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March 10, 2010
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I posted another thread on a titanium nitride supermag project, well that might not happen now. I bought a collectible gold plated Dan Wesson 445 revolver from Cabelas in Hammond Indiana. I paid on the gun for 3 months, searched the country for a shop willing to strip off the gold finish and apply the TIN finish on the gun. I thought I had everything going my way, and why not, because I had just spent 3 months penny pinching and doing extra work so I could build a gun that I've wanted now for 15 years. I called the gun shop today and they said that my gun had arrived so I went down there to fill out the paperwork. When I got there they said that UPS had just delivered it and that I would have to come back tomorrow because the gun hadn't been logged in yet. I said "no problem, I'll come back tomorrow but before I go, I want to see the gun". The guy went in the back and brought the gun out. I've been sick for about 4 days with an upper resporatory infection so my head was in a fog so it didn't hit me for a few seconds. I said to the guy "this thing looked better in the picture, it must have been the gun oil". Then it hit, I had the wrong gun. They sent me a collectible Dan Wesson 44 magnum instead of gun that I had ordered. I took my receipt out of the box and went home to call Cabelas. At first I spoke to the guy at the gun counter who laughed immediately after I told him that I received the wrong gun, as if to say, "this isn't the first time this has happened today". He then transferred me to the store manager who took my info down and said, "I'll call you back 5 minutes with an answer". 5, 10, and finally 30 minutes went by and no phone call, so I called him back. The manager told me that they can't find the gun that I bought. He then tells me that the guy who handles all the used gun sales isn't in and that he will call me back tomorrow morning.
So here I sit without the gun that I've been waiting 3 months for, and without an answer as whether I'll ever see it. There's only 3 logical possibilities to ponder for the night.
1. They sent my gun to the wrong buyer and his or her gun to me. Now won't that be a cluster to straighten out?
2. They sent me the wrong gun and my gun is sitting some where in their store mislabled and lost.
3. I've been paying on a gun for 3 months that Cabelas never had in the first place. The gun was listed for almost 2 years and perhaps it sold last year. That would mean that I've been paying on the wrong gun all along and not a single person had the intelligence to note that when I called several times to inquire about the 445 supermag while mentioning the reference number, that they really had a 44 mag the whole time and never realized it. And it wasn't hard because all the paperwork must have said 44 mag, and it was written right on the gun in 24 carrot gold lettering, "44 mag" in at least 2-3 places.
At present, I have no clue whether I'll get the actual gun that I've paid for. And if there's any accountability at Cabelas someone should either get fired or be put on probation. You would think that more care would be put into handling and processing the sale of regulated firearms and that loosing high dollar weapons that were on consignment like that would be taken seriously. I'll post the end of this story once I get the final verdict from the Clowns at the Hammond Indiana Cabelas store.
The last thing that I want to hear from them is that "we don't have it". Then I'll have to wait to get my money back and then I'll have to start the search all over again. And while I've been paying on the mystery gun, I've missed out on several good deals on gun broker. I hope there's a happy ending.
January 22, 2008
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That's a bummer! Hopefully they will make things right.
March 10, 2010
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Jody said:
That's a bummer! Hopefully they will make things right.
They will one way or another. I'm sorry about the F bomb that I dropped in my post. I took a cheap shortcut when I could have come up with a much more diabolically creative yet non profane remark, lol. I just remembered that they misplaced that gun before when I called about whether or not it had a barrel wrench. Believe it or not, I still don't know if it had a barrel wrench because they supposedly found the gun but they couldn't find the box so I gave up asking and put the thing on layaway. If only I owned a real working crystal ball then I could navigate myself around this type of folly.
Nate
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January 24, 2009
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That sucks, I hope things work out in your favor in the end.
I have only bought one gun through Cabelas, that they shipped from another store. It took them three weeks to ship that thing!
Needless to say, by week three, I was getting really nervous & started hounding them almost daily.
