Scary Customer Encounter at GM

[BogWalker]

Man, I could tell you customer stories that would pin your ears back.

Don't tease us speak up man!

 

[Hoosierman]

Had something similar happen to me at the Castleton Gander. A guy asked me if I knew if they had any .22s, I replied, "only .22 mags", to which he asked me if .22lr was for pistols and .22 mag was for rifles. I said, "no, different cartridge altogether". Then he asked if .38s are the same size as 9mm, I can only imagine because he wanted to try to shoot .38 ammo in his 9mm. I tried to explain that it's very close to the same diameter, but not interchangeable. This gun panic has all these people who don't know squat about guns trying to get into it, and that's good... but there's gotta be a limit.We should make a gun safety course mandatory before purchasing a gun. Also to enforce it we'll have to do away with private sales.

 

[JetGirl]

Yep. I open ammo boxes all the time to give people a visual for why they can't do whatever it is they're trying to do.
The biggest culprits are 45LC vs 45ACP, and .38 vs .380.

I do. I recently got some .38 special because the gentleman realized that .380 is mathematically the same as .38. Oddly enough, they were too long to go into his magazine when he got them home.

Yep^.
Another one that confuses people is the mag on a Walther saying ".380ACP" on one side and "9mm Kurz" on the other.
People see the "9mm" part and that's as far as they go. So it makes lots of folks think 9mm and .380 are the same because it's written on the same mag. Kurz means SHORT. 9mm SHORT. .380 is not 9mm luger.

 

[Zephri]

Reminds me of a guy at the shooting range years ago who was shooting .308 out of his M44, I corrected his error and gave him some of my ammo.

 

[Dirtebiker]

I was at GM last year and a customer was looking at a Ruger 22/45. He asked the GM employee if the 22/45 meant that he could shoot .45 out of it, too. The girl who worked there said "yes, I believe so." I stepped in at that point and explained that it could only shoot .22lr and that the 45 referred to the ergonomics. He thanked me and handed it back to her. She proceeded to put it away, gave me a dirty look, and stomped off.

I actually had a guy ask me the same exact question at the last 1500. He thought it came with two barrels!

 

[Dirtebiker]

I'm kind of embarrassed to admit this, but when I was shopping for a .22 pistol, I asked the salesperson at a local shop if the 22/45 came with a 45 conversion kit or something, since I'd never heard of the 22/45 before. Hey, at least I didn't think it would fire both .22 and .45 with the same barrel/bolt/receiver! [/QUOTE
was this perhaps at the 1500?

 

[DoggyDaddy]

I'm kind of embarrassed to admit this, but when I was shopping for a .22 pistol, I asked the salesperson at a local shop if the 22/45 came with a 45 conversion kit or something, since I'd never heard of the 22/45 before. Hey, at least I didn't think it would fire both .22 and .45 with the same barrel/bolt/receiver! [/QUOTE
was this perhaps at the 1500?

No, but it was at ITP!

 

[philbert001]

There are plenty of rounds that are "compatible" that I can understand the confusion. That one can shoot .223 in a 5.56, .308 in a 7.62x51, .38spc in a .357mag, .

Please don't shoot .308 out of your 7.62x51! I'm afraid you are backwards here! .308 is the higher pressure round in this situation!

 

[JetGirl]

Please don't shoot .308 out of your 7.62x51! I'm afraid you are backwards here! .308 is the higher pressure round in this situation!

This ^.
A commercial .308 round can exceed the maximum rated PSI (pressure) for the 7.62x51.

 

[zippy23]

Education is key, and asking someone was smart on his part. I remember when i started out, i had no idea what the heck was going on. so many numbers, measurements, types and acronyms for ammunition! Takes some time to learn it all but thats the key. Nice work being able to help this guy.

 

[foszoe]

This ^.
A commercial .308 round can exceed the maximum rated PSI (pressure) for the 7.62x51.

I learn something new every day. Exact opposite of .223/5.56.

