With parking and admissions they have passed up what I am willing to pay. Have many friends that go and also have vendor space and they report no real deals anymore.
i know its a pretty decent show with a lot of time put into it but damn, charging everyone a box of ammo, roughly, to get in the door is like eatin your young
Paying $ for the opportunity to enter one's retail store is a stupid concept. They should pay us to come. The only thing dumber is to buy a shirt that advertises a brand.
The admission price has decreased my attendance at shows but I still go once or twice a year. Compared with what I have available locally, I get to handle many more guns than I would if I stuck to local retailers. That to me is worth the cost.
However, I rarely make a purchase at the shows. I find what I like and what fits me, then I look for a used copy or order it locally. Usually for less than what it was at the show.
The exception is with used guns. That's a crapshoot at the shows. Sometimes I've found an okay deal on something I'm interested in, but usually it's online forums, auctions, or word of mouth that gets the sale.
The gun show has been losing relevance in the past decade or so with the internet taking over most of its duties. If I find an FFL with reasonable transfer fees close to me, I may never set foot in one again.
The only thing I see bringing shows back to where they were a decade or more ago is if our lawmakers were to mandate universal ffl transfers. Then a gunshow would absolutely be the place to be. Your choice of competing FFL's for transfer fees would keep them in check and the carry-ins and used guns/consignments would be much more available. However, since you'd be limited to mostly used dealer or consignment, expect prices to jump and the rare estate sale/collection deal to be gone.
I havent gone to the last 2 1500's. Im not going to spend $5 to park and another $12 to get into the show to look at things that I know im not going to buy at the current prices.