To All Non-Importing Dealers: M14 Stocks

sixty9santa

sixty9santa

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Why in good God's name is it that not one dealer is importing some of Boys'd M14 stocks and some fiberglass USGI stocks? The crystal clear demand is there for these products, so why not?
If I had the know how and the proper business license, not to mention the time and patience, I'd do this myself.
Rant off, just had to get this off my chest as I don't make much cash but I do dish out for what I want and need when available.
I'm sure that there are quite a few CGN's that might agree.
 
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I'm more then willing to go through the hassle of importing them like I did when I was selling brass..

But what I don't want is for people to turn around and expect that they can find the lowest price in the US do the exchange and say that I'm gouging becuase I charge more then that.. I was looking at bringing in evolution stocks as well... And maybe some volquartsen stuff...

I don't sell brass anymore becuase it just wasn't worth it... My intial order to starline was about $2800 USD and I've still got some left nearly 8 years later... (before anybody calls I sold off what I didn't want (6 boxes) in January on Ebay) the 2 boxes I still have a 38 Special and I'll keep them...
 
You don't need a license do get started. If you are sure the demand is there, and that a fair margin will allow you to sell them, then carry on.
As pointed out above, any dealer that brings these in will always face the wrath of the airmchair commando questioning why they are more expensive here than on line.
 
So let's do it like this: put up a poll posted by dealers regarding the stocks, based upon the results contact and get a 25-50% deposit from those who really want them before ordering them in batches. if they fall through, they can always be sold at a more moderate rate but you would still make even better profit.
 
sixty9santa....

"more moderate rate"

a dealer is not going to bring in anything unless it moves in a timely fashion at a reasonable rate, which is anywhere from cost plus 40% to 80%.

I agree.... we see lots of guys wanting this and that and yet no one is will to pay the cost plus pricing when somewhere in the USA there is a website that brings in 10,000 units of said product and can offer it at a much lower price.

canada is a small market, I doubt you could bring in and sell in a resonable time frame even 50 boyds stocks..... maybe 50 GI fiberglass stocks.... and people would still ##### that they got ripped off because freds has them cheaper or that you can order direct from boyds for cheaper.
 
Why not just by mine on the EE forum?;)

Seriously though. Alot of the dealers have been bringing in new and interesting products but they can't bring in everything all the time. We are a very small market compared to the US and we have to get use to the fact that some stuff is more expensive here due to the adminstration needed to get it to the market legally. Some stuff is delayed or unavailable simply because of the costs and paperwork to bring it across the border.

I don't implying that the dealers don't have parts because they won't bring in what you want is a little overboard. As mentioned by TSE James....if you have the parts, why not give it a go yourself.....

Jeff
 
That's it... we need to get more people involved in shooting!!!

Look how many golf courses and driving ranges there are now compared to 15 years ago. Now look at how many shooting ranges there are now compared to 15 years ago... :(
 
This is not only a rant based on what I want.
All I'm saying is that if the parts were more available, there would be lots more shooters. Of course we are a small market, quite minuscule actually, when compared to the US. But if someone would stock these, and not only to move a product (any product for that matter), people would be buying even more guns if they would be able to purchase them at any given moment.
Suppose a dealer would import say a 1000 USGI stocks, then the price would be reasonable and thus they would move. Nobody likes to stock items, but could it be worth it? Maybe.
I understand that we are not as gun "crazy" as our neighbours down south, but we would eventually get there since they also started out somewhere.
As for not selling the parts, the individuals that ordered them would be much more willing to pay in full in they put a nice deposit down. Protect the dealer and put some preasure on the people by having them put money down before hand like 50%.
I'm trying very much to support Canadian dealers and not having to go down South to get items that have potential.
All items do have potential, but some more than others.
I love the EE and will continue to do business in there.
For example, I do see every once in a while people asking for SAGE stocks, some want to buy, and more might if there would be someone that would stock about 5 to 10 of these at a time (dare I say per year?). Pricey? Sure as Hell! But people still grab them when they have a chance.
The more people that see us shooting and they are opened to non complicated trade of parts, the more they will want to join, shoot and accessorize.
A great BIG THUMBS UP to all that have been bring new stuff in and coming out with thier own products such as bbb and Brobee. This should grow and I do see it happening.
What I'm saying is that dealers are listening but the buyers need to do thier part to help, encourage and re-asure the dealers so that we can have a plentifull supply.
Help> ask for products.
Encourage> word of mouth, and hand (typing right here on CGN), travels fast!
Reasure> individuals need to put some money down before hand to get what they want. That way they won't put thier foot in thier mouths.
As said before, I would do this if time, and more importantly, money were available to get people what they want.
If I came off as a harsh inconsiderate prick, I do sincerly appologize.
I guess the frustration of the grass is greener on the other side sindrom finally got to me.
 
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Yes we do need a Tiger Woods of the shooting world, and more importantly publicity to show just how safe, fun, and stress releaving it really is
 
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S9S,

Sorry to disagree with you on this but I just think your being simplistic. Your asking someone to pony up the cash in advance, deal with all the paperwork, import them, and then sit on the stocks until they sell. How long do you think it would take to move 1000 wooden stocks in Canada? A very long time.....and your critical of someone else not "investing" in this item because you think it would sell.....what if it doesn't? Don't forget, the dealers in some cases have literially hundreds of thousands of dollars tied up in inventory and orders....just so you can have a selection as you introduce people to the sport....

The dealers are importing mountains of firearms and accessories. Store fulls to be exact. Just because you think the wooden stocks would sell....don't justify it with the dealers not supporting the shooting sports. I know two of the big dealers here personally and they live eat and breath the sport....like I said, if you want to try, then take the plunge yourself. Call it a reverse rant...

Jeff
 
It is difficult to do business with Boyds. As far as we know, they will ship a stock with a value of less that $100 without a problem. If the stock is over $100 or you want more than one, it is extremely expensive to deal with them.

Contact he-who-should-not-be-named in Alberta, he sells Boyds stocks in Canada.
 
Morpheus32 said:
S9S,

Sorry to disagree with you on this but I just think your being simplistic. Your asking someone to pony up the cash in advance, deal with all the paperwork, import them, and then sit on the stocks until they sell. How long do you think it would take to move 1000 wooden stocks in Canada? A very long time.....and your critical of someone else not "investing" in this item because you think it would sell.....what if it doesn't? Don't forget, the dealers in some cases have literially hundreds of thousands of dollars tied up in inventory and orders....just so you can have a selection as you introduce people to the sport....

The dealers are importing mountains of firearms and accessories. Store fulls to be exact. Just because you think the wooden stocks would sell....don't justify it with the dealers not supporting the shooting sports. I know two of the big dealers here personally and they live eat and breath the sport....like I said, if you want to try, then take the plunge yourself. Call it a reverse rant...

Jeff
Click to expand...

Very fair comment!
I only implied 1000 as an of the wall number, 50 would be realistic.
I do know that all those that deal in this sport put more than just thier harts and souls into it, thier entier lively hood and that of thier families.
I do in fact support our dealers, not only monetarly, but also with great spirit and enthusiasm.
All I'm saying is that it would be nice to keep our money in the country and not having to directly deal with the US.
Might be worth a shot at importing 25 stocks (of any kind) and sell them for say 100-125$ (Fred's sells them for 35USD, never said thy had to be the best stocks and then the profit margin would be there) to test the market.
Stocks have been selling in the EE for that, and more at times when supply is low but demand is high.
I would take the plunge myself if I fiscally could, by the way.
And if I were to fail, I'd shove them all up my wazoo for being naive and uniformed (which I tend to be when it comes to this type of thing)!
Having a selection is great and I know very well that dealers are doing all that they can, more than they should at times.
But since the beging of the M14/M305 craze, stocks have always been one of the the very first mods people make.
I'm trying to make money for our dealers, and not have them bring something in just to satisfy my needs.
 
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If my idea suggestion is unfair, then Mods please delete this thread and let me go down in CGN history as a grade A+ assh*ole.
 
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sixty9santa :i can see this happening to an extent already,just look at the parts recently available through marstar lately.buffers,spring guides,mounts.

some smiths are offering services for the m305 now;barrel shortening ,flash hiders,and even stocks when available.valley guns

small businesses like rooster33 are offering products as spring guides and forward mounts and a nice cheek piece

it wouldn't surprise me if demand for this rifle keeps up,that someone would find it feesable to import a quantity of stocks ,either something as boyds wooden stocks or even a synthetic.

as popular as this rifle may be,its not going to meet what the AR is for add ons and upgrades.
 
sixty9santa said:
If my idea suggestion is unfair, then Mods please delete this thread and let me go down in CGN history as a grade A+ assh*ole.
Click to expand...
You are not an assh*ole you just need a little better understanding of business economics.

Here is an example for you using the cheapest wood stock that Boyd's sells: Stock M1A Style 1 unfinished #503-909 $61.80US.

If you buy the stock yourself $61.80 + shipping (min $20)= $81.80US----$91.08CDN + GST= $97.45CDN to your door assuming minimum shipping charges and no Canada Post fee.


If I am going to buy 25 and can get a discount of 10% (I may not even be able to get that much for such a small order) the same stock will cost me $55.62US. I will probably not get a discount on shipping as it is a calculated fixed cost so + $20US = $75.62US----$84.17CDN + GST= $90.06CDN to my "business" assuming minimum shipping and no Canada Post fee.

Now I have to figure out what to charge you for the stock. If I am paying myself $15/hr to do all the work, I can safely assume at least one hour to do paperwork(ordering, permits, faxing), dealing with your order, unpacking the shipment etc. So we spread the $15 over the 25 stocks and I charge $0.60 per stock for basic administration.

I then have to ship the stock to you, so I am going to charge you $3 for packing material and the box.
Then we put a fee of $25 shipping on that as I have to wrap it up and drive it to the post office to mail it to you.

So our total so far is(CDN $) Stock $90.06 + Shipping and handling $28 + Admin Fee $0.60 = $118.66.

I am already over what it costs you to buy it from Boyd's and I have not even added my profit margin yet. Plus if I am a legitimate business I will also have to figure in more money on the administration side to cover my operational overhead. I would be looking at charging you closer to $160.00 per stock and keep in mind that these calculations are using minimum costs.

Lots of people will complain that my stocks cost more than you would pay ordering it yourself and just order from Boyds direct. In the meantime, I have already spent $2251.50 just to bring these stocks into the country and I make no money until the majority of them are sold.

If you look in the EE there are stocks that are priced reasonably yet the sellers are still BTT'ing them for several weeks before they sell, so even though demand for the rifles may be high it appears that it is not the same for stocks and I would not invest my money on something like that.
 
Problem is, quite frankly, the VAST majority of M14S buyers are content to leave the Norinco mystery wood on their rifles. Most of the people who mod them probably live on this board!

Numrich up till about a year ago or so would sell you nice GI fiberglass stocks for around $30. $50 cdn by the time you get it. No Canadian dealer can compete with that. Fred's will still ship here as far as I know, and they are also quite cheap, IF you dont; mind the wait in dealing with them.

A certain gun dealer in a Valley near Petawawa who runs an auction site has M14 stock for sale ALL the time and they seem to move like molasses.

If you want a dealer to sell them in volume in Canada at Us-like prices, you'll need someone like Marstar to bring in hundreds at a time.

We'll more likely see surplus USGI M14's off shore rebuilt onto chicom receivers and brought in than we are to see bulk USGI stocks alone IMHO.
 
Rebuilt onto chicom receivers.... An interesting thought, given that any offshore M-14s are not importable.
 
I cant speak to the issue of specialty stocks, since I'm not interested in them.
But for all other items, it was simply a matter of doing an internet search on companies that made the products I wanted. eg rubber butt pad, stocks, daewoo scope rails etc. Then simply a matter of sending a polite email to the companies to see which ones if any shipped to Canada. It is a surprisingly easy process and one that everyone should undertake, and educate the rest of us about.

I had 3 stocks (2 birch, 1 synth) and small accessories shipped in 1 1/2 wks from freds. Others here such as Hungry have been screwed by them.
I had a rubber butt pad shipped in 1 1/2 wks from gunaccessories. I've had numerous items shipped from gunpartsguy with no problems. And parts I couldnt find in stores I found in US based forums.
 
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