
Originally Posted by
JohnnyEgo
I visited Liberty Arms for the first, and probably last, time today. Nice enough place, decent selection. I saw a new production stainless Delta Elite in their 1911 case, which I have wanted for a while, and a stainless series 70 repro. They were priced attractively enough, so I figured I'd buy. I asked to see the stainless Delta. The counter kid hands it to me and then tells me 'I can't sell it to you because I promised it to someone else'. I asked if he was sure. He wandered to the back, then came out and said he'd called the guy to verify, and the other customer would be there soon to look at it. He told me I could be on the waiting list for the next one, or check to see if the other customer declined. I went about my business, came back an hour later, and sure enough, the Delta was gone. Same kid again offered to put me on a list for the next one, which was a nice enough gesture, but one I was not interested in. As I started to leave, the kid tells me 'Yeah, he was really excited about that gun'.
My better nature barely won out. I just said "Well, good for him" as I left. I am of two minds on the experience. On the one hand, it is admirable that they kept whatever promise they made with the other customer. On the other hand, I thought it was poor practice to present something for sale when it wasn't really available for sale. And while I am sure the kid's comments were well intentioned, they just furthered my irritation. Not a very good first impression. I'm certainly not rich, but I am not particularly price sensitive and I have a pretty decent yearly budget for firearms and NFA stuff. I could have been a pretty good customer. But we will likely never know, as rather than furthering my irritation, I will patronize other places that are better organized and have more customer-savvy staff.