One guy tried saying that three weeks is normal shipping for them...HUH? On which planet? Not even USPS is that slow. 
I don't know if I will buy another one from them that isn't actually in the store I'm standing in.
April 25, 2008
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That is really bad. I've heard about a lot of problems with Cabela's, and I have never bought a gun from them. Hope everything works out and they find your gun.
The Savantist
February 11, 2010
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nathan475 said:
Jody said:
That's a bummer! Hopefully they will make things right.
They will one way or another. I'm sorry about the F bomb that I dropped in my post. I took a cheap shortcut when I could have come up with a much more diabolically creative yet non profane remark, lol. I just remembered that they misplaced that gun before when I called about whether or not it had a barrel wrench. Believe it or not, I still don't know if it had a barrel wrench because they supposedly found the gun but they couldn't find the box so I gave up asking and put the thing on layaway. If only I owned a real working crystal ball then I could navigate myself around this type of folly.
Nate
Don't blame you ! I would have went out on the back porch and dropped a F-bomb
or two myself, how much was the gun ? $1300 and a three month wait
If they can't find your gun Cabela's should sell you the 44 for a $ 100 for your trouble.
Wouldn't hold my breath but that would be a gesture of good faith.
-Blacktop
Range Officer
Range Officers
Dans Club
February 9, 2009
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Nathan,
I cannot do not have an exact replica of your story with cabela's, but I bought a 375 USA Seville from them a few years ago and had it shipped to me, correct gun this time. Took only a week and a half, back then. They were great to deal with, never laughed at me. The revolver had issues, the cylinders were too small and needed reamed, the hammer spring was weak and needed replaced, just one thing after another, they offered to just have me ship it back, but there was no replacing a collector piece like that. I asked if I could not just get it repaired and they take care of that, that way they will not have a useless gun on their hands. They agreed and had me ship it to SSK Industries were they did all the repairs and the revolver now works terrific and Cabela's paid JD Jones direct for the work. This is my only firearm dealing to date with Cabela's and I hope it may brighten your day that they do have some good folks in some of their stores.
SMF
A man cannot have too many SuperMags
Dans Club
March 2, 2008
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That's really aggravating, I'd be pretty upset too. My experience with the local Cabela's is that they are pretty clueless about handguns, they could easily have been talking about a .44 Magnum and not know the difference. Do you have any good close up photos of the one you "bought"? Is the serial # any help in determining if it was actually a 445? Does the s/n of the gun received match the s/n of the one you were paying on?
I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman "Were is the Self Help Section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
George Carlin
March 10, 2010
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Well the verdict is in, Cabelas never had the gun in their store in the first place. I waited around until 2 pm for a call which never happened so I called them. Ironically (yeah right) I was told that they were just looking for my phone number when I called, lol. The guy Nick who runs the used Gun department had no idea how the screw up happened especially since I delt with him directly from the beginning. I was told that they had sold the 445 sometime last year and that they were still running the ad by mistake. Even though I gave them the reference number for the 445 they put me down for another gun with a different reference number and then took my money for 3 months. I gave them the phone number of the gun shop where the gun was shipped and they called them and arranged for the gun to be returned to them. Once it arrives they promised to refund my full purchase price including shipping back to my account. Nick also offered me a 10% discount towards any used gun in the gun library. Needless to say, I won't be taking him up on that offer but I will be keeping close tabs on him until I get my money back because I found something better for a little less.
If I get what I'm now looking at, I won't be doing the titanium nitride project because the gun is stainless steel. The gun is a Monson 445 supermag in stainless steel with an 8 inch full lug barrel, it also comes with a spare barrel shroud and a scope. So hopefully I can pull the deal off before someone else does and Nick can refund my money so I'm not late on this months bills.
I didn't mention this but when I was at the gun shop yesterday one of the guys at the counter told me about his Cabelas horror story. He bought 2 over and under shotguns and a box of hornady ammo for handgun that he had. They sent the wrong guns, shipped him a box of defective ammo that they were suppose to send back to Hornady, and the store employee stold his wife's credit card number and ran up charges on it.
It's no wonder the guy on the phone laughed when I told him that they sent me the wrong gun.
March 10, 2010
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Steve CT said:
That's really aggravating, I'd be pretty upset too. My experience with the local Cabela's is that they are pretty clueless about handguns, they could easily have been talking about a .44 Magnum and not know the difference. Do you have any good close up photos of the one you "bought"? Is the serial # any help in determining if it was actually a 445? Does the s/n of the gun received match the s/n of the one you were paying on?
You can see the gun on the thread titled gold titanium nitride supermag. It had gold lettering clearly saying 445 supermag across the barrel. I think they never took the gun out of the system after it was sold. So when I contacted them with the reference number from their website they simply took the last Dan wesson they had left and thought it was the one that they previously sold the year without checking the paperwork and the serial number. How that could happen I don't know. If they keep records like that you would think the ATF would pay them a visit. Clearly more than one person wasn't doing their job. And you're right, they didn't have a clue as to what a 445 supermag was. The real kicker is when they call the guns owner and tell him or her that their gun didn't actually sell because they screwed up and shipped it out to the wrong person and back again. Chances are, they won't say a word if they don't have to.
A gun store should hire knowledgable staff who know what they are selling. It's like putting Sara Brady behind the gun counter, or hiring an Amish guy to sell sports cars, and then expecting good results. It could be the walmart model in action where nothing matters accept for a negative drug test and the applicant's willingness to work for a less than livable wage. If they can do both then they've got the job and the customer suffers the consequences.
January 17, 2010
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Sorry to hear/read your plight.
I have boycotted crapbelas years ago. In 1995 while doing a cross country trip we stayed a couple nights, halloween actually, in Syndey Nebraska due to weather further out west. Hostess at hotel invited a couple of us out to the country club for thier halloween party.....I spent part of the evening chatting with Richard Cabela and his wife as they bought me beers. Nice guy and a great business story of Cabelas coming about. When he sold and retired the store quickly went into "walmart" mode. Quality and general customer service went out the window, focus was on volume volume.
4 years ago I went on a 1.5 hour drive w/ wife to buy a bunch of reloading supplies that were listed on sale in the junk mail fliers they send me. None of the supplies were in stock and there wasn't even a place for them on the shelf, instead were cork guns and fish pillows. When I finally found a worker and inquired as to the supplies the response was I could order them and pick them up at store free of shipping and that most of the items listed in fliers are not stock items. I aranged a meeting with the store general manager and after my prepared speech about the degradation of customer service and the bait and switch sales and the shift of focus away from the true outdoor sportsmen. His response was that he sold 2 one thousand dollar BBQ grills that day....and will continue to stock what sells. And that a banking group now owns cabelas and monitors the items going through the register hourly. He said he was sorry for my inconvience but things will not change. I thanked him for his time and informed him I or my family or friends will never buy from Cabelas again. He didn't seem to mind.
Sign of the times. support your local private shops. I do and even if it costs more.
Guess it all started years ago when Cabelas bought the mail order rights from Gander....to eliminate competition. Bad evil crooked business is rewarded with profit all too often.
I hope your store in question gets handled for thier failure to maintain inventory. And pulling the old used car trick of intentionally leaving the post of a good item up long after it has sold, to attract attention.
"experience is the hardest teacher, the test comes before the lesson"
May 17, 2010
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(First I am not a lawyer)
If I recall correctly, it is against the law the sell something you do not have. It is called "theft through conversion".
Sad story to be sure. I have a co-work that tried and did eventually buy some ammo from them. But he was out a lot of money for a long time before he actually got what he paid for. I have never bought from them or Bass Pro. Not due to any one particular reason. Just not my kind of place to shop.
Soap Box, Ballot Box, Ammo Box
in that order.
