Academy gun counter guy.

So I'm looking at possible pistols for my wife at Academy. The guy behind the counter is showing me a couple of 380's then I tell him she has a Ruger LCP right now and doesn't like it, and the two he is showing me are real similar in feel, so I start looking at the revolvers and telling him how she really wants a S & W Ladysmith but I am hesitant because they are kinda pricy, so he is showing me the airweight, Nice gun but it was almost $700 too, he says yeah, thats because it has a laser, I say ok cool, thats the one thing she does like about the LCP, is that it has a laser, he says yeah, but that one has a switch, this one you just have to grip it, I say no there's not a switch, you just grip it and the laser comes on, he says, no sir you must be mistaken, they didn't make one for the LCP without on off switch, I start laughing and tell him I've owned it for 3 plus years, I know what it has, he says well then you have a one of a kind because they dont exist, I walked away laughing. (but I will admit when I got to the truck, I pulled that sucker out and looked, there is no on/of switch). "Know it all" people are stupid.

I've found some of the smarter people on earth work at Academy gun counters.

Never had an lcp so I can't say anything about that, but ya gotta love those gun counter guys. They all know everything about every gun that was ever built.

I don't have an Academy nearby. Went to one in Round Rock a few weeks back. Heard the counter guy telling some blabber BS to a guy looking at pistols. It was so entertaining I stood around for 30 minutes and listened to him bestow his wisdom.

I walk briskly past them on the way to the fishing section. It is always amazing to hear the kind of used car salesman type crap they spew on the way by. Local mom and pop gun shops are where you get good service.

I think one could do a skit and put all these types of stories together for SNL. A new character in the making: Sporting Good Store Gun Counter Guy.

Sporting Good Store Gun Counter Guy wears a collared knit polo-style short sleeve shirt, tacticool britches, and 'combat' boots. He looks over the counter suspiciously at every customer with a hand hovering just over his 'concealed' Desert Eagle. Sporting Good Store Gun Counter Guy speaks with a condescending tone and arrogant brashness that would make General Custer blush.

The guy at the Academy by my work knows everything. Just ask him.

Ok, so I guess he's not the only one of his kind. LOL.

Sporting Good Store Gun Counter Guy tried to sell me a laser range finder/monocular because binoculars are essentially two rifle scopes hinged together. That is why sometimes you can have double vision when using binos. But, you do have to be careful as the laser can scare a deer off.

Why didn't you open carry it in and "edumacate" him? Then offer to sell it to him for 1k, since it is rare and all

Very disappointed to hear this. Listening to them talk, I thought Academy only hired ex-Navy Seals to man their gun counters. Figured those guys would know better...

They probably make $9/hr. How much wisdom do you expect?

I think one of the Round Rock Academy gun counter guys quit or got fired ... and got re-hired at Bass Pro Shop in Round Rock ... smh

Academy, Cabela's, Gander Mountain, small local shops, gun range shops, area gun shows, and even on THF, the advice can be from excellent to evil....

Ever ask the guy at autozone for spark plugs for your diesel? It's amazing how many counter help people don't know their a-hole from the product they sell. Last time I was at autozone in my neighborhood Anita tried to tell me I could run 10w-30 in my truck because it was on sale.

i know what i'm going for and dont care what they have to say at all.

Heard a gun counter guy telling a customer that a .308 was much flatter shooting than the .300 WM he wanted to purchase. The customer said "man I had it all wrong. I guess I need to do more research" and left the counter. Once he was walking towards the exit I stopped him and told him that the gun counter guy was mistaken. I have learned to never argue with a guy behind a counter. They get upset pretty dang quick if a customer corrects them.

Ah, the gun counter guys are always interesting in what they think they know. There's a local one that keeps telling me that 300 blackout is a wildcat round and he wants to get hold of one and reverse engineer the round so he can copy their loads because he reloads ammo. I guess he hasn't seen a current Hornady reloading handbook. I get more annoyed with some of the people on our side of the counter trying to talk to me about conspiracies and tin foil hat stuff as though I asked them about it and am at all interested in what they have to say.

they are all morons

I worked a three month "Christmas Holiday" job once on the gun counter at Bass Pro. Several "I know everything about guns" guys there that should have been working in the ladies apparel dept. or maybe the candy counter where they would be less dangerous.

I've only come across 1 or 2 guys at Academy that knew what they were talking about.

These stories are always entertaining.

