This is a new gun shop up on the Carlisle Pike in Mechanicsburg. It is a nice store, and has a good selection of firearms, and the staff is friendly.
I think prices are a "little" high and with a little driving around you can find anything they sell for cheaper. The same applies for ammo. The cheapest 9mm ammo they had was remanufactured and was over 15 bucks for 50. It looked clean though, but for plinking ammo you can find cheaper stuff elsewhere. The stuff could be really good for all I know and worth the cost.
The thing I decided to do with their business was do some gunsmithing. This is the first time I've ever really had anyone install anything on my gun since I do it myself and it is usually something simple. This was some night sights on a Px4 Storm though and apparently you need a tool to do it... and said tool is over a hundred bucks. Yeah... this will be cheaper.
I called ahead of time whether they could have done the job and they said giving me an initial quote of 25-30 bucks for the job. I decided to go with them for convenience and I thought it would be nice to support the new store while I'm at it since I live close.
I had to wait until the following week on Tuesday to drop off the pistol since their gunsmith was out at a gun show or something. I hand off the pistol and he said he would see if he could install them while I'm there if not he would have them done the next day.
About 5 minutes later he said he couldn't and apparently after beating on the sights for so long he couldn't get them loose. He didn't have the necessary tool to remove them and he said he could order the tool to do it which I was grateful for. I was in no hurry so I allowed it.
About a week and a half later the pistol was done and I came in to pick it up. The cost was 50 dollars presumably since they invested 120 bucks in getting these sights installed on my gun. Well... I get the gun back. The original front sight is bent with a nice coating of brass on it. I guess those are useless now. I learned later on the compact model there is a empty gap underneath the slide and the front sight. No big deal, and really it doesn't bother me.
However, now my slide is all cuffed up. This pistol is brand new and now it has blemishes from what appears to be from the clamp he used to keep it in place, and the front sight area is all jacked up. Not to mention he destroyed the original front sight. I kind of would have liked to have kept them in case I may want to switch the night sights back out(because tritium dies out after a decade).
This was my mistake for being too trusting to an inexperienced gunsmith. I likely would have been better off buying the tool myself and doing it myself. I haven't shot the gun yet to make sure the gun isn't shooting off since there aren't adjustable sights. I shouldn't have accepted it in the condition it was returned to me, and I would forewarn anyone who wants to have any work done on their firearms here.
The rest of the store seems pretty fine there. I wouldn't hesitate about shopping there for a new gun or accessories but this gunsmithing experience has left me sour and unsatisfied with the quality of work that was done.
Update:
Well I've gotten in contact with SPAR firearms, and they have agreed to replace mine at no cost. They said they like to stick to their products and services, and that customer service a priority of theirs. I'd say this is a breath of fresh air, and I think if a business is willing to go the extra mile to do something like this, it is deserved to be known. I haven't received the new pistol yet, but in the coming weeks this process will be dealt with. I'll continue to leave this review pending as until the process takes place.
Final Update:
I picked up the new Px4 Storm Compact, and I am pleased with the level of service I received. Spar Firearms holds true to their word when it comes to customer service. They really wanted to make sure I was pleased with the trade. They even paid me the cost of the Mepro Night Sights that were put on them. I think I'll hold off on purchasing another set of night sights until they come out with a model specifically designed for the handgun instead of just the full size. Regardless, I certainly would shop there again, and I've noticed they have a number of used handguns. Some with interesting prices such as a used Px4 Storm Subcompact for just under 400 dollars and it looked to be in great condition just like most of the other used firearms. I also saw an M16A1 style AR-15(it was a pre-ban) there for 1,200 bucks.
