Fort Worth Gun Show - reviews?

[Millerk420]

Morning everyone, June 25-26 is the Fort Worth Gun show and I was thinking of making the 2 hour drive from Longview to go to it. I have never been to gun show bigger than Longview or Tyler and I was just wondering if anyone has been, and if they can compare to a smaller town's gun show. Most of the same shops that are signed up for the Fort Worth Show also hit our smaller shows. But i was just curious if the deals are better or if the selection is better or any tips. The same weekend there is a show in Tyler and I would much rather make the 45 minute drive to Tyler than the drive to Fort Worth if the selection and pricing is going to be the same.

Also I know they say no conceal carry 30.06 posted and all but at the local shows I have seen guys pulls their guns out in line from concealment and get them locked with the plastic zip ties. But it also says no loaded magazines or loose ammo so i am like how did he get in? also most of the dealers have open carried weapons zipped tied. what are the rules on that? I mean, i am leaning on leaving it in the car but i guess if i leave the ammo in the car i can bring the gun in and act like i am going to sell it?

[AEA]

Not much difference in the Ft. Worth show compared to others of the same or similar size.

Same bunch, same prices, same stories.....

You gotta pay for parking and if you are not there BEFORE opening, you will be walking a ways from where you parked looking for the entrance.

With regard to CC with CHL.......

It is not legal for them to post 30.06 but they have rent-a-cops that enforce their rule (POLICY). That's why I don't have any desire to go to a gun show anymore.

[gfmun]

Fort Worth is a pretty clean show, not a lot of non - gun crap. They advertise 1200 tables but the parking fee and entrance fee has hurt them. I don't think you get any better deals there than any other show. It's mostly the same dealers at every show in the Metroplex. Most of the individuals selling seem to want way too much for their firearms.

Leave your mags/ammo in the car and get your handgun zip tied and you won't have to leave it in the car. I don't know of any parking lot break-in problems at Fort Worth, but the Dallas show had a big sign in the parking lot warning of break-ins.

hope this helps,
George

[fickman]

I've been to the Fort Worth show more than any other one. . . here's my current review:

- 30.06 signs posted, even though it is a government-owned building. They hire off-duty police officers to secure checked firearms, so carry at your own risk. I won't go anymore solely based on this. The CHL community seems to unilaterally boycott any other businesses that attempt to post 30.06, I won't make an exception for a place that sells firearms if I can help it.

- The cost of parking and admission are unlikely to be recovered through deals inside.

- It's usually VERY crowded with what seems like increasingly hostile / impolite / inconsiderate people.

- You can get better deals by visiting the big box stores, independent dealers, pawn shops, and online dealers. Very few gun dealers at the show will negotiate on the prices for new guns anymore.

- Most dealers post the "cash" price (although it's not clearly labelled) and then add on the credit card fee.

- There's a lot of jerkey, hats, rude T-shirts, etc.

I don't want to be totally negative and a buzzkill, but I won't drive 10 miles to visit this gun show anymore. . . I certainly wouldn't recommend driving two hours. Even back when I enjoyed this gun show I wouldn't have recommended a day trip for it.

That said, if you want to come and visit Fort Worth, there's a lot of more enjoyable things to do with your time to get better return on the gas money it takes to get here. :)

[Millerk420]

Thank you everyone for your input, based on your input I will take a pass on the Ft. Worth gun show and spend my birthday weekend maybe by the pool...

[drjoker]

Don't listen to these naysayers. The Fort Worth Guns show is huge and comparable to the Dallas Gun show. These two gun shows are much bigger than the Mesquite and Frisco shows. There are lots of dealers present so prices of new, common guns are much lower than in the big box stores due to intense competition. For example, I got a new Glock 26 for $430 at a gun show. People were selling used Glocks for $425 on this forum and the big box stores sell them for $500-550. I also got a good condition Norinco SKS for $216 (including sales tax). The Gunrobber website was selling really beat up Norinco SKS for $225 (including all FFL fees and shipping). I probably saved about $50 over the purchase price of a similar condition Norinco SKS purchased outside the gun show.

To have a good gun show experience, be sure to look up prices on the web so you know how much you're willing to pay. Be ready to bargain hard and willing to walk away from a bad deal. Bring some snap caps to test the gun's action before you buy it. Make it a big trip with ammo purchases, accessory purchases, and gun purchases. If you don't buy enough bargain stuff, the savings will not make up the price of entry, parking, and gasoline to go to the gun show.

Have fun!

[JNMAR]

I've been to the Fort Worth show more than any other one. . . here's my current review:

- 30.06 signs posted, even though it is a government-owned building. They hire off-duty police officers to secure checked firearms, so carry at your own risk. I won't go anymore solely based on this. The CHL community seems to unilaterally boycott any other businesses that attempt to post 30.06, I won't make an exception for a place that sells firearms if I can help it.

- The cost of parking and admission are unlikely to be recovered through deals inside.

- It's usually VERY crowded with what seems like increasingly hostile / impolite / inconsiderate people.

- You can get better deals by visiting the big box stores, independent dealers, pawn shops, and online dealers. Very few gun dealers at the show will negotiate on the prices for new guns anymore.

- Most dealers post the "cash" price (although it's not clearly labelled) and then add on the credit card fee.

- There's a lot of jerkey, hats, rude T-shirts, etc.

I don't want to be totally negative and a buzzkill, but I won't drive 10 miles to visit this gun show anymore. . . I certainly wouldn't recommend driving two hours. Even back when I enjoyed this gun show I wouldn't have recommended a day trip for it.

That said, if you want to come and visit Fort Worth, there's a lot of more enjoyable things to do with your time to get better return on the gas money it takes to get here. :)

What he said...

[Heartland Patriot]

My two cents worth, since I live in the area and have been to a few now...the ONLY one I will go to is called "The ORIGINAL Ft. Worth Gun Show". They have more tables with actual firearms on them and less of that "other stuff", like hats, jerky, etc. Some of the folks selling are in rip-off mode, some are just stubborn, and occasionally you can get a deal. Ammo is pretty much cheaper at a big box or online. There are a lot of folks at these things, true. However, all of that said, I go to the gun show just mostly to look and check things out. I can see the weapons on the table with my own eyes and not just on a screen. And without asking some store clerk who is busy with three people ahead of me like in a gun store (a pet peeve of mine). So, whether or not you go to a gun show is pretty much as to WHY you want to go. If you are looking for a screaming deal on some antique hand-scrolled owned-by-so-and-so shotgun, probably aren't going to get it. If you are there to have some fun checking out a lot of guns in one place, especially if you take someone with you who also likes guns, then that might make it worth it. Up to you...have a good one, whichever way you decide.

[AddyLO]

What he said.

I enjoy the FW Gun show, simply because it gives me a chance to see first-hand a lot of different items that I can't find at my local gun shop or even at the big-box store. Sure there are a few rip-off artists there, just like anywhere else you go. Caveat emptor. There are also some sweet deals if you just take the time to look. The only negative for me is the crowds. It can get really crowded, but most of the folks are polite enough. You see what you look for.

The Original Fort Worth gun show is the largest in the Fort Worth area, and second only to the Dallas Arms Collectors show in the DFW metroplex. Parking is only $3 in the Harley Street lot, so that's not really a valid reason to not go. Some just can't get over the fact that they started charging for parking some time ago. Let it go and move on for gosh sakes!

[fickman]

What he said.

I enjoy the FW Gun show, simply because it gives me a chance to see first-hand a lot of different items that I can't find at my local gun shop or even at the big-box store. Sure there are a few rip-off artists there, just like anywhere else you go. Caveat emptor. There are also some sweet deals if you just take the time to look. The only negative for me is the crowds. It can get really crowded, but most of the folks are polite enough. You see what you look for.

The Original Fort Worth gun show is the largest in the Fort Worth area, and second only to the Dallas Arms Collectors show in the DFW metroplex. Parking is only $3 in the Harley Street lot, so that's not really a valid reason to not go. Some just can't get over the fact that they started charging for parking some time ago. Let it go and move on for gosh sakes!

I have actually purchased several firearms from the Fort Worth show in the past, but decided to be a stick-in-the-mud about the 30.06 signage. Forum members often puff their chest about not giving business to places that post 30.06 whenever they can help it. . . but we're all tempted to compromise this principle when it's convenient. The fact that the building is owned by the city and thus cannot legitimately post their sign (although they use off duty police as a scare tactic at the entry) adds to the insult.

So far it's a revolution of one, but I'll keep posting my feelings.

FWIW, I'm not swayed by the "they have to post it for insurance" argument. If their insurance depends on the sign, then the fact that they can't legally enforce the sign in a publicly-owned building would not mitigate the risk to the insurance company. So either they need to move the event, the insurance company still doesn't understand the risk, they need to find a new insurance company, or insurance isn't the reason they're posting the signs.

[magillapd]

I won't go because of the 30.06 signage and the parking fee while I'm at it!!

[doc.lonestar]

I enjoy the ftw gun shows. Great place to get my hands on different weapons. The gun is not the issue at the ftw gunshows - its the ammo. The intent to keep from having NG due to someone pulling out a firearm to show someone blading everyone in the process.

You will be allowed to carry a firearm in, after they check you have no ammo and put in the ziptie thru the barrell. The "rent-a-cops" as you say are ftw police officers.

[The Annoyed Man]

The parking fee isn't worth a dry popcorn fart. If I didn't go to the show, it wouldn't be the parking fee keeping me from going. It costs about the same as a cup of coffee at Starbucks.

I don't like that I have to disarm to enter the show, and NDs prevention isn't a good reason for 30.06, as they continue to happen despite promoters' efforts to the contrary. But, all of that said, a gun show is the one place I am grudgingly willing to disarm, and yes, to pay a pittance of a parking fee, in order to see all of it under one roof. I don't like it, but I'm willing to do it if I have to in order to gain admission.

Conversely, there is nothing that a posted shopping mall has that makes it unique to finding all of it under one roof. Hey fickman, you and I agree and get along on most things, but I've got to ask you this: If the only way you could visit your wife or a child in a 30.06 posted hospital would be to disarm and go on in, would you refuse to visit? I think I know you well enough to say that, of course, you wouldn't refuse to enter. My point is that we all feel strongly about our principles, but also we all have a point beyond which we are willing to set aside the exercise one principle in favor of exercising another. So, my principle is that generally, I will not enter a business which is posted 30.06, but I will make an exception to that for hospitals........ and gunshows.

We do this kind of calculus in politics all the time.....or at least realists do.

[fickman]

To be fair, I said, "When we can help it."

There are some times when we can't. Some festivities / activities / necessities don't have true alternatives. Hospitals in emergency situations don't. Movie theaters, restaurants, and gun retailers do. We are moving the planned birth of our next child because the hospital we have historically used is currently posted. There's plenty of birthing centers that aren't posted that will be more than happy to take our money. We changed which movie theater we go to and left all of our "reward points" unused at the other one.

I just don't want to violate the principle just as a matter of convenience, which I feel like gun shows are. We like them. We feel like they're on "our side". . . but they're throwing in our face one of the most precious beliefs we hold. As far as gun shows go, there are plenty of alternatives, and I'll do some free-market voting with my wallet until they reverse their position. I felt like a hypocrite the last time I went after emailing a private business the week before and telling them of my plans to not patronize their establishment due to a 30.06 posting.

If enough people saw it the same way, they would either stop posting, cease to exist, or continue on with non-CHL gun owners happy to have more elbow room. . . but I'd bet a dollar that some enterprising individuals would find a way to start a new gun show circuit before letting them die, even if they had to scale back in the beginning. I want to pressure the people who should be on our side to support us all the way. They could replace the 30.06 sign with a giant one that says something like, "If you are legally carrying a concealed firearm, you MAY NOT unconceal it, draw it, or display it while on these premises. Violators will be prosecuted for willfully failing to conceal. If you want to look at accessories or consider selling / trading a firearm, it must be unloaded, locked, declared, and inspected at the entrance."

I do disarm from time-to-time for professional sporting events, high school activities for cousins, etc. Right now I work from home, my wife stays at home with the kids, and we're planning to homeschool, so it shouldn't come up very often. . . I'm very fortunate in that regard.