CrackPot
NES Member
I am going to try and not rant on this topic, but I have to admit I am severely tempted. As a FFL and MA Dealer, I regularly take questions along the line of "can you order me a...". While this was a great question in 2019, in 2020 it is out of touch with reality.
ECR (election, covid, riots) have changed the landscape of how the firearms supply chain works and a significant way. Maybe if I try and lay this all out, people will be more patient with their dealers and the desire to obliterate ignorant but otherwise good/nice customers will abate.
Back in the good old days (pre-March 2020), the distribution of firearms followed a predictable path. Manufacturers build firearms and sold them to distributors. Distributors hired lots of account reps who they assigned dealers to and they sell firearms to dealers. Dealers then sell firearms to the general public. Some boutique manufacturers will eschew distribution and sell directly to a network of dealers that they sign up (think Nighthawk or Les Baer). But in general the modal is MFG -> DIST -> Dealer -> public. If a dealer wants something, they look at what their multiple distributors have in stock and orders the gun from whoever has it in stock. Customers would get guns in 2-3 days after asking for them if the dealer did not already stock the gun.
Allocation: All distributors have a variation on the concept, but the basic mechanism is the same. Guns that are new, hard to get, are in high demand would not be in open inventory to order off the web portal, but are "allocated". This means that when the distributor receives an allocated model, they assign them to account reps who then can sell them to the dealers they cover however they want. Some distributors "bundle" where you have to buy some boat anchor that is in open inventory to get access to allocated inventory (if you buy this savage bolt rifle in .419 caliber that no one has heard of, I can sell you 4 Ruger 57s). Having a good relationship with your account rep and focusing your business on a single or two (if you have enough volume) distributors would give you access to allocated inventory. Your account rep learns what you like and prioritizes getting you stuff that fits when you have a good relationship. Everyone wants the new glock, but he knows you like high end 1911s...
New releases, rare guns, etc are all that would be allocated. Glock 19s, S&W M&P shields, etc are all sitting in open inventory and the distributors have 100s of each in stock. A distributor would have tens of thousands of guns in stock at any given time and almost all are in open inventory. As a benchmark, my primary distributor has SKUs (unique models) for ~1000 semi auto 9mm pistols on their website. At any given time they would have 600-700 of these models in stock (at least one) and 100 of these they would have 100+ copies in stock (yes, that is 10,000 handguns just in 9mm in stock). That is all pre-covid.
Now ECR. I watched this distributor go from 600+ models in stock to 500, 400, 300, 200, 100 and then things settled. Covid restrictions seemed to be working and people calmed down. They only had 10 guns with 100+ copies and 100 unique (talking just 9mm) in stock, but things were stable. Then the riots hit and BLM went crazy. 100 become 90 became 50 became 10. Part of this was because things sold out but also because they moved a lot of SKUs from open inventory to allocation. Almost everything is now allocated. Almost nothing is in open inventory anymore unless it is some unusual gun that only your weird uncle Tom would buy while on a bender.
As I type this my primary distributor has exactly 3 semi auto pistols in open inventory (p210, p210 target and CZ 75 TSO in 40S&W). They have ZERO pump action shotguns (they used to have 24"+ models for hunting, but hunting season wiped those out). Open inventory consists of bolt, lever and single shot rifles and accessories (just not mags for popular guns). EVERYTHING else is on allocation.
So no dealer can "order" you anything right now unless you want a Christensen Arms Ridgeline 300 Win Mag for $2100 or similar. Each morning my account rep from my primary distributor calls me up and offers me some guns. I say yes to some and no to others. I grab stuff that I know a few colleagues want (S&W 380 shield EZ and similar stuff I dont stock or sell) because it helps us all and increases the good stuff I get on allocation. I get what they offer. I cannot predict when I will be offered anything. I am dependent on something being made, sent to my distributor, sent to my account rep and him offering it to me. That is a precarious path to getting firearms. I am not complaining because I have inventory and I am selling guns, but if you call me up looking for a mossberg 500 with 2 barrels, 12g, in blue, not black and with unicorn sights, I am not going to be able to help you. If you call up for a 12g pump action shotgun under 20" I have some options, but when you are over specific I am unlikely to be able to help unless you get really lucky.
I no longer predict availability. I no longer take deposits. I no longer "order" guns. I do my best to get interesting stuff into stock and sell it to people who come and give me money. If I do anything I list as "I no longer" then I would be doing YOU a disservice because there is no way I know when something will be available again.
