Big 5 was ok this time

[Pauliedad]

So with all the stories of incompetent employees that rightfully get told here I thought I'd share a couple of tidbits.

Been on a lever gun tear recently and after picking up a Rossi in .44mag for $419 (sale from $469) and having no issues I thought I'd check out the .357
Well those are tougher to find and when I did, Elite Arms in Castro Valley, they had it at $590.00
I inquired about any flex there on the price and was politely blown off.
I figure they pay more and would never have mentioned big 5 but hey, throw me a bone and ill buy. Anyway I digress.
So I'm picking up my kid some baseball socks and wander back to the gun counter at the Walnut Creek Big 5 and inquire if they've ever seen the .357 hit their shelves.
Manager says no but immediately offers up a rain check and says he can get one transferred. I give him my info not really expecting anything. A week and a half later I get a call and its in.
I'm a semi old guy and its a shame this is the exception now for what we've come to expect for service but I thought they deserved some acknowledgement for that.
Story two.
Jackson Arms rocks and cuz they do their safe gets full sometimes and they turn away long gun ppts. One evening a few weeks back that happened to me and to my amazement the Big 5 in Daly City does them. Now hear this, its not pretty. They will take way too long and have several people check the paperwork but if you're in a jamb and its after business hours, it is an option. No handguns although.

[RedFord150]

I have bought a couple of guns from B5 over the years and generally find them easy to deal with.
The manager of the B5 in Chino was surprisingly knowledgeable about shotguns when I was buying my Mossberg 500. I must have handled half of the pump SG's in his rack that day and he never tried to rush me along. I felt like he would work with me all day for a $300 sale.
I think every knife I own came from B5.
Do not ever feel guilty for expressing your truthful experience, good or bad.

[DennisCA]

Most of experiences with B5 have been fairly good, hell I bought my 1st C&R Gun (A Mosin 91-30) from them - I guess I could blame them for my C&R addiction! In fact there was one B5 in Fremont, where the guy behind the gun counter was a wealth of info. I thought I knew a lot about guns, I was a preschooler compared to him! Not surprising he is not working there anymore, prob moved on to bigger and better things!

One bit of advise:
Stay away from the snot-nosed kids (you know the type)!
If you ask to see a Mosin (or any other gun) and he/she doesn't grab in right away, then you know that person doesn't know his (or hers) butt from a hole in the ground!

[Mitch]

If you ask to see a Mosin (or any other gun) and he/she doesn't grab in right away, then you know that person doesn't know his (or hers) butt from a hole in the ground!

As long as they know how to process a DROS, that's all I would ask from Big 5.

[Steve_In_29]

I have always had pretty good experiences when buying weapons at my local (relatively as it's 20 miles away) Big 5. I have bought 7 rifles/shotguns over the years from them. I love it when they do a sale and I also have a 20% off coupon.

They really stepped up to the plate on my last shotgun, which turned out to be DOA at the range. They exchanged it and even paid for the second DROS fee.

[shda5582]

I have bought a couple of guns from B5 over the years and generally find them easy to deal with.
The manager of the B5 in Chino was surprisingly knowledgeable about shotguns when I was buying my Mossberg 500. I must have handled half of the pump SG's in his rack that day and he never tried to rush me along. I felt like he would work with me all day for a $300 sale.
I think every knife I own came from B5.
Do not ever feel guilty for expressing your truthful experience, good or bad.

The people at the Chino B5 are pretty knowledgeable and VERY friendly. Both the store manager and the blonde assistant manager know their guns and are willing to take the time to answer questions or look something up for you. Also great to shoot the breeze with while they're doing so.

[lowdive]

my only issue with Big 5 is if you need to return something and can't find the damn receipt. most places can look your info up in their systems... not Big 5. i've had no issues with gun and knife purchases, though.

[johnthomas]

So with all the stories of incompetent employees that rightfully get told here I thought I'd share a couple of tidbits.

