thrillist

Every gun has a story, some of them enthralling, some that will just put you to sleep. Hit a gun shop where all the metal spins good yarns: Storied Firearms.

Storied's a guns & ammo destination whose totally unpretentious/ un-aggro owner (a jet-ski racer turned state-ranked sharpshooter) plans to fully catalog the back-story of the shop's functional antique & collectible firearms using guncyclopedias, a semi-auto-trained eye, and a historian's ear for detail (sit still, Stephen E. Ambrose, this will only hurt for a minute). Since he's just starting out, the details on individual guns range from anecdotes and factoids to full-fledged narratives, the latter best-repped by a Colt 1911 Red River Arsenal Rebuild with a refurbished 1918 military frame sold in 1960 to a father who passed it on to his son without ever firing it, so you know he was a good kid. Still awaiting a full hashing-out are a 1958 Winchester Model 62A rifle often referred to as a "gallery gun" for its use at state fairs, derringers including a four-shot Sharp Pepperbox (built 1859-74), and Civil War-ness like a Model 2 single-action Smith & Wesson likely carried by an officer based on its low serial number, as new weapons tended to start out with higher-ups before trickling down to the people who'd actually be shot by them.

For those more interested in today's firepower, their cases are also stocked with modern Glocks and semi-auto EBRs, lovingly referred to by the owner as "Evil Black Rifles", new models whose stories have yet to be written, but'll most definitely end with a bang.

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They also do repairs, in case you already have a super-old weapon. Buy two tickets to the gun show at StoriedFirearms.com.