BELDING & MULL PHILIPSBURG, PA

[recoil freak]

Leadflinger,
Where is Pioneer and what do they have? Reloading supplies?

[S400]

Originally Posted by david1

Why do people who work at gun shops think they are special or something? I hate having to wait around while the high and mighty get off his horse to help me out.

From my experience the other posters have it right. B&M will let you shop/look without constantly harassing you. When I was ready to talk I've never had trouble getting a willing ear.

Then again, I'm not predisposed for butthurt.

[PROVANTAGE]

nothing but good things to say about gary and his shop. For the 2 dollars you saved on primers you wasted about six to drive into clearfield lol. I have bought alot of things and never had a problem. Besides i would rather give gary 2 more dollars then have to deal with those ass backwards people at grice's gunshop.

[leadflinger]

Originally Posted by recoil freak

Leadflinger,
Where is Pioneer and what do they have? Reloading supplies?

Pioneer is on N 2nd street in Altoona near the hospital. To be honest, I was only there once right before the holidays last year. They have a pretty large selection of guns - just about everything under the sun. I wasn't looking for reloading stuff when I went in, so I didn't notice if they carried any.
I did buy one gun there at a reasonable price, but also noticed that the prices on a lot of things seemed a little high.
The two guys there were very talky and were happy to show me anything from behind the counter that I asked to see.
It seems that most people don't like them though - for more gory details you might want to check out this thread...
http://forum.pafoa.org/shops-20/4102...ir-county.html (Pioneer Gun Shop (Blair County))

[TheF00L]

This is part of another post I recently put up.

"I was leaning toward another Glock (owned a 27 for years) but the only one that fits my hand well is the 36 - and I want higher capacity.

Went to Belding and Mull today to fondle the Glocks and stipulated that I wanted a Glock type weapon that would just go bang when I pulled the trigger. He pulled out an XD w/o frame safety and it felt great in my hand."

Adding to this thread because I had a rotten experience lately at "that big gun store" as well. I used to pass B&M weekly but never went in till I saw this thread. My quote says it all but I will expand.

I personally do not like to be "jumped on" when I go into a store to browse. When I walked in, I 1st looked at the bulletin board area to my right by the door. I laughed out loud - loud enough for them to hear me at the counter - about the "Salesman of the Month" poster they had up w/ Obamas picture on it. The woman commented that they get that reaction often. There were 2 men and the woman at the counter at that moment (owners/employees). The woman went to the back while the men stayed out front. They were OBVIOUSLY busy by the discussion I over heard. It was about a previous sale.

I was the only 1 at the time looking in the cases at pistols. When I saw they had a break in their discussion I asked to see the 3 weapons I had called about earlier in the day. I was immediately helped by one of the gentlemen. I held and "played with" the 3 glocks before making my off hand comment that the 36 was the only 1 that really fit my hand well. I then mused out loud that I really wanted to get back to a pistol that had no additional thumb safeties like my 1911 had. I MUST stress here, I did not ask for an alternative to look at, I was just running off at the mouth!

He immediately went into the case again and told me to try this one. It fit perfectly. THIS is what customer service should be like IMHO.

The only reason that I did not buy the gun right there was for lack of funds and lack of knowledge about how the trigger felt. I am in the process of fixing both those problems now. Had I been able and ready to buy I would not have shopped price. I am a firm believer in the concept that customer service is worth a lot!!!

Being that this was my first trip into B&M I do not know how their prices compare. It seems that on this forum you all seem to think they are pretty competitive. That is wonderful!! Service and a fair deal in 1 store is a bonus.

Once I solve my 2 problems I will head back to B&M to see if the great service continues.

An update to my B&M shopping experience.

Well I solved both my issues listed in previous post and I put my new XD on lay-a-way. And yes, I was allowed to browse to my hearts content UNTIL I asked for help again.

This past trip the store was much busier than my first time in. I browsed until it was my turn then approached the Gentleman and asked to see the XD. My wife also asked to see 3 different pistols. We were helped and I went ahead and put $$ down on my new pistol. LET ME STRESS: I will only shop where I feel welcome.

I have vowed to never go into Grice again because of multiple bad customer experiences. I even went to the extreme of multiple emails, phone calls and finally a letter (hand written) sent personally addressed to Tom Grice and NEVER HEARD BACK.

B&M is my new local supplier.

[Bigrepp61]

glad you came over... your like 3 blocks from me when you stop in there... i havnt had any problems with grice but i havnt bought anything but ammo there.....

[Stooperzero]

i havent had any problems with grice but i havent bought anything but ammo there.....

All I buy there is Hard cast bullets, $40 for 500 .430 gr LRn that I resize to .427



At B/M ,I buy brass/powder . It's nice that you can handle this yourself VS waiting for a guy to dig through shelves behind a counter .

[GoldWinger]

Originally Posted by david1

Why do people who work at gun shops think they are special or something? I hate having to wait around while the high and mighty get off his horse to help me out.

That's because most are not trained salesmen or even natural salesmen. They tend to be friends of the owner's and often know little about firearms in general and very rarely have read ATF's publications.

As someone who is now making a living in sales, every customer who comes in should be greeted. If you're busy with another customer and the new one comes within comfortable earshot, you say "I'll be with you as soon as I can."

If the customer says, "I'm just killing time . . . " or "I'm just browsing . . " you say, "Okay, if you have any questions just ask . . ." and leave him alone.

If he says, "I'm thinking of getting XYZ . . " then you can start a conversation.

Sometimes you have to fiddle with the register before you move on but that guy should have acknowldged your existence. The guy fiddling with the sling should have said, "I'll be with you as soon as I get this back together."

Unfortunately, bad shops can thrive because no one knows any better.

[bittr]

I travel to State College on a fairly regular basis but just discovered B&M last year. Now I make it a point to stop when I go by. I haven't made any major purchases yet, but I always seem to walk out with something. Last time it was 45 S&W brass-- that's not something you can just pick up anywhere. The inventory just seems to align with my preferences, and it has quickly become one of my favorites.

I understand the frustration with the big shop in Clearfield, but I don't think it always has to be an "either/or" situation. They all have their strengths and deficits. Grice's has a huge inventory and runs good deals at times, but their sales staff is lacking, shall we say, "charm." Sam at Bob's is a good salesman, and the folks down the road at Guns N Shooting Supplies R Us are always friendly. Competition is good for the customer, and any time I can go to a town that size and find three gun shops within a few miles of each other, I'm a happy man. I have supported them all.

[recoil freak]

Originally Posted by bittr

I travel to State College on a fairly regular basis but just discovered B&M last year. Now I make it a point to stop when I go by. I haven't made any major purchases yet, but I always seem to walk out with something. Last time it was 45 S&W brass-- that's not something you can just pick up anywhere. The inventory just seems to align with my preferences, and it has quickly become one of my favorites.

I understand the frustration with the big shop in Clearfield, but I don't think it always has to be an "either/or" situation. They all have their strengths and deficits. Grice's has a huge inventory and runs good deals at times, but their sales staff is lacking, shall we say, "charm." Sam at Bob's is a good salesman, and the folks down the road at Guns N Shooting Supplies R Us are always friendly. Competition is good for the customer, and any time I can go to a town that size and find three gun shops within a few miles of each other, I'm a happy man. I have supported them all.

Well said and you make a good point.