Been on a lever gun tear recently and after picking up a Rossi in .44mag for $419 (sale from $469) and having no issues I thought I'd check out the .357
Well those are tougher to find and when I did, Elite Arms in Castro Valley, they had it at $590.00
I inquired about any flex there on the price and was politely blown off.
I figure they pay more and would never have mentioned big 5 but hey, throw me a bone and ill buy. Anyway I digress.
So I'm picking up my kid some baseball socks and wander back to the gun counter at the Walnut Creek Big 5 and inquire if they've ever seen the .357 hit their shelves.
Manager says no but immediately offers up a rain check and says he can get one transferred. I give him my info not really expecting anything. A week and a half later I get a call and its in.
I'm a semi old guy and its a shame this is the exception now for what we've come to expect for service but I thought they deserved some acknowledgement for that.
Story two.
Jackson Arms rocks and cuz they do their safe gets full sometimes and they turn away long gun ppts. One evening a few weeks back that happened to me and to my amazement the Big 5 in Daly City does them. Now hear this, its not pretty. They will take way too long and have several people check the paperwork but if you're in a jamb and its after business hours, it is an option. No handguns although.

The reason they have several people check the paper work is, if it isn't right and it is kicked back because they made and mistake and have to do it over, it is on their dime. Glad you were able to get what you wanted.

[Tarasdad]

I've run into the blank stare more times than I can count when gun shopping. Not just Big 5, and sadly not even just at general sporting goods or Walmart type stores. I've actually run into a significant lack of gun smarts in dedicated gun stores! Seems there's no requirement to actually know your product these days.

[RedFord150]

....Seems there's no requirement to actually know your product these days.

Not unique to gun stores.
I live near Berts Megamall, the self proclaimed biggest motorcycle and watercraft store in the country. I have no idea if this is true. Anyway, half the employees in the store do not ride motorcycles. Most of them do not know a Goldwing from a SeaDoo. Very disconcerting when your purchase is well into the thousands.

[postal]

HHAAA!!!! Isnt Berts the place with all the salvaged titled bikes????

Berts junk mall.....

And... talk about big ticket items...... Buy a house... You're "real estate agent" is a slimey used car salesman for houses.

[Chameleon Loco]

I happen to like Big 5, where I live they are the closest store in my area that sells ammo. Their ammo is overpriced but it gets reasonable if you use a 20% off coupon. The last time I used one I managed to get a 100 round pack of 9mm Winchester White Box for $33 including tax. The only firearm I have bought from them was a hex mosin but I liked how I was able to pick and choose the one I wanted from their selection. The one that I go to is right near my school (CSUN) and I have a buddy from high school who works there. The customer service is also great (much better than Turner's Reseda) and I am always greeted with a "Oh your back for more ammo?" or a "So which gun is it this time ?". Finally I like how they will sell me 9mm ammo even though I am under 21 provided that I show them my reciept and DROS for my 9mm carbine. This varies from location to location though as the other Big 5 near me has refused to sell me 9mm ammo.

[alfred1222]

Hell, i bought my first shotgun at big 5, and if they didnt have such a crappy selection and took forever to DROS a gun, id buy again. Most of them are actually full of nice staff who like helping you out. I got lucky i guess, found a small private FFL that knows exactly what kind of guns im looking for, and gets them at cheaper then retail prices. Shopping for guns sucks, im in northern california when im not at school, and most of the shops in the bay area wouldnt know customer service if it smacked them in the head.

[RedFord150]

HHAAA!!!! Isnt Berts the place with all the salvaged titled bikes????....

Bert's was previously located on Foothill Blvd. in Azusa. They used to have a wrecking yard in the back. I bought a few needed parts as I fixed up a couple of older metrics I picked up for cheap.

Currently, everything I see looks too be in decent shape, just pricey. I actually hate it when one of their salespeople comes up to me trying to sell me something. I sometimes lead them on with bad info just to see how much BS they can make up as they respond to my nonsense.

I am personally not aware of anything in the showroom having a salvage title.

[Yehosha]

I've used the east side Big 5 here in Bako for a PPT and they are actually the cheapest place in town to do so at $35. So what that they add one extra day to your wait time?

Also their black Friday sales always have some REALLY good prices on a handful of guns. Normally their prices are terrible and can be beat almost anywhere, but their sales can be really good.

I like to come in and put hands on a gun I want to buy online, so I can get a feel for what I like. They know by now that I'm not buying it from them, but they don't mind and just like to talk about guns. Several times they've told me that a gun I was looking at will be going on sale and to hold off on buying it.

Nothing but positive experiences for me at Big 5. Unlike Dick's where a bunch of untrained sales-sharks try to rip you off and upsell you on more expensive guns, that don't even meet your needs. I absolutely HATE looking at guns at the Dick's here in Bako.