Walk into enough gun shops and you start noticing a pattern: some models make the guy behind the counter tighten his jaw the second you say the name. It isn’t always snobbery. A lot of that reaction comes from experience—guns that come back with loose screws, cracked parts, feeding issues, or “it shot once and locked up” stories. When a shop has burned time on warranty calls, returns, and disappointed customers, the memory sticks.
None of this means you can’t own these guns and make them work. It means you need to know what you’re asking for and what you’re signing up to troubleshoot. These are the guns that have earned a reputation for being a headache at the counter—because they often are.
Remington R51 (Gen 1)
If there’s a modern pistol that makes gun counters wince, the first-run R51 is high on the list. Remington brought it back with big expectations, then the early guns landed with serious reliability problems. The story got loud enough that production was halted and the pistol was taken back in for fixes, which tells you everything you need to know about how rough that launch was.
Even now, the name carries baggage. A clerk has to figure out which version you’re asking for, and whether you understand what you’re buying. The design is interesting, but shops remember the returns, the confusion, and the customers who felt burned. That’s why the reaction is rarely enthusiastic.
Remington Model 770
The Model 770 sold because it was affordable and came as a package, but it built a reputation for being rough around the edges. Heavy, gritty triggers, flexible stocks, and inconsistent accuracy stories are all part of its legacy. Gun counters cringe because they’ve watched guys buy one thinking it’s a “deal,” then come back frustrated when it won’t group the way they expected.
Shops also don’t love being the place that has to explain the difference between “it goes bang” and “it shoots well enough to trust.” A 770 can kill deer at reasonable ranges, but it often requires more patience than buyers expect. That mismatch is what makes clerks sigh when you ask for one.
Remington Model 710
The 710 is one of those rifles that became shorthand for “budget bolt gun regrets.” It’s not that every single 710 is doomed, but the model developed a reputation for rough machining, limited long-term support, and a feel that screams cost-cutting. Ask for one and a gun counter guy is already picturing the follow-up conversation about accuracy, upgrades, and why the rifle feels the way it does.
A big part of the cringe is that you’re usually asking for it because it’s cheap or you saw one used at a tempting price. Shops know that price tag can turn into annoyance fast. When a model is known more for shortcuts than performance, it leaves a mark.
Taurus PT-145 Millennium Pro
The PT-145 has fans, but it also has a long-running reputation for being hit-or-miss. Some ran fine, others lived in the “mystery malfunctions” zone, and the name got tied to enough complaints that counters learned to tread carefully. When you ask for one, a clerk is thinking about warranty traffic, parts headaches, and the customer who expects it to run like a duty pistol.
Compact .45s are already a tough balancing act—spring weight, slide speed, and magazine geometry have to be right. The PT-145 didn’t always inspire confidence in that department. That’s why the counter reaction can be cautious, even if the price looks attractive.
Taurus Judge
The Judge draws attention, and that’s exactly why some counters cringe. Not because it can’t be fun, but because buyers often walk in with unrealistic expectations. They’ve heard “.410 and .45 Colt” and assume it’s a do-everything answer for defense, snakes, and everything in between. Then the questions start: which loads, what patterns like, what recoil feels like, what it actually does at real distances.
Shops get tired of being the reality check. The Judge is a niche tool, and it shines only when you use it like one. When you ask for it with a grin and a vague plan, the counter guy already knows he’s about to give a long talk you may not want to hear.
SCCY CPX-1 / CPX-2
SCCY pistols show up in shops because they’re priced for real-world budgets. The cringe comes from the pattern many counters have seen: inconsistent reliability, finicky magazines, and owners who expected a bargain pistol to behave like a proven carry gun. When one runs, people are happy. When it doesn’t, it can turn into a cycle of troubleshooting that drains confidence fast.
Clerks also know these guns often attract first-time buyers who need a dependable baseline. That’s a lot of pressure on a model with a mixed track record. A gun counter guy isn’t trying to insult your wallet—he’s trying to keep you from buying a problem that will sour you on shooting.
Hi-Point C9
Hi-Points are the easiest target in the shop, and the C9 is the poster child. The reason counters cringe isn’t always reliability—the truth is many of these pistols run more than people expect. The cringe comes from everything around the experience: bulky design, clunky handling, and buyers who want it to be something it isn’t.
The C9 tends to bring “I need the cheapest thing you’ve got” energy to the counter. That puts the clerk in a weird spot, because he knows you’re probably shopping under stress or on a tight budget. The gun can work, but it’s rarely enjoyable, rarely refined, and rarely the choice that keeps you practicing. Shops remember the disappointed faces.
