Hoover Tactical Firearms

Extremely rude employees. I vow to never do business here again or recommend them to anyone I know. Of the door to your business is open and people are walking in the door we would assume your open to everyone. Instead we were swiftly greeted with «are you a member?» I said no. You have to leave we don’t open till 1. Witch is fine. But it could have been put in more friendly terms. The guys were real a$$holes about it.

Very nice and big facility and a great location. I don’t live in Birmingham anymore but went in here to check it out before Christmas and buy gift cards for family members. They were busy (Xmas Eve) but the staff was helpful and friendly. The gift cards I bought never expire, which I really liked. We browsed the selection of guns, which was decent but not extensive. They also have a good amount of accessories and reloading supplies. We checked out the range, which was really nice. We also were happy to check out the newly opened archery range. We had been looking for a place to shoot our bows close by while visiting family and this range will definitely be our place to do that next time we come. It’s a nice 3D range with animal targets and looked to be about 40 yards. They have an archery shop as well. It’s smaller than what we’re used to at home but hopefully will grow in time.
There is a café next to the range and that is a good thing considering you will probably have to wait to shoot. We returned to the range the day after Xmas and it was packed. There was a 2+ hour wait to get on the range. We opted to go elsewhere but checked out the range and it’s really nice. It was Saturday around 2pm, which I’m sure is peak anyway, plus it was December 26^th! Lots of people probably planning with the new toys Santa brought! :-). We’ll definitely go back and my family members with the gift cards can’t wait and liked the facility as well. I recommend this place.

I received the worst service of my life. They were very rude and inconsiderate. The sales person made derogatory statements toward our armed forces men and women. They were very unprofessional. I will never return to their store and I will strongly recommend that everyone else do the same.

Ehhh, I think I will take my business elsewhere. FOX news was on the TV and the man working behind the counter was going off on a tirade about socialism, liberals, and how the democrats need to be ran out of the country. I guess he isn’t interested in business from anyone outside of the republican party. That’s okay, as I said, will take my needs elsewhere. Not good business sense to spout off at the mouth assuming that everyone inside the store shares your same opinion. Just because a person has liberal views on some issues and conservative on others doesn’t make their money any less valuable.

The inventory here is mostly low end to middle range, which is a shame because it’s a pretty elaborate setup given the indoor range and deli. The employees seem like typical dumb gun store people. It isn’t necessarily a bad place, but there’s no reason for me to come back.

I’ve had nothing but good service from Kerry the GM at Hoover Tactical and a host of other employees there. I’m a new member and so far love everything they do and stand for. They’ll do whatever they can to make things right for the customer. Being the only 50 YARD indoor range in town has its’ perks (I can sight in my AR or bolt gun for hunting without having to brave the heat or cold outside). Their custom gunsmith is also extremely good and is very skilled at customizing/​fixing guns. I’m having them Cerakote my new H&K VP9 pistol as we speak. Love that they do a little bit of everything… including having FOOD in between rounds of shooting. It’s a huge facility and they keep growing into it more and more with more product and features. The membership is definitely a bang for the buck too if you shoot regularly. Excited for the future with this local gem!

It was my first time shooting… or even seeing real guns so everything was so shocking to me. I didn’t know what to expect.
They have special rates for the lane during the day between 10−2pm, approx. $ 13 per lane. You can rent the guns there or bring your own. thankfully my friend brought his so i didnt need to rent and just bought some ammos. I also bought 2 targets… which is probably too much for a newbie like me.
I really enjoyed my experience, I thought shooting and targeting would be easy, you see it on tv, play it on computers or consoles. But it is soo different. Reloading the gun was pretty hard, so if you see it in movies the actor being slow, you will be slower. took me a good 10 min.
This is definitely a good activity for Hoover area!

I haven’t spent any money, but I visited this place. They have very cool opportunities to purchase, rent, test, try, eat, drink. If you want to just take a day to shoot, you can rent out any of a number of guns, buy some ammo and a target all to shoot in their indoor range. There’s a gun rental fee as well as a range shooting fee. They have a decent selection of used/​new guns for sale in the shop, too. The inside atmosphere could be spiced up a bit to look a little more appealing, but it’s a firearms place so you can’t expect anything too elaborate.

My dad summed this place up perfectly after we went shooting one afternoon. «It’s a bowling alley… with guns.»
HTF is a huge facility and their gun showroom is the largest I’ve seen. After walking through the showroom, you enter through glass doors into a cafeteria type setting (think bowling alley or roller rink) complete with concession stand, vending machines, fluorescent lighting, the works. Then you go through a queue to fill out your paperwork, pay and select your target (they have Barney ones… hmmmm). Two separate areas, one for handguns and one for rifles, have several «lanes» each. You will be assigned a certain lane, and then you enter through a double door system.
Then you can shoot– that’s the fun part. But be aware that many people around you will be there shooting massive charges at rapid speeds and this can be quite jarring. As I am more of a methodical shooter focused on technique, accuracy and precision, watching dudes try to shoot like gangsters in the movies (one handed and awkward) is both comical and annoying (well it depends on my mood).
If you want to try out a gun they have for sale, the process is trying to say the least. The salesman will have to escort you to each checkpoint from showroom to the range, and will then stand directly next to you while you shoot your allotted 6 rounds. I found that to be unpleasant despite how much I loved the smooth trigger pull of the Ruger .357 mag revolver (it utilizes piano wire for a nice controlled action… oh lala!).
If I really want to shoot and happen to be in the area, I would go to HTF again, but given that it is a bit expensive to shoot there, and the slightly overly micromanaged systems and the big-​box store feel, I would rather go to a smaller range or just shoot cans in the backyard at the lake.

From humble beginnings in a small store across the street, Hoover Tactical Firearms («HTF») has taken over an abandoned Bruno’s grocery store front and has grown into one of the most massive gun stores I’ve ever seen. It’s not the best gun store in the area… that honor goes to Simmons. But it’s the best source for tactical/​police/​military supplies by far, and it’s a very serviceable gun store in its own right. HTF also has by far the best indoor range in easy driving distance of Birmingham.
I’d say their actual gun selection is better than Simmons, but I still think Simmons is the better gun store. The reason: HTF’s gun prices are astronomically high. It’s almost as if they’re playing a practical joke on us. I suppose they can manage to charge those prices, since they’re doing gangbuster business and it seems to be working for them. Just shop around… I’d wager you can find guns elsewhere for 80−90% of the price locally, and 65−75% of the price on the internet. On a $ 1000 gun, that’s a lot of extra bullets. Or a range membership to HTF.
The store has A LOT to praise. It has the best range, best gun selection, great location, clean space, a knowledgable friendly staff, and a great non-​firearm selection… but it has crippling gun prices. I’m a fan, but I’m a fan who can’t afford to shop for guns there.