It's sad to me because these are our ambassadors to new gun owners

On several occasions I've had to help people after they walk away from the gun counter or ammo shelves. Watched one guy sell a woman a couple boxes of steel shot 12ga shells as a gift for her husband. Only issue was, he was going to shoot sporting clays. Also listened to one tell a customer he wanted to carry FMJ ammo is his concealed handgun because carrying defensive ammo was "asking for a lawsuit if he had to shoot somebody".

No disagreement. I hope the "smart" customers leave with the plan to do a little research to find out for themselves these mOrons are wrong.

They have the knowledge of the world in their cell phone.

you pay peanuts


you get monkeys

"Never" and "always" are words that often come back to haunt you.

As I have gotten older, I've learned such petty battles are more a waste of time.

I'm sure that you meant to say, "Never say 'always' or 'never" because they always come back to haunt you."

Coming from a gun counter worker, it is amazing and scary the things I hear from people on my side of the counter and also on the customer side. We have a former seal at our store. He used tell stories about his time in the military. One day I asked him if he was stationed at Coronado. When he said yes I asked him if e liked the orange margaritas at the Brigantine. He got a blank look and said he had never heard of it. If you work on Coronado you know where the Brigantine is even if you don't know about their Orange margaritas. He doesn't talk about being a seal anymore.

A few months ago a customer was directed to me who was needing bases for a Savage 99. I informed him he would almost certainly have to purchase bases online because I don't think any store in DFW carries Savage 99 bases. Since I have a thing for Savage 99's I asked about his. He proudly told me it was his grandfather's, was made in 1911 and everything on it was original. I then asked him if it was a .300 or a .250-3000 to which he replied it was a .308. I told him that if it was a .308, the rifle had either been rebarreled or the earliest it could have been made was probably in the 1950's. Was called a liar and a dumbass and he was never shopping at Cabela's again.

I saw a guy looking at a Yildiz over/under shotgun. The "gun counter guy" was telling him that you pull the trigger once and then have to move the selector switch to the other barrel before you can shoot the second barrel. I own several o/u's and have fired a friend's Yildiz. I told him that the selector switch merely selected which barrel fires first and that all you need to do in order to fire the second barrel is pull the trigger a second time. Gun counter guy assured the customer that I was wrong. Smh.

I avoid buying guns at academy because of my experience with the idiots behind the gun counter. My blood pressure is worth going somewhere else. I don't do well with trolls that think they are Operators

should have tried to sell your one of a kind gun to him

True, at least on the THF someone will usually call

My favorite of all time is the one who went ape scat and darn near broke out in hives when a couple teens asked to handle an AR. He berated them saying he could go to jail if he let them touch it.

Two weeks ago a man asked if we had any shotguns with Demarcus barrels. I said if we did have any firearms with Damascus barrels they would be in the gun library, but I had never seen any in the store and that was maybe because many experts believe firearms with Damascus barrels are unsafe to shoot. The man said he didn't know what I was talking about, he wanted Demarcus barrels. I then told him Cabela's doesn't carry Demarcus barrels because they are so expensive and that satisfied him.

My favorite happened a good while back. Guy came in wanting a magic rifle. Took about five minutes to figure out he wanted a Mosin-Nagant.

I think Sig should change their name to Sig Sawyer also.

I've lost count of the people wanting very light handguns and long guns to help with recoil - and the gun counter people who believe the same thing.

I was in a bar a number of years ago when something similar happened. The ding-dong referred to a unit that was right around the corner from mine when I was at Ft Bragg and said something patently ridiculous and false. I can't say that I particularly enjoyed my time at Bragg, but I was there, mopped and buffed my share of floors, shined shoes and did everything else expected of a private soldier.

I'm not sure why someone would want to announce to the world that he was nothing but a maggot, but I guess some feel the need.

I have heard more than one say this gun will "take down" a this or "take down" a that. I throw up in my mouth a little.....

I really like the staff at the Lewisville location. One of the managers there has said more than once if we don't know the answer, we don't comment about it. Cant say I've ever heard those employees say anything wrong and I visit that store at least once a week.

The Denton store has a revolving door of new employees that I don't think know a whole lot about anything. At least that's been my experience.

The Gander Mountain guy in Lewisville said I can shoot a 41 magnum from a 45 long colt. Okay

The younger brother of a fellow I recently worked with got a summer job at the (Denton?) Academy gun counter. He had never shot a gun before. 'Nough said.

Most are blow hards with the power of a key to a showcase.

But there is one guy at the garland Academy who is pretty knowledgeable.

There's one older guy at Waco Academy that knows his stuff. They should lock all the tools away from anyone else there. Was in there last August, a guy had bought an 870 and I saw the guy behind the counter had it upside down in the vise and was about to operate on it with a padded monkey wrench. I asked the customer what he was having done to it. "He's gonna unscrew the magazine to plug it for me." I stopped the guy and showed him the little twist out follower.

