gun store used guns
(AP Photo/Steve Helber)

Employees at several gun stores BuzzFeed News contacted said they were too busy to talk. A woman on the phone for RT Smoke N Gun Shop in Mount Vernon, New York, told BuzzFeed News she didn’t have time to give an interview. “With the panic, we are just inundated with people,” she said.

Larry Hyatt, the owner of Hyatt Guns in Charlotte, North Carolina, said he has seen an increase in sales since the outbreak.

“We’re not seeing hunting guns,” he said. “It’s pretty much self-defense. We’re seeing a lot of AR-15–type guns — the ultimate self-defense gun.”

He said a lot of the customers coming in right now are senior citizens. “People who feel vulnerable are buying guns.”

According to Hyatt, the fears over both the coronavirus and a stock market crash because of the outbreak are making customers think twice about what to do during a period of civil unrest. He said there are a lot of unknowns right now.

“This is a 61-year-old store,” he said. “But this is sort of uncharted territory, we don’t know what exactly to expect.”

– Ryan Broderick in It’s Not Just Food And Hand Sanitizer — Panicked Coronavirus Shoppers Are Stocking Up On Guns And Body Armor

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

95 COMMENTS

    • Maybe you missed the article tag at the top. This is our quote of the day, highlighting an article you might find interesting. We run one every morning.

      Thanks for reading,
      DZ

      • “According to Matt Materazo, the founder of Gladiator Solutions, a ballistic body armor and”

        and…….?

        and what?

      • The problem is you’re missing a big chunk of the quote, hence the copy and paste joke. For those really interested in the missing part:
        According to Matt Materazo, the founder of Gladiator Solutions, a ballistic body armor and tactical outfitting store, the coronavirus outbreak has changed the kind of orders his store has received. He said typically the majority of his business has been big bulk orders from the law enforcement and the first responder communities. Now, it’s a lot of small orders.

        Now I’m officially a TTAG editor!

        • Looked at their stuff and from the pictures its pretty nice.

          I didn’t know the polymer plates that float were already on the market for us pathetic mortals. I still need to get a set of steel plates for backup use, and some polymers. The downside to polymer apparently is that they don’t have a lot of mass and bullets are guna hurt without something to absorb and disperse that energy. ATM, I still have ceramics in my IMTV and I wouldn’t mind dropping around 14lbs.

        • Arc the poly plates have been available for a while (maybe a decade) just keep them out of 110+ heat and remember m-855 equivalent 556 tends to go through. Neat for the weight most other intermediate threats.

      • Dan, this comment section is getting more and more hateful lately. I don’t know how you can police it.

      • I can both understand and think its smart of those that feel they need to be able to protect them selves following thru and preparing too do just that.The Gov. both state and Fed both have proven they cant be there to help u in a timely manner.Our Government keeps growing and taxing us all into oblivion and yet where dose that money go?Not into local and state/National emergency services that’s for sure! Past history of F.E.M.A. and other groups has proven that.These are the days that we have animals among us.Violent groups of illegals and citizens alike that would like nothing better then to take advantage,lets say of those unable to protect them selves or stop those that would do them harm.It makes anyone feel much better knowing they have equal the playing field!I know myself i am in the market for bulk ammo and buying all i can while i can! And after all this Virus crap is over i would seriously advise you all to keep buying as much as you can for safety sake! You don’t want to be in a situation you must defend your self and run out of ammo!!!! minimum of 10k rounds per weapon! I truly pray we all get thru this with out much loss of life and with little damage to our economy! But even if the Economy crashes its not Trumps fault he didn’t create the virus and did the right thing early and was slammed by the left and even some on the right?!?!? They don’t give him any credit for thinking of all of us 1st and yet find some way to blame him for the whole thing……these lib’s. are insane and have lost all sense of decency,morality or common sense!

      • Dang It! I scoffed at the .9mm and have been on the lookout for the 45mm cause I’m a big bore freak. The .9 is a much better choice for that pesky little bugger!

        Back to the LGS today….

  5. The problem with the kung flu isn’t the virus or the illness it causes.

    It’s all the idiots panicking and doing stupid things like buying out all the toilet paper. I bet in 6 months when the kung flu panic is over there will be a lot of cheap “used” weapons and unused surplus supplies available.

        • I apologize, my post was snarky. Maybe I’m irritated with the chicken littles out there. You are correct, far worse things could occur.

        • HP. Believe me, I know. There’s a lot of near panic in my area. People act like every new thing is the end of the world.

          Was the human race always this jumpy?

        • You can do it if you like cold water on your bum. Just make sure the valve to the sprayer is closed when not in use. These faucet sprayers are not designed to be under constant pressure and if/when the valve inside yours starts to leak, there is no sink underneath it.

