Gun owners loading up

In recent weeks, the line at the Red Ghost Gun Shop on Evansville's North Side routinely has stretched all the way to the back of the store.

Waiting in it are shop regulars stocking up on weapons and ammunition, newcomers making their first gun purchases and even couples wanting to make sure they have a

Many of them are driven by the fear that, after Democrats take control of the White House and Congress, stiffer restrictions and higher taxes will make purchasing guns much more difficult and expensive, said shop owner Terry Eickhoff.

He estimates business has surged more than 75 percent so far this month compared with the same period last year.

"It's not an uptick," he said. "It's an explosion."

The increased sales at Eickhoff's store mirror a climb in business at gun shops across the country since Sen. Barack Obama was elected president. There were more than 108,000 more background checks for gun purchases last month than in October 2007, a 15 percent increase, according to the FBI. And checks were up about 8 percent for the year as of Oct. 26.

Eickhoff said the reason is clear: Obama has "never voted pro-gun once in his life," he said, and Obama is now in a position to promote sweeping changes in firearms legislation.

As a U.S. senator, Obama voted to leave gun-makers and dealers open to lawsuits. As an Illinois state legislator, he supported a ban on semiautomatic weapons and tighter restrictions on all firearms.

Campaign promise - But at an October appearance in Ohio, Obama sought to reassure gun owners. "I will not take your shotgun away," he said. "I will not take your rifle away. I won't take your handgun away."

But Eickhoff expects at least a ban on semiautomatic rifles that hold more than 10 rounds — and possibly even more restrictions. After operating the Red Ghost Gun Shop for more than a dozen years, Eickhoff thinks he may have to shut his doors for good within the next two.

"I honestly believe if things go as predicted, I will be out of business in 24 months," he said. "It's not that they will completely ban the stuff, but they'll make it so hard, so expensive to buy it. ... It worries me to death." It also worries Eickhoff's customers.

Mike Hurley, a 45-year-old water department employee, has been stocking up on guns and ammunition for "some time" since it became clear Obama would win. Hurley said he thinks certain semiautomatic rifles that are legal now will be banned and that taxes on virtually all guns will shoot up.

Hurley said he's particularly upset about any possible tinkering with gun carrying permits.

"That wouldn't go over well with me," he said.

Focus on rights - Frank Fehrenbacher, a 39-year-old machine operator, questioned the purpose of restricting gun rights. He said efforts instead should focus on prosecuting and reforming criminals, which would focus on the real problem while not compromising anyone's Second Amendment rights.

"People come here and look at this stuff and think it's evil," he said on a recent afternoon, pointing to a glass case of handguns at the front of the gun shop. "Those guns haven't done anything wrong. It's the people behind the guns."

Carl Murphy, a 52-year-old former construction worker from Poseyville, Ind., said he intends to spend about $1,000 to buy a muzzle-loading shotgun, a handgun and a case of ammunition.

A hunter, Murphy said he wants to stockpile supplies before changes to the law make one of his favorite activities prohibitively expensive or even disallowed.

"Hunting is where I get most of my meat," he said. "I don't feel it's right for him to change anything."

Eickhoff said some customers are buying thousands of rounds of ammunition at a time while weapons that might be banned — such as the AK-47 or the AR-15 — are selling "like crazy."

"I stockpiled early," he said. "But it won't be long that I'll be turning people away."

By: Gavin Lesnick, Evansville Courier & Press