BASS PRO SHOPS -----"NEVER AGAIN!"

[protegeV]

Interesting update:

I called the Maryland State Police this morning just to ask questions about the "seven day waiting period". I just wanted to be informed going into this meetng tomorrow with the general manager of Bass Pro. What I learned was that the store has no obligation to release after seven days. More importantly, what I learned was that my approval was sent back to them on December 23rd!

I am SOOO looking forward to this meeting.

 

[Mark75H]

Interesting update:

I called the Maryland State Police this morning just to ask questions about the "seven day waiting period". I just wanted to be informed going into this meetng tomorrow with the general manager of Bass Pro. What I learned was that the store has no obligation to release after seven days. More importantly, what I learned was that my approval was sent back to them on December 23rd!

I am SOOO looking forward to this meeting.

Approvals are sometimes sent back in a day or two ... you still have to wait out the 7 days from when they sent it ... which could have been as late as Dec22 if MSP emailed or faxed them approval on the 23rd.

 

[protegeV]

Approvals are sometimes sent back in a day or two ... you still have to wait out the 7 days from when they sent it ... which could have been as late as Dec22 if MSP emailed or faxed them approval on the 23rd.

If they sent it that late then it means it was over a week after he filled it out. That is unacceptable on the part of BPS to sit on paperwork that long.

 

[Dino]

Approvals are sometimes sent back in a day or two ... you still have to wait out the 7 days from when they sent it ... which could have been as late as Dec22 if MSP emailed or faxed them approval on the 23rd.

I know this thread is difficult to follow but just FYI, I've been waiting 16 days and counting. I was in the store and spoke with the department manager two nights ago and was told "no paperwork" and "you'll get it when you get it".

Truth be told, they received approval back a week ago.
The issue is not the waiting period.
The issue is the sheer incompetence and rude, condescending behavior of Bass Pro.

I will also add that the General Manager could have simply made a phone call to the State Police (as I did) in an effort to follow up on my complaint. Instead, he scheduled a "meeting" with me. Not a very smart move on his part.

 

[Mark75H]

I know this thread is difficult to follow but just FYI, I've been waiting 16 days and counting. I was in the store and spoke with the department manager two nights ago and was told "no paperwork" and "you'll get it when you get it".

Truth be told, they received approval back a week ago.
The issue is not the waiting period.
The issue is the sheer incompetence and rude, condescending behavior of Bass Pro.

I will also add that the General Manager could have simply made a phone call to the State Police (as I did) in an effort to follow up on my complaint. Instead, he scheduled a "meeting" with me. Not a very smart move on his part.

Almost exactly the same thing they did to me. Except they were actually polite. 3 phone calls and 3 trips to the store, 18 days from payment to pickup. Just incompetent and incompetent.

If you would like to have the manager talk to another customer that was treated the same way, you have my number.

 

[Dino]

Almost exactly the same thing they did to me. Except they were actually polite. 3 phone calls and 3 trips to the store, 18 days from payment to pickup. Just incompetent and incompetent.

If you would like to have the manager talk to another customer that was treated the same way, you have my number.

Thanks Mark.
With your consent, I will certainly offer your number, as well as the name and number of the officer I spoke with today and their confirming email regarding the date the approval was sent back.

 

[adit]

Lucky for me, I never "have" to visit that mall. Once in a while, I meet a client over that way, but I never feel compelled to visit the mall.

Another good thing, I cannot imagine ever being in a pinch for anything that I cannot buy at Walmart. The only thing I might ever need is ammo, and Walmart usually carries that stuff. It would have to be one heck of a pinch though with me not having the components to reload what I need.

I guess I could be in a pinch fishing wise, but that hasn't happened for a while either. I am pretty good with making lists of things I need and then mail ordering the stuff.

The heart breaker is that Bass Pro now owns Cabelas. Hopefully, some of Cabelas can rub off on Bass Pro, and not vice versa.

This. Firearms purchases at Cabela's (DE) are a fast and flawless process.

 

[ih8unot]

This. Firearms purchases at Cabela's (DE) are a fast and flawless process.

Two different states, two different rules...

 

[fabsroman]

Two different states, two different rules...

Not really. Cabela's in Delaware can sell a long gun to any Maryland resident. Maryland and Delaware residents just have to complete the Form 4473 for a long gun purchase. The Cabela's in Delaware will not sell a handgun to a Maryland resident because of the Form 77R. My brother tried to buy a Desert Eagle from the store in Hamburg, PA, and because of Form 77R, they would not sell it to him.

So, the OP would not have been able to buy his handgun in either Cabela's.

With that said, the selection and customer service at the Hamburg, PA store and the Christiana, Delaware store was awesome. Both my brother and I got to handle as many firearms as we wanted at the Hamburg, PA store about a decade ago, and the selection in incredible compared to Bass Pro. When I was in the Christiana, DE store a couple years ago, I got to handle at least four $4,000 Beretta 692 shotguns and then four $10,000 Beretta DT-11 shotguns. The salesperson was extremely helpful and if I had to pick a number, the wait wasn't long at all, but I don't recall having to pick a number. If I remember correctly, I was in the fine gun room ogling over some of the Berettas and a salesperson approached me and asked me if I would like to look at them. We left with my wife saying "maybe" to one of the DT-11 shotguns that fit me perfectly. Good news, it wasn't a flat out NO.

