[scrabtree6]

I just wanted to rant about buds gun shop a moment, and I know I'm lucky I got two of the three that I ordered but long story short I've prolly spent several grand there and afew months back I put three DTI lowers on layaway, paid it off a week ago and turns out they only have two left. They do have other lowers in stock... for 300 dollars. When I asked for one of those to complete my order and pointed out that this is their mess up, that when you put something on layaway it's a good faith payment that they will not sell an item out from under you, and that I have been a loyal customer for several years... I was basically told to go jump in a lake to take a refund and be thankful. That said yes I know lowers are going for 300 now not the 109 I paid for these, but at buds gun shop it's worth mentioning that the customer is not always right and if you have anything on layaway it's something that this forum should know about. I won't say not to buy from them anymore, but I will certainly keep this in mind next time I plan to place an order.

People rant and rave about Taurus customer service however I've used Taurus customer service twice and both times have been pleased with the outcome, it seems buds gun shop can lean something from Taurus.

If this is in the wrong area please feel free to move this thread mods I don't really want to whine about what happened but just inform our great community of the kind of customer service practices buds gun shop has.

 

[RichO]

The current gun buying panic that we've seen since December has brought out the best and (unfortunately) the worst in
many firearms related companies.

Many companies (Taurus, Midway, Graf's, Powder Valley for a few examples) are still working hard to keep their customers happy
during the most difficult times they have ever had to deal with. These companies are usually ones that put customer satisfaction
as priority number one, long before any gun ban scare came into play.

Next, there are the companies (Apparently, such as Bud's) who care about the customer, but in these trying times, customer
satisfaction gets pushed aside and takes a back seat to the almighty dollars that people are willing to overpay for their wares.

Then, there are those rare companies, such as CTD, who throw their customers under the bus at the first sign of trouble, Price
gouge the crap out of the merchandise they deem is a safe bet for them to sell, then come back blaming it all on a computer error.

What these last two types of companies seem to forget is that, one way or another, things will calm down and return to semi-normalcy. They
also forget that firearms aficionados have long memories, and will remember which places to avoid and caution others about dealing with
later down the road.

 

[WVFarrier]

I've had nothing but trouble with buds and started a thread a few weeks ago on it. Their service sucks

 

[scrabtree6]

Yeah I've been happy with buds in the past but apparently they burned me as well. They will make an extra 200 bucks selling a lower for 300 instead of the 109 or 119 mine were but prolly lost a customer for life now.

 

[dayvedayve]

Nooooooooooooo. Don't do this to me. I just put a hard to find shotgun on layaway today. Please tell me that you are mistaken or this is a different Bud's.

 

[scrabtree6]

Nope this is the same buds gun shop, going through my orders I've made in my head I've spent several thousand dollars there over the last few years. I paid off the rest of my layaways today, got my tax check in. I even spoke to a supervisor and basically told him that when you pay money down on layaway you expect to have that item even if it is just a billet lower but apparently layaway at buds means we'll take your money and maybe hold it for you and if we don't we'll give you a refund and you should be happy to get that.

 

[sparks9293]

Shame a reputation can make or brake a business in these troublesome times.

 

[daytonaredeye]

I just wanted to rant about buds gun shop a moment, and I know I'm lucky I got two of the three that I ordered but long story short I've prolly spent several grand there and afew months back I put three DTI lowers on layaway, paid it off a week ago and turns out they only have two left. They do have other lowers in stock... for 300 dollars. When I asked for one of those to complete my order and pointed out that this is their mess up, that when you put something on layaway it's a good faith payment that they will not sell an item out from under you, and that I have been a loyal customer for several years... I was basically told to go jump in a lake to take a refund and be thankful. That said yes I know lowers are going for 300 now not the 109 I paid for these, but at buds gun shop it's worth mentioning that the customer is not always right and if you have anything on layaway it's something that this forum should know about. I won't say not to buy from them anymore, but I will certainly keep this in mind next time I plan to place an order.

