Author Topic: walmart guns (Read 3104 times)

Aaro · « **on:** May 30, 2006, 06:02:56 AM »

I'm planning to buy a a remington 700 in 243 for plinking varmints and deer. My plans are to replace the trigger stock and other gut parts. My question is are walmart guns class b stock. Walmart has the best price on a 700 but i have heard that they were cheapely built is this true. Also what is a good price on a 700 Synthetic blued? Anyone got one they want to part with?

Bullseye · « **Reply #1 on:** May 30, 2006, 06:43:09 AM »

I cannot prove it one way or the other. If you look at the Walmart special order book, you will see that they get their guns from Sports South which is a large distributer. I cannot imagine a large distributer carring two of all guns in inventory (a Walmart version and the everybody else version). My opinion is that they are the same guns as anywhere else.

Feldhege · « **Reply #2 on:** May 30, 2006, 06:46:41 AM »

Don't know about the Rem 700 but my Marlin 1894SS looks exactly like the others I have seen at places like BassPro and online. It works great and shoots like a champ. Saving almost $100 from my next cheapest place didn't hurt my feelings much.

Robb

sniperVLS · « **Reply #3 on:** May 30, 2006, 06:51:35 AM »

I'll say this, the VLS I got from walmart is Immaculate and the best shooter I've ever had, period. No visible flaws, barrel looks excellent after inspecting with a bore scope. Same goes for my friend, he ordered his a couple weeks after I received mine and you couldnt ask for a better shooter. Trigger out of the box was decent enough, everything else was as if we went to the local dealer and paid $250.00 more for the same model. No thanks.

I'm ordering the New Sendero from them shortly, heres praying I have the same good experience.

Aaro · « **Reply #4 on:** May 30, 2006, 08:08:40 AM »

Price difference is almost 125$ cheaper at walmart than at the local guy. I guess ill go with walmart if no one on hee has anything to offer?

sniperVLS · « **Reply #5 on:** May 30, 2006, 12:50:07 PM »

don't forget to check the Classifieds section

6Shooter · « **Reply #6 on:** June 05, 2006, 01:01:12 PM »

I'm glad Wal mart is selling guns for good prices and hope they continue to do so but, I like to buy guns from acouple of gun stores near my home. They are alittle higher priced $20 to $30 dollers in some cases but they know their stuff and always will help me with any problem I have. Even with guns I haven't bought there.
I heard that Walmart gets slightly damaged guns sometimes and that's why they're cheaper. I bought a Marlin .17HMR from Walmart afew years ago and it was perfect, not one blemish and shoots great so I don't know if that's true or not.

sniperVLS · « **Reply #7 on:** June 05, 2006, 04:18:21 PM »

If local shops were only charging 20 or $30.00 more, Id go to them in a heartbeat. Everything I want is much much cheaper at walmart though, so until I get a bad one from them I'm going to keep on buying from them. Im eyeing a Wingmaster :eek:

rich5674 · « **Reply #8 on:** September 17, 2006, 02:33:38 PM »

Likewise, when the gunstore is a few bucks more I'll buy from them. The 10/22 I bought from Wall, (22" barrel) was only available from them (walmart)and was 1st quality

beemanbeme · « **Reply #9 on:** September 17, 2006, 02:58:59 PM »

Why are you gonna replace the trigger, stock, etc??? You can have a smith adjust and hone the trigger for $50 tops and you'll have one of the best triggers in the business. The trigger job is pretty easy to do yourself and there are pages in cyberspace that will walk you thru it. Take the rifle apart and make sure everyting is shipshape and tight and then put a decent glass on it and shoot it. As a rule, most 700's, with little or no work (the trigger is a given), will shoot an inch or under. And when folks start screaming "you've got to free float the barrel", forgetaboutit.
The way Wally gets better prices is by buying in volume, not buying seconds.

tomzuki · « **Reply #10 on:** October 06, 2006, 06:34:01 AM »

