Leverguns in Eugene

[Gun Smith]

My wife and I have been making several trips to Eugene, Oregon during my current post cancer surgery checkups. Afterwards we go over to one of the malls (Valley Center) for her to do some shopping. I usually sit in the mall and people watch. They have a gunstore called Mazama (I think) in the mall. I go over and look around. They have a few old Winchester leverguns hanging on the walls.
What I don't understand is the pricing. The majority of their guns are just above the "brown" guns we see on GB all the time. Yet their prices are at least 50% or more over anything that sells on the internet sites.
Are they just using the old levers to draw customers in, or do they expect to find people totally ignorant of what these guns are worth.
By the way, they are very cool and don't seem to want to get aquainted with potential customers. Do you find this typical in your neck of the woods?

[crs]

That sounds a bit like a gun store I visuted in Austria a few years back. They had some very interesting European rifles and shotguns and some Anerican guns, BUT, they were very cool,if not downright snooty and would only speak to me if I asked a direct question.
Reckon I should not been wearing those old blue overalls?

[cowboykell]

A few years back, Jorgy and I regularly bought quite a few nice antique Marlins from a gun shop that had their guns fairly priced. Over the last couple of years, the quality has dropped and the prices have gone up. We call the shop "The Brown Gun Shop." Your term "brown" guns caused a chuckle.

[Hobie]

Snots seem to inhabit the sales positions in some stores. It is a management problem. They choose the wrong people, don't set a good example and don't take corrective action. I'm very mindful of that in my sales work.

I also remember MY reaction to this sort of behavior. I once went to a auto sales manager and asked how he knew my money was no good. I have also asked people if the store was open.

[pharmseller]

I grew up in Eugene and live a few miles north of town. I know the shop you are talking about.
They have always been proud of their wares. They have been in town for many years and I am amazed that they have survived this long. All the nice, well-informed salespeople left long ago.
I like to shop the Baron's Den. It's a larger shop, complete with an indoor pistol range, on the south end of town just off I-5. Nice people, friendly atmosphere, and better prices.
The other place in town is S-M Guns. I will never set foot in that place again, but some people like the shop.

The next time you come to town bring a handgun and FMJ bullets and spend a while at the Baron's Den. It's better than shopping at the mall.

Pharmseller

[AJMD429]

That sounds a bit like a gun store I visuted in Austria a few years back. They had some very interesting European rifles and shotguns and some Anerican guns, BUT, they were very cool,if not downright snooty and would only speak to me if I asked a direct question.

A few years ago in the local (now out of business... ) "Galyan's" I inquired about a laser sight (to put on my Ruger Mark-II so when we were out filling the hay feeders for the night or whatever we'd have a tool with which to terminate any raccoons raiding the chicken coop or coyotes getting to the baby goats), and the sales-rectum with the over-canted holster and tricked-out Kimber said "Sorry, buddy - we don't deal in that kind of 'gang-banger' stuff in this store." Having come off a week of 14-hour days seeing patients abused by their insurers and their diseases, I wasn't in the mood for a debate about the relative morality of lasers vs. overpriced 'target' scopes. I'd been drooling for a good bolt-gun in .223 for a year, though, and knew lots of the current brands and features, so I decided to act interested in their (also ridiculously overpriced) ones, and looked at a Sako, Remington, Browning, and Savage, asking which one they'd make a deal with a Leupold Vari-X on it, and could they bore-sight it for me. Once the hopefully-commisioned sales-jerk was sufficiently tachycardic to ignore other customers, I commented that "On the other hand, this would look kind of like a 'sniper' rifle some 'gang-banger' might use, so I think I'll spare you the disgust of selling me one," and walked out.

I was glad when that store went out of business.

[Gun Smith]

Baron's Den, I'll remember that.

[Pete44ru]

A shopping mall is probably the best place for a gun businees with pricing policies like that one's.

Our beloved guns get some exposure to unaware non-gun types - who just might buy one of their offerings for wallhanger/decor.

People with more money than brains, and not used to polite behavior (since they're not of the gun world), have a tendency to eat up "kewl stuff".

.

[Bill in Oregon]

Pharmseller: I went to UO in the 70s. Wasn't there a shop called John Warren's downtown? Long gone, no doubt. Used to be a couple of stores in Springfield, in addition to The Gun Works, if you are into black powder.