Gun shop road trip

jnyork · Post by **jnyork** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 5:44 pm

This morning my friend and I left Yuma and traveled to Lake Havasu City, AZ, a distance of about 150 miles, to browse some gunshops we heard were there. Found three. Two were not very interesting to us, full of black gun krapp and such. The other one was a real joy, very like the gunshops we remember , lots and lots of older guns made of steel and walnut, not much black plastic junk. A couple of rotary racks full of older .22's as well as some on the wall. Several nice old lever guns, some REAL muzzleloaders (not inlines) as well as a very good assortment of bolt guns,handguns and shotguns. This gunshop just sells guns and accessories, no fishing stuff or anything like that. The owner and his wife greeted us cordially as we opened the door, even though they were with other customers. The entire staff was friendly and knowledgeable and didnt even try to BS us (what a concept!) My friend wound up buying very nice 98% apparantly unfired Marlin 1894CL 32-20 for $400.00. I found a good ol' Mossberg .22 from the 1940's, a Model 44 US(d) which still had all THREE sling swivels, the red and green safety indicators, the dust cover for the bolt and an original mag, all in about 85% condition with the blue starting to turn brown with age, sparkling bright bore, paid $200.00 for it. The inventory at this store, IMHO, was priced fairly, no barn burners but the owner was not trying to make his retirement off one individual sale, either ( another refreshing concept) The place was busy for a Tuesday morning at 0930, several other sales took place while we were browsing.

All in all, a very nice day and worth the drive. "R-Guns" is the place, 2137 McCulloch in Lake Havasu City. If you are in the area, I can recommend this shop as a place to check out.
__________________
Never engage in a battle of wits with an unarmed opponent.

J Miller · Post by **J Miller** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 6:06 pm

Sounds like my kind of gunshop. I'll have to take a drive over there.

Last time I was in Lake Havasu City they still had 100 octane leaded gas. Mostly for the boats. I filled up my 69 Buick Electra (430 CID High Compression V8) with that stuff and hit the road. Got right on the freeway and set the cruise.
When the unleaded stuff ran out of the carb and that 100 octane leaded gas got to the cylinders that car took off. It felt like I romped on the gas.

Oh for the good old days.

Joe

Slick · Post by **Slick** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 7:34 pm

Sorry to hear that you have such a bias against "black guns" and think they're "junk".

I own lots of lever-action guns as well as black guns and each has their place in my collection. Try and understand that regardless of what a man chooses to shoot, that at heart we are all shooters and need to stand together. For example, I do not hunt - but I will most certainly fight for the the rights of those (who wish to do so) as I'd hope they'd fight equally as hard for my right to punch holes in paper with a black rifle.

The liberal gun-grabbers have long attempted to "drive a wedge" between gun owners based on their personal preferences in an effort to divide and conquer. Let's not give them an easy victory on this.

J Miller · Post by **J Miller** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 7:46 pm

Slick,

Some of us are just not into the military type guns, especially those with stamped metal and plastic. We just don't enjoy them. I'm in that boat too. When I go to a gun shop and all I see is AK variants, AR15 types, Glocks and other stuff, I just don't have any interest. I usually take a quick look to see if they have anything I'm interested in and then if and when they don't, I leave.

When I see a shop such as the one jnyork described I feel like I'm in a familiar warm and fuzzy place. I can relate to blued steel and wood.
I have nothing against black guns or those who like to shoot them, they just aren't for me.
I suspect jnyork was simply making that comment as well.

Besides I mentioned filling my car with environmentally damaging condor killing LEADED PREMIUM gas, you coulda said something about that.

Joe

Swampman · Post by **Swampman** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 7:53 pm

I'm making an effort to eliminate plastic from my gun collection. Plastic is made from oil and it's my way of sticking it to the Arabs;)

Slick · Post by **Slick** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 8:01 pm

J Miller wrote:I have nothing against black guns or those who like to shoot them, they just aren't for me.
I suspect jnyork was simply making that comment as well.

I have NO problem with that and respect your preferences whole heartedly..