 

[1911ly]

So can I shoot .50 BMG in a .50AE gun? I can right? Im'a do it right now.

I just tried it, dang it don't fit. Must need a bigger hammer!

Seriously though, at least he was asking questions! So many know it all's don't. OP: At least you answered his questions. I always try to be helpful to those that know less then I, And if I don't know I point them to someone that knows more then me. I am lucky to have a few good mentors. Did you tell him about this forum? I hope so.

 

[STEEL CORE]

Probobly same guy I saw at Fishers WM, he had a empty 32 auto shell casing and was buying .380 auto for it. I tried to tell him, but he wouldnt listen.

 

[Dirtebiker]

No, but it was at ITP!

That might have been me then.

 

[WebSnyper]

Had a guy at GM in Castleton ask me about 45 (ACP, vs Long Colt, etc) today as he indicated he had won a Kimber 1911 45 some time back and had not been able to get ammo for it. I gladly pointed him in the direction of the 45 ACP (told him ACP or 45 Auto should be fine, but stay away from the Long Colt for this particular gun, etc, gave him a 2 second explanation between FMJ and JHP) He asked me my opinion on a couple of different brands of 45 ACP FMJ they had, etc. I was glad to point him in the right direction as he was very nice about it and more than willing to listen. I also told him that I had not regularly priced 45 ACP, so to be cautious in stocking up a ton at GM on it, if he had not done his pricing homework.

 

[WebSnyper]

Ignorant does not equal stupid and neither equal crazy.

Agreed. Nothing wrong with ignorance if someone is trying to learn and recognizes their ignorance on a topic. Stupid is a much different thing. What I really cannot stand is someone who speaks with authority on a topic which they are clearly ignorant on.

I don't know how many questions every day I start with "I'll show my ignorance on this topic, but ... "

 

[winchester]

So can I shoot .50 BMG in a .50AE gun? I can right? Im'a do it right now.

no but you can shoot the .50 cal in a twelve guage.
50 BMG from a 12 Gauge Shotgun - YouTube

 

[88E30M50]

Lots of new folks are getting into guns. This guy might just have either dug out the old rifle his grandfather passed down or bought it at a gun show of something. Either way, all he knows is that it's a 30-30 and I'm guessing he has no clue that there is more than one .30 caliber cartridge out there. Hopefully, you started him on is education in all things firearms and that he goes on to become another responsible gun owner.

Every day, new folks that have never touched a gun try to get into the hobby. There are lots of ways to educate yourself in firearm use but the MSM does a good job of censoring any of it to prevent non-gun owners getting the idea that guns can be safe and fun. I had a friend tell me that he had just started to carry a 38 Special revolver that he had inherited from his father. I say 'Great, when do you want to do a range trip to check it out?' and his reply is that he thinks he'll just by a box of ammo and go down some country road and practice on a fence post. I set him straight on that idea.

The point is that there are lots of folks that would never have owned a gun before that are now gun owners. They realized what we all know in that it's good to be able to protect themselves. They just have no clue and it's sometimes up to us to help them make the transition from clueless to educated.

 

[HoughMade]

I'm kind of embarrassed to admit this, but when I was shopping for a .22 pistol, I asked the salesperson at a local shop if the 22/45 came with a 45 conversion kit or something, since I'd never heard of the 22/45 before. Hey, at least I didn't think it would fire both .22 and .45 with the same barrel/bolt/receiver! [/QUOTE
was this perhaps at the 1500?

Well, this is pretty close...now just try finding this in a store :

XT 22/45

https://us.armscor.com/products/xt-22-45-combo

 

[HoughMade]

This ^.
A commercial .308 round can exceed the maximum rated PSI (pressure) for the 7.62x51.

True, but not enough to exceed the safety margin (because of the different specs for testing pressure in the .308 vs. 7.62x51, the difference is not the over 10,000 psi many people think, it's actually quite small).

The real issue is headspace which is greater in the 7.62x51 and can cause case rupture in shorter and thinner .308 brass.