Local woman's love of hunting leads her to open gun shop
Cynthia Ickes has used guns and bow to shoot bear, turkey, deer
FREMONT - When Cynthia Ickes married Judge Jon Ickes of Sandusky County Common Pleas Court, they spent their honeymoon hunting black bear in Canada. It was Cynthia’s first bear hunt, and she came home with a 300-pound bear.
She went into the hunt knowing that black bear sometimes climb hunters’ tree stands, so when a bear came near she didn’t, she said, have much time to enjoy the moment.
“When I saw the bear, I thought I better kill it before it climbs up the tree,” she said. “That was an exciting time.”
Cynthia killed the bear with a compound bow, but she is just as skilled with a gun.
Besides shooting a bear, Ickes has taken boar, turkey and deer
“I’ve shot boar with a gun. I turkey hunt with a gun, and I deer hunt with bow and gun,” she said. “I’ve hunted alligator before. I didn’t get one, but I love the big game hunts.”
Cynthia’s passion for hunting inspired her to open Auto Armour Arms Limited gun shop.
“It started because I am a hunter. I decided to get a federal firearms license and open a gun store,” she said.
Ickes went through the lengthy process to open her store
Opening a gun shop is a lengthy process. After obtaining a license, Cynthia searched for a good location on State Street. Then the storefront had to be inspected to ensure it met legal specifications before it opened.
“This building came open, and I said wanted to do it,” Cynthia said. “We had a license for a year before we opened a storefront.”
Auto Armour Arms Limited officially opened on June 4. The shop sells new long guns, handguns, ammunition and accessories. It carries a variety of brand names, including Sig Sauer, Glock, Kimber, Smith & Wesson, Bersa, Taurus, Savage and Ruger.
“I have ARs and little .22s. I have a range of stuff,” Cynthia said.
Besides long guns and handgunds, the shop has accessories
Accessories include gun cleaner, gun oil and sites. The shop offers $25 gun transfer service, and gun repair will be available in a few months. Although the store only carries new guns, Cynthia plans to expand into buying and selling used firearms in the future.
When customers stop into Auto Armour Arms Limited, they are sometimes surprised to find a female gun shop owner behind the counter.
“I’ve had a lot of men come in and say, ‘I can’t believe a woman wants to run a gun store.’ But no one has been negative,” Cynthia said.
Since meeting her husband, Cynthia has evolved from an inexperienced shooter into a knowledgeable gun store owner.
“When I met Jon, I was terrified of guns, and he was going hunting all the time,” Cynthia said. “He would do things I enjoy doing, and I wanted to do something he enjoyed doing. So he taught me how to shoot and took me out hunting. That’s how it all started.”
Now, Cynthia doesn’t need any persuasion from her husband to head into the woods with a gun or bow in hand.
“I always taught our kids you never kill anything if you’re not going to eat it, so we eat everything, and I can my deer meat,” she said. “We have a cabin down in southern Ohio, and my son and his girlfriend and I went down there recently to get