I just noticed the "krapp" and "junk" comments (about black guns), and took that as a negative bias gainst them (and perhaps those who enjoy them). As I mentioned, I do not hunt - but I would NEVER use negative terminolgy (like stuff or junk) in any descriptions about another's preferences.

My attempt is not to "scold", but rather to remind everyone that we are all practitioners of shooting sports (to what ever end) and we need to take steps to ensure that we stand together in support of one another.

Borregos · Post by **Borregos** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 8:46 pm

Slick, you are 100% right, all shooters need to be seen to be sticking together.

oldgerboy · Post by **oldgerboy** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 9:06 pm

The wife and I were there and in that shop last Christmas. There was a beautiful .32-20 Marlin there then. Unfortunately it had to stay when we left.
You're right about what they have. It is a great toy store.

jnyork · Post by **jnyork** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 9:11 pm

Didnt mean to ruffle anyone's feathers here, seems like there's always someone who takes things a little too serious. I OWN a Colt HBAR and have for years, it's probably got 8-9000 rounds through it. It's just that I am sick and tired of the black rifle "tactical" krapp that seems to be all some gun shops and guns shows want to sell or stock, and a lot of this krapp is junk!! If someone wants to buy and use this stuff, more power to them, I dont look down on them, I'm just tired of looking at it.

Marlin .35 · Post by **Marlin .35** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 9:12 pm

That is an awful long drive from the coast of Mississippi, but it is tempting to go. Sounds like the older first class gun shops we used to have!! Art

Post by **Ysabel Kid** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 10:22 pm

jnyork -

I understand where you were coming from. I enjoy all types of firearms - rather met one I didn't like, though some - like leverguns - have a special place in my heart. I love seeing shops dedicated to firearms, and having a great selection. They are getting fewer and farther between - and a lot harder to find.

I think most of us agree - we need to all hang together, because we'll certainly hang separately - one sub-group at a time - as the anti's pick us off one by one...

Slick · Post by **Slick** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 10:39 pm

Ysabel Kid wrote: I think most of us agree - we need to all hang together, because we'll certainly hang separately - one sub-group at a time - as the anti's pick us off one by one...

That was my only point - and I'm not trying to chew anyone out or "beat them over the head" about it..

I live in CA and watched how the anti-gunners recognised (by gun owners) comments that there weren't a lot of people (who shoot) that had interest in .50 rifles. Well, they ultimately used that "division" amongst shooters as a means to knock off legal ownership of .50 cal rifles. Now these people have NO intention of stopping with .50 cal fifles or "assault rifles"... They will keep going until they work their way down to lever-actions (no one needs a rifle that holds all that ammo!) until they get to the single-shot bolt actions.

jnyork · Post by **jnyork** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 11:08 pm

OK, slick, I can certainly agree with you there, sorry if my comments got you upset, was not my intent.

Slick · Post by **Slick** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 12:30 am

jnyork wrote:OK, slick, I can certainly agree with you there, sorry if my comments got you upset, was not my intent.

No sweat man! I wasn't upset at all.. I've actually said the same sort of thing to guys (who are all up in the black guns) that called levers & hi-walls "antique junk"! I like many types of guns.. My comments were just about not letting the gun-grabbers play their divide & conquer tactics by what gun owners prefer to own.

Anyways, I'd sure like to have a Colt HBar - but they were banned in CA..

Also I apoligize for the "hi-jack" of your thread - but I'm glad we're thinking alike on our 2nd amendment rights. I suppose that I am more "sensitive" to such issues living in a state like CA (but soon to leave hopefully). Thanks for not taking anything I said personally, because nothing was meant that way.

LeverBob · Post by **LeverBob** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 12:59 am

J Miller wrote:Sounds like my kind of gunshop. I'll have to take a drive over there.

Last time I was in Lake Havasu City they still had 100 octane leaded gas. Mostly for the boats. I filled up my 69 Buick Electra (430 CID High Compression V8) with that stuff and hit the road. Got right on the freeway and set the cruise.
When the unleaded stuff ran out of the carb and that 100 octane leaded gas got to the cylinders that car took off. It felt like I romped on the gas.

Oh for the good old days.

