I took the I-44 toll and it was $5 each way. Stop off and pay cash on an exit. Halfway in between OKC and Tulsa there is a food/gas stop off both ways, like the NJ Turnpike where you don't have to get off the expressway.

I've avoided the tollway previous times to go to smaller Tulsa shows and it takes 30-45 min more, but you can stop a lot quicker. But much more stops along the way.

Got in early to the show. Was at the big place in the Tulsa Fairgrounds. Got right in right after 9am. There were two lines, those with guns to be tied which was long and those without guns which was much shorter. Was all in one big split level room. Very tight. There were a few scooters around in narrow rows which created logjams in addition to family reunions in the rows. I went thru real quick and it took me three hours to get thru it all. Very frustrating to wait for logjams. Mostly antiques, black powder, lever action, shotguns, wheel guns at high prices. Some hunting rifles. Lots of knives, leather goods. Never saw so many antiques. Very unlike the west coast shows which had more black rifles and magazines. Fewer handguns, mostly older. Had some black rifle sellers who sold at a decent price. FAL kits for $600. If you really wanted a new AR, you could get one for around $689+tax. ARs and related stocks were decent prices, considering. Powder was $50 and up/pound. Primers were $150/200/250/1k. Handgun ammo was expensive, although there were some ammo dealers with off brands, new manufacture for $32/50 for 9mm. Magpul AR mags were $13 ea but sold quickly. This is the largest show I've been to since the old LA County shows in the 90s. After a while it looked the same. However, with the larger shows, you see more odd varieties like USGI surplus, used Carhardtt. Had one seller with blackpowder kits, different varieties of det cord, etc.

Tulsa show had a lot of decent food sellers with your choice of barbecue, pulled pork, hot dogs, hamburgers, etc. No vegan (or vegetarian). Had a coffee place inside.

Weather was cool for April but with all the bodies inside, it was quite warm.

When I left, the line was quite long and I wasn't getting in back so soon. Parking was atrocious. There was an equestrian show going on at the same time. At least they didn't charge for parking. Lots of Texas plates (and out of state). More than half the people had full size pickup trucks.

I really wasn't looking for a firearm or ammo, wouldn't pay for the prices. I saw a beater Caspian build 45ACP M1911 for $995. Cheapest handguns I saw were older semis you would pay for $100 pre-COVID, but now at $400. Had some new handgun sellers people would flock to. No Hi-Points.

Show was ok, I've been to much better LA County shows or even larger Oct WAC shows for items I am interested in. For so much show, it was very much the same thing over and over again. Everyone had the obligatory handgun boxes of ammo on their tables for $50/box/50 plus a few handguns. It's like the remainder of the firearms that no one ever used are getting dusted off, and brought out of the closet for sale and the more desirable ones are being kept. For as many black powder antiques that I saw, I don't recall seeing a Pietta/Uberti out there, they were all beaters. Many of the antiques though had a nice description but were all over $1500. Saw one old timer paying a stack of hundreds for a few antique wheel guns. And the usual problem of people not advertising their prices, like they are searching around for the going rate and advertising as such when asked. There were choice specimens of M1941 Johnson's for $14K, Micro UZIs, 1980s Aks but would never consider their prices. Not that many 10+ round new magazine sellers. If you wanted a magazine for your autoloader, there were a few places to go to. Lots of people walking around with guns, few with prices listed. One guy was continually saying "COLT AR 15!!" over and over again. Lots of ivory grips, gold plating, you know, the oddball stuff that doesn't add value to a firearms. The the usual assortment of women's purses, wood sculpting, doo dads. No fake dog poo and Chinese toy tables though. A few book sellers.

Few were masked. Demographically, mostly older guys of course. This is certainly a dying hobby.

This definitely wasn't a west coast show.



https://www.okshooters.com/threads/wana ... 70/page-12

One of the advantages of going to a real gun show is the invariable conversations you have with people which are quite enlightening. One hot topic is the sale of marijuana in OK.

The below are what people have told me and not been verified by me.

One guy said hot Chines ladies like Fang Fang are applying for business licenses to grow in outlying areas. The people applying are obviously hot ladies, why? Chinese are buying farmland or leasing for 10 years at 3x the price.