People rant and rave about Taurus customer service however I've used Taurus customer service twice and both times have been pleased with the outcome, it seems buds gun shop can lean something from Taurus.

If this is in the wrong area please feel free to move this thread mods I don't really want to whine about what happened but just inform our great community of the kind of customer service practices buds gun shop has.

I am glad that you have had a good experience with Taurus CS; sorry to hear about yer treatment at the hands of Buds. I have never traded with them so really don't have a basis for comparison nor comment. I would ask that we all try to be a little more patient with firearms sales and service with whomever you deal with. It has got to be tough on them trying to keep up with demand with a limited supply line. Not defending them, now, just saying you should be willing to be patient. If you had an iron clad contract, if that is even possible, with the terms of your deal in writing, I would leverage that as they should be willing to work with you, if for no other reason, than to maintain some good will. I know many firearm vendors have already jacked their prices up - remniscent of the gas prices after Katrina - and they will have to live with their business moves when the industry stabilizes. And some firearms stores and vendors have tried to keep their prices at as even a keel as they can. Might want to check with Stallard - a member here who also works at one of the largest gun stores in Ky, and who occasionally posts about how their experience with the gun sales rush of late.

The current gun buying panic that we've seen since December has brought out the best and (unfortunately) the worst in
many firearms related companies.

Many companies (Taurus, Midway, Graf's, Powder Valley for a few examples) are still working hard to keep their customers happy
during the most difficult times they have ever had to deal with. These companies are usually ones that put customer satisfaction
as priority number one, long before any gun ban scare came into play.

Next, there are the companies (Apparently, such as Bud's) who care about the customer, but in these trying times, customer
satisfaction gets pushed aside and takes a back seat to the almighty dollars that people are willing to overpay for their wares.

Then, there are those rare companies, such as CTD, who throw their customers under the bus at the first sign of trouble, Price
gouge the crap out of the merchandise they deem is a safe bet for them to sell, then come back blaming it all on a computer error.

What these last two types of companies seem to forget is that, one way or another, things will calm down and return to semi-normalcy. They
also forget that firearms aficionados have long memories, and will remember which places to avoid and caution others about dealing with
later down the road.

Well stated RichO! We have seen many levels and variations of customer service and usually how a company responds to sudden market changes is based on how their infrastructure is set up - and in many cases their response will determine their future. Cases in point - how we all felt a little betrayed by CTD and, yet, somehow encouraged by positive experiences such as how I was handled by CS of some of the online vendors lately when they suddenly ran out of an item I had ordered based on an "in stock" description at the time of the order. Out of fairness, I won't name any names where I was a little disappointed but will throw kudos out to MidwayUSA for their handling of an order for something that was in short supply but they made sure they got the order to me as promised and kept me informed with daily updates until the items were delivered.

Yeah, it ca be very frustrating but it is frustrating all over now and our culture is under attack from a lot of angles - getting frustrated and fed up may play right into some of the ploys of those attacking our cultures, hobbies and freedoms.

Sorry, didn't mean to go all Kumbaya on y'all but lots of frustrated folk out there and trying to preach a little tolerance - where reasonable. . .

 

[CJS3]

kudos out to MidwayUSA for their handling of an order for . . .

I'm hoping Midway can come through for me. I ordered a complete upper from them in November, before all this panic buying occured. The upper was backordered until this month, and I'm hoping the price hasn't doubled.

 

[scrabtree6]

Yeah I could say if we said hey can you hold this for me for acouple weeks but we did have as close to a written contract as you can have, I paid for three products under their layaway plan and had 90 days to pay the balance, I did so but only got two products. That and the thousands I have spent there leaves me feeling rather bitter ya know?

 

[rogertc1]

Ive had no problems with Buds. You must be aware Obama is in an all out war against us gun owners. A lot of small gun shops in my area have no guns or ammo. I am sure without the cash flow they will go out of business. Unlike Uncle Sam who just prints more money and raises our taxes. i am sure Buds is in the same boat as the other dealers and are not given money by the Administration to stay afloat.
Don't play into Fthe gun grabbers hands.

