Stay away from this place.
Let me preface this by stating that I was a Rhode Island Firearms dealer for nearly 40 years prior to becoming a public school teacher. I also am a NRA Certified Rifle, Pistol, Shotgun, and Homes Firearms Safety Instructor. I am additionally certified to administer the Rhode Island Pistol Safety Course, a requirement for any person in Rhode Island wishing to purchase a handgun.
I wanted to gift my each of my sons a Ruger 12-22 for Christmas and my daughter in law wanted to gift my son a pristine WWII M1 Carbine. She asked me if I could help her locate one and inspect it upon arrival to make sure it was as represented.
Both of my sons are Massachusetts residents and both have Massachusetts Firearms Permits. Even though I could have bought the guns, had them shipped to Rhode Island, and simply given them to them I had no desire to circumvent any laws and insisted on following all state and federal laws currently in place.
As both of these were purchased from out-of-state gun stores, the proper procedure (as mandated by Federal Law) is to have the guns shipped to a Massachusetts gun store which, in turn, assures that the recipients are in compliance with state and federal law, logs in the guns and completes all federal and state forms.
I called Steve's Tactical to see if they would be interested in receiving the guns. I emphatically told them, several times, that I was not the recipient but needed a gun store who would transfer them legally. Steve stated that he would be willing to do this, gave me a price for the transfers, and accepted the guns upon arrival.
He first called to me to tell me that he received the Ruger rifles and I told them I would be coming in with my sons after Christmas. They would receive the guns and I would pay the transfer fees. He agreed to this.
About two weeks later, he called my daughter-in-law to tell her the M1 Carbine had arrived. She told Steve that she would be in that Friday and that I would be meeting her to check out her purchase prior my son receiving it. (I am an expert in WWI US military weapons and wanted to appraise the gun for proper condition, markings, etc.)
Steve told her that I would NOT be allowed to handle the rifle. I immediately called the store to find out why. Steve became very belligerent and started yelling at me. He told me that this sale "smells like a straw man setup" (whereby a person purchases a gun to be privately and ILLEGALLY sold to another) and that he did not wish to do any business with me. I reminded him that I told him from the beginning that this was not the case and that I wanted to do the sales legally by both state and federal law, but he refused to listen to me. He told me I would have to pay to have the guns transferred to another dealer and that he wanted nothing to do with me. We were finally able to find another dealer who agreed to pick the guns up and not try to screw us over. I was allowed to inspect the firearm, assure my daughter-in-law that it was as represented, and left WITHOUT the gun in my possession.
It is obvious that Steve has no respect for others. To accuse a 66 year old man with no criminal record of trying to illegally circumvent the law, yell at him as if he was a 4 year old, and belittle him is inexcusable. I would not suggest doing business with a person such as this. There are simply too many better options (gun stores) available who will treat people with dignity and respect. read more