Gun shops and their knives

mnblade

mnblade

Joined
Feb 7, 2000
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This past weekend I was looking around for a new or used shotgun for skeet and, perhaps someday, birds. I visited a few gun dealers as well as a pawn broker who specialized in guns (don’t they all?). Naturally, at each place I made a point to check out what knives they had in stock. It didn’t take long, I can tell you. The level of quality they stocked was for the most part REALLY low. I mean they has crap I would not see fit to arm crazed drifter or crackhead with. The best of the gun shops had exactly one Benchmade 705 for – get this - $165. They also had a Buck 110 but other than those, everything they had was utter crud. At the gun/pawn place, the wanted $59 for a Schrade LB7 and the same for a Buck Ranger 112, neither of which were new. Lots of Paki "Spyderco-like" knives and an assortment of decent – but rather beat up – traditional pocketknives. All in all, it would seems that gun shops rank right up there with the Home Shopping Network as a good place to buy knives. With that said, I’m sure that some gunshops do stock decent blades. What’s your experience. (Lastly, I’m looking for a Remington 870 – anyone know of a better entry-level shotgun in that price range?)
 
<b>"...anyone know of a better entry-level shotgun in that price range?"</b>

That's the kicker isn't it?
For the price, you really can't beat an 870. If you're willing to spend a lot more money, there are some shotguns out there that beat the pants off of the 870, but otherwise, the 870 is King. (Avoid the "Magnum Express" it's a budget model and not worthy of the name 870.)

As for knives in gunshops, my experience with them varies wildly. The best I've ever seen was "Cumberland Knife and Gun" in Fayetteville NC. They kept a fairly comprehensive inventory of Al Mar (back when Al Mar knives were hard to find) and Randall, not to mention a few others and were extremely knowledgable about both their knives and guns.

The worst carried a few Tiawanese rip-offs, covered with dust. Their only purpose seemed to be filling display space that would have otherwise been empty.

I do all my knife buying online. I know what I want and I know who the reputable dealers are. I'd imagine that most BFC members do the same. (Otherwise, who's supporting all those dealers?)
:D
 
I did a gun show last weekend. I had several customs at my table as well as a few decent production knives. Not all were especially expensive. I anticipated many "cheap" people so I took some Columbia River, Kershaw, and Outdoor Edge. I was amazed. People were shocked at the prices. I had one guy pick up a Mike Obenauf large model 1 and say, "I got this knife for $5 at the gas station. It woks just as good". Of course I had to differ with him. I also had a lot of requests for "$10 switchblades". I walked around the show to size up the competition. Many other knife dealers were selling chinese knockoffs and cheap automatics. I would be ashamed to sell that junk. Of course they sold many more knives than I did. Seems funny to me that a hunter will spend $800 on a deer rifle and then want a hunting knife for $10. The knife will do a lot more work than the rifle, providing you actually shoot a deer.

I think the reason a lot of shops sell the junk they do is because that is what people want to buy. Apparently people that are knife educated are few and far between.
 
One of the gunshops around here handles benchmade and smith and wesson. Its what sells. They have a few faster moving models of each. Prices are low as someplace like the knifecenter.com

The other major gunshop, has spyderco, benchmade, cold steel, and a good selection of Chris Reeve One Piece and Sebenzas. They also added a few Marbles knives of late. Prices for the Reeve are fine and the rest is a little higher than the internet but ones you might pay without guilt. All and all good enough that I have bought about 50% of my knives locally.
 
you could get a mossberg, they are decent shotguns, and pretty cheap too. I got a brand new model 500 for 200 dollars with 2 bbl's a few days ago.
 
For the most part, I've seen the same: great guns, sub-standard (or over-priced, but decent quality) knives. I have seen one notable exception to the rule. A dealer in Atlanta -- Chuck's Firearms -- has not only very high quality shotguns and rifles, but they also carry quite a wide variety of handmade knives for somewhat reasonable prices. I got a beautiful Bob Conley green jigged bone lockback for $175 there a couple of weeks after the Blade show. If you're ever in Atlanta, they are at least worth a look.

-Al-
 
You might also look at a Winchester model 1300. The
1300 has a very smooth action and is priced around
the money as the Remington. As for gun stores and knives,
I can say that the store I work for is the largest in
this area, and we stock more qualitity guns, and knives
than any other place around. Our prices are pretty
reasonable. Pawn shops are always a good place to get
ripped, they are always waiting for that one sucker to
come in and pay way to much for something they no nothing
about.
 
Shotgun? Remington 870 - best shotgun I ever had.

Knives in Gunshops? I dunno about you guys... but my gun shop is also my knife dealer, they sell great guns, great knives, at great prices, and have a great way of doing business... I give them my nickel whenever I can just to keep em going!
 
You can't go wrong with an 870 but the Benelli Nova is another relatively inexpensive pump that performs very well.