    • I noticed something significant the other day: Went to Smart and Final, everything sold out. Then walked next door to El Super, one of the meximart chains, well-stocked. Everything, toilet paper, napkins, paper towels.

      So try your local meximarts, there’s a good chance they’ll have something. If I had to guess why? Because they don’t care about this nonsense.

      • Depends on the store indeed. The walmart out here in the sticks was stripped bare for toilet paper, rice, and rubbing alcohol. However, since my population is fairly stupid, the paper towels were still in stock, pool bleach, and probably vinegar too. Don’t flush paper towels, they ruin your septic system. Kleenex was still in stock.

        Agricultural vinegar aka industrial or cleaning vinegar can be diluted into a suitable kitchen cleaner. Keep goggles, gloves, and baking soda on hand for safety because even 35% vinegar knocked down with water will burn your skin. Great for cleaning carburetors with, just neutralize the acids, dry, and immediate run the engine for a while.

        HEB had some powdered milk left but one bag. Pizzas, frozen goods, etc, were all very well stocked, plenty of food everywhere, for now its just a run on the first grab items like rice. People are oblivious to alternative solutions like Dojo de-greaser being substituted for dish soap. Some Dawn and Ajax were all that was left in that area.

        I did my part to contribute to the hysteria, got an extra six pack of bounty and a 20lb bag of rice. I need the paper towels to continue aspects of my business, also need rubbing alcohol but I have plenty of that stashed away.

    • ” I bet in 6 months when the kung flu panic is over there will be a lot of cheap “used” weapons and unused surplus supplies available.”

      They said the same thing about the “Y2K” preppers and all the *amazing* deals that would be found after that non-event was over.

      Guess what? They kept their guns, ammo, and generators. The generators in particular came in handy after 3 hurricanes hit my area in 2004…

  6. Any bets on whether the first shops were really too busy to talk, or just refuse to talk with journalists?

    • That was my thought. Why would they talk to “journalists” who will only misquote them anyway?

  8. Sounds like a pretty good deal for the industry. It feels good to already be stocked up and ready for a shortage.

  9. From the same people who tell you to stay out of other people’s bedrooms. Those same hypocrite pigs want to know what you’re spending your money on. How much you’re buying and where are your buyingt from.

    Next they’ll start asking law enforcement who has a gun permit. Oh wait they’re already doing that aren’t they???

    That’s what Liberals do.

    • You are behind the times man. You must come in their bedrooms now and you must approve

  10. The media couldn’t sell ‘Russian collusion’ so now they’re trying to crash the economy so Sleepy Joe can be the Prez. Coronavirus isn’t any worse than the average flu bug, but they’re hell bent on making it into the plague. Anything to get rid of Trump. The ends justify the means, so it doesn’t matter how many people get hurt, it’s all for the greater good.

    On the other hand, the cuervovirus will really make you sick.

    • Pretty much. I suspect when they start averaging in documented cases of COVID that are mild for the majority of people who contract it with the cases of the vulnerable that we’re freaking out about, the mortality will probably drop and be more in line with the regular flu, if not just a little higher. We’re reaching peak panic in the next week, but Americans have a knack for getting bored with this type of stuff. Let’s all check back in in another month or two and see if people are still hoarding toilet paper and losing their damn minds. This will give the anti-Trump forces time to come up with something else.

      • What I am hoping for. Really my concern is more the hospitals not being able to handle a surge of serious but not critical patients and not having resources available for other emergencies.

    • That’s right, it’s all a grand global conspiracy to make Trump look bad… I’m not even gonna get started. I come to the comments section at TTAG for entertainment, and you guys rarely disappoint. Well, keep up the stupid, I suppose…

      • the media has been trying to talk the economy into a recession for three years. media figures have been openly hoping for a recession to hurt trump.

        so yes, thinking that same media would wildly inflate a fairly common occurrence (see SARS, swine flu, avian flu, MERS, H1N1, zika, ebola, and every other world ending pandemic that seems to emerge every election year) in an attempt to take down trump where all previous attempts have failed is not a “grand global conspiracy”, it’s just the same useful idiots making sure they don’t let a serious crisis go to waste.

      • Mitch, no one said, “it’s all a grand global conspiracy to make Trump look bad,” except you. The point being made is that the media is responding to COVID-19 as if it is a world-ending zombie outbreak, when in fact, it appears to be a concerning, but manageable sickness for most, and really dangerous primarily for the elderly and those with preexisting respiratory conditions.

        I’m reminded of the time Shep Smith got on TV to warn Floridians that, “This Hurricane will KILL you!!! Run now, or you will DIE!!!!!”

        My sister lives in Florida. She went through that hurricane. She had to clean some leaves off her lawn.

