B&B guns has been an institution in the L.A. area for a long time. They had two stores – one in North Hollywood and the other in Westminster. I heard on the news that they are closed.
Perhaps their most shining moment was a few years ago during the North Hollywood bank robbery. The robbers were armed with fully-automatic AK-47-type rifles (for those who don’t know, they were illegal, having been restricted since the National Firearms Act of 1934). Being outgunned, the local cops went over to B&B and borrowed semi-automatic AR-15 rifles to even the odds. Without B&B, how would the robbery and shoot-out have ended?
I’ve bought a gun or two from B&B, although I don’t remember which ones. I’ll have to check my Big Book-O-Receipts. Aside from losing the discount gun shop in the area, there are other consequences. California has a 10-day waiting period before you can pick up a gun purchase. Many people paid for their guns but were unable to pick them up before B&B closed because of the waiting period. Some of the purchases were transferred to another dealer, but there’s a catch: They have to go through the registration process again, which requires that they pay the fee a second time. (Never let it be said that California will pass up an opportunity to cash in twice on a single transaction!) And the 10-day waiting period starts again, so the people who bought guns from B&B will end up waiting 20 days for their purchases.
I bought a 1967 Winchester 94 Canadian Commemorative carbine (20" octagon barrel, rifle stocks, unfired, original box) from Pony Express in the Valley. They looked like they were closing down too. I’d better rush over on Wednesday just in case…
