Met Mel Pardue at a local gun shop yesterday. He was dropping off nine knives for the knife counter. Seemed to be a heck of a nice guy. turns out that he knows Kim from her roamings at the Blade Show. I also found out that he too has a daughter with traumatic brain injury and went through some of the same ordeals that I have experienced.
I also found that they had the Bauer 1911/Busse Jackhammer combo in the display case in unused condition. $3250 and it could have been mine, but as I told the clerk, I have plenty of 1911's and Busses already. They also have the largest selection of Nighthawks that I have seen in one place.
Lastly, the knife counter guy, who I sold a Busse to a few years ago and which he still brags about how he beats it with no damage, told me that a Busse had turned up in their storage area that they must have traded for years ago. After me drawing a few pictures for him we determined that it was a straight-handled Battle Mistress, although the inventory guy had taken it home and I couldn't view it in person. He said that it had a swedge but he couldn't describe it to me accurately enough to determine just which version it was.
All in all, it was not your everyday gun shop visit. If you are ever in the Birmingham area, a visit to Mark's Outdoor Sports is worth the time. their knife counter alone is a must-see. None of your typical gun store attitude, either. These people have been very kind to Kim and extremely patient, letting her examine guns that they know for sure she will not be buying.
Disclaimer: If this sounds like a shameless plug, I have no personal financial interest in this shop, other than they have accumulated a lot of my money over the years.
I also found that they had the Bauer 1911/Busse Jackhammer combo in the display case in unused condition. $3250 and it could have been mine, but as I told the clerk, I have plenty of 1911's and Busses already. They also have the largest selection of Nighthawks that I have seen in one place.
Lastly, the knife counter guy, who I sold a Busse to a few years ago and which he still brags about how he beats it with no damage, told me that a Busse had turned up in their storage area that they must have traded for years ago. After me drawing a few pictures for him we determined that it was a straight-handled Battle Mistress, although the inventory guy had taken it home and I couldn't view it in person. He said that it had a swedge but he couldn't describe it to me accurately enough to determine just which version it was.
All in all, it was not your everyday gun shop visit. If you are ever in the Birmingham area, a visit to Mark's Outdoor Sports is worth the time. their knife counter alone is a must-see. None of your typical gun store attitude, either. These people have been very kind to Kim and extremely patient, letting her examine guns that they know for sure she will not be buying.
Disclaimer: If this sounds like a shameless plug, I have no personal financial interest in this shop, other than they have accumulated a lot of my money over the years.
:thumbup:
