Loosiana gun show

[Frank46]

Well all you gentlemen in loosiana who missed the gun show at blackham colesieum in lafayette LA, can now relax. Does the word "suckiest" mean anything?. No ammo at decent prices, no reloading components, not one decent mil surp rifle, and only about half the area was filled as opposed to all of it. Spent $10 on a friends of the nra raffle for ten different firearms. Was in and out in one hour. Spent more in barnes and noble getting something to read. I have heard that the kenner and lamar dixon shows have really gone down the hill since last summer. Sure hope the next show is better. At this rate will really have some discretionary cash floating around. This is kinda wierd as the last show at the heyman was way better. Frank

[Buckshot]

..................Working weekend nights sucks. I wished I could just GO to a gunshow. Good OR bad!

................Buckshot

[walltube]

No Frank, I was not aware of the Lafayette show and am the happier for it after your report.

Well gosh darn, Frank, and just how much did all this disapointment cost you at the door? Know what I mean? Pay $8.00 (or more) at the door and expect to view and fondle all sorts of cool stuff we even might buy and it ain't there. Did the gel candle display suck too? :)

What's gonna happen to us, Frank if Luigiana don't have any quality shows to visit that're worthy our time & travel expenses? Sigh!

Ah well, I spent some $$$ via E-barf on a Herter press that accepts Lyman\RCBS H&I dies. The motivator for that purchase is because I never expect to see such an animal at any show in LA. Yeah, it's that BAD here!

Harold

[Frank46]

Walltube, well gosh darn it they charged me $7 whole dollars just to get in the door. Nope they didn't have any gel candles. I don't mean to sound callus about the folks that had there homes destroyed last summer in respect to good gun shows. So I hope no one takes exception. But jeeze, this one was so bad is wasn't funny. Last lafayette show actually pretty good. Go figure. Houston gun show is starting to look real good about now. Long drive though. Frank

[walltube]

Frank, you are not sounding callous. You are stating the reality of post Katrina conditions here. I am amongst the posted. :)

Many things other than gun shows have sunk (pun intended) since Aug. 29. Folks not only lost their homes, but their employers took the hit also and have closed-up for good or relocated. In short: ain't nobody with money to spend at the shows! Dealers can only go where the $$$ are.

There are only two shooting supply dealers within reasonable driving distances worthy of the fuel spent for me to visit. Wagespack in Gonzales and another in Biloxi, MS. Both these dealers you'll see at the area shows.

There may be hope on the horizon in Mississippi. There, Gov. Barbour and the MS Legislature are working diligently to put in place a string of convention facilities that would attract the kind of shows we like. All these will of course be built away from the shore and closer to Interstate 10. How soon? Not soon enough for some of us that's for sure :).

Y.T.
Wt.

P.S. You mention the Houston show, you been there? I've heard it's a good one.

[Junior1942]

I live south of Monroe, and I've tried to make the gun show there but something always happened to either me, my car, or my wallet. The one in Alexandria is ok, just barely. Last time I went to it I saw nothing but black rifles.

[walltube]

Hello Junior1942,

You live in a good place.

Been there some years back when in company of a dear departed uncle at a convention facility in Monroe. The occasion was a reunion of China-Burma-India veterans. The people there displayed some the most genuine respect and admiration for our veterans I have yet to see surpassed. His money was no good at any of the motel-hotel bars where he met up with the surviving members of his artillery outfit. Even I, the designated driver was given all sorts of praise for "taking care" of this hero and his buds. Very humbling indeed.

O.K.....black rifles with all the gadgets and rip-stop nylon this & that, seem to dominate too many shows of late I've been to. It is not the 'black rifle' per se that irks me, it's the monotony of it all. Borrrring. Even an SKS with real wood furniture has better appeal. To me anyway :)

Worse yet, are the black rifle gawkers. They ain't buying, they just stand there 4-5 deep in the aisles blocking my way to a table I know must have that rare Herters Model 49 nose punch I so desire. Gotta get to that table before some other equally possessed Herterite gets his hands on MY punch!! But the Black Rifle Gawkers refuse to budge. The Mace display is looking better and better with each show.

You ever get that way sometimes too, Junior? How about you Frank? Buckshot? Anybody?

Y.T.

Wt

[Frank46]

Walltube, yeah I have to agree with you 100%. I walk with a cane and usually have to stand there waiting for those boneheads to make up their mind. I usually get all of my reloading from wagenspack as Mark is apretty good guy to deal with.
Last show I went to at kenner there was another dealer who was cheaper on his powder than mark, but he has been good to me. When I and a few of my friends used to shoot steel plate matches we always bought our hard cast from him. We'd call him up before the show and place an order. One time we walked out with 10K 230 gr 45 bullets, or should say staggered out the door. One thing down here is that you almost never see any used bullet molds for sale. And I only know a few guys who cast their own. Same thing for reloading, the BR shooters of course reload but not that many other shooters except the hi-power shooters.
There used to be a dealer out of texas that had real good prices on mil surp ammo and commercial ammo. He no longer sells at shows here. The other dealers are a bunch of dogrobbers. Frank

[walltube]

Frank,

Let's add rude, surly & obnoxious to "bone head". I go from annoyed to pissed real quick when I see any man such as you politely trying to navigate his way through a cluster of such creatures. My time for a new knee is coming soon and I wonder how I'll handle the situation. Maybe I can get an electric cattle prod disguised as a cane. Rant over.

Got a 7:00 phone call from our range secretary this morning. Have not heard hide nor hair from this good guy since Aug. 29,'05. After much sharing of our experiences with pre and post Katrina the conversation gravitated to what is really important in life: burning powder. That has been a zero. :(

We lamented the loss of all our local dealers\suppliers, g'smiths. Worse, the loss of so many years buying and collecting tools of the trade. Gunshows, we agreed, will not cut it when time & finances allow us to re-tool. As you say, Frank, moulds are seldom seen round here. E-bay has been the saving grace for me. Mr. Brown or the pretty lady driving the right hand drive truck is a welcome sight.

Now that gasoline has plunged to $2.65 per gal. in the Slidell area a trip to Mark in Gonzalez or the guy in Biloxi is in the making. Like a kid in a candy store.

YT

Wt

[wills]

I don’t think isle blocking is the exclusive province of gun shows. Ever go to a supermarket?

[walltube]

wills,

Super markets?? On sale days? You dare go there!?



Oh my word, that horrible afternoon of July 4, 1990 when Winn-Dixie (Chalmette store) had a 15 minute price mark-down on hot dog buns and Bud Lite 12 packs. Yes, wills, I've been there, seen that.

Now, if you will please excuse me...........

Wt

[Jumptrap]

HAR!

Why I quit the gunshow circuit altogether. Dogrobbers? That's a compliment...more like bloodsuckers. The Rambo wannabes make me want to puke...I'm a lardass....but these 20 something pussys waddling around in size 4X fatigues with AR's and AK's hung over their shoulders and always some damned meat cleaver knife strapped to their bulbous hips....takes the cake. Then there is the assortment of the strange acedemic types wearing leather cowboy hats replete with chin strap and a vacant look in their sunken eyes.......he generally weighs 135 and his female tips the scales at 280...dressed in her pastel stretch shorts and flowery moo-moo blouse and flip-flops. Can't forget the T shirt sellers and Gung-Ho Chinese gun tables.....need a deal on a Lebel pull through? how about a rear sight for a Carcano? Turkish maygobang ammo? Mao hats? Last but not least.....interested in an $80,000 shotgun? $600 788? What about a $4 hotdog? $3 Coke? Garand clips....only 3 bucks!

Oh yeah...stopped in at McDonalds this morning, of course right before I got in the door, some harelipped bastard just drove in with the entire Girl's soccer league for breakfast....nothing like standing behind 38 kids all trying to decide if they want flavored water or diet coke to go with their double biscuit and egg. GRRRRRRRRR!

[Scrounger]

Jumptrap, don't you really think the insights on humanity you described are well worth the price of admission? I don't think television can top that...

[walltube]

Jumptrap,

Some recent New Orleenz area gun show attendees I've seen give Mardi Gras freaks inspiration. I try not to stare, but I can't help but wonder if there isn't an institution somewhere that gave a holiday to the offspring of a failed cross specie experiment. Maybe that's what your're seeing in KY. Ya think they migrate or something?

Wt

[btr-cj]

The last gun show I attended was at the Lamar Dixon in Dec or Jan. It was my first gun show there but seemed small.

