Cabela's is more insane than you think

[CrackPot]

As most people here know I am a FFL both here in MA and also in NH. I have the NH location solely to take delivery of stuff from places that refuse to ship to MA. Until today, the most restrictive conditions I have run into were places that required not only a NH FFL but also that the CC mailing address showed as NOT MA. OK, fine. I have a CC with its address as my NH FFL.

My customers know I offer the service to take delivery in NH and bring stuff to MA (for a fee of course; rent, gas, time and FFLs cost money).

I have a customer that really likes 22LR handguns and goes on missions to find certain models. The gun he is currently looking for he has only been able to find at a Cabela's in ME. He contacts them to buy and they let him know they will NOT send any used guns to MA. No exceptions. He tries to reason with them and cajole them, all to no avail.

So he asks me to contact them and buy into my NH location for him. No probem. I contact Cabela's. They immediately ask "do you also have a FFL in MA?" well, yes, but why do we care? Oh they know my customer and they don't want us bypassing their policy of f*cking over MA residents. He agrees to escalate to his management for an answer. An hour later he calls back. "We will not transfer the firearm to you". End of discussion.

So this is a new level of insane over the top self inflected compliance maliciousness. If they have any clue that it MIGHT end up in MA, no. I am a NH FFL buying with a NH CC shipping to a NH address that is on my CC and no, they will not ship it.

If anyone needed another reason to avoid big box stores...

 

[Rob Boudrie]

So are you going to have another NH FFL buy it and transfer it to you MA FFL operation?

 

[GM-GUY]

Cabelas has gone way down hill since BassPro bought it. Red Head crap at the same price the Cabelas used to sell for. At least they stopped quizzing me on whether I had a concealed firearm or not on the way in. I always told them no - my kids were little and asked me as we walked away, my response was 'Concealed means concealed and it's none of their business.'

 

[Realtor MA]

Well I'm wondering about the fact that they knew the customer. Really makes me think there's more to the story.

 

[Spartan65]

Well I'm wondering about the fact that they knew the customer. Really makes me think there's more to the story.

He probably was the only guy who had asked about said .22 in months and they had freshly told him to f*** off.

These people are as pro 2A as Yeti coolers.

 

[wildwest]

Was the model/make that unique they knew you were looking to get it for a MA resident?
What was it?

 

[kalash]

Much stupid. Very pant shit. So big box. Wow.

 

[EJFudd]

Could this corporate attitude maybe go back to the infamous Kahr pistols debacle when Cabela's in Berlin first opened? And/or the similar Glock pistols debacle when Bass Pro in Foxboro first opened? I'm sure they got their hands slapped hard by the MA AG both times.

p.s., In my experience (and in this same regard), the Kittery Trading Post is just as bad, if not worse.

 

[PatMcD]

It's a fear of lawsuits. They have a hell of a lot more to lose than you do.

 

[Mark from MA]

I approve of this message.

As a person who spent 2 hours sitting in a PA Cabelas trying to buy an over and under shotgun, after doing my paperwork, watching people behind the counter pants shit because I was a MA resident, and recheck, double check, triple check, and then call their manager who pants shit because I was from MA and had to call corporate who finally let me buy it.

Bought a gun in Berlin.....not much better...spent a good hour there with all the cross checks and paper sign offs.

Never buy a gun there. EVER.

 

[Mark from MA]

Could this corporate attitude maybe go back to the infamous Kahr pistols debacle when Cabela's in Berlin first opened? And/or the similar Glock pistols debacle when Bass Pro in Foxboro first opened? I'm sure they got their hands slapped hard by the MA AG both times.

p.s., In my experience (and in this same regard), the Kittery Trading Post is just as bad, if not worse.

KTP is NO WHERE NEAR Cabelas bad if we are talking MA OK long guns.

Last time I bought a gun there it took 10 minutes. Do paperwork, go look at stuff, they put your name on the board, pay and walk out. And those people are super nice when you call them or have a customer service question and give you gift cards for the sales tax. If you hold a gun, they also go out of their way to let you get up there and buy it.

Pistols...yeah, stay away. But once you know that KTP is fine.

 

[EJFudd]

KTP is NO WHERE NEAR Cabelas bad if we are talking MA OK long guns.

Last time I bought a gun there it took 10 minutes. Do paperwork, go look at stuff, they put your name on the board, pay and walk out. And those people are super nice when you call them or have a customer service question and give you gift cards for the sales tax.

Pistols...yeah, stay away. But once you know that KTP is fine.

Okay, good point. KTP is fine for long guns not considered evil assault weapons or sold only with magazines > 10 rounds. I, too, know that from my own personal experience many years back.

I was focused on handguns for purposes of this thread and (as you point out) it's 100% "no-go" for Ma**h***s no matter what.

 

[CrackPot]

So are you going to have another NH FFL buy it and transfer it to you MA FFL operation?

