Range Rental Guns...

50calshooter

50calshooter

Red Deer Shooting Centre
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So I've got my inventory list almost finished, now it's time to start looking at the rental guns. Now, this selection of guns is not just for the walk-in clients, it's important to note that these guns would also be used to help sell guns, ie try it, then buy it. Over the next few months I'll be hitting up some auctions to see what I can find, here's my rough list so far...


Rifles

C7A1 Clone
M4A1 Clone
AR-15 PDW
FN PS90
IWI Tavor
RA XCR-L Micro
Norinco M14
Springfield M1 Garand
Remington 700 AAC-SD .308
Savage 10 Precision Carbine .223
Henry 30/30 Lever
Marlin 45/70 Lever
Browning 22 Lever
Ruger 10/22


Pistols

Kimber 1911
Glock 17
Beretta 92
Desert Eagle 50AE
Colt Python
S&W 686
Browning Hi Power
H&K USP
Sig Sauer P226R
Ruger 22/45


Shotguns

Ithaca Model 37 Wood Pump 12GA
Rem 870 Express Synthetic Pump 20GA
Benelli M4 Tactical 12GA
Dominion Grizzly 8.5" Pump 12GA



Thoughts? I think my list is pretty well rounded... Now all I ask of you guys is if you see anything on this list for a good deal please let me know.
 
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should add a pistol calibre lever, perhaps a 30-30 lever and a bolt .223, as not everyone wants to shoot a lever in 45/70, and a bolt 223 would be a nice option for new shooters to try
 
I'm contemplating the XCR pistol, if I do the Tavor I'm going to ditch the PS90, it's one or the other.

Haywire I think your right a 30/30 might round out the lever gun selection, I also think a 223 bolt would be a good idea, perhaps a Savage...
 
Hmm I like your list so far I would add a .22 revolver, and a 94 in 30-30. For myself being that I have a lot of the formentioned firearms I'd like to see some different offerings like the skorpions, ps90, tavor. Actually how about everything that I don't already have :p
 
honestly .50, i say ditch the ps90, and use the tavor. i think tossin in a jr carbine would be a good choice, as the c7, ar, and the m4 are all basically the same firearm
 
Haywire1 said:
honestly .50, i say ditch the ps90, and use the tavor. i think tossin in a jr carbine would be a good choice, as the c7, ar, and the m4 are all basically the same firearm
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Blasphemy! Lol, jk... But seriously 3 different configurations give all 3 rifles a different feel. C7 clone = fixed stock, 20" barrel, elcan optic... M4 = adjustable stock, 14.5" barrel, Aimpoint optic... AR PDW = adjustable stock, 7.5" barrel, reflex sight, 300 BLK...

As for the Tavor vs PS90, I'm torn, PS90 is common in video games and TV as such makes the younger crowd wet, I dunno.. We'll see...
 
yeah, they do have different feels, however, they are range only, be nice to show people something ar similar, but non res.
 
maybe add a Sig just cause the inexperienced will ask for whatever they see in the movies and I know the CX4 Storm is very popular at Wild West
 
Edited, your right I'm not selling the PS90, but I will be selling Tavor and XCR so at least people can try it before they buy it....
 
50calshooter said:
Edited, your right I'm not selling the PS90, but I will be selling Tavor and XCR so at least people can try it before they buy it....
Click to expand...

Bingo. Same with the pistols. Every show needs a gimmick, so having a few in the rental pool they can't find elsewhere is cool. Still, the ability to try before you buy is a huge selling point.

I don't know if our smaller market allows for it, but I'd ask the distributors if they have a range rental program like in the US. A discount for stocking dealers who both keep there product in stock and rent the guns so the public can try them.
 
Add novelty for range guns -- a 91/30 sniper 'like in the movie'? a thompson? a short barreled shotgun (12.5")? a collection of "Bond guns" (as used by James Bond in __fill in the blank__? a garand (just for the ping of it)?. Sometimes a range rental is all about the novelty, and your listed guns are pretty vanilla (no offence). For newbies and experienced shooters alike, sometimes it's just fun to shoot stuff that's just off the chart of normal availability or even personal desirability for a lark. You could even get some movie posters etc for the displays, or add some costumes (a helmet or jacket or two) for people to get pictures of themselves looking like a movie poster with the guns as a souvenir. Great for social events/parties at the range.