Small gun shops do still exist where you can often find truly knowledgeable staff working behind the counter.

It was probably 20 years ago when I found a Browning that I was looking for at a small gun shop in Rosenberg outside of Houston. Before giving me the rifle to take home, the guy who sold it to me took several minutes to show me exactly how to work it, including the point that Brownings are designed so that the bolt is locked closed until the safety is flipped off. He said it was an old Browning design created back in the days when rifles were commonly carried in the shoulder harness of horses where thick brush or other obstacles could push the bolt open. Wanting a rifle that might be needed quickly, it ensured the rifle would be ready to fire once pulled from the harness and safety flipped off. Not sure if he was correct, but it was something that I needed to know to safely operate the firearm. It is still the only rifle I own that came with that feature.

What did you pay for that old gun way back then? Where's the shop? I knew Rosenberg well back in the day.

Turns out it was just down the road in Wharton. Carroll's Gun Shop. Still have the receipt. Paid $616.97 back in '99 for a Micro Medallion A-bolt .243. I wanted a nice heirloom gun to hand down to one of the kids or grandkids one day. I've taken many deer and hogs with it. I seem to remember it being one of the last Micro Medallions that Browning offered before they stopped making them, which might help ensure its mystique as an heirloom rifle.

My youngest who is now in her final year at A&M has already laid claim to it.

P.S. Shoot me for confusing Rosenberg with Wharton. At my age, I have trouble remembering what I had for breakfast.

I want to work in the sporting goods at Walmart or behind the gun counter at academy just so I can have threads like this started about the total bs I'll tell people.

I remember seeing Carroll's Gun Shop. Old times...

At a shop I worked at in the D/FW area, we would sometimes get a customer who would say, "I can get this a lot cheaper at Wal-Mart!"

"Sounds like you ought to be shopping at Wal-Mart!" - Was our stock reply to this. "What are you doing here?"

Actually, we did not sell the same firearms that Wal-Mart did... We never carried Remington rifles, for example. If somebody wanted a Remington, we would send them to Wal-Mart, where the retail price was about the same as our wholesale cost would be. (As a small shop)

Instead, we carried firearms that one would never encounter at a Wal-Mart. Shiloh Sharps, Navy Arms, Colt BP and SAA revolvers, Puma, Sako, etc..

We had a sign on the wall:

ANSWERS: $1.00 - CORRECT ANSWERS $5.00 - DUMB LOOKS ARE STILL FREE

We didn't really charge for answers, but with some customers we would point to the sign and pretend that we did, just to get them out of the shop.

Those were the days!

Just from talking with folks over the years, even around hunting campfires, I have come to believe that not many people are particularly knowledgable about guns. Even fewer can discuss reloading. I really don't think I'd want to work a gun store counter and interact with the general public.

Some years ago, the country neighbors were all over at our place, having beer and telling lies (and the occasional truth). The neighbor had a new son in law, a guy that was worth 10's of millions of dollars, had his own jet plane, and knew everything about guns. While talking shotguns, I mentioned that my Rem 1100 had died and I replaced it with a recoil operated old Rem model 11. He was adamant that all semi auto shotguns were gas operated. He wanted to bet money. Ooooo, things were looking up. I suggested $100. He suggested $5000. He was a little drunk, so I didn't feel right about taking him to the cleaners, so I stuck with the $100. He paid. Do you guys think I should have stuck him for $5G?

I gotta give credit to a gun counter guy in McKinney Academy. About two months ago, I was standing at the centerfire rifle ammo. He asked if he could help. I said, no I'm figuring if this .223 is worth me buying, I'm a hand loader and hasn't bought centerfire ammo in years but this seems like a good deal. He said, OK, did you see the .223 ammo on the end cap, that is on sale? No, I said. Little cheaper, and I said "I wonder if the brass has a crimped primer"? He said "what's that?" I explained and said I'd have to break the seal on the box of ammo to show you. He said go ahead. So I showed him those crimped in primers side by side with .223 that was not crimped. He thanked me for explaining and said he would remember that in case another customer asked about it.

I would much rather purchase a gun at Academy than any of my local "gun shops"/pawn shops or "Ma and Paw" type places.

I've had nothing but good experience with Academy in Texarkana, Longview, and Tyler. I always know exactly what Im looking for before I go. I often call to see if its in stock and tell them when I will be there to pick up etc. Quickest, easiest and most pleasant in and out sell on a store bought gun. YMMV

JG did the dude look like Rosie O'Donnell?