Be kind to your FFL.
ECR (election, covid, riots) have changed the landscape of how the firearms supply chain works and a significant way. Maybe if I try and lay this all out, people will be more patient with their dealers and the desire to obliterate ignorant but otherwise good/nice customers will abate.
Back in the good old days (pre-March 2020), the distribution of firearms followed a predictable path. Manufacturers build firearms and sold them to distributors. Distributors hired lots of account reps who they assigned dealers to and they sell firearms to dealers. Dealers then sell firearms to the general public. Some boutique manufacturers will eschew distribution and sell directly to a network of dealers that they sign up (think Nighthawk or Les Baer). But in general the modal is MFG -> DIST -> Dealer -> public. If a dealer wants something, they look at what their multiple distributors have in stock and orders the gun from whoever has it in stock. Customers would get guns in 2-3 days after asking for them if the dealer did not already stock the gun.
Allocation: All distributors have a variation on the concept, but the basic mechanism is the same. Guns that are new, hard to get, are in high demand would not be in open inventory to order off the web portal, but are "allocated". This means that when the distributor receives an allocated model, they assign them to account reps who then can sell them to the dealers they cover however they want. Some distributors "bundle" where you have to buy some boat anchor that is in open inventory to get access to allocated inventory (if you buy this savage bolt rifle in .419 caliber that no one has heard of, I can sell you 4 Ruger 57s). Having a good relationship with your account rep and focusing your business on a single or two (if you have enough volume) distributors would give you access to allocated inventory. Your account rep learns what you like and prioritizes getting you stuff that fits when you have a good relationship. Everyone wants the new glock, but he knows you like high end 1911s...
New releases, rare guns, etc are all that would be allocated. Glock 19s, S&W M&P shields, etc are all sitting in open inventory and the distributors have 100s of each in stock. A distributor would have tens of thousands of guns in stock at any given time and almost all are in open inventory. As a benchmark, my primary distributor has SKUs (unique models) for ~1000 semi auto 9mm pistols on their website. At any given time they would have 600-700 of these models in stock (at least one) and 100 of these they would have 100+ copies in stock (yes, that is 10,000 handguns just in 9mm in stock). That is all pre-covid.
Now ECR. I watched this distributor go from 600+ models in stock to 500, 400, 300, 200, 100 and then things settled. Covid restrictions seemed to be working and people calmed down. They only had 10 guns with 100+ copies and 100 unique (talking just 9mm) in stock, but things were stable. Then the riots hit and BLM went crazy. 100 become 90 became 50 became 10. Part of this was because things sold out but also because they moved a lot of SKUs from open inventory to allocation. Almost everything is now allocated. Almost nothing is in open inventory anymore unless it is some unusual gun that only your weird uncle Tom would buy while on a bender.
As I type this my primary distributor has exactly 3 semi auto pistols in open inventory (p210, p210 target and CZ 75 TSO in 40S&W). They have ZERO pump action shotguns (they used to have 24"+ models for hunting, but hunting season wiped those out). Open inventory consists of bolt, lever and single shot rifles and accessories (just not mags for popular guns). EVERYTHING else is on allocation.
So no dealer can "order" you anything right now unless you want a Christensen Arms Ridgeline 300 Win Mag for $2100 or similar. Each morning my account rep from my primary distributor calls me up and offers me some guns. I say yes to some and no to others. I grab stuff that I know a few colleagues want (S&W 380 shield EZ and similar stuff I dont stock or sell) because it helps us all and increases the good stuff I get on allocation. I get what they offer. I cannot predict when I will be offered anything. I am dependent on something being made, sent to my distributor, sent to my account rep and him offering it to me. That is a precarious path to getting firearms. I am not complaining because I have inventory and I am selling guns, but if you call me up looking for a mossberg 500 with 2 barrels, 12g, in blue, not black and with unicorn sights, I am not going to be able to help you. If you call up for a 12g pump action shotgun under 20" I have some options, but when you are over specific I am unlikely to be able to help unless you get really lucky.
I no longer predict availability. I no longer take deposits. I no longer "order" guns. I do my best to get interesting stuff into stock and sell it to people who come and give me money. If I do anything I list as "I no longer" then I would be doing YOU a disservice because there is no way I know when something will be available again.
Be kind to your FFL.
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. I saw the toilet paper shortages in I think it was South Korea. I thought it was rather odd that COVID would be causing a run on TP, but decided to stock up just in case.
