Walmart and Guns

The Firearms Blog has posted an interesting story about a woman trying to buy a Shotgun at a Walmart.  It’s worth the quick read, go check it out.

I really hate Walmart.  No, seriously… it’s not a passive strong dislike… I hate Walmart and everything about it offends me.  I especially hate that it’s the only place within 3 hours that carries my Chain Lube, so about once a month, I have to run in to get a can… That pisses me off too.  But the fact that they sell guns is especially offensive.  Their Gun Department help is usually staphed by the most shockingly ignorant and arrogant people I’ve ever seen.  The person in this article… add sexist to Walmart’s list of characteristics.

The downside to this is that an Gun Clerk has the right to refuse to sell a gun to anyone they feel like.  There is nothing this woman can do about it.    I’ve sold plenty of 12 gauge shotguns to women of all sizes.  Even a Petite Elf Woman can Rock and Roll with a 12 gauge.   If this WalMart Gun Clerk had any shooting experience, he’d know that.  But he’s an Ignorant Douche which is on Par with every WalMart Gun Department person I’ve ever met.

18 thoughts on “Walmart and Guns”

  1. In my experience, ‘ignorant & arrogant’ describes not just the gun counter staffers, but pretty much every single Wal-Mart employee I’ve encountered (with a single, notable exception).

    As to whether or not the gun clerks are even bigger Ignorant Douches than your average Wal-Mart employe, I can’t comment: none of the Wal-Marts near me sell guns. [insert shocker music here]

  2. Who in their right mind would purchase a gun from wally world??
    go to a local reputable gun dealer you should always research where you purchase just as much as the item you are going to buy. It makes a big difference plus the smaller gun shops tend to know all the local areas to practice if you don’t have land of your own.

  3. I actually talked with a WallMart gun clerk who was knew his stuff, of course he was preparing to move on and was looking for a job in a “real” gun business. His complaint was that he couldn’t get management to stock what his costumers were looking for but were glued to a computer driven model. If it didn’t sell immediately they wouldn’t stock it. The management was basically not costumer service driven in his opinion.

  4. To my shame I have actually purchased two firearms from wally world.

    The first was a single shot 12gua. They had the best price.
    I was hassled so much about not wanting to put my SSN on the atf form
    that it was 15 years until I bought another from them.

    When I told the clerk that the SSN was optional, she told me that yes, that
    was true, and it was her option that I but it on the form.

    Managers were immediatly called due to the volume and language of my reaction.

    The next was actually an impulse purchase, a bolt action .22 for my son, his first rifle.
    The price was good, I figured that since they had removed the ‘no guns’ signs
    that they might not be as much of a problem.

    I was mistaken.

    After answering a computerized questionaire, then filling out the form,
    then having to conceal that the rifle was a gift, which is completly legal,
    but apparently outside of walmarts policy, I didn’t even argue with the SSN.
    I even had to stand in a paticular place while filling out the forms,
    so that video of me buying the rifle could be taken.

    I don’t care so much about the price, anymore.
    I’ll pay the extra 20 or 30 dollars.
    I’m buying my firearms from a local shop from now on.

    Mogg

  5. Might be a local phenomenon.

    I’ve only bought one firearm, a shotgun, from the Wal-Mart in my little town of 8000 in the middle of nowhere, but that transaction came off without a hitch, beyond the typical department store we-have-to-carry-it-to-the-curb routine.

    Ammo is even easier. I ask for it, they unlock the case and hand it to me. I put it in the cart and pay for it at the front registers, along with everything else I’m buying. I’m guessing that’s different in other places.

  6. When I was first getting back into shooting (~2003), I looked at the firearms in a WalMart display case. They all had fingerprints corroded into the metal. I decided that I would stick to gun stores with occasional forays into Cabelas for firearms. One of the things I love about my gun store is that they will occasionally send me to Cabelas for various reasons (it is way cheaper there, or they can’t currently get what I want from their distributors).

  7. I only occasionally buy ammo from Walmart and even then it is only from a couple of the area Walmarts that will just unlock the ammo cabinet and let me grab what I need. I never have and never will buy a gun there.

  8. I’ve only bought ammo from WM as it’s the cheapest in town but the gun selection is strictly low end hunting fare.

    Goerge, you should pick up a Dennis Kirk catalog and order a case of your chain lube and aviod WM all together.

  9. Spokane WA Walmarts are cool. One has gun smart people and the others not so but try to be helpful. Try Amazon.com for your lube.

    And why havent you slipstreamed your chain???????

    x

    1. Some portions of a motorcycle should not be made too slick.

      If the stuff gets in the bike’s gearbox, the clutch plate ain’t going to work correctly, and the clutch will just endlessly slip.

  10. Since we got a costco nearby I only end up going to walmart a couple of times a year. Now if costco would just start selling bulk ammo.

  11. My wife ran into a similar experience from a local Gander Mountain and another LGS when she was purchasing a handgun. She wanted a .357 revolver, not some little .25 pocket pistol. The retain gun industry is certainly not immune from ignorance and sexism, so I am not surprised that Walmart has idiots at the gun counter. My state (MI) seems to have a higher proportion of crappy gun stores and I end up having to drive a distance or order from out of state.

  12. I was stoked when I finally saw a couple AR’s (1 Remington and a DPMS) in the local ‘Mart. I thought they might be serious about expanding to an actual sporting goods department.

    Guess not.

  13. It’s all just product to Walmart. If the local demographic is “Pickup Trucks and Shotguns”, they will carry rifles and shotguns.

    The big problem with Walmart is that they will absolutely not stand behind anything they sell off the gun rack.

    If it fails, you have to call the manufacturer for redress. There are absolutely no returns for guns and ammo at Walmart.

    1. You must sell guns at WalMart… If that’s the case – You are eating enough dick for both of us.

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