Home Forums Birds & Dogs Shotguns For the Virginia guys: a Green Top exclusive Benelli

Yeah, it's kind of corny. A Green Top exclusive Benelli SBE3 called the "Virginian." Comes with a neato sticker, and leather doohickey, and a custom serial number. And as corny as all that is, it's still kinda cool. I think it's their first Green Top exclusive since a run of 24" barrel Browning A5s in Mossy Oak "new" Bottomland.

Anyways, here it is.

I just hope Green Top doesn’t grow into another Cabelas/Gander, then crash and burn. They do seem to get the stuff.

Haven’t been into the new location, but the old one was like going to Disneyland.

The new store is in the old Gander Mountain building. They've been around for a long time. I don't think they are going anywhere. The place is busy all the time. I go there at least once a month. They're pretty much stocked up on all manner of ammo.

Customer service has fallen off a bit. The guys I knew by name in the 80s, 90s and 2000s are pretty much gone now. Go to the counter at the center of the store where they work on AR and where they sell optics and its damned near impossible to get help. I asked to see a working Delta Point Pro a few months ago and the guy behind the counter pointed at a dead one on a plastic handgun and said "there's one right there." I got a little pissed and started to walk out. Another employee heard what that guy said and led me back to the counter, showed me the one I wanted to see, and gave me a discount off the price for the trouble. So there are some great people working there, and some jerks.

Phugg Greentop, liars . They didn't use to be that way

No, they didn't. Back in the day, the place was run by people that hunted and fished and knew Virginia. You could get a decent deal trading in a gun on something else. Now you would get raped on a trade - 50% or less of what they plan to sell it for.

Now they hire pretty girls to run the registers (not a bad thing), and bearded tattooed operator tactical-types who run the AR and optics counter, many of who don't know a damned thing and who would get lost in the woods 100 yard behind the store. However, some of the guys there are still pretty knowledable - the guys that run the fishing section are still very good, and some of the older employees at the gun counter. But most of the gun guys are a new generation of shooters, not hunters, and pretty much show their ignorance when it comes to hunting guns.

That fat guy in the video I posted, the one that shows you what comes in the Benelli box, I remember working there back in the 90s. He's one of the old school guys there that knows what he's talking about. But he's beginning to become exception there.

Not my favorite store but I still stop by when I'm in town and have time to kill usually a decent selection. I'm about 90 minutes west of there. I'm sure those Benelli's will sell well. Seem to be the gun of choice for the guys running hounds in the eastern part of the state.

They used to be pretty good when they were in the old store. Since they moved into the old Gander Mtn store prices have gone through the roof and the knowledge and customer service has gone south.

Another thing that pisses me off is their web site. They don't keep it up to date. Made several trips for nothing. Fugg em now.

Haven't been there since they moved, probably won't !!

They are definitely catering to the tacticool crowd too but they have the best reloading dept that I know of in Va. They actually had primers in stock this past Friday. None that I needed though. They do pretty well in fishing tackle and outdoor gear beyond guns. I never expected them to remain in business after Bass Pro and Cabelas came to Richmond but they are still here. Not the same as the old store but I guess they had to adapt. I always enjoy stopping by.

They have a good reloading department, that's for sure. Most of the presses they sell they have set up for demonstration to the customer. You don't find that many places.

I miss Donny and his brother. my buddy trey was in naval reserve, worked there. he got activated for desert storm and had to go. the green team was tight then. you use to be able to pick up 1000's of used guns on the floor racks and people would remember your name and what you bought. when wilder passed the 1 gun a month law in va....well, we did what he said, we'd buy 1 gun a month at greentop. lol.
I remember being the last customer in the store christmas 89 and they closed the door with me in it. as I was leaving, they all started cheering as they rung up the final days sales. they made 1/4 million in one day. the guy looked at me as he unlocked the door for me and said, thanks for being part of that.
i bought so much stuff from them when i lived in richmond, the old greentop crew offered me a job when I retired from the navy! at the time, they were contemplating a sattellite store in Winchester and wanted military vets. flattered, I passed on it and moved on. I kick myself to this day.
new family generation took over operations. not the same. I think the whole store is a victim of the times. it went from quality to quantity in order to survive.
I miss the old stores.
some remember the gas station.
then the new store.
then they knocked out the back.
then they added on the side.
thalheimers got involved and they were off and running.
now its the big new store in which ive never been in.

haven't dealt with them for eons.
so I called to ask the if theyd do an in state gun transfer for me and they said no.
that's when I learned Donny has passed.

well...no more greentop for me. they got too big for their britches. i'll deal with more little guys and watch them grow.
thats why this gun mentioned means nothing.

Donny passed? I thought he just got too old and retired. He was great.

As far as Thalheimers, I understood tthe guy the started and owned Green Top also started Thalheimers.

I miss the old store, too. It had that Green Top smell. You'd know where you were if you were blind.

Yes, they are too Bass Pro'y for me. They are getting very "big box."

got, not getting.
guns and reloading was the old store.
then they knocked out the back for apparel, then alongside went in for fishing.
it was sad to see a focused business become diverse, but its what makes money these days.

so, youre saying thalhiemers 1st ran a gas station?!

I'm not entirely sure what the relationsip was. Thalhimer owned Green Top, at least at some point. I always used to see Thalhimer trailers in the Green Top parking lot. I remember being told that Thalhimer owned Green Top and also owned the Thalhimer department store chain.

that is correct. don and thalheimers made a cash cow handshake along the way somewhere.
but the way I understood it was the family 1st ran the gas station over next to the old store first, where guns were sold as well as oil and filters. thus the name of the business, since the gas station had a green top roof.

That gas station building is still there. It got turned into a BBQ place some years ago - Phat Boyz BBQ. Not sure what it is now. Never bother to look anymore when I drive past it.

sad to hear the family let it go. it was sort of a historic family icon.