Ordering a Gun Online

[Bulldawg]

I wasn't quite sure where to put this thread, so I hope it's good here.

Oftentimes I see people mention in others WTB threads, "You can get it at Bud's for $___". But, personally I have never purchased a firearm from an online source. SO, I want to know how it works.

Lets use Bud's as an example, I purchase the firearm from them and they send it to a dealer for me to pick-up. Do I call the dealer beforehand? Who do I pay? If I pay Bud's then do I also have to pay the dealer for a transaction fee?

I'm ultimately trying to figure out if this is going to cost more or not, but would also like to know the process.

Thanks in advance!

 

[gmshooter]

yes please set it up with the dealer first and make sure he is ok with it. They will need to contact each other and swap ffl's. you will pay the ffl for the gun you are buying it from and then pay the transfer fee to your ffl when you pick it up.

 

[Booseman]

Explained by GM

 

[SamNavy]

Buds has an FFL locater built into their site for guys who they already have on file:
http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/ffl.php

I typed in 70760 and the first 4 shops that are listed in green are FFL's that have already agreed to receive guns from Buds. You shouldn't need to call them ahead of time as they're already on the Buds approved list. All 4 of the shops have a $25 transfer fee. Buds also sends you shipping updates and you can track your order from their site. The FFL should call you (be sure you give the Buds website a GOOD phone number) when your firearm arrives. Sometimes they don't, but since you can track it via the website, you'll know when it has arrived. Show up to the FFL with appropriate ID and CASH to pay the fee... everybody likes CASH... and take home your new gun.

I'm in the military and have lived in 4 states in the past few years. Whenever I get someplace new, I just have a look at the Buds FFL locater and feel confident shipping to any place listed in the green without a call.

Note that when buying from the Buds site, all the prices are their CASH price... and you need to send them a money order or the like to get that price. If you're going to pay with a credit-card, the price is (I think 3%) a pinch higher. To get the lower price, and to keep my firearms purchases as private as possible, I always head to the post office and get a money order to pay for my online firearms purchase. It's only about 3 extra days total time to do it that way. It saves me some money and ensures I'm not spending money I don't have... plus the wife never finds out!

 

[Sugarbug]

buds has good service. I prefer to keep deals local when possible/practical, though.

 

[USMC-Deano]

Yup. Bud's is good peoples. Bought my Baby Eagle from them. Easy to deal with and quick shipping. However, keep in mind, they DO charge the 3% fee for non-cash/money order transactions, but for the most part, they are still a good bit cheaper, even with FFL fee, than buying local. For example, my Baby Eagle was $472 cash discount price with free shipping. I ended up paying just a fuzz over $500 for it including FFL fee, yet I got quotes from a couple dealers around Red Stick and they were all $550 or better, plus tax, so easily saved ~$100 on that gun.

 

[1911Dave]

Buds used to be good. They have gone to crap over the past year. I have had two severe issues with them. They have a 2/10 rating out of over 400 ratings on this site:

http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Bud_s_Gun_Shop

 

[cajun 22]

It is a courtesy to call the FFL ahead of time to ask him if it is OK to ship a firearm to him. My local shop owner is always asking me if I know this or that person because a gun just showed up for them and he has no way of contacting them. If it's a regular customer, they just wait for him to show up. Sometimes it gets returned when they don't show up after a certain amount of time. Once a gun was shipped to him while the shop was closed for a week (vacation) and this one guy came in a went off on the owner because he could not get his gun. The shop owner said "you should have called". If you plan on shipping a gun to shop you have never set foot in it is a good idea to put your phone number in the address so the shop owner can call you.

Good Luck

 

[Gus McCrae]

Buds used to be good. They have gone to crap over the past year. I have had two severe issues with them. They have a 2/10 rating out of over 400 ratings on this site:

http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Bud_s_Gun_Shop

What were they?


I bought a gun from them about a year ago. It was easy and smooth.

 

[TomTerrific]

I ordered a TomCat and a couple of spare magazines from them about 18mo ago with instructions to ship to Precision.

They almost immediately shipped the magazines to Precision instead of to me. Bud's immediately told me what had happened and Precision called me when they came in

No problem.

Now I live an hour from Bud's but haven't been over there yet.

 

[1911Dave]

What were they?


I bought a gun from them about a year ago. It was easy and smooth.

Last one was that I ordered a Ruger SR22 that was in stock. 13 days later still wasnt shipped. Called them and they made up every excuse under the sun. They cancelled my order without me authorizing it and then they deleted my account. Just read that website I linked to. They have been having severe shipping issues over the past year.

 

[moe24]

+1 for buds,I ordered a lot from them and there good people.

 

[SamNavy]

I've ordered 5 guns from Buds in the past few years. All but one showed up within a week of them receiving my payment. The one that didn't ship in a timely enough fashion (for me) necessitated a phone call, and it shipped the next day... I didn't even ask for an explanation, not worth getting in a lather over.

The one thing I will fault Buds for is that they have an extreme hard-on for "manufacturer supplied photos". It's not what I would call "rampant" on their website, but there is an unacceptable amount of stock photos of guns that are no the actual firearm. For example... if you look up the Savage MKII-F they advertise, the photo is actually of an FV. I've emailed them a few times about this and their standard answer is "it's what the manufacturer sent to us." I emailed Savage and asked them, and they said they'd look into it. It's been 6 months and no change. I think I've sent 4 emails to Buds about it and no change. I just don't understand their reluctance. How many pissed off customers and returned guns have they gone through because of their unwillingness to change a photograph? It doesn't make sense. I've read about a few more examples of their photo errors and refusal to change them... so be careful! And yes, they do have their standard photo disclaimer about "manufacturer supplied photos" to let them off the hook if the gun you see on their site is not the one they ship, which seems fairly chickenshit.

Their prices are awesome there though, and I buy all my ammunition locally, so I still patronize my LGS's that way.

 

[SamNavy]

^SHOOT! I hate it when I talk some **** and then get it handed back to me... just got this email from Buds today... reaffirms my faith in this company. I will continue to do business with them as them as the consumer in me still looks for the best price, but the enthusiast in me will continue to support my LGS's because we need them just as much. AMEN!

Mr. POOP, Thank you very much for bringing this error to my attention which has allowed me to correct our mistake. If you have any other questions or needs please let us know and we will do our best to take care of you. We hope this response has sufficiently answered your questions. If not, you can use the link below or login to your account for a complete archive of all your support requests and responses. Thank you for the business,
Derek
Budsgunshop.com

Looks like it just needed to get to the right guy in the customer service dept.

 

[1911Dave]

Amazing you actually got a reply. I sent 5-6 emails with not one reply back. The only way I was able to get in touch with them was by calling and spending 30 minutes on hold.

 

[LawDawg]

Be sure to check out grabagun.com too. I bought my Springfield XDS there last month. Great folks to deal with and super fast shipping. Payment to gun in hand was 48 hours!!!!