Lakeland Show--New Location July 21-22

[pharmer]

I sold the 2 guns I had on first pass. 2nd pass seemed like the Port Authority at rush hour, except without the rush. I told one 'ol boy "I'm not renting this space, I'm actually in motion." Seemed like the "jams" were constant, lighting was poor. Otherwise a great show and a welcome change from Khaled's 6 week " Shoot Straight Shipped Store Showcase." Joe

[General Lee]

Anyone visit the FL Air Museum? It is pretty neat

[Odessaman]

Overall, I think it's a positive change - I pretty much agree with the synopsis of pros & cons by indy1919a4. Took my 18 year old son, and we talked to some very nice people. My son commented more than once he much preferred this show to the Shoot Straight productions - he enjoys seeing the vintage sporting and military stuff, and meeting people who have a genuine interest beyond making a profit.

There were deals to be found, and looking over the private tables is like a treasure hunt. I bought a vintage Lyman Ideal 301 hand loader tool that had all the dies (which all look brand new) and the real steel handles - not the aluminum ones - all in the original box and for a price that was less than half of what they go for on eBay in lesser condition. Picked up some hard to find ammo and a nice set of Herrett's revolver grips.

Didn't find the one gun I was looking for - a Taurus 431 in .44 Special - but had a great time.

[joker223]

Like others have said, it was all in all a positive change. Lots of older items and plenty to look at.


It was very cramped and the setup was strange as far as exits are concerned.

[5532JWK]

Glad to hear there were not as many dealers and more private individuals.

[indy1919a4]

Just a side note on the Nice people comment.. The people set up the show were all nice... One fellow was getting upset because people were not listening to him about not exiting through the enter door.. but even the all he did was throw his hands in the air and say "I must not be speaking english"

Also just a plug for gun show Honesty, I know of an incident where a bag of money fell in the isle way and layed there for 5 mins and it was as safe as if it could be till the owner came back an retrieved it.. Try that just about any other venue and see how long it lasts...

One Negative for the show was I did not see any Belt Feds... there was at least one at the Hadji Shrine gun show in Pensacola.. But the Hadji Shrine did not have any cannons (Not counting 50 cal BMG rifles, there were some at Lakeland.

[butcharoot]

Went on Sunday, Sold one rifle. I agree with everybody about the tight aisles, the A/C didn't work so good. Exit doors were not marked. My son found a nice M95 Budapest long rifle in 8x56 for $290. Saw 3 Carcano youth rifles for sale. Went by Dukes for tasty beer, lunch and Daisey Dukes eye candy afterwards.

[indy1919a4]

. Saw 3 Carcano youth rifles for sale.

That show was a real Carcano show.. amazing you can go to 30 shows never see a carcano.. then boom you go to a show that has a dozen..

And that guy with his display of youth carcanos was pretty cool..

[rentprop1]

. Saw 3 Carcano youth rifles for sale.

That show was a real Carcano show.. amazing you can go to 30 shows never see a carcano.. then boom you go to a show that has a dozen..

And that guy with his display of youth carcanos was pretty cool..

can I ask what were the asking prices on the youth Carcano ?? I have one that I've been thinking of selling ...

[TippyRacer]

I went on Sunday afternoon, enjoyed myself and would go back, haven’t been to any shows in a couple years because of what they’ve turned into. Agreed with what everyone says about the aisles, and vendors. Only 2 jerky vendors, one skin cream, no jewelry cleaners or spark/fire starters that I saw. A number of militaria tables if that’s your thing, and no massive stores that took up entire rows.
I thought the temp & a/c was fine inside.
It was a bit smaller space than the big room before, I wonder if there is room to expand into another hangar? First time I have ever seen that facility, there are a cluster of those metal hangars bldgs together there, but I know nothing about them and what they use them for.

I just ended up with a case of Wolf AK ammo, for the price plus the entry $12 I saved about $5 total on buying it online + shipping. So that just leaves the $20 or so on gas it cost me, and it was worth it to poke around for a lazy few hours.
I liked a good number of pieces I saw, including a decent choice of S&W revolvers, but the only 2-3 items that would have gotten me to move are sorta uncommon. But Ruger No 1’s aren’t that rare, and Contender barrels aren’t rare either. And Henry Mare’s Leg leverguns are new and in production. Considering the amount of long guns, levers, and blued steel and wood I saw at the show, I guess I was hoping to find at least one of those things when I walked in.