One in an occasional series of Mark Di Ionno columns on gun culture in New Jersey

When Frank Caso was growing up on Danforth Avenue in Jersey City, his grandfather owned a fish store. One sister opened a furniture store and another opened a boutique on the same block.

Caso liked firearms, from his first tin cap gun as a boy, so when he wanted to open his own business in 1967, the choice was easy.

"It was just a regular business, like any other business," said Caso, 77, owner of Caso's Gun-A-Rama, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary next year.

Not anymore. Violence in cities, random mass shootings from Columbine to Newtown and fear of terrorism have made the local gun store a target of derision in some circles. Debate around the Second Amendment has caused a maelstrom of political contention. As some politicians fight for more controls, a large segment of the population is voting with their wallets.

"Anytime you have an election, things are going to go crazy," said Lisa Caso, 50, who runs her father's store most days now.

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Gun facts depend on which side of the issue the data comes from. But New Jersey gun shop owners say sales are up, despite the state's strict laws, cumbersome paperwork and long wait times for permits. They say more women are arming themselves and video game-influenced young men are buying more, too.

"Believe it or not, they come and say, 'I saw that in a video game.' They like the tactical stuff," said Caso.

Still, gun ownership carries a stigma that didn't exist when Frank Caso opened the store. A customer in the store last week talked easily about his new gun, and affirmed Lisa Caso's point about young men by saying his son, too, likes tactical stuff. But he did not want to be identified.

"I'm not sure my employer would be happy I own guns," he said.

Caso said "employment background checks" on the State Police pistol permit requirement is a deal-breaker for some people.

"We lobbied for them to stop doing it, but it's still on the form," she said. "Some people are uncomfortable with that."

"There is a lot of paranoia out there," said Joe Gallo, who opened Mastodon Ammo & Camo in Highland Lakes last year.

"We have to fill out forms and keep these records for 20 years," said Gallo, 58, a retired Fort Lee detective and police firearms safety instructor. "I try to tell my customers, the government doesn't care about your guns - unless there's a problem and they need the information to solve a crime."

"But all this talk has really whipped up people's fear," Gallo said. "Part of it is the media, part of it is the politicians."

That fear is twofold. Fear of crime and fear of government disarming it citizens. Both are good for business.

"Whether it's a natural catastrophe or a terror attack, many of my customers feel there is going to be some type of infrastructure collapse and they'll need protection," said Ira Levin, owner of Legend Firearms in suburban Morganville.

"You'd think hunting would be my primary business, but it's not," said Gallo, whose Highland Lakes store is located in bear and buck country. "But most people are coming in for home protection. Everybody wants a 'bedroom gun.' ''

Levin says most of his new customers are "people in their mid-60s."

Gallo gets older folks, too.

"But if they tell me they've never owned a gun before and I see they don't have the dexterity to safely dismantle, clean and handle the gun, I won't sell it to them," he said.

Levin, who formed the New Jersey Firearms Dealers Association in October, said there are about 350 licensed gun sellers in New Jersey, and most are small business owners like the Casos and Gallo.

"We have people who are licensed and sell out of their homes or an office," Levin said. But I'd say 60 percent (of all retailers) are mom-and-pop shops.

"I was one of those guys who sold out of my house as a hobby," he said.

As business picked up, Levin moved into an office park in Morganville. Tomorrow, he will break ground on a 30-lane firing range on Union Hill Road and has plans to move his gun store there.

Gun shops are in every corner of the state, defying the argument that there is a rural-urban division in gun ownership.

Caso's Gun-A-Rama is right where Frank Caso opened it: on Danforth Avenue, next to the shop that was once his grandfather's fish store. Its red-striped awning and recessed door make it look, as Frank Caso said, like an ordinary business, like maybe the neighborhood candy store. The city outside Caso's store is one of many languages and colors; when Caso's opened, it was the Italian section. Now, it is largely Hispanic.

Mastodon Ammo & Camo was the "little candy store" in its mountain lake community before Gallo bought it. In fact, he still sells Snickers, Reese's and Tootsie Pops.

There are log cabins and bungalows within a stone's throw and a new playground across Breakneck Road, named for the sharp curves and steep rises and drops.

But the stores - like any mom-and-pop gun shop - have many things in common. Foremost is safety, for the customers and the public.

"People think we're evil," Gallo said. "Merchants of death. But I won't sell a gun to someone who doesn't look right to me. Or even ammunition."

While New Jersey law allows gun dealers to ship ammunition, Gallo says he wants "to eyeball" the buyer.

"I want to know who's getting the bullets," he said. "That's the right thing to do."

Lisa Caso knows a "straw" buyer when she sees one.

"If a woman comes in with pistol purchase permit, but the guy with her asks all the questions, I start asking who the gun is really for," she said. "I'd rather lose a sale than see a gun end up where it doesn't belong."

Mark Di Ionno may be reached at mdiionno@starledger.com. Follow The Star-Ledger on Twitter @StarLedger and find us on Facebook.