Jennings J-22
Ask for a Jennings J-22 and you’re basically asking the counter guy to time travel back to the worst era of pocket pistols. These little .22s earned a reputation for spotty function, rough triggers, and parts wear that can show up quickly. They’re often found used, often in unknown condition, and often tied to the same story: “It was cheap and it fit in a pocket.”
Counters cringe because they know what happens next. You’ll fight feeding issues, rimfire quirks, and tiny controls that make the gun hard to run well. Then you’ll ask about fixes, and the honest answer is that the platform itself is the limitation. It’s not a hate thing. It’s the weight of experience.
Raven MP-25
The Raven MP-25 is another name that makes counters stiffen, mostly because it’s from the same family of ultra-cheap pocket pistols that built a notorious reputation. Many of these guns were carried far more than they were shot, and when they do get shot, they tend to remind you why quality matters. Rough machining, stiff springs, and inconsistent function are common themes in shop stories.
The other issue is age and unknown history. Most Ravens you see now are decades old, and plenty have been “fixed” by someone with a file and a bad idea. When you ask for one, the counter guy is imagining a sale that turns into a complaint. He’d rather steer you toward something you’ll actually practice with.
Lorcin L380
The Lorcin L380 shows up in used cases often enough to keep the legend alive. It’s cheap, it’s small, and it carries a reputation for being rough, inconsistent, and sometimes unsafe-feeling in the hands of someone who expects modern standards. Even when one runs, the experience can be unpleasant—sharp edges, stiff controls, and an overall feel that doesn’t inspire trust.
Gun counters cringe because customers usually ask for it for one reason: price. Then they want it to be a dependable carry gun. The clerk knows the gap between those two ideas can be wide. The L380 can turn into the kind of purchase that makes you avoid the range, and shops hate selling guns that push people away from shooting.
Kel-Tec PMR-30
The PMR-30 is fun when it’s running right, but it has earned a reputation for being picky. The magazine design and rimfire nature of .22 WMR can combine into a gun that rewards careful loading and punishes sloppy habits. Some owners swear by them. Others spend more time diagnosing than shooting.
That’s why counters cringe when you ask for one as a “serious” gun without understanding its temperament. A clerk has seen the returns, the “it doesn’t feed” complaints, and the guys who bought it expecting centerfire behavior from a rimfire magnum pistol. If you treat it like a range toy and learn how it likes to be run, it can be a blast. If you don’t, it can be aggravating.
Century Arms RAS47
The RAS47 is one of those AK-pattern rifles that built a reputation shops can’t ignore. The cringe isn’t about the AK platform—it’s about specific models that developed durability concerns and inconsistency in build quality. When a rifle is known for questionable long-term wear in key areas, gun counters get cautious, because they’ve seen the disappointment that follows.
Ask for a RAS47 and a good clerk is weighing whether he wants to be part of that story. AK buyers often expect a rifle that can take abuse, hold together, and run for a long time. When a model is known for falling short of that expectation, the counter guy knows you may be back asking why it feels loose or why accuracy and reliability changed over time.
Century Arms VSKA
The VSKA lands in the same bucket for a lot of gun counters: AK looks, AK price point, and a reputation that sparks arguments the second you say the name. Some people have decent experiences. Others point to concerns about long-term durability and build choices that don’t inspire confidence compared to better-regarded AKs.
That’s where the cringe comes from. A counter guy doesn’t want to sell you a rifle that becomes a regret, especially if you’re buying it as your first AK. The AK world is full of strong opinions because hard-use rifles reveal weaknesses. When a model gets a reputation for being a gamble, the counter guy knows he might be signing up for a future complaint.
Mossberg 715T
The 715T has been a frequent “tactical .22” request, and it’s also been a frequent source of eye rolls behind the counter. Not because .22s are bad, but because the 715T often attracts buyers who want the look more than the function. The rifle has a reputation for feeling toy-like, and the experience can leave people disappointed when it doesn’t deliver the handling and durability they imagined.
A counter guy cringes because he’s seen this sale play out. You buy it expecting a mini training rifle, then you get frustrated with quirks, cheap-feeling parts, and the overall vibe of something built to a price. For plinking, there are better .22s that feel more solid and run with less fuss. The 715T’s reputation is why it gets that reaction.
Smith & Wesson Sigma SW9VE / SW40VE
The Sigma is a weird entry here because it often runs fine, and plenty of people have carried them. The cringe comes from the trigger and the expectations. The heavy, long pull has been a sticking point for years, and it’s the kind of gun that can make new shooters feel like they’re doing everything wrong. Then they come back complaining that they can’t shoot it well, or that it “isn’t accurate,” when the real problem is that the trigger is a workout.
Counters also remember the Sigma as the gun people buy because it’s cheaper than the one they actually wanted. That’s not always a mistake, but it can become one if it keeps you from practicing. The gun counter guy has seen that story enough times to react before you finish the sentence.
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