Bass Pro Conversation

[dvajda]

So,

Today I went to Bass Pro with my new M1A Scout Squad Mossy Oak rifle to look for some accessories (sling) and to perhaps find a red-dot sight that would match the stock (my gf insisted). Anyway, I go in, they are very professional about putting on their own lock and all that, which was cool.

I get to the rifle counter, start looking around. The guy there ignores me, even after I put my rifle case up on the counter. Finally I call him over, and ask him about scout scopes, and show him the forward scout rail on my rifle. He points me to some red dots which I'd seen, and I get him to take one out. Obviously, its meant for more weaver-style rails, which I point out to him (narrow crossbar). He has no clue what I'm saying, and says that is all he has. Then he drops this learned piece of info:

"I'm sorry, our scopes are more traditional, for sporting rifles, not military rifles"

My gf quickly gives me a look, and I respond "Uuuh, but this IS a sporting rifle..." He responds with a smile and says "weeeell" and I continue with "it is camo, has a 10 round magazine, and is legal to hunt bear."

Luckily at this point, another employee walks up, an older gentleman, and starts of with "wow what a nice rifle". At this point I already like him better. He instantly tells me he has scout optics from Leupold that would work, and shows them to me. He also recommends that I'd probably be happy with the red dots from Bushnell and EOTech, which he likes a lot (and Bass Pro does not carry). The guy obviously knows his stuff. The first employee fades off into background. The older employee also knows Four Seasons and Carl.

So, it seems that some people at Bass Pro know nothing, while others actually know quite a bit. Wonder who does the hiring there. I still can't believe that first guy with his "not a sporting rifle" comment. This is the sort of thing that leads my rifle to be deemed non-sporting, and then banned as a "killing machine".

 

[99si/mass]

When I was 18 in college I worked at walmart in sporting goods back when they still sold rifles and shotguns. I was the only one who had any clue the others including managers could only understand that one as you pointed at it. Can be fustrating as hell.

 

[Cuda444]

Two of our resident GREEN members work at BPS... CPher and Snowjoker (Chris and Jamie) I'm sure they'll be along to chat about this.

Glad your experience turned out positive overall

 

[Ripach]

Slightly of topic, but I was at Dick's in Dartmouth about a week ago and the conversation went like this
Me: I know it's probably a long shot, but do you carry snap caps?
Dick's Gun Guy: No response just a blank stare
Me: Do you know what snap caps are?
DGG: No? (Yes he said it like it was a question)
Me: Action proving dummies, snap caps, you know fake bullets?
DGG: I don't think so. What would you need that for?
Me: Thanks anyway, I'll go to a gun store.

Lesson: People that work at department store gun counters are not always gun people, present NES membership excluded, as the one's who I know that have jobs at such places are far more knowledgeable then I.

 

[C-pher]

Did you catch his name? It would be interesting who the person was that came over first. I know exactly who came over second. I'm usually on on Sundays, but not yesterday.

Anyway, if you could let me know who it was, I can see if there was a reason that he didn't know what was going on. Like, he was over from Archery or Camping. There's times that I will be over talking to someone in Archery, and will get asked a question. I might look like that guy, as I don't know squat about archery.

But, it might just be that the guy didn't know anything about your rifle. While you're an expert about your rifle, there's a lot of guns out there and we all can't know each and every one. Not saying that it's an excuse...but start asking me detailed questions about over and under shotguns...and I start to get a blank stare. But I will call over one of our guys that knows shotguns.


Anyway, if you could, let Jamie or I know who the person was.

 

[vtrj]

You can get your snap caps at bob's in webster, good people who know what there talking about.

 

[snowjoker]

I was "That Guy" and I think we have some pretty different versions of what happened...

So,

Today I went to Bass Pro with my new M1A Scout Squad Mossy Oak rifle to look for some accessories (sling) and to perhaps find a red-dot sight that would match the stock (my gf insisted). Anyway, I go in, they are very professional about putting on their own lock and all that, which was cool.

I get to the rifle counter, start looking around. The guy there ignores me, even after I put my rifle case up on the counter.

The fact is, I had just finished with a customer looking at a handgun and had not even seen you until you waved.

Finally I call him over, and ask him about scout scopes, and show him the forward scout rail on my rifle. He points me to some red dots which I'd seen, and I get him to take one out. Obviously, its meant for more weaver-style rails, which I point out to him (narrow crossbar). He has no clue what I'm saying, and says that is all he has. Then he drops this learned piece of info:

"I'm sorry, our scopes are more traditional, for sporting rifles, not military rifles"

Actually, you asked me to see the Mossy oak 42mm red dot scope, telling me that you wanted to match the camo patern on your rifle. And I do know the difference between a picatinny rail and a weaver rail and weaver rail mount scopes ARE all we have. An M1A Scout Squad was designed as a Military rifle, with a Picatinny. It has "Squad" right in the name, it was design to be lighter and easier to carry for the squads...Just because it is Mossy Oak camo does not make it a hunting rifle...Sure you can use if for hunting, just like I could use mu Bushmaster for hunting but that is not what it was designed for no matter what color it is...The fact is that Basspro is a sporting goods store, EVERY rifle and scope in there was either designed for Hunting or Target on Common hunting Rifles or Pistols.

My gf quickly gives me a look, and I respond "Uuuh, but this IS a sporting rifle..." He responds with a smile and says "weeeell" and I continue with "it is camo, has a 10 round magazine, and is legal to hunt bear."

Right, I smiled because I thought we both knew that an M1A, not matter what color it is, or what you tell your girlfriend it was designed as a Military Rifle. Once again, I did not say you could not use it to hunt bears, but just because it is Mossy Oak camo does not mean that is what it was designed for. If what you say is true then the only use for the Winter camo patterned one would be Polar Bear hunting...

Luckily at this point, another employee walks up, an older gentleman, and starts of with "wow what a nice rifle". At this point I already like him better. He instantly tells me he has scout optics from Leupold that would work, and shows them to me. He also recommends that I'd probably be happy with the red dots from Bushnell and EOTech, which he likes a lot (and Bass Pro does not carry). The guy obviously knows his stuff. The first employee fades off into background. The older employee also knows Four Seasons and Carl.

You Specifically asked for Camo patterns that matched your rifle, I knew for a fact that the Leupolds were all black so since you had indicated to me that you wanted one to match your rifle I did not offer them. You were even concerned that the Mossy Oak Red Dot was not that same...When someone comes in and asks specifically for one thing and seems to know what they want, I will not question it. Tell me why would I start showing you black scopes when you specifically asked for Mossy Oak Camo that matched your gun?

And While I agree, Doug does know a ton about guns and scopes, he is wrong in this case, Basspro does carry EOtech, just not in the stores, you can order an EOtech 512 through the website @ www.basspro.com. I have one coming for my M4.

So, it seems that some people at Bass Pro know nothing, while others actually know quite a bit. Wonder who does the hiring there. I still can't believe that first guy with his "not a sporting rifle" comment. This is the sort of thing that leads my rifle to be deemed non-sporting, and then banned as a "killing machine".

So it seems that we have very different opinions of what happened...And you should probably know more about who your talking to before you try to bash them on a public forum...I stand by my comment, the Scout Squad, while probably a little lighter than your full sized M1A (Yes, I was paying attention), it was primarily designed as a military rifle. See Springfields website here It will talk about it being Law Enforcement and Military. Again, sure, you can use it for hunting.

I never called it a killing machine, and I think perhaps you are being a little oversensitive...Just because it is camo and has a 10 round mag does not mean thats what it was designed for, I was simply comparing it to more common rifles designed for hunting. Here is an example for you...the new Remington R-15, its camo, and has a 10 round mag but guess what, it is still an AR-15 under that camo, it will accept any 30 round mag and if it were black it would still be an Evil black Rifle...Take a deep breath and get over that fact that not every store is going to carry stuff for your choice of a hunting rifle.

 

[FalArAk]

You obviously didn't do any research prior to looking for an optic for your $1K + Scout rifle.Know what you are looking for and don't rely on salespeople to do the research for you,you will only be dissapointed in the results.

If it was me behind the counter, I would have silently laughed and handed you the most expensive Schmidt & Bender in the display case and told you operators from around the world rely on the 15X magnification and quality glass S&B offers for the close up work.

 

[MassMark]

Just so everyone is clear, the forward scout mount on the M1A Scout and M1A SOCOM-16 is not a picatinny rail, nor is it a weaver rail - it's a hybrid designed by Springfield Armory to be used with both picatinny and weaver mounts. There have indeed been issues with picatinny mounts locking up on some Springfield Armory Scout/SOCOM rails and owners of said rails had to send them back to Springfield Armory to be remachined for picatinny specs. The Springfield Armory website no longer lists them as "hybrid" rails, but they used to - perhaps they have changed? I know this to be true as I spoke to a Springfield Armory armorer and have read several threads on the subject. In fact, my particular mount has been good to go with both Weaver and Picatinny mounts - both of which locked up nicely.

To the OP, I'm not sure exactly what you do, but if you have never worked in retail - perhaps you should. I have been working part time in a retail store for 2-years while my wife goes to nursing school. All I can say is: The customer is not always right.

 

[C-pher]

Ahh, I wish that I knew that it was Jamie when you posted. I might have changed how I wrote that post.

 

[ephemeratta]

Just so everyone is clear, the forward scout mount on the M1A Scout and M1A SOCOM-16 is not a picatinny rail, nor is it a weaver rail - it's a hybrid designed by Springfield Armory to be used with both picatinny and weaver mounts. There have indeed been issues with picatinny mounts locking up on some Springfield Armory Scout/SOCOM rails and owners of said rails had to send them back to Springfield Armory to be remachined for picatinny specs. The Springfield Armory website no longer lists them as "hybrid" rails, but they used to - perhaps they have changed? I know this to be true as I spoke to a Springfield Armory armorer and have read several threads on the subject. In fact, my particular mount has been good to go with both Weaver and Picatinny mounts - both of which locked up nicely.

To the OP, I'm not sure exactly what you do, but if you have never worked in retail - perhaps you should. I have been working part time in a retail store for 2-years while my wife goes to nursing school. All I can say is: The customer is not always right.

+1
This is an interesting development. I don't think I've been witness to one of these types of situations on here yet.
BTW, one word of advice; never go to the Sears of sporting goods expecting everyone to provide you the same expertise and assistance you'd find at Four Seasons.

 

[Will Brink]

+1
This is an interesting development. I don't think I've been witness to one of these types of situations on here yet.
BTW, one word of advice; never go to the Sears of sporting goods expecting everyone to provide you the same expertise and assistance you'd find at Four Seasons.

So how is there selection of guns, handguns in particular? Worth a drive? Don't care much about hunting rifles myself.

 

[ephemeratta]

I'd say spend your handgun dollars in support of our local mom-and-pop shops. They're an important component at the core of the shooting community.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

Small gun shops are the one place where the little guy can beat out the big retailers on price, as evidenced by the recent Bass Pro decision that they will not price match on firearms. It's interesting to note that the lawyers did a good job on the Bass Pro web site, making no promises other than to "consider" matching a price.

 

[dvajda]

Well, to be perfectly honest, I would have expected a much more... hmm... thoughtful or tactful sort of comment on my rifle, ESPECIALLY from a member here.

The instant you draw a distinction between a sporting rifle and what I have, you have made a huge mistake. My rifle is not a military rifle, it is a sporting rifle. No military owns it, I am not part of the military, nor do I wish to be. The gun's goal in life will be entirely for sporting purposes, whether it be target shooting or hunting. It will never have a military purpose, and had no military history (new firearm).

So, i just hope you would be careful with your wording. Because when you say it is a military rifle, thats just what some gun-grabbers want to hear. Your entire example makes no sense, since I believe the Stoner was actually first a sporting rifle before the military liked it (I think, could be way off here). I always think of the AR-15 as a sporting rifle, and when I want to think military I think of M-16. I have an M1A, not an M-14...

Either way, I was not upset that they didn't have any scopes I wanted, I was disappointed, but Bass Pro is still cool. It was the labeling of the firearm by you that had me upset, because this rifle IS a sporting rifle, and both of us know this for a fact. So we should state it as such for the non-gun types and whomever may be within hearing distance so that we suddenly don't lose the right to own such things.

This issue has been discussed at length before, and there is at least one disgraced outdoor writer who knows this very well. Lets call them sporting rifles. This has nothing to do with Bass Pro's selection, which is actually pretty good for general hunting supplies.

Greg: The fact was, the cross rails on that scope were too thin and I didn't want the thing slipping around on the larger grooves of the rail, picatinny does fit because I tried it out with a non-scout ring at home. Also, you are telling me that you basically would assume your customers to be stupid and to not know what is going on, then you sell them a product they don't need that is just basically expensive... Sounds great buddy, lemme know when the grand opening is!

I did my research at home, I know what brands to get, but I was hoping to drop some money at some place local, maybe thank Bass Pro for opening a place up in MA...

EDIT: responded to wrong person, my bad.

 

[Fsorrent]

If you were to call a rose by any other name, would it smell less sweet?

 

[MassMark]

MassMark: The fact was, the cross rails on that scope were too thin and I didn't want the thing slipping around on the larger grooves of the rail, picatinny does fit because I tried it out with a non-scout ring at home. Also, you are telling me that you basically assume your customers to be stupid and to not know what is going on, then you sell them a product they don't need that is just basically expensive... Sounds great buddy!

Too thin by what standards? Yours? The Springfield Armory Scout mount was designed to be multi-purpose. Issues with picatinny-vs-weaver were noted early, but have not been an issue that I have read about lately. A weaver ring will not be "slipping around" if you install it properly and just exactly what is a "scout ring"?


Also, nowhere in my statement did I express that I assume my customers to be stupid - nowhere. Either learn to read or go put words in the mouth of someone else. I said the customer was not always right and by taking your posts into account and the "accuracy" by which you recount the written word, (let alone the spoken) - I can lay a wager that my statement fits in this situation....

Grow up.

 

[dvajda]

Mass Mark, I fully apologize! I went back and you are right. I was looking at the post above yours. I am an asshat. So I can in fact read, I just can't remember too good who said what...

But seriously. The cross rails were too thin, I've had the issue before where you tighten the ring like crazy, but due to the recoil, the rings still move. Like if you have a thicker cross bar, it doesn't have as much play. I try to offset the movement issue by pushing the item forward (towards barrel) while I tighten, just as most ring manufacturers suggest.

I tested to see if things would fit at home with a non-scout SCOPE on rings and the rings fit great... An IOR on on Badger Ordnance rings fit with no issue (other than being too long). That is what I was trying to say. But I can't write so good either, or remember who said what... *sigh*

 

[snowjoker]

My rifle is not a military rifle, it is a sporting rifle. No military owns it, I am not part of the military, nor do I wish to be. The gun's goal in life will be entirely for sporting purposes, whether it be target shooting or hunting. It will never have a military purpose, and had no military history (new firearm).

So, i just hope you would be careful with your wording. Because when you say it is a military rifle, thats just what some gun-grabbers want to hear.

It is a "Military Style Rifle", I specifically said to you when you were there that everything in Basspro is geared toward "Sporting Style Rifles". No matter what you or I want to call it or do with it, it is a "Military Style Rifle".

I don't think of my M4 as anything more than "a rifle", but the fact is, it is a "Military Style Rifle", it is not a "Military Rifle", because it never has been and never will be but it is fashioned after a Military Rifle...

 

[ephemeratta]

The grabbers have us so far out on an edge we bitch amongst ourselves about semantics. They're the one's who routinely talk about "high capacity automatic clip having assault rifles" and we're sitting here arguing amongst ourselves for fear we may perpetuate their ignorance and in the process end up with support for 1998 style legal garbage again.
Harrumph!

 

[jshooter]

The grabbers have us so far out on an edge we bitch amongst ourselves about semantics. They're the one's who routinely talk about "high capacity automatic clip having assault rifles" and we're sitting here arguing amongst ourselves for fear we may perpetuate their ignorance and in the process end up with support for 1998 style legal garbage again.
Harrumph!

Well said, this state sucks.

 

[jkelly]

So how is there selection of guns, handguns in particular? Worth a drive? Don't care much about hunting rifles myself.---WillBrink

I don't think that the Pro Bass shop has anything you can't find just about anywhere else (hand gun wise). But the store itself is worth the trip.


Respectfully,

jkelly

 

[dvajda]

The elk sticks are excellent... as far as elk sticks go... :-D

 

[the_doctor]

So it seems that we have very different opinions of what happened...And you should probably know more about who your

After reading these comments and the OP's version I am not surprised at him being upset. You have decided that he could not use something as he felt appropriate for the job. It does not sound like you tried to explain an appropriate solution for him.

It just sounds like you told him that it was useless and to scram.

I do not care for people that dictate the exact nature in which everyone else must do things.

I expect someone at the store to help me make things work. I do not expect them to tell me how wrong I am. Nor do I expect someone to write on an online forum about how I am lying to my girlfriend.

Quite frankly I think that you are over the edge. I feel for the OP.

Bill

Bill

 

[IrishIron]

Differentiating between rifles as military or sporting is dangerous

I agree with the sentiments that calling a rifle a "military style rifle" is not a good choice. I work in this industry and understand how words get used and how people react to what they hear. I for one never use the word "gun" simply because of the connotation, instead using the word "firearm" does not invoke as much fear.

I would expect someone who is a gun owner and working at a high profile store to understand what we are up against in states like MA. Imagine for a second if someone overheard that conversation from the AG's office or even a soccer mom from Newton mistakingly walking through the gun section. They end up getting all concerned and saying that there was some guy at the gun counter at Bass Pro with a "scary semi-automatic military assault rifle." Well that will just feed their steroetypes especially when the individual working at Bass Pro called it that.

An easier way to diffuse the situation is simply say we do not have the items you need in stock but our website offers a greater selection of accessories for your firearm. I don't want anyone to take what I say personally I am just letting you know from my experiences how perceptions are crafted.

I fight legislation everyday and am quite familiar with the terms thrown around by the anti's we cannot be the ones helping them too.

 

[Neptune Cat]

I agree with the sentiments that calling a rifle a "military style rifle" is not a good choice. I work in this industry and understand how words get used and how people react to what they hear. I for one never use the word "gun" simply because of the connotation, instead using the word "firearm" does not invoke as much fear.

I would expect someone who is a gun owner and working at a high profile store to understand what we are up against in states like MA. Imagine for a second if someone overheard that conversation from the AG's office or even a soccer mom from Newton mistakingly walking through the gun section. They end up getting all concerned and saying that there was some guy at the gun counter at Bass Pro with a "scary semi-automatic military assault rifle." Well that will just feed their steroetypes especially when the individual working at Bass Pro called it that.

An easier way to diffuse the situation is simply say we do not have the items you need in stock but our website offers a greater selection of accessories for your firearm. I don't want anyone to take what I say personally I am just letting you know from my experiences how perceptions are crafted.

I fight legislation everyday and am quite familiar with the terms thrown around by the anti's we cannot be the ones helping them too.

How should we differentiate between them.

Maybe piccatiny rail firearm?
and weaver rail firearm?

Military surplus rifles can be called pre-picatiny rail firearm.

It all sounds very PC, mostly because it sounds foolish.

 

[Rcharnitsk]

How about we drop the whole thing and call it over and done with.

 

[EddieCoyle]

After reading these comments and the OP's version I am not surprised at him being upset. You have decided that he could not use something as he felt appropriate for the job. It does not sound like you tried to explain an appropriate solution for him.

Which thread did you read? The OP asked for a specific item that did not fit his rifle.

I do not care for people that dictate the exact nature in which everyone else must do things.

Bill

So, this comment by Snowjoker "dictates the exact nature in which everyone else must do things"?

Sure you can use if for hunting, just like I could use my Bushmaster for hunting

How about we drop the whole thing and call it over and done with.

Great idea.