Also get more 22s for new shooters, add a tacticool M4 look 22, a 10/22, a 22 wheel gun, a 22 bolt, maybe a 'cool looking' 22 target pistol. In the same vein, add 20G shotguns -- great for new/young/smaller shooters to try a shotgun out. Also try to stock any reduced recoil ammo you can get for larger calibers like .308/3006, even downloaded 9 and 45 for the same crowd.
 
I think you have the rifles and handguns pretty well covered. However, you do need to add to the shotgun list.

I think you need a budget autoloader. Mossberg 930 or Rem 11-87 sort of thing.

And then a good double barrel. I'm thinking that one of those IGA coach guns would be good to have.

Of course, the best thing to do would be to rotate some guns through the rental roster. Imagine "March Milsurp Madness" or "Autoloadertober" as potential events for the store. :D
 
romurra said:
Add novelty for range guns -- a 91/30 sniper 'like in the movie'? a thompson? a short barreled shotgun (12.5")? a collection of "Bond guns" (as used by James Bond in __fill in the blank__? a garand (just for the ping of it)?. Sometimes a range rental is all about the novelty, and your listed guns are pretty vanilla (no offence). For newbies and experienced shooters alike, sometimes it's just fun to shoot stuff that's just off the chart of normal availability or even personal desirability for a lark. You could even get some movie posters etc for the displays, or add some costumes (a helmet or jacket or two) for people to get pictures of themselves looking like a movie poster with the guns as a souvenir. Great for social events/parties at the range.

Also get more 22s for new shooters, add a tacticool M4 look 22, a 10/22, a 22 wheel gun, a 22 bolt, maybe a 'cool looking' 22 target pistol. In the same vein, add 20G shotguns -- great for new/young/smaller shooters to try a shotgun out. Also try to stock any reduced recoil ammo you can get for larger calibers like .308/3006, even downloaded 9 and 45 for the same crowd.
Click to expand...


I get what your saying, problem is I don't personally have prohib status and until the range actually opens I wont know for sure if they will allow the range to buy and sell prohib, you just never know what the CFO is thinking...

IMO most new shooters, especially the younger crowd but even the middle aged segment will get excited about shooting an AR-15 or a Tavor, seems like anything black and semi-auto will excite the masses... I guess we'll see. I've added back a few more to the rifle list, thinking about it some more, I think the more rifles I have to choose from the longer it will prolong the life of the these guns....
 
I'd add an SKS, and maybe a mare's leg as well, the SKS is known, not everyone has shot em, and the mare's legs are popular as well, i'd use a henry in .22 for a range gun, cheaper then the 357/44/45LC versions, and the Henry is the most accurate.
 
Here are some planning considerations:

Ammo: there is no use having range guns and not having ammo to feed them. 5.7 ammo is too hard to find to seriously consider using in a range gun. It is sometimes hard enough just getting 308 Win in sufficient quantity.

Repairs: range guns get run hard and put away wet. They will constantly need to be cleaned, inspected and repaired. The best guns to run are current production guns with a reputation for reliability and good parts supply. Next best are military designs which usually have lots of parts floating around.
 
CSC said:
Repairs: range guns get run hard and put away wet. They will constantly need to be cleaned, inspected and repaired. The best guns to run are current production guns with a reputation for reliability and good parts supply. Next best are military designs which usually have lots of parts floating around.
Click to expand...

As an aside, it will pay to make damned sure that you have a staff member who is directly responsible for cleaning and maintaining the rental pool. Broken or constantly jamming guns will discourage sales and tie up staff. I know at a commercial gun range and retail operation, you wind up wearing many hats, and have to multi-task. This is one task I'd set time aside for every morning. It would help if the staff member actually knows how to disassemble and reassemble the guns.

Way back when, I had a new shooter on the line for a supervised shoot. He'd done his club safety course and had progessed up from the .22lr. He was firing the .45 for the first time. Well he would have if he could have inserted the mag.

We took the gun off the range to the cleaning bench for a look see. The range owners son had cleaned the Colt 1991. (Remember those?) The good news is most of the parts were in nearly the right order... He'd installed the series 80 levers wrong with the tip of one poking into the magwell. The hammer pin was where the mainspring pin should be, and vice-versa.
 
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