No reason to use another FFL in NH when they already decided that any FFL in NH is likely trying to bypass their rules. At this point my customer accepts that they are retards and f*ckem

Well I'm wondering about the fact that they knew the customer. Really makes me think there's more to the story.

Its unlikely that anyone has asked about the gun in the last couple weeks. He also asked if he could have it shipped to NH and they said no, you live in MA... So they were on the lookout it seems to say no.

 

[HorizontalHunter]

Cabelas has gone way down hill since BassPro bought it. Red Head crap at the same price the Cabelas used to sell for. At least they stopped quizzing me on whether I had a concealed firearm or not on the way in. I always told them no - my kids were little and asked me as we walked away, my response was 'Concealed means concealed and it's none of their business.'

Big time. The last 3 or 4 times I went in there with gift cards I left without buying anything

 

[jek]

It's a fear of lawsuits. They have a hell of a lot more to lose than you do.

No, it’s stupidity. Once they sell to the ffl they are out of the picture.

 

[robjax]

I've heard too many nightmare stories about the big box gun stores.

Now I only buy guns from the mill.

I did buy one gun last year.

I need to get moving and start his year right.

 

[slap shot]

Can we know what holy grail .22 you tried to buy?

 

[dhuze]

I have an 03ffl and was buying a gun at Cabelas in Maine. They made me fill out the 4473 and had to do a background check. I never bought another one from them.

 

[not new guy]

It's a fear of lawsuits. They have a hell of a lot more to lose than you do.

Lawsuits from whom though? They have zero exposure here.

 

[Garys]

Lawsuits from nobody, but their risk management people them not to do it, so they didn't do it.

Lawsuits from whom though? They have zero exposure here.

 

[ThePreBanMan]

He probably was the only guy who had asked about said .22 in months and they had freshly told him to f*** off.

These people are as pro 2A as Yeti coolers.

Or Benchmade Knives.

 

[not new guy]

Lawsuits from nobody, but their risk management people told them not to do it, so they didn't do it.

Could be. They need to hire more reasonable/pragmatic in-house lawyers. It could also be that some idiot sales manager or somebody thought he was uncovering some criminal scheme when he put 2 and 2 together so he shut it down without escalating to the legal/risk team.

 

[ThePreBanMan]

Can we know what holy grail .22 you tried to buy?

My money says it was a Ruger 10/22, with an extra killy Tasco scope.

 

[FalArAk]

Well I'm wondering about the fact that they knew the customer. Really makes me think there's more to the story.

The dudes name is Chris, you might be on to something.

 

[drgrant]

Well I'm wondering about the fact that they knew the customer. Really makes me think there's more to the story.

Remember, this is a box store that crackpot is talking about these people are basically f***ed in the head just basically no getting around it. Remember this is the same mentality where they have people at box stores who like escort people out of a building that just bought a firearm or whatever. Byzantine empire retardation levels.

 

[drgrant]

Lawsuits from nobody, but their risk management people them not to do it, so they didn't do it.

Judging what I've seen of "box store lawyerism" I don't think these people are attorneys at all l, or if they are, they're the worst attorneys on the planet. I honestly thinking most cases these kind of rules are just made up on the fly, by somebody who has a pole inserted entirely too far up their ass.

 

[ridleyman]

I bought a gun once from Cabelas in Hudson, MA. And that will stay once. It took over an hour and multiple levels of management before I walked out the door with what should have been an ICBM, but was merely a .22.

 

[EJFudd]

I bought a gun once from Cabela's in Hudson, MA. And that will stay once. It took over an hour and multiple levels of management before I walked out the door with what should have been an ICBM, but was merely a .22.

Yep... they are awfully funny that way. Bass Pro (in Foxboro) is pretty bad, but Cabela's (in Berlin) is hysterical. I sincerely hope they have gotten better at this over time.

 

[MisterHappy]

Yep... they are awfully funny that way. Bass Pro (in Foxboro) is pretty bad, but Cabela's (in Berlin) is hysterical. I sincerely hope they have gotten better at this over time.

My kid brought a rifle in, to make sure that the scope/rings combo he wanted would fit. He was followed/chased out of the store by an employee that was telling him that it was illegal for him to carry it to his car without a trigger lock.

 

[EJFudd]

My kid brought a rifle in, to make sure that the scope/rings combo he wanted would fit. He was followed/chased out of the store by an employee that was telling him that it was illegal for him to carry it to his car without a trigger lock.

Not as bad as what they did to me. One of the 14 clueless Cabela's managers who had to sign off on my purchase of a .22LR rifle fancied himself a rifle expert and decided he was going to impress the boys and me with his extensive firearms prowess. He ended up breaking a part off the rifle... and then dropped the rifle on the hard floor. Son-of-a-*****!!!

It was a real tribute to the rifle manufacturer that it was ultimately fixable and no cosmetic damage from the drop. But never again!!!