Joe

Boy Howdy Joe!

I used to hit the local Sunoco station & dialed up some 260, remember those "dial-a-win"' pumps back in the 60's?. It was for all intensive purposed 107 octane Avgas. Made a huge difference in my 67' Dodge RT 440 mag.

By the way...horses fer courses. We had better stick together or we will hang seperately.
Just my 2c's.

LeverBob

Sixgun · Post by **Sixgun** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 6:50 am

Gun shop cruisin'--thats fun. Its even more fun when you have a couple of "g"s in your pocket from a recent windfall that your wife don't know about. (you know what I mean--we need new carpet, we need this or that--my sister needs to borrow a few thou.)

Black guns? While I don't have any and I too consider them "junk" but not in the true sense of the word. I am just a tradionalist. (most guys over about 45 are) Believe it or not, its the black guns that are keeping our gunrights secure. Why? Because that is all the younger crowd wants and without the younger crowd, well, when we die out, so do our rights. The black guns also keeps "the people who want to control us" in check. Nobody wants to mess with a dude with a belt full of 40 round mags.

I've been saying this for over 30 years---"You don't give the anti's NOTHIN'"-------------Sixgun

Post by **Hobie** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 9:49 am

Slick wrote:
J Miller wrote:I have nothing against black guns or those who like to shoot them, they just aren't for me.
I suspect jnyork was simply making that comment as well.
I have NO problem with that and respect your preferences whole heartedly..

I just noticed the "krapp" and "junk" comments (about black guns), and took that as a negative bias gainst them (and perhaps those who enjoy them). As I mentioned, I do not hunt - but I would NEVER use negative terminolgy (like stuff or junk) in any descriptions about another's preferences.

My attempt is not to "scold", but rather to remind everyone that we are all practitioners of shooting sports (to what ever end) and we need to take steps to ensure that we stand together in support of one another.

Slick,

I've held off buying another AR type gun (sold my first one to get into Contender carbines with, ironically, Rynite stocks) because of #1 price and #2 burn-out (after many years working with them in the military). However, as we approach the 2008 election I'm thinking it is perhaps something I need to reconsider.

Still, as you know, the EBRs are THE biggest thing with the newer shooters and a big piece of the market. This has sort of frozen out the traditional guns in some shops making it more difficult to find the "good" stuff that used to be everywhere. Sort of like the way the compound bows have pushed the traditional archery stuff off the shelves...

kimwcook · Post by **kimwcook** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 10:38 am

Kind of funny you guys went to Lake Havasu looking for gunshops. A guy who owns one in nearby Wenatchee, WA, Rocky's House of Guns, had a second shop in Lake Havasu. A couple of years ago he closed the Lake Havasu one. I never really sat down and asked him why.

Henry McCann · Post by **Henry McCann** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 12:27 pm

Sounds like my kind of place...Blued and walnut always get my heart beating a little faster.

Warhawk · Post by **Warhawk** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 1:43 pm

Slick wrote:Sorry to hear that you have such a bias against "black guns" and think they're "junk".

I own lots of lever-action guns as well as black guns and each has their place in my collection. Try and understand that regardless of what a man chooses to shoot, that at heart we are all shooters and need to stand together. For example, I do not hunt - but I will most certainly fight for the the rights of those (who wish to do so) as I'd hope they'd fight equally as hard for my right to punch holes in paper with a black rifle.

The liberal gun-grabbers have long attempted to "drive a wedge" between gun owners based on their personal preferences in an effort to divide and conquer. Let's not give them an easy victory on this.

+1 Slick, I too have black rifles (ARs) and lever guns ... and bolt guns, revolvers, plastic pistols, etc etc.

They all have their place, and all are fun to shoot. In fact the AR-15 is the number one selling rifle in the USA right now. I wonder if that's a statement about the current state of affairs in this country?

We shooters and hunters HAVE to stick together, or the liberals will rip us apart and gun rights will be no more than a passing memory.

gon2shoot · Post by **gon2shoot** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 9:42 pm

Havent been in Havasu since my last daughter was born there, she's 21. Maybe I need to go back.