A guy representing electricians said after work they are getting 5x the hourly rate ($120x5=$600/hr) to install/repair electrical systems for grow farms. He also said landlords are sometimes approached by Chinese with AKs (probably legal of course) until the guards find out that these are the landlords.

A good ol' boy said these farms in the outskirts are drawing from the local water table precipitously but the locals will probably lose.

A woman said local towns already have business and plazas boarded up and local cities are only too happy to have the revenue, despite it being a pot shop.

I asked if it was easy to get a medical card and a guy who represented law enforcement said there was a doctor in the area who had "too much" traffic at a local shop was handing out med cards like candy.

A guy who said he was legal said OK was carefully selected as a test case since there was no opposition in place to legalized marijuana. The economy was not great and the localities would take anything (unlike from what I've seen in rural areas in WA state strangely enough). The voters would be bamboozled with "medical" marijuana and when they found out it basically didn't mean anything, it would be too late. The same guy remarked that when Big Pharma and RJR Nabisco sort thru the inevitable legal challenges to pot (he said cancer, lung damage, etc.) the big boys would clean up and steamroll all competition. There is no competing against these two. In addition, legalization in OK would pave the way to national legalization. I asked about decriminalization, he said probably not, they want to know who's using it so they can be monitored and controlled.

You can also get your prescription online now.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/articl ... sters.html

BLM demonstrators storm Oklahoma house chamber over Republican-backed anti-protest bill to grant immunity to motorists who kill or injure rioters

OK is not immune from protesters or riots but nonetheless they're smaller.

Referenced in the article is the incident in Tulsa last year in the George Floyd riots, where a truck with a horse trailer went thru a BLM mob.

I guess they will have to incarcerate the people who mobbed the statehouse yesterday ... NOT!

ADDED:
There aren't many a Prius here, and half the people drive full size pickups/SUVs. Trying to block these is immensely harder.

https://www.news9.com/weather

Co-worker said to check Channel 9 religiously in the spring, that's when tornado season is. He says Ch 9 has the best and qualified coverage. In addition, co-worker has a storm shelter when the tornadoes go by and of course a covered car roof for hail. I guess I will have to rely on weather reports and flee when tornadoes arrive.

I've been trying to get a dentist apt back home in WA state but cannot, unless it is mos. out, because or Lord Inslee's COVID rules. So I thought, I'll try nearby. Got one the next week out. Despite some texted COVID masks nonsense, when I walked in, no one, except for a few patients, were wearing masks. The front staff were maskless. Told some blue state stories. Some staff in back were masked. Was not hassled over not wearing a mask.

Large hail went up all they way to Norman:
https://strangesounds.org/2021/04/hail- ... photo.html

Hail as large as softballs rained down Wednesday evening as severe thunderstorms struck parts of Texas and Oklahoma.

I would imagine that plays hell on solar panels and expensive.

Solar in OK is a waste of time. Power companies in OK won't buy the excess back.

Diamond Defense Lawton area.

https://www.infowars.com/posts/oklahoma ... n-schools/

Oklahoma Governor Signs Bill Banning Critical Race Theory In Schools

>>>>>>>>>>>>

Saw golddigger today. I have been working nights and decided to go down there at the last moment. Spent $4.25 each way on I-44 (well actually a dollar more, the change machine gipped me a dollar). I have to get down to the Lawton area more, very nice place, never been there. Much better than expected. I thought it would be like the Grapes of Wrath.

Were Chuck's hands shiny?

By Tyler Boydston | May 12, 2021 at 10:57 AM CDT - Updated May 12 at 10:57 AM
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (TNN) - Governor Kevin Stitt is planning a cookout near a PETA billboard.

In a statement Wednesday, the Governor said he plans to have a cookout near the billboard that calls him out for his support of meat producers.

The cookout is set for 5 p.m. Wednesday on SE 15th St. in Oklahoma City west of I-35.

PETA says they put up the billboard after Governor Stitt declared a week in March as “Meat All Week” in response to Colorado’s meat-free day.

Wide open here, except for federal facilities. But even there, people are wandering around outside without masks and some inside, with nose exposed.

Some die hards still go on the treadmill at the gym with their mask on.

One guy I see every time at the gym has thick rubber gloves he douses with disinfectant after use. Of course he wears a mask and goggles.

https://www.multistate.us/issues/covid- ... ning-guide

Who's that, Chuck?