Seems like he was a little thick. Don't remember Rosie, though.

I do my own research and don't solicit the opinions of the sales staff, whether at Academy or the local gun store. I've heard stupid things uttered in both settings.

I resemble that remark......thick.......not rosie

Jason did the right thing, instead of laughing in the guys face, Jason took the opportunity to educate instead of berate. nice job jg



now you can berate my poor little BDC turreted Swarovski

Put some of these gun counter guys with some of the customers they face and it can get really comical or sad depending. During the last big ammo/gun crisis/shortage saw a guy insisting the Buffalo Bore heavy 45-70 loads would work in his new pistol. I had seen him looking at a Kimber 45ACP earlier and ask if he was getting that one. He said yes and these bullets will work since they are 45. They walk among us

I want to see pics of the pistol grip!

Honestly, I have never liked Academy. I don't know how or why they built such a fan group. Every employee I speak to there seems ill-informed. Recently I was looking for varmint ammo for my .243, I went to Academy and couldn't find any. I asked the guy behind the rifle counter and he said there is a shortage and if I find any buy all of it. I had him confirm he meant .243 win and not something else. He confirmed it, then I went across the street to Walmart and bought some Hornady V-Max which was fully stocked on their shelves...

I knew a young guy who worked in a pawn/gunshop in Blackfoot, Idaho back in the 90s. He was a good kid, but a little naive. One day I let him show me a 3-9x variable, or some such, and I handed it back to him turned to 9x. As he started to put it back in the display case I stopped him and told him he should turn it back down to 3x before he put it away, and naturally he asked why.

"Because it'll burn out the optics if you leave it on 9x," was my reply.

"Really??"

He got a bit bent outa shape when I busted out laughing, but that's just the way we all played in that time and place. I got gigged as much as anyone else when I hung out with that bunch of miscreants.

I always look for an opportunity to have a little fun with folks, without being mean if I can help it. I do know that some are just to dense too play with, though, or just too damned surly to risk it.

I always visit this gunshop up in Michigan City, Indiana when we visit the The Better Half's family. There was always this guy behind the counter with a very sour disposition, not friendly at all even when cheerfully greeted. He musta had a cat that pissed in his Cheerios every morning, I dunno, but over the years I'd drop in there each time we visited Grandma and the guy was always there and always had that sour look on his mug. He kind of looked like he was wondering why I was alive every time I walked in, and over time I learned that he treated everyone who walked in the door that way.

One morning I walked in there and was looking over his powder stock. I had quit trying to be friendly to the guy several years before, so all I had done was acknowledge his existence, basically. So anyway, this pair of locals walks in and they want to buy some reloading stuff but they don't know anything about the game. They tell the guy what calibers they've got and ask if he'd recommend a powder. Sourpuss tells them "we don't give out reloading advice."

So a minute or two later the guys are standing next to me, and I said to them "I couldn't help overhearing, I think I can help you out."

"Oh, okay. What do you think?"

I said, "Well, if you're wanting to load all those calibers with only one powder, I'd recommend H4350."

"Thanks!"

"Sure, glad to help."

Two minutes later the guys piled up their stuff on the counter and were checking out. Sourpuss says "That's not the right stuff, I'd hate to see you walk out of here with the wrong powder," and put the H4350 back on the shelf. He grabs a jug of IMR4350 and says "this is the right stuff."

Being the social butterfly I am, I said "I thought you didn't offer reloading advice in this shop. That powder's no better than the other for their purposes." Sourpuss just looks at me with that look on his face that declares "I hate myself even more than I hate you and the cat that pisses in my Cheerios every morning."

Since he had nothing to say I told him that I thought he was the north end of a southbound horse, and left. He wasn't there the next time I went in there a couple of years later.

I never could figure out how to have any fun with that fellow, but strings of firecrackers and bottle rockets crossed my mind a time or two.

It takes all kinds...

I witnessed an academy counter guy twisting leupold rings with the scope tube

I thought everyone knew you used a 16 gauge shotgun barrel to torque rings into place.

The ONLY time I buy firearms at Academy is if they have what I'm looking for, in stock, at a significantly lower price than anywhere else. I let the sales person know what I want, to get a fresh one out of the safe, and I'm not interested in any up-sales or opinions. I'm very polite, but upfront and wanting to conduct my business as quickly and effortlessly as possible.

I buy my sneakers and draws at Academy that's about all I get there. The gun counter is cheaper than movie for entertainment. I've had to tell a fellow shopper to be careful on the ammo, they have the Marlin Exp caliber mixed in with the standard caliber! 45 GAP ain't the same as 45 ACP, 357 Sig not going to work in your wheel gun folks...you know standard stuff some take for granted and I don't really want these folks trying beside me at range.