4 Monson Model 15's
1 Palmer FB 15
1 Rossi 357 Model 92 (lever)
1 CZ 75B
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January 24, 2009
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6point8 said:
Sign of the times. support your local private shops. I do and even if it costs more.
I agree. One of the few remaining Sportsman's Warehouse stores that didn't close, in the downsizing they did recently is near me & they usually suit my needs just fine. I'm glad they chose to stick it out in my location.
I have been through Cabela's doors 6~9 times in the past year, mostly looking for ammo when it was scarce & lately, a few reloading things. I don't even know what the rest of the store looks like, I strictly beeline for the gun & ammo department, then beat a hasty retreat when I am through.
Big "Wally World" type stores give me the creeps.
Dans Club
March 2, 2008
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I don't need Cabela's for anything, they really kind of hosed my son last week on a Military discount for memorial Day that hey had told him about on a previous visit, and then didn't honor. I'm still waiting for a response from the store mgr on my complaint-5 days and no reply. My reply to them is goodbye.
I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman "Were is the Self Help Section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
George Carlin
January 22, 2008
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CF, I unfortunately the Sportsman's Warehouse in our area was one of the ones that closed. 
It had only been opened about a year. I loved that store. They were always trying to get you to look at the handguns and they had a nice selection of reloading components.
A Gander Mountain opened up shortly after the Sportsman's Warehouse but their prices are high and really they just seem like a smaller CabelasBass Pro to me.
Dans Club
March 2, 2008
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Steve CT said:
I don't need Cabela's for anything, they really kind of hosed my son last week on a Military discount for memorial Day that hey had told him about on a previous visit, and then didn't honor. I'm still waiting for a response from the store mgr on my complaint-5 days and no reply. My reply to them is goodbye.
In fairness, I need to tell you guys that a great person at Cabela's Corporate HQ finally got involved with my complaint, and has pretty much overwhelmed me with attention and followup on my problem. I'm OK with them now, but my problem was pretty minor and easily resolved.
Unfortunately, nathan's situation is much bigger and more complex, no way to really make that right
I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman "Were is the Self Help Section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
George Carlin
June 19, 2010
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I'm new at this forum and am really sorry for your bad experience at Cabela's. I've had nothing but excellent service at the East Hartford, CT store.
Concerning shipping from another store, I have ordered two guns from out of state Cabela's. They were both shipped to the E.H. store within two days via UPS. One of the guns
was a Colt Diamondback advertised as having "B" Engraving. I contacted the Colt
archives office and determined it was "A" engraving. A quick call to the E.H.
Gun Library and the manager immediately offered to take the gun back and return
the full purchase price including state tax. Excellent service!!!!
November 14, 2009
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I'd like to first welcome you to the 
. Being that this is your first post, you should say Hi to all the folks here. If you have a Dan Wesson, you can start a pic thread. We all like 
and lots of them...
BTW, I'm from Salem, CT. There are a couple of other Connecticut folks here too.
Happyness is a Hot DW and a pile of used brass!!! Rich
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January 24, 2009
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Steve CT said:
Steve CT said:
I don't need Cabela's for anything, they really kind of hosed my son last week on a Military discount for memorial Day that hey had told him about on a previous visit, and then didn't honor. I'm still waiting for a response from the store mgr on my complaint-5 days and no reply. My reply to them is goodbye.
In fairness, I need to tell you guys that a great person at Cabela's Corporate HQ finally got involved with my complaint, and has pretty much overwhelmed me with attention and followup on my problem. I'm OK with them now, but my problem was pretty minor and easily resolved.
Unfortunately, nathan's situation is much bigger and more complex, no way to really make that right
Steve, I'm glad to hear that someone finally took an interest in your complaint. Stuff like that sure leaves a sour taste for a long time & as seen here, can gain a bad reputation by spreading the word.
Those big stores still give the the heebies, though.
But that's my problem.
aboard, 22LR!
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