On the note of knives, most gun shops around here carry Buck knives. There are a bunch that do carry Benchmade and Spyderco. Then there's my favorite shop, they carry Benchmade (20+ models), MOD, SOG, Cold Steel, Kabar, Spyderco, Buck, etc etc.

Best of all, they have one of the largest selections of firearms in the county with over 1800 in stock.
 
The best I have ever seen, for knives in a general sporting goods store was Paragon Sports in New York city. Every top grade knife you can name and some you never heard of. I have not been there in several years. And of course San Francisco Gun Exchange, but, Nate is dead and I understand that his children have sold out. Any word on what is happening there?

Roos Brothers in San Francisco was great in the 1950s..

all the best,

A. G
 
Originally posted by Ken Cook
As for knives in gunshops, my experience with them varies wildly. The best I've ever seen was "Cumberland Knife and Gun" in Fayetteville NC.
Click to expand...

Well I don't see them in the phonebook anymore. :( The 3 best places I've seen here are Jim's Pawn Shop, Fayettville Armsroom and General Jacksons. Not a lot of selections but decent. However they seem to sell everything at MSRP around here.
 
NIB,
Jim's (Are they still on Yadkin rd?) was always great for guns, but during my day, (sound of creaky joints) they didn't have much in the way of knives.

Cumberland Knife and Gun used to be up in that little strip mall at the northwest corner of Bragg Blvd and Santa Fe. (If I remember correctly.) I'd hate to think they were out of business. Last time I passed through the area was several years ago and they were still going strong.

I've never heard of the Fayettville Arms room or General Jacksons but just to show how long ago I was stationed there, the 500 block of Hay Street was still "the wild, wild, west." (Early to mid-80s)
"You buy me drink Joe?"
:D
 
As far as a shotgun goes, in my opinion an 870 can't be beat, hell bent for stout, good handling, easy to get parts for, and quite affordable. (unless Scattergun Tech gets hold of them, but that's an entirely different story.)

As far as the knives in gunshops issue, I've seen two totally different perspectives up here. In most of the shops themselves, I rarely see anything I wouldn't proudly carry, Spyderco, Benchmade, Ka-bar, even a few handmade ones from Alaskan makers. It seems that the Spyderco Police and the Benchmade AFCK is some kind of standard issue item up here.

As soon as the gunshow comes to town, it becomes a different story, there are some exellent knives still available, and once again a few tables with locally made knives, but it seems like every boneheaded moron with such decreased cognitive ability that they probably sit in the tub and bite at their fart bubbles comes crawling out from thier run down tarpaper shacks and trailer park homes to grace the good public with those God awful Spydie knock offs, united, Pakistan crap. and of course they sell all the knives. "what's the difference between that there fancy Spyderco you gots an' mah $4 look alike?" says the man that can write a book about every AR-15 variation known to man and could stock an entire library with ballistic charts and studies of the Magnus Effect. Unfortunately even though I witness this sort of thing quite regularly, I have yet to find a reasonable explanation for it.
 
RWS
<b>"...they probably sit in the tub and bite at their fart bubbles..."</b>

<font size=10 color=red>LMAO!!!</font>
 
The Gun shop closest to me has an excellent selection of Spyderco, Benchmade,Kershaw,CS,Crkt and even some customs by Bob Lum and Tom Mayo. they are pretty close to MSRP though kinda expensive. I go there all the time to check out a knife that I want to buy on the internet. Should I feel guilty about that? I have bought two CRKT from them though. I guess I pay $50 for a $30 knife for the privilige of checking out the rest of the stock.

Ken and NIB thanks for bringing up memories of Fayetteville. I had hoped I left that place behind when I moved here to Hawaii. I spent more than 10 years there I went to High School and College there and when I joined the army to get the hell out they sent me right back to Ft. Bragg.:p if you'll excuse me i think I have some palm trees to look after :D
 
my two cents. You can pick up a nice Remington 11-87 for about 350 up here. The Winchester with the screw in chokes is a "Best buy" A pretty decent semi-auto with three chokes new for around $350. But the Remington 870 and 1100 are Great guns for the money. want sweet, Go benneli (spelling. Want sweetest, get an older browning belgium. Want awesome get an AR-15 with a 100 Rounder!!!!!!!
( what was that a pheasant?????oops an owl? too many holes to tell!!!!!)NEV-ER!!!!!!!!!!wolf
 
Originally posted by A. G. Russell
And of course San Francisco Gun Exchange, but, Nate is dead and I understand that his children have sold out. Any word on what is happening there?
A. G
Click to expand...

Sadly, the SF Gun Exchange is history. Closed about a year or so ago.
:( :( :(
 
There is a gun shop in Edmonton that stocks a lot of Spyderco and a few Benchmade knives. They also carry a few Guttman Cutlery knives as well. Better than any of the knife shops in this city.


Edited because I didn't want to look like to much of an idiot by spelling the name of my home town wrong.
 
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