...that's great service.

I have also had very great conversations on "how much gun is enough", and nobody was trying to upsell me or anything devious like that. Just a straight no bull conversation, strictly for my education.

When I was looking at .380's, the fellow helping me out had great firsthand knowledge about perceived recoil. He actually sold me on the 238, because he swore up and down that it was pleasant enough to use as a range gun. He was absolutely right, and the 238 was as sweet shooting as he promised it would be. It just wouldn't extract reliably, but that wasn't his fault.

They've always had ammo at very reasonable prices too. Can't beat that. And you get a free range pass with purchase of a pistol, which is something nobody else offers.