Wal*Mart, K-Mart and others were harrased by the California authorities soo badly out here that they were forced to "voluntarily" discontinue the sale of all firearms. The authorities are also doing the same to the local smaller gun/sport shops. The State DOJ makes the paperwork so complicated that they disqualify the licenses of those with too many mistakes. Even after a local crime incident, were a felon brought his own firearm into the local Wal*Mart and held of Law Enforcement for quite awhile with the ammun ition stock, the public cry came out to not allow the sale of ammunition, becuse it might be stolen or used in crimes. Los Angeles County does not allow the sale of smaller 3" or less handguns becuse the City Councel says they are too consealable, also shops have been sighted and punished for selling consealble holsters and accessories. Too bad we will live here for several more years untgil we can get out. Too many nuts and freaks!!!!!

jvs · « **Reply #11 on:** October 07, 2006, 11:20:48 PM »

Any large Wholesaler or Retailer can dictate to a Manufacturer as to which Specifications they want on a Product they sell. Although, they MUST meet certain minimum specs.

If you remember the Firestone Tire fiasco a few years ago. Firestone took the alot of heat for putting sub-par tires on new Fords, which it turns out, was exactly what Ford wanted when Ford ordered the Tires.

I believe either WalMart or the Wholesaler they use specify rifles that are slightly different than most Remington orders that are filled for someone else. Although I have no proof of that. Of course, that would not go for all Rifles at WalMarts either. I am sure that Remington makes a ton of rifles that aren't cheapened for a big order.

tanoose · « **Reply #12 on:** October 08, 2006, 03:50:15 AM »

When you buy a remington 700 bdl from walmart its the same as any gunshop . The only thing walmart gets are the sometimes package deals that you dont see the rifles that sometiimes come with scopes.You can order right out of the remington and any other company catalogs. There is no such thing as a class b remington 700 BDL Walmart can sometimes save you as much as $150.00 on a rifle not because of quality. Take for instance the remington 750 semi auto maybe your local gunshop buys 300 a year from a distributer . well walmart is nation wide and they get a discount because they maybe buy 10,000 per year.There are some low end rifles at walmart you dont see at most gunshops but if you wanted to you can order those anywhere not just walmart.

jvs · « **Reply #13 on:** October 08, 2006, 08:22:44 AM »

WalMart was good at ordering a bunch of least expensive ADL's. The only place you could find an ADL configured like the ones that WalMart sold, was at WalMarts. They do the same thing with Package Guns and the newer SPS.

You are right, when you can order 10,000 at a time, it works in your favor. But that doesn't mean the same configuration is available to every other distributor or retailer. Nor would any other wholesaler or retailer want what WalMarts puts out on the sales floor.

Special Order guns are a whole different story at Walmarts.

teddy12b · « **Reply #14 on:** October 09, 2006, 05:27:54 AM »

5 years ago I walked into a gunstore where the owner was working on a Rem 870 that a guy had bought at walmart. The gunstore owner was frustrated with the gun and told me that there aren't many people that understand that buying a walmart gun isn't the same as buying a gunstore gun because walmart makes them cut corners to drop their price, period. He said to check the exact model # on the guns and you'll find another letter or other symbol indicating it's a walmart quality gun. Whether that's true or not I don't know, I've never bought a gun at walmart. I've talked to other gunstore owners and they say the same thing. Then again of course a gunstore wants you to buy from a gunstore, and walmart wants you to buy frmo walmart. Personally I'd rather buy it from a gunstore and spend the couple extra bucks, just to make sure. My 2 cents.

beemanbeme · « **Reply #15 on:** October 09, 2006, 02:17:18 PM »

If it was just "a couple of bucks", I would agree. However I will believe that Wally World is selling "seconds" when pigs fly. On the one hand, if any rifle company generated as many seconds as Wally sells rifles, they would have been out of business a long time ago. Secondly, no company, not just rifles, would jepordize their name and reputation to turn out junk with their name on it no matter how many rifles Walmart sells.
You heard the same BS back when Sears was selling Winchester rifles with Ted Williams on the barrel. Some folks (look mine cost more so its got to be better) would have you believe that Sears was selling seconds but the rifles would change out part for part for part.

jvs · « **Reply #16 on:** October 09, 2006, 08:42:47 PM »

I don't think WalMarts sells 'factory seconds' of anything. But I do believe that Walmarts sells rifles that are made to different specifications, especially at the low end of the line.