Anyway, my experience at Cabela's and Bass Pro, when it comes to firearms, is night and day.

 

[ih8unot]

I hear ya, that hour drive to DE isn't bad but the 16.00 in tolls every time sucks.

 

[ApexPredator]

Support your local gun shop, not the big box stores!

 

[Rack&Roll]

Amen

 

[fabsroman]

Support your local gun shop, not the big box stores!

I support my local gun shop whole heartedly. If he cannot get something for me, I usually buy it on gunbroker, send it to him, and he does the transfer for me. Thing is, I am not going to buy a $10,000 shotgun on gunbroker or anywhere else, sight unseen. That is what I liked about Cabela's. They had several on the shelf for me to try. The first 2 fit like crap. The 3rd one was just smooth. Granted, they all had adjustable stocks, but it sure is nice for the thing to feel right as soon as I shoulder it.

AR-15, Benelli M4, etc., they all go through my FFL. Beretta DT-11, not so much.

 

[fabsroman]

Amen

And Hallelujah!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[chooks9]

I bought one handgun and a couple long guns from BPS several years ago. I always went through a ton of hassle and even prior to the HQL, they were as condescending as they were incompetent (BPS is mostly a perfect dictionary example of both conditions). However, I do know that I have had a few people wait on me from behind the counter that did treat people with respect and seemed to know what they were talking about. I believe all of them left a long time ago, which is sad (or they were told to start changing behavior to were shown the door).

 

[fabsroman]

I hear ya, that hour drive to DE isn't bad but the 16.00 in tolls every time sucks.

I head to Long Island a couple times a year for the weekend. My wife spent the first 10 or so years of her life on Long Island before they had to move to PA because of her dad's job. Almost all of her aunts, uncles, and cousins are still on Long Island, and her sister moved back to Long Island about a decade ago. We pay an insane amount in tolls to visit Long Island. The $16 is included in the trip, so I try to stop at Cabela's on the way back. No way I am bringing ammo or anything else gun related into New York City.

 

[protegeV]

So Thursday came and went. I'm dying to know how the meeting with the bps brass went...

 

[roady]

I just checked back in to see the status of the meeting also. Hope all went well.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[Stoveman]

I'm guessing the meeting didn't go well.

 

[Dino]

UPDATE

Thursday's meeting was "interesting".
The meeting began with me asking the General Manager just what he knew about the situation. His response "everything".

I had spent the night before documenting my every contact I had with his store and employees regarding this transaction, including the names of employees and specific events and comments made by them. I read my accounts of everything that had happened at which time he produced a printout of this very thread and cited a couple quotes from me aimed specifically at him. Specifically "not a smart move on his part" and "This will not be a good day for him". It was obvious that he wasn't as concerned about his store or the lack of service from his employees as he was about my comments directed specifically at him. As these were the only comments he cared to recite. I stated that everything I wrote in my posts were 100% accurate and pointed out to him that there was no deviation from what I had written in my posts and what I had just finished reading to him about the events as they happened. But he still seemed a little fixated on my comments directed at him personally.

I'm paraphrasing here, but he basically stated that it was his obligation to make sure the gun wasn't being released to someone in poor mental state. It was at that point that I questioned whether I was called to this meeting for a psychiatric evaluation or to discuss the events of this transaction, at which point he appeared to back pedal.

He asked if he could make copies of my documentation and I agreed. He also made copies of the email response from the Maryland State Police which stated that the paperwork had been sent back not once but several times to Bass Pro. He then offered me a free box of ammo and sent me on my way.

As for my comments aimed at him directly ...
"Not a smart move on his part" in regards to calling the meeting.
I still believe this to be true as the lack of addressing this at the time of my complaint speaks volumes. Regardless of his position in this matter, a simple phone call would have gone a long way as opposed to scheduling a meeting days later. Knowing what I know now, I can only assume he just wanted to wait and see if I posted any more in this thread.

"This will not be a good day for him" in regards to the day of our meeting.
Again, I still believe this to be true as it is never a good day for a general manager to hear that his employees are providing horrible customer service. Apparently, he chose to interpret this as a physical threat, which it was not.

I would also like to point out that I mentioned no names or even more specific events or comments that could have caused more embarrassment and/or jeopardized the jobs of these employees (one specifically). And before offering any information during our meeting, I was assured that no one would be terminated as it was never my intent for anyone to loose their job over this.

In closing, I left the meeting feeling that complaints fell on deaf ears.
I just felt as though he was more defensive than helpful and that he cared more about my comments here in this thread that were directed at him than the poor customer service offered by his employees. But that's just my opinion. Needless to say, that was my first and last handgun purchase from Bass Pro.