Indy 1500: 15-17 October 2021

[Les Paul]

Good old Southern Plaza. A couple of girls I used to fool around with used to work there; one at the JC Penney's and the other at Blocks. Emroe's was there, and that was my favorite gun store on the southside to go and drool over the bright shiny nickle plated Colt Pythons there on display. Miss those days. When I got home from the Navy in 1979, I lived with my dad for awhile over off of Sherman and Southport Road. There was ONE filling station {an Amaco} down on the corner of Gray and Southport, that was it. The rest was a big dairy farm that somebody got filthy rich off of when they sold the land to developers. But all that pales in comparison to what is happening down in Florida. When I was down this past winter, I went the long way to visit a buddy. An entire town had sprung up in just the last two years! Complete with a spring training facility and stadium for the Atlanta Braves and all the stores, etc,etc. Unbelievable. Two years ago there was absolutely nothing there. Now there is a whole new town between North Port and Venice. And they are continuously building, only taking a rest back in the bust of 2008. Been that way since I started going down there in 1987.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Good old Southern Plaza. A couple of girls I used to fool around with used to work there; one at the JC Penney's and the other at Blocks. Emroe's was there, and that was my favorite gun store on the southside to go and drool over the bright shiny nickle plated Colt Pythons there on display. Miss those days. When I got home from the Navy in 1979, I lived with my dad for awhile over off of Sherman and Southport Road. There was ONE filling station {an Amaco} down on the corner of Gray and Southport, that was it. The rest was a big dairy farm that somebody got filthy rich off of when they sold the land to developers. But all that pales in comparison to what is happening down in Florida. When I was down this past winter, I went the long way to visit a buddy. An entire town had sprung up in just the last two years! Complete with a spring training facility and stadium for the Atlanta Braves and all the stores, etc,etc. Unbelievable. Two years ago there was absolutely nothing there. Now there is a whole new town between North Port and Venice. And they are continuously building, only taking a rest back in the bust of 2008. Been that way since I started going down there in 1987.

Oh yeah, so much has changed over the years. I dread having to drive down 135 once you get south of County Line. It's become another Castleton type area with roads that weren't designed to have all the extra traffic from all the new development. It can take as long just to drive from Smith Valley to County Line as it does to go from County Line up to Thompson.

Re: Southern Plaza, do you remember the name of the hobby/model shop that used to be across the parking lot from where Emroe was? (the south side of the plaza). I spent a lot of time in there when I was into models and especially model rockets but can't remember the name of it to save my life. I want to say Ed Shock's but I'm not sure if that was it.

 

[Les Paul]

Possman's!

 

[Les Paul]

Lyric record shop was another of my old haunts too.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Possman's!

Yes! Thank you! That has bugged me off and on for several years now!

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Lyric record shop was another of my old haunts too.

I used to work at Gallenkamp shoes which was just a couple doors down from Possman's too. I'd forgotten about Lyric. We used to go to The Strand down near Stop 11 and Meridian a lot in high school.

 

[Les Paul]

I think Ed Schock's was somewhere in Greenwood wasn't it?

 

[DoggyDaddy]

I think Ed Schock's was somewhere in Greenwood wasn't it?

Yes, I think you're right. Maybe in the mall, before they enclosed it. I worked at that Gallenkamp's too. It was around the corner from Harry Levinson's.

 

[Les Paul]

I liked it better before they enclosed it. But it made business sense to do it, Indy weather being what it is and all. Where did you go to school; Perry or Southport?

 

[DoggyDaddy]

I liked it better before they enclosed it. But it made business sense to do it, Indy weather being what it is and all. Where did you go to school; Perry or Southport?

I liked it open too. I went to Perry. I was in the first class to go through all 4 years there. My sisters both went to Southport.

 

[Les Paul]

I went to Decatur. Straight shot out Thompson Road to the southside.

 

[DeadeyeChrista'sdad]

Here is something else you can use for your "sig line": The county my winter home is located in has more wealth than the entire state of Indiana. The photo your moniker is attached to could have been copied off of most Marion County residents drivers license. Home of the low IQ.

 

[Les Paul]

Butthurt? No, just disgusted. Anybody that is so easily offended should not be on internet chat rooms. Which is it for you; Play pen or rubber room?

 

[Warrior1354]

Well I can tell you this a lot of the other shows I attend like National Gun day and the ogca shows. There are many collectors that I am friends with that attend those shows that have very high-end collectible military firearms that used to go to the Indy 1500. But now it's not worth it to them. All these guys used to tell me 20 years ago that show was like a small SOS military show or like the Knob Creek Machine Gun military show. There was so much nice stuff. A really good friend of mine brought his items from Louisville Kentucky about 2012 to the Indy 1500 show. And I'm not telling a guy that's showing up with a couple glocks and some tins of ammo. I remember him in 2012 showing up. He brought complete Luger Rigs holster and matching magazines, M1903A4 snipers, original k98k rifles with bringback papers, zero series P38 pistols, hundreds of Holsters for lugers and Nambos, cases of magazines, original helmets. And so much more the amount of nice items he had was staggering. And I still remember sitting down behind his tables asking how business was? He flat out told me it's terrible. The amount of ghetto thugs constantly walking out of the show so he was constantly watching his items. Even though most of it was in locked cases. But later on he told me he didn't even pay for his tables nobody had any money. This is a gentleman that had eight tables. So that was a cost of $800, and then your hotel fees for two days so $125 a night, he had to pay a helper to travel with him so three days of pay for that guy, cost of food, gas, and then his time has to be worth something. From what he told me and what I have noticed over the years. There will be one person in a crowd of a hundred that maybe has money in their pocket the others have string in their pocket. And it showed last year when I was selling a M91 PU sniper for $1000. A hundred plus people asked me why is it $1,000 because it has a scope on it? Truth be told it really is sad what the 1500 show has turned into but it seems like more of a flea market now than an actual gun show. And some of the attendees have become so irritating and annoying. I mean seriously I've seen people argue with dealers on a $2 item here. I had one guy try that crap with me I flat out told him I'll throw away the item or burn it before I sell it for a dollar.

