Wait...a box store was selling a gun at a reasonable price?
San Francisco Gun Exchange was amazing. Bought my first gun there......then the next dozen as well.
Facts matter...Feelings Can Lie
The truly messed up part was that he assumed you would think he was funny.
Some people were born assholes. Some people have worked at it their whole lives.
There are enough shitbirds that tarnish the badge with their actions. You made yours shine brighter.
I am privileged to have lived in San Francisco When it had one of the best gun stores I have ever visited. Spent lots of money there, the people who worked there were great. It was a sad day when Bob (the owner) decided to close up shop. He inherited it from his dad, who's awesome collection was on display. Webly-Fosbery Automatic Revolver (Maltese Falcon fame) I believe was part of the collection, among others. Apparently, there there was another SF handgun ban in the works (1999), and he did not want to go through political shitstorm with out the support of the SFPD, who backed him through Feinstein's ban, but could not support him this time. I knew my days in SF were numbered.
They had a party at the end my wife and I attended. Brought out some photo albums that had some great pics from the past. Bob's sister (who worked there until the end) was there in the 60's in Go-Go boots behind the counter. Classic.
Last edited by Tabasco; 11-07-2018 at 12:27 AM.
Me too. Bob and Liz are distant family relations, and are
cousins to my godfather. They treated me very well- all of their staff did- and I thought the world of them. A lot of my art school friends ended up buying their first firearms there.
The deal was that then-county supervisor Carole Migden (piss be upon her miserable dead hide)
led a campaign to add a 2% gross tax on the remaining FFLs in the county, and got it passed. The employees of the SF Gun Exchange voted to use their retirement funds
to pay for the legal battle, and lost it all. This is directly from long time SF Gun Exchange employee Ted Langlais.
I was scheduled for an interview to work there when the news broke.
Last edited by Lex Luthier; 11-07-2018 at 11:12 AM.
"If I ever needed to hunt in a tuxedo, then this would be the rifle I'd take." - okie john
"Not being able to govern events, I govern myself." - Michel De Montaigne
Went to visit my Mom, and when I was bored decided to check out LGSs. She lived in West Palm Beach, so I went to a place in Delray. This was about 20 years ago. In front of the store, there was a pseudo parking sign that said: Perverts Parking Only.
I guess that attracted female customers.
To this day I haven't visited a classier, more well stocked LGS than the SF Gun Exchange. Bob and Liz were class acts, and knew their regulars on a first name basis. Walked in there with a co-worker one day, and he said "Geez, it's like coming in to "Cheers" with Norm!" Good folks, knowledgeable, competent. Several of them were multiple Gunsite grads, too. I do miss. I remember Bob said he was buying a Harley Davidson dealership. Anyone know for certain?
Last edited by AMC; 11-07-2018 at 02:05 PM.
About 10 years back I stopped in a just opened very small LGS. As I came in the owner was spouting assorted racist commentary to another customer, who looked very obviously uncomfortable about the whole thing. I never even made it to the counter, turned around and walked out. The store was out of business within three months.
There were several levels of fail going on there: 1) The racist mindset itself, for reasons I don't need to explain; 2) hard to believe he wouldn't shut up when someone he didn't know walked in the door, but apparently he wasn't very bright; 3) even if it had been a different topic, the last thing I need to hear is negativism of any kind, a visit to a LGS is supposed to be fun, not a total downer.
I've also shut down stupid comments at the range a couple of times, typically first time visitors. As a RSO I can tell them to STFU and make it stick even when I'm not on duty, so none of those guys ever even got to the punch line and none of them repeated the problem so I guess learning can happen.
Many years ago I stopped in a small shop I had not been in before (opposite end of town) just to check it out. There were shitty hand lettered signs prominently displayed warning "Do Not Touch These Guns Unless You Want To Have Your Ass Kicked", or something to that effect, I specifically remember the "Ass Kicked" part. I later learned that somebody had shoplifted one/some of the guns that were just displayed on pegs on the public side of the counter. My initial reaction was to make sure I minded my manners in order to avoid having my ass kicked. Then, after contemplating for about 3.67 seconds, I realized the best way to avoid having my ass kicked might be to GTFO right now, and I did.
And that was my exact thought. Even back then, probably the last thing I needed to spend my money on was another gun, since I had enough guns and a lotta bills. I was going in to check things out, probably would have just seen stuff I would have lusted after, but there would be a high probability I would have bought something, because back then I wanted everything. What I was really seeking was camaraderie with like minded people, not an adversarial confrontation. But I might have bought something.
With my deal I have no way of knowing, I had only driven by because I was bored of the interstate. After I left it started to make me agitated, I have always done sales and like probably anybody in any line of work, do not like to see my craft poorly executed. Now I am at the stage in life where this guy would WANT me in his store, if it still exists, but I do not want anything to do with it, if it still exists. I would wager pretty heavily it doesn't still exist![]()
Last edited by mmc45414; 11-08-2018 at 08:38 AM.