Dallas Market Hall gun show info and reviews

candcallen · Nov 26, 2019

So, whose gone, how big, parking costs in addition to the 10 buck fee?

Any reviews?

I've been to a few shows in the area but not this one. This is the weekend of the SAR show in Phoenix and frankly I miss huge shows not full of jerky and yard sale crap.

Besides I'm xmas shopping for my self.

Kar98 · Nov 26, 2019

Twenty years ago, Market Hall was the shiznit. Nowadays you're better off going to Will Rogers in Fort Worth.

m5215 · Nov 26, 2019

Kar98 said:
Twenty years ago, Market Hall was the shiznit. Nowadays you're better off going to Will Rogers in Fort Worth.

Although I have not verified it, I have heard this same statement from several other people as well.

avvidclif · Nov 26, 2019

It's nothing like it was in the past, probably 2/3 of what it was. You need to go for nostalgia's sake. It will be the last one. From what I have read Market Hall is scheduled to be torn down and rebuilt. DACA hasn't figured out what they are going to do.

https://www.igunshows.com/Dallas-Market-Hall-Gun-Show

Reinz · Nov 26, 2019

It’s been about ten years since I’ve been at MH. Last time I was there the whole area below the mezzanine was what I called the Carnival area, non firearm vendors. Plus those type of vendors were scattered about the other areas as well. The atmosphere, deals, and selections were just not the same.

gshayd · Nov 26, 2019

Most gun shows nowadays are not even worth going to unless you have some guns you want to sell.

hoghunting · Nov 27, 2019

Dallas Arms Collectors has this show listed with "over 700" tables, before Trump, the show had about 1,800 tables. Bozo was a much better salesman than Trump.
Dallas Arms Collectors list January 18 & 19, 2020 as the last Market Hall show.

deemus · Nov 27, 2019

Might stop by just for old times sake. It was amazing in the 80s and 90s. OOs have been meh. I think current Big Town show in Mesquite is better than this one.

avvidclif · Nov 27, 2019

I went to Big Town last weekend, not bad. Bought Winchester small pistol primers for $125/5k

deemus · Nov 27, 2019

Yep. I always bring something home from there. Bought my grandsons toy machine guns last time. Light up, barrel moves. The boys love those things. Good deal for $10.

candcallen · Nov 30, 2019

deemus said:
Yep. I always bring something home from there. Bought my grandsons toy machine guns last time. Light up, barrel moves. The boys love those things. Good deal for $10.

I see what you did there. Lol

Windrunner50 · Dec 4, 2019

The ground level parking is free, but the show was a disappointment. The show is smaller now, and the overall quality is poor. The Big Town show is considerably better, I will not be going back to Market Hall.

Kar98 · Dec 4, 2019

Windrunner50 said:
The ground level parking is free, but the show was a disappointment. The show is smaller now, and the overall quality is poor. The Big Town show is considerably better, I will not be going back to Market Hall.

Well there will only be one more Market Hall show anyway.

Glenn B · Dec 4, 2019

I attended the show with my son on Saturday. We had limited time there since we were to meet a friend of his to celebrate my son's birthday. I had a Mauser Chileno Modelo 1895 with me for sale and a Colt Detective Special as well. Neither sold but there was some interest in the rifle, not much in the DS. Had I sold either, I would have had enough to have looked around a bit more seriously, as it was I just glanced at things here and there but did see some things I liked. This show certainly was not near the best I've ever attended; yet, it was not bad at all. There were a lot of new guns but also a lot of older used guns for sale (I like many older guns), a couple or few ammo tables and a few selling mostly parts and such. There were not all that many selling junk that had no relation to firearms. If I had had the cash, I would have made an offer on a few items I saw but I was dependent on selling something first and having only an hour or a bit more to spend there did not help in that regard.

I see a few of you have compared it to how it used to be. I have not been to a gun show in several years that has been as good as it used to be. Get with the times, gun shows are what they are now; most are not what they were years ago. Maybe they will someday get better but we'd need an awful lot of pro-gun legislation to see shows like those of yesteryear again. Anyway, I enjoyed the show, too bad they are tearing the place down and discontinuing this show. Hopefully, I'll be able to make their last one and have some cash with me.

By the way, I think this show was about a thousand times better than the one my son and I attended in Texarkana the day before (it ran Friday through Sunday). That show was terrible in my estimation and in my son's; right now I am thinking they could not pay us to attend one again.

pronstar · Dec 4, 2019

Legit question...what was different/better about past gun shows?

We didn’t have gun shows in Kalifornia, so I’d been to very few until we moved here.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Glenn B · Dec 5, 2019

pronstar said:
Legit question...what was different/better about past gun shows?

We didn’t have gun shows in Kalifornia, so I’d been to very few until we moved here.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

In my experience there were a few to several things better about gun shows of the past such as:

Fewer restrictions on what you could buy and thus on what was offered for sale; more tables that actually had guns on them as opposed to items unrelated to guns such as jewelry, pottery, or beef jerky; more tables offering private sales as opposed to dealer tables; more likely for there to be better deals on firearms not only due to more private sales but also due to dealers who actually tried to offer good deals at the shows instead of offering the same exact prices as in their stores; no need for NICS checks if buying from a dealer; a wider variety of firearms available for sale, more likely to find ammo at on sale prices; more dealers selling gun parts, more shows with door prizes.

I lived in California for four years, back in the early 80s. I went to quite a few gun shows there. Seems they are still holding gun shows there: https://gunshowtrader.com/gunshows/california-gun-shows/, maybe just not where you lived.

Kar98 · Dec 5, 2019

pronstar said:
Legit question...what was different/better about past gun shows?

We didn’t have gun shows in Kalifornia, so I’d been to very few until we moved here.

A LOT more tables and variety. And it wasn't just row after row of brand new guns either. Now, you can sweep a row in half a minute, yup, sea of Glocks to the left, sea of Rugers to the right, next! There was also "pre owned" guns, used ones, old ones, vintage ones, antique ones (if you know what I mean by that differentiation). Although I realize much of that WW2 vintage stuff as disappeared from the market.
You could actually chat with knowledgeable vendors, too! Now many might as well sell chicken nuggets or used cars instead.
Also, you could count on some famous/infamous person making an appearance every now and then. I've met Bo Gritz and Randy Weaver, Boston T. Party (Kenneth Royce), John Ross, and many others at gun shows. And I mean met, as in hung out with and chatted for a while, not just gawked at them from afar, lol.

avvidclif · Dec 5, 2019

In the 70's Market Hall shows covered the entire hall, main room and side room. Junk and food vendors were upstairs. Guns or knives ONLY on the ground floor. 1800 tables. $20/table. Need I say more. Nowadays try Tulsa gun show is what some vendors say.

hoghunting · Dec 6, 2019

In the 70s Market Hall gun shows were only twice a year and Mesquite didn't have shows every month, one of the reasons there were more vendors then.

Kar98 · Dec 6, 2019

In the 70s I was a pre teen in East Germany so I can't say much about gun shows in Texas back then LOL.

Dallas Market Hall gun show info and reviews

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