      • Literally EVERYTHING is an excuse to try to make Trump look bad. Have you not been watching the news for the past 3 years? As soon as one topic fails, they immediately transition to a new topic. Every time, the sky is falling, and it’s all because of Trump. Occasionally, they even circle back around to one of the old failed topics for awhile until something new to talk about pops up. Hindsight tells us that these people are complete fools because none of their predictions have come true, yet they continue the feeding frenzy.

        With that being said, there is some legitimate concern with this virus vs the flu. Influenza is a known quantity, and this is something new that we’re still learning about. I haven’t always paid close attention to the news over the course of my life, but I don’t remember anything resembling this sort of absurd panic.

      • I’ll betcha a dollar that the day after the November election, coverage of the Corona Virus stops entirely.

        • Unfortunately (for the Dems), the virus will have run it’s course long before election day. They’ll find another manufactured catastrophe and probably 3or 4 more by then. We’re stuck like Groundhog Day watching the same show over and over again for another 5 years. They never give up. That’s the one thing you have to hand them, commies never give up.

  11. How can that “Goof Ball” Dump say that he and his VP Dense do not have to be tested for Coronavirus. Nothing but lies and misinformation from these WH creeps. Get ’em the Hell out of here.

    • @Made in America
      Ummm the same way YOU can say that or Bernie or Biden … what’s your point?

        • jwm,

          You almost owed me a new keyboard! I actually spit out slightly and was able to catch myself just in time. Thanks for the good laugh.

    • Made in America? More like Made in the USSR like breadline bernie et al. Go back to CNN it’s the gathering place for useful idiots who talk out their behinds.

    • I guarantee he is being tested daily. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was on some type of antivirals as well. For the good of the country the president attempts to set an example and remain calm. If he acknowledged being tested you would criticize him for using the scarce tests to the detriment of marginalized people. Probably to profit the Trump hotels too ! You are disingenuous and can’t control your hatred. You people are so easy to read.

  14. You can’t buy heart or skill so your buying luck. I can’t wait to pick up some of these cheap in 6-9 months when they decide they no longer “need” them.

    • The Coronavirus is a TDS cure. Azzie is sleeping in his bed with him now just like she is with Joe, Bernie, and Nancy.

  18. Well THIS senior citizen is fairly well prepped.Guns,ammo and food. For once…btw I wipe my azz with baby wipes😏

      • Maybe…they’re from WallyWorld😃On a semi-serious note I’m not shooting at the indoor range(Shoot Point Blank)until the plague subsides.

        • Since the indoor range has a good ventilation system, you’re probably safer there, than going Jewel or Walmart or church.

        • Had the same thought here. At least I have access to an outdoor range at the local gun club a mile down the road. Just renewed my membership this past Saturday, hope those of you who are concerned have an option like this.

        • Ventilation huh?!? My church is way better. No clouds of smoke. No gunpowder smell. No kidding…besides I’m not worried about my firearm skill. If I had an outdoor place I’d do that. There are a few in nearby Indiana but getting info is a daunting task.

        • Victoria. My wife’s church just shut down for a while. No gatherings. She also works for a school district. They’re talking of extending spring break this year.

        • “…extending spring break…”

          Already done in Ohio by order of the governor, all public and private K-12 for three weeks beginning next week. Most universities/colleges here have done the same. Supposed to work on providing online learning to attempt to keep things going.

        • Hawkeye. My wife just got home from work. They’re talking about making spring break 4-5 weeks here now for k-12. They’ve canceled all the outside group activities that other groups pay the schools for using their facilities.

    • Actually sales are just ramping up for the AR14. Creepy Uncle Joe has made sales surge. Several outlets are advertising AR14 lowers and accessories.

  20. Any excuse to buy a new gun is a good one although I think the beer virus is a slight stretch but hey go for it.

  21. You picked a great photo to marginalize prepping; Fudd JR buying the biggest revolver in the store. I’m sure he’s taking a class with it this weekend too. Priceless.

    • Fudd jr. is buying a hunting revolver. What else should he buy?He already owns a double barreled shotgun.

  23. Went to Cabela’s for something else and decided to peruse the ammo aisles after seeing this article. It was fun being a grasshopper and watching all the ants scramble. 9mm was gone. I was surprised they had .22. They were almost out of “clearance” PMC 55 gr @ $8.50/box of 20. I saw one guy with a cart of Sig .45 v crown and bulk packs of .380 ball. Their gun library was also picked clean of defensive caliber semi autos — I didn’t check out their new gun display since it was packed with people.

  24. Just like Y2K. You can’t fix stupid. Bozos will follow the herd mentality. I have stocked up on nothing. With a little over 3,000 cases in the U.S. and roughly 329 million people in the U.S., I think it is not time to panic. But you media watchers bought the hype. Learn something from this, please.

    And this isn’t a story, it is more like a stub.

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