Speaking of gun counter types, what's wrong with this picture?

Isn't the m 77 rimfires?
Sorry I'm not a ruger person.

But let's be honest guys. I'm sure most of the guys and gals who work behind the counter at gun stores all over America will tell you they see customers all the time who are "legends in their own mind."

No, they're centerfire, but the rifle in the picture isn't a Model 77, it's a Ruger American.

typical of Gander Mountain

Wait, so can we get $200 off a Ruger American? That's almost half off.

Idiots.

I worked at the Tomball Academy for a couple years. I remember one of the guys telling a lady that a .223 was "the best all-around deer cartridge". I was compelled to say that, though its sufficient, its not necessarily the most ideal cartridge for deer hunting. (I know a .223 can do it and I have killed deer with it, but I'd argue with anyone that says its the best for deer!)

Though there are some idiots that work at Academy, there are just as many, if not more, that really do know their stuff. I really do believe they should pay the hunting and fishing guys (that are competent), more. I think with a little more pay they could retain the good ones and have better service.

Most gun counter workers are little more than self-absorbed, opinion parrots who repeat things that they have heard other people say. I am positive that there are some good ones out there in the world, but I've never thought I had a fighting chance of meeting one at Academy.

That's me. It's not that I am an expert on all things guns - but I do my research and get my advice from sources I trust. Then, I buy wherever I can find the best deal. If that happens to be Academy or someplace like it, fine.

I worked at a big box gun store for a while when I was in college, and I would say that the employees who are clueless far outnumber the ones who know those stuff. It's hard to find sharp, knowledgable employees for $9-$10 an hour.

LOL...didnt know this thread existed...Good one...

I bought a Sportical couple weeks ago....Gun Counter guy was sooo bad I actually called the store and spoke with the manager after I left...

I just walk to the gun counter...

and said

Do you have the DPMS Sportical, in stock?

He replied, yes.. we have alot.

I said...OK...lets start the paperwork for one...He said...OK, do you have CHL or TX DL, I said, yes,handed him both, He handed my DL back and said I only need this one...

So he grabs one from the cabinet takes it out, says here, I said, I've already looked at one today at lunch time handled it, etc, I don't need to see it again....

Well, he says, that's never a good idea, This ones a completely different gun, you never buy a gun without looking at it...I said I was just here 4 hours ago, I've seen it already...

Anyways...long story short, he was very condescending, and overly aggressive....

So I call the store, the manager, says...Stop..Let me guess...Younger Guy, beard and glasses??

I say yes, that's him, Manager, said, Sorry, I know you're about the 3rd call or conversation I've had about him. He thinks he knows everything and everyone else knows nothing, I've talked to him before about it, and looks like I'll have to talk to him again.

Manager apologized numerous times and said, we'll fix it, and please don't stop shopping with us...

of course I didn't got my fishing license yesterday and bought a 22 since then....Just really wanted them to know they had some jerk at the counter.

So, I agree with above, retail sales, just hire whoever applies, you dont need to be qualified to work retail, because retail believes everyone can be trained...Which I guess in most cases they can.

You would think the way liability is these days that they'd invest a little more in people selling firearms...

So you got mad when he recommended you look at a gun you where purchasing? Manufacturing defects do happen, and I always look at the exact gun I'm getting, not just the demo model. You would probably also be mad if there was an issue and they wouldn't exchange it for you despite having a policy stating they won't do so.

I agree, you can't blame the employee for doing the right thing. Some people are just a little rough around the edges. If they mean well, try to look through the exterior to see what knowledge they have to offer. No different than playing for a good coach.

Knowing the work force, it is amazing they can staff the counter- kids these days are not very reliable. That being said, was at Academy a while back and they had yldiz o/u on clearance. Asked them why- they didn't know. Asked for one in 28 gauge and they had just gotten some. Kid pulls out first box- I say that's 12 gauge just like the one on the rack. Finally point to the correct box. Kid absolutely cannot assemble the gun. I asked three times for him to hand it to me and I would assemble, but no luck. After banging it around a 4th time he gave it to another guy behind the counter.

Never buy from Academy, just look. Then go to my LGS.

You guys are expecting to much of the "big box" stores. Expertise is rare these days in retail unless it is a specialty store.

Agree as well.... He wasn't wanting you to look at it to decide if you liked the model, he was asking you to look at it for any defects and accept it as it was. I think you would be one of the customers the gun counter guys talk about...