 

[KellyinAvon]

Everybody be cool!!

 

[Les Paul]

Well I can tell you this a lot of the other shows I attend like National Gun day and the ogca shows. There are many collectors that I am friends with that attend those shows that have very high-end collectible military firearms that used to go to the Indy 1500. But now it's not worth it to them. All these guys used to tell me 20 years ago that show was like a small SOS military show or like the Knob Creek Machine Gun military show. There was so much nice stuff. A really good friend of mine brought his items from Louisville Kentucky about 2012 to the Indy 1500 show. And I'm not telling a guy that's showing up with a couple glocks and some tins of ammo. I remember him in 2012 showing up. He brought complete Luger Rigs holster and matching magazines, M1903A4 snipers, original k98k rifles with bringback papers, zero series P38 pistols, hundreds of Holsters for lugers and Nambos, cases of magazines, original helmets. And so much more the amount of nice items he had was staggering. And I still remember sitting down behind his tables asking how business was? He flat out told me it's terrible. The amount of ghetto thugs constantly walking out of the show so he was constantly watching his items. Even though most of it was in locked cases. But later on he told me he didn't even pay for his tables nobody had any money. This is a gentleman that had eight tables. So that was a cost of $800, and then your hotel fees for two days so $125 a night, he had to pay a helper to travel with him so three days of pay for that guy, cost of food, gas, and then his time has to be worth something. From what he told me and what I have noticed over the years. There will be one person in a crowd of a hundred that maybe has money in their pocket the others have string in their pocket. And it showed last year when I was selling a M91 PU sniper for $1000. A hundred plus people asked me why is it $1,000 because it has a scope on it? Truth be told it really is sad what the 1500 show has turned into but it seems like more of a flea market now than an actual gun show. And some of the attendees have become so irritating and annoying. I mean seriously I've seen people argue with dealers on a $2 item here. I had one guy try that crap with me I flat out told him I'll throw away the item or burn it before I sell it for a dollar.

OGCA shows are top shelf in my book, always has been. Allot of the old timer's are either dying off or not in good enough health to come and stay that long any more. I think Al Frasca still goes when he is able. So much knowledge is lost forever when these guys pass, the younger guys don't know chit from shinola about the antique stuff. The old Civil War and antique gun show in Fort Myers, Florida had been on the wain for the last several years, but I think it was because of the neighborhood going to crap the venue was in was what hurt it. The new location in Bonita Springs will hopefully return it to it's glory days, we shall see. But for all intents and purposes, I have been to my last gun show in Indiana. I find better stuff at the Brookville and Strawtown flea markets, and it's free to attend. Don't have the ghetto atmosphere either {huge plus}.

 

[Warrior1354]

Yeah I agree with that. Plus it doesn't help when you attend an Ogca show or National Gun Day show the amount of good quality items you see compared to the 1500 show. Your mind starts going why did I waste my time setting up here and coming again? I'll be honest the main reason I even attend that show is because a lot of my collector friends still set up there. But seriously one aisle at the ogca show has more quality collectible guns than the entire 1500 show. But you can also use that to your advantage some of the best collectible guns are sold at shows like this because people don't know what they are. Just recently on gunboards the rarest Russian pistol you can own was recently sold at a small gun show for $300. Those pistol start out at $3,000 for a poor condition example in this one is nice.

 

[DeadeyeChrista'sdad]

Butthurt? No, just disgusted. Anybody that is so easily offended should not be on internet chat rooms. Which is it for you; Play pen or rubber room?

Well, you say that....
But just in case.

 

[Warrior1354]

Well, you say that....
But just in case.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Yeah I agree with that. Plus it doesn't help when you attend an Ogca show or National Gun Day show the amount of good quality items you see compared to the 1500 show. Your mind starts going why did I waste my time setting up here and coming again? I'll be honest the main reason I even attend that show is because a lot of my collector friends still set up there. But seriously one aisle at the ogca show has more quality collectible guns than the entire 1500 show. But you can also use that to your advantage some of the best collectible guns are sold at shows like this because people don't know what they are. Just recently on gunboards the rarest Russian pistol you can own was recently sold at a small gun show for $300. Those pistol start out at $3,000 for a poor condition example in this one is nice.

National Gun Day pretty much ruined the 1500 for me the first time I went to it. It really put a spotlight on just how bad the 1500 had gotten. But even NGD has gone down hill since then IMHO. That first one I went to, I was like a kid in a candy store. So many old milsurp guns to see, and prices that were realistic, AND sellers that were more than willing to haggle. I think I bought 3 rifles that day, and did so without breaking the bank!.