I did pick up a RCBS Luber sizer for $20. It was at Wagenspack’s table. Mark was not there, he was hunting but his wife was manning the tables. Now that is a good wife.

I bought my Dillon 550B from him, called him to make sure he was going to bring one to a show near me and he said no problem. Good guy.

The shows around Baton Rouge are usually small. Not much casting equipment.

C.J.

[Frank46]

Walltube, Jumptrap, well I'm long overdue to get my right knee replaced. Why haven't I done and dood it??. Me big chicken. Yep you heard it here. As long as I can hobble I'll do without it. I weigh in at 300+ pounds and still get around, but when the oversized rambos are around it gets kinda funny at times. You can't help but laugh at them. There was one dealer that had a japanese knee mortar on his display table. Wanted $1800 for it. Just the ticket for driving along I-10 in traffic. Waggenspack is good to deal with. Ever been in his shop?. Now thats a place to shop in. Always pick up some 8mm and 357-44mag brass from him. As far as super markets I try to stay away from them but you gotta eat sometime. The wife goes food shopping and I hit the book and magazines and the movie section.
Hey you have to have something for entertainment as well as food, don't you?.
The best cross species that I have seen is a 60+ year old teeny bopper in short shorts and grey hair, the less said about that one the better. The houston show is usually very good, bring lotsa money cause you are almost guranteed to see something you can't live without. No loaded ammo, powder or primers but just about anything you could imagine. Even some class three stuff. One year one dealer had a lahti 20mm with sled mount for $5000. Remember the good old days when you could have bought one for about $125 and get ammo for it?. They also usually have a number of book dealers, and large amounts of mil surp stuff. So if you can go, go for it. Oh yeah, brass is sold by the pound. Guy weighs one case and you tell him how many you want and you pay by the pound. First time I ever saw that. Course the stuff like win 375 is sold in 50 round bags. Frank

[StarMetal]

Well darn, you fellows finally got me going. When I lived in Claremore ,Ok the best doggone gunshow there is, is I believe the Tulsa Show. I know when me and my best friend Mike use to go, it was over 3000 tables big. Now Mike is a great guy to have around especially if you want to laugh alot. Another thing about the Tulsa show is that there are an awful alot of good looking women that go, I mean GOOD LOOKING women. Me and Mike noticed this one paling around with her man. We couldn't make up our minds to look at her "38's" or the ones on the tables. Well I pulled up to this one optics table, I'm looking and looking and looking thru this scope and Mike says "What the hell are you doing?". I told him I was looking at that gal's 38's. Boy no sooner said he grabbed as scope and was viewing too as we both were laughing uncontrolabllly. Yup, I miss those Tulsa gunshows.

Joe

[sundog]

Joe, roger that on the Tulsa show. There are several put on by different sponsors, but the BIGGIE is done by Joe Wannemacher twice a year. If you go to one, you won't be disappointed. Ten acres all under one roof, and wall to wall! sundog

http://www.tulsaarmsshow.com/home.html

[StarMetal]

Sundog,

Yup, I truely TRUELY miss that show. There were some that come close, the original Denver Merchandise Gun Show and the PA Gunsho Association shows in Monroeville, Pa, but both not nearly as big as Tulsa's.

Joe

[Scrounger]

Joe, you activated one of my old gunshow memories. For neigh on 20 years I had tables at the Great Western two or three times a year. Over and above the pleasure of buying and selling, most of our entertainment came from watching the strange looking people parading by the tables, mountain man types, smell included, the wannabes, both cowboy and military, face paint and everything, and most of all, the girls. There truly was a lot of extra good-looking girls at the gun show. I must also include as pleasure the meeting of old friends from northern California and out of state. The big gun show plus the various state matches were about the only time many of us got together. A silent toast to all the absent friends from my youth: Thank you all for coming into my life.

[StarMetal]

I'd highly recommend the Tulsa Show for any of our members that live near it and that are out of shape like myself. Just walking all the tables would be as good, if not better, workout then a BowFlex.

Joe

[Frank46]

Joe, next time I do the houston show I'm renting one of those wheel chairs with the honest to gosh electric motor and tool around in that. Course it WILL have a big basket for those treasures we all can't do without. Last time at houston I shared some chairs with some of the dealers as there are not any places to sit unless you're eating something. Last two that I went to was in serious pain due to my knees and my back. Frank