Editor’s note: Gun debates grow louder in the wake of mass shootings and gun shows are right up there among topics of disagreement. Reporter Susan Goulding visited the Crossroads of the West Gun Show in Costa Mesa, earlier this month, to observe what really goes on inside.

Less than a week after the Orange County Fair came to a close, Crossroads of the West Gun Show moved in.

Yet-to-be disassembled rides still loomed tall at the Orange County Fair & Event Center Aug. 17 and 18 as customers milled about, inspecting Glocks and ammo.

Cases of semiautomatic weapons filled the building that previously housed the paintings and photography of local artists. Inside the cavernous OC Promenade, folksy cakes and table settings made way for guns, guns and more guns.

After the consecutive mass shootings in Gilroy, El Paso and Dayton, a huge gun show might seem ill-timed for those not hunting for the latest in artillery. For some people, though, they are a fairly routine experience.

For the neophyte, stepping into a gun show may at first feel intimidating, with rows and rows of weaponry. But once acclimated, it can be a bit like puttering about the plumbing aisle at Home Depot – the stuff all starts to look the same.

Eyes might very well glaze over as a salesman explains why this semiautomatic barrel, at $700, costs $120 less than that one. Something to do with the dealer, as opposed to the manufacturer, fitting together the parts.

One vendor at Crossroads of the West hawked a fancy line of Airsoft guns that blast the exact same yellow plastic beads familiar to parents of boys. The only difference is these toys are made from heavy AK-47 parts and run around $500. Some guns at the show featured a recoil sensation that gives users an idea of what the real deal feels like.

“They’re great for practice,” the salesman assured.

The vast majority, about nine out of 10, attendees, were men. Most were white and middle-aged. An occasional pair of women could be overheard discussing how they needed another gun for home protection.

Even before the three recent mass shootings, gun shows were under fire throughout California.

Last September, the board of directors for Del Mar Fairgrounds suspended the sale of guns and ammunition. But a federal judge allowed gun shows to continue there while a lawsuit challenging the restriction wends its way through court.

In the wake of the Borderline Bar and Grill shooting in Thousand Oaks in November, the Ventura County Board of Supervisors agreed to urge the fairgrounds there to ban gun shows.

And in April, directors overseeing the Cow Palace in Daly City voted to prohibit the shows starting next year.

But the fact is, a gun show is just a mega gun shop with weapons that can be bought in stores all over, including at your neighborhood Big 5 Sporting Goods.

Something perhaps surprising to a greenhorn: Attendees could not just simply walk out with a new handgun or 10-round AR-15.

The same California laws apply at gun shows as they do anywhere. Crossroads of the West makes that clear on its website: “All firearms purchased at a gun show must comply with the 10-day waiting period … .

“Vendors at gun shows are very vigilant in making sure all laws and rules are followed knowing that any nefarious activity puts their livelihood in jeopardy.”

Given California’s comparatively stringent gun control laws, it stands to follow that the state prohibits “open carry.” Some other states do allow citizens to go about their daily routine with unconcealed, loaded firearms at the ready.

Crossroads of the West hosts gun shows in three states with more lenient open-carry regulations: Arizona, Nevada and Utah. The promoter supports those laws, asserting on its website, “We have spent substantial amounts of money in our home state of Utah and at the national level lobbying for the right to carry.”

Despite those efforts, Crossroads forbids loaded guns at its own events.

“We respectfully request that you do not carry a loaded ﬁrearm inside the gun show,” the website reads. “Everyoneʼs personal safety is our ﬁrst and most important consideration.”

Crossroads of the West gun shows are planned for Sept. 14 to 15 at the National Orange Show grounds in San Bernardino; Sept. 28 to 29 at the Del Mar Fairgrounds; and Oct. 5 to 6 at the Ontario Convention Center.