This might be a good question to ask in the Gunsmith Forum.

teddy12b · « **Reply #17 on:** October 10, 2006, 01:52:28 AM »

JVS hit the nail right on the head. I've always been under the impression that a factory "second" is a scratched or dinged item. The walmart guns are different models all together, but they are very subtle about it. I don’t think the gunstore owner was just making this up to impress a possible customer. Of course no firearms manufacturer is going to sell guns at a Walmart that’ll be completely junk. I’m sure the Walmart guns are just fine, but I don’t feel confident that they are 100% up to speed. You can get lucky and find one there that shoots great, I’ll be happy for you, but I’ll buy my guns at an actual gun store.

beemanbeme · « **Reply #18 on:** October 10, 2006, 05:53:33 AM »

The only experience I have with a special order Wally rifle was in Summersville, WV. The lady (and she knew her stuff) showed me a .270 ADL with a laminated stock. She remarked that those rifles were made especially for Wally. To their specs and their own people (wally's) did the QA on them. From her pleased manner of speaking, one could tell that she didn't feel she was slipping some POS to an unsuspecting public.

teddy12b · « **Reply #19 on:** October 10, 2006, 07:26:40 AM »

I don't doubt for a second that the guns sold at Walmart are just fine. The guns are made to Walmarts specs and that's fine, because Walmart does carry firearms you can't get anywhere else. By itself that doesn't mean they are better or worse, but I'll take the gunstore owner/gunsmiths word that walmart makes manufactures cut corners. Either way I don't give a hoot because I don't like a lot of things about walmart and how they treat their employees. I'm sure people have walked out of the store with firearms that are just fine. I just don't think on the average they are as good as what is on a regular gunstores shelf. Do whatever you want but I'm not planning on buying any guns from them. Just my 2 cents.

jvs · « **Reply #20 on:** October 10, 2006, 11:21:52 AM »

If you page through the gun book at Walmarts and find something that walmarts doesnt normally stock, they will get it for you, out of the stock that some distributor has. This is not what I thought this thread was about.

But, if Walmarts orders 10,000 SPS's from Remington and stipulates that they all be 700 actions, with no sights, a Synthetic Stock and Painted Metal, this is what Remington will supply. I am sure that Remington will Paint the Barrels, supply Plactic Stocks, and everything that Walmarts wants.

While Remington may prefer to either Blue or Anodize the metal, and Remington may prefer to supply a better stock material, they probably would not refuse Walmarts request. However, the degree of quality may be lacking in some of the rifles Walmarts orders for their stores. That's not to say that those rifles are junk, but they could have been made better, like almost anything else in this world.

JPSaxMan · « **Reply #21 on:** October 10, 2006, 04:14:54 PM »

Quote from: sniperVLS on May 30, 2006, 12:50:07 PM

don't forget to check the Classifieds section

Right VLS because as we all know, any personal ads posted here are not allowed...right?

sidekick · « **Reply #22 on:** October 11, 2006, 02:13:47 AM »

Couple years ago I purchased an 870 Express from WM. It would not reliably pick up a new shell from the magazine upon ejecting a spent hull. Sometimes it was the second shell, or third, or forth, but it never failed to fail at some point. I took it to an Authorized Remington repair shop near my home. After two weeks, the gun was returned, no better than when I took it in for repair. I called Remington and they issued a pick up label (saving me the return shipping) and in a couple or three more weeks I had the gun back. It has not failed to pick up a shell since, so it appears to be fixed, finally. I really don't think WM has anything different from anyone else, I just think Remington quality, particularily in their bottom line guns, has gone to heck in a handbasket. Sad.

teddy12b · « **Reply #23 on:** October 12, 2006, 01:41:27 AM »

Sidekick,
The gunstore owner who I referred to earlier was actually working on a Remington 870 at the time and that how he and I got started talking about walmart guns. He was having a heck of time getting it to work correctly. I don't think it's a Remington issue. It's no different than how GM has been treating their supplies, "you'll do it for this price or not at all". I don't like that policy and I remember the old saying "you get what you pay for". I'm a play it safe kind of guy, and I'll spend the couple extra bucks.

teddy12b · « **Reply #24 on:** October 13, 2006, 05:00:29 AM »

I think we have thoroughly beaten this topic into the ground and anyone interstested in a Walmart gun will have plenty of pros, and cons to think about.