 

[mesadeldoug]

I also wonder about back ordered orders. Last year I ordered 10 bricks of .22 ammo for $17.97 each. Free shipping and no tax. Due date in May. I keep getting E-mails if I still want. Some Fed regulation. Fine. Will they come through? Who knows. They don,t charge until shipped. Sportsmans Guide by the way. Dealt with them for years. Never a hassle. We shall see what happens. Just be patient everyone. This too will pass. Shoot em if you got em. Adios! Just don't say that to a judge. Or FU for that matter. Cute girl. See Ya!

 

[rogertc1]

This thread says it all...not Buds fault....

http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/firing-line/87491-status-gun-industry.html

 

[HD-Mike]

This thread says it all...not Buds fault....

http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/firing-line/87491-status-gun-industry.html

What the OP experienced is Bud's fault. When I put a gun on layaway, I asked what that actually meant. They told me they pull the gun from inventory, put your name on it, and with your first payment, they lock the price. When you pay it off within 90 days, they send you the firearm. For what ever reason, they messed up on the OP's order. That happens, but what defines them in business today is how they react to it. In this case, they did not do right by the OP and I don't blame him for being angry. I have bought 2 guns from them, one on layaway, and knowing what happened here, I will not go with the layaway option again with them. When I found a Hi-Point carbine for sale, the seller said I could pay with a credit card or just send him a check. Even though it cost me 3% more for a credit card, I choose that option because I didn't want him to get a better offer from someone else. I hate that you have to think like that, but such is the state of affairs today.

 

[parad0x177]

I've had no issues really. I've spent, well, let's just say "a lot" of money there and had relatively little trouble. There was a mix-up in fulfilling an order I placed (I ordered, I think, 3 of a particular mag, but the order came in short by one), which they quickly corrected. On another occasion (recently, actually) I ordered a pistol only to find the price dropped by $25 before my order even made it to shipping. So I sent an email to CS, who referred me to their "BuySafe" program that covers price matching, and my claim was approved within an hour of filing it.

I won't say they are infallible and I won't say that they've never done anyone wrong. But, that said, I and many others have had good luck with them, and judging from the size of their (growing) operation, that must be the norm. I've been watching their website, their email notices, and their blog lately and they have made no bones about the madness that they are working through at the moment. Mistakes happen on the best of days and this isn't nearly the best of days.

At least they still seem to be answering people; a number of VERY BIG NAMES in the biz aren't even answering the phone these days!

 

[CB236]

They have so many orders coming in that they prolly just don't care if a few get hosed. I too have bought from Bud's using the layaway program. It took them 10-days to ship a gun that they "supposively" had in stock. How hard can it be to print a UPS label and ship it. Afterall, UPS picks up from them every day.

 

[scrabtree6]

Let me ask this, if I did a purchase on layaway, paid a deposit and locked in the product and price... would it then be ok of me if I found a better deal to go back on the layaway and ask for my money back? No, and I would rightfully not get my deposit back either. Again what they do with prices for products they have not placed into layaway is their business and yeah it was a simple mistake where they oversold by one product, it's how they handled it that is my issue. They had other products in which essentially was the same thing, something that they prolly paid the same for to a distributor and instead of making a situation right with a customer who has spent thousands of dollars there, for what would cost them a loss in an extra 200 dollars of profit they chose to alienate the customer and take the extra 200 profit. Keep that in mind next time you place an order is all I would say, especially if you use the layaway option...

 

[elPescador]

I have been a customer of Bud's for many years and never had a problem.
I have always held them as reputable.

 

[rogertc1]

My gosh CB236. Grow up.

 

[CB236]

My gosh CB236. Grow up.

I didn't say Bud's is bad, it just took a long time to ship my 24/7 after it was paid off.