MOSES LAKE – The Northwest Gun Show was held at the Grant County Fairgrounds on March 12-13 and saw a huge array of vendors from across the Pacific Northwest.
Ron Warren, promoter of Northwest Gun Shows, said the gun show not only gives the public the opportunity to purchase guns, gun accessories and ammunition, but can also sell its weapons and its network. The most popular product at gun shows of late has been ammunition, Warren said.
Warren also said the biggest misconception about gun shows, called the gun show loophole, is that someone can just buy a gun at a gun show. fire and leave with her the same day without background checks and proper processes. Warren said the process was no different than if someone were buying a gun from a sporting goods store. All vendors who sell firearms at the show are authorized to do so and follow the proper process to vet buyers before allowing firearms to be returned home.
When asked what the parameters were for what could be sold at the gun show, Warren replied, “The keyword is legal. So there are no full autos, no short-barreled rifles. Now, there may be one on display, but believed to belong to a vendor. You can’t own this unless you have a class four special license or get the revenue stamp.
George Waters of Soap Lake had a table full of knives, pepper spray, brass knuckles, tasers and other self-defense items. Waters said he comes to shows because he wants to be able to provide affordable self-defense products to anyone who needs them.
Robert Thomas, owner of Okanogan Arms Company, said he has attended the Moses Lake Gun Show every year for the past six years. The company visits only a handful of gun shows in central Washington, excluding Moses Lake.
Okanagan Arms Company specializes in building custom AR-15s, so they sell a lot of AR-15 parts and tactical-style shotguns, Thomas said.
“One of the things that sets us apart from most of the other vendors here is that we’re a class three dealership. We sell suppressors, we can demo them in our store so people can get an idea of what they are buying. We take care of all the paperwork for them, the fingerprinting process and I am a notary so we can have it notarized. So when someone shows up, they don’t have to leave and drive everywhere,” Thomas said.
Thomas also mentioned that the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms process for filing a transfer from a suppressor to an individual was very long, but has now moved to a digital system which has expedited the process. What used to take up to a year now takes about 90 days, he said.
The gun show will return to the Grant County Fairgrounds on September 10-11, right after the Grant County Fairgrounds.
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