Good Topic!

JPSaxMan · « **Reply #25 on:** October 13, 2006, 01:14:57 PM »

With only 24 replies I'd hardly say we've beaten this topic "into the ground".

tanoose · « **Reply #26 on:** October 15, 2006, 08:52:15 AM »

Well i've been around awhile and i can tell you there are plenty of gunshops out there that will lie about wal-mart simply because they can't compete and they want your business. If you buy from walmart just order from the manufacturers catalog or get the order # and price from your local gunshop then order it at walmart. I buy my rifles from del-sports up in the catskill mountains his prices have sometimes been lower then walmart . he charges $25 above his cost and his shipping He makes his money on everything else you buy in his store and he has a very low overhead . He ownes the store and property . While the gunshop down the street from me hear on long island has to pay $4000.00 amonth rent and he makes $150-$200 on every rifle he sells. Yes there are some different rifles sold in walmart , lots of plastic stock cheap scope pakage deals. That you wont find in most gunshops. I used to buy pedigree dog food ther at walmart $8.54 for a 16 pound bag the same food in pathmark in an 8 pound bag sells for $9.00 Yes it was the same food . Like everything else just know what you are looking for. If anyone hear knows the long island area many years ago i told the guy behind the counter at Leslie Edelmans that he was $75.00 higher on his marlin 336 then american outdoors (his competition down the street) He told me they sold seconds. Like i said . Good luck wherever you buy Tanoose

tanoose · « **Reply #27 on:** October 15, 2006, 09:01:49 AM »

Let me add one thing i have only bought two rifles at walmart , a 45/70 handi rifle and a marlin 22 bolt action . If i were to save only $50.00 on a rifle i would give it to the small gunshop as they are a dying breed. Also the gunshop down the road sells remington express ammo for $19.99 and walmart sells it for $13.99 and sometimes $11.99 when there on sale. Walmarts ammo is not seconds. Just wanted to add that . Tanoose

wncchester · « **Reply #28 on:** October 18, 2006, 11:24:12 AM »

Small Gun Stores - I really miss the atmosphere of some small dealers but a business has to fill a need or its determined support becomes charity. I mean, if we find a gun we want at a chain store's shelves when our local small dealer didn't have it immeidately at hand, we could buy from the big store and go back to the small guy to give him a $50-100 donation to make up for the lost sale and that would make things ok, right? But that really doesn't make much sense, does it? And even if we did, it would only delay the inevitible. Most small gun stores are gone now and those remaining must change focus or close their doors before long.

Sadly, only a few small gun dealers can survive, and they in isolated small markets and out of the way places; there is no other way it can end. They are in much the same box as the horse and buggy dealers and blacksmith shops that were dying a century ago. Nothing could have saved them and today's gun market is changing too.

Quality - No manufactor will turn down an order for 10,000 units with special specific differences but no legitimate maker would cheapen his product in such a way as to damage his market reputation. Some of Wally World's guns have nice changes. I once got a WM special 10/22 in a configuration I liked but it wasn't available at all through normal distributors. So look at what WM, et al, sells and buy it if you like it. The surfaces may not be as polished but you can see that and there will be no deliberatly hidden loss of internal quality.

Our local gun dealers cry "foul" because they want to get in our wallets. That is understandable if inaccurate and it is they who agitate congress to "close the gun show loop-holes" because they want to force us to sell - and buy - our privately owned guns through them, the licensed dealers. So, understand that it is not for our best interests when they speak, but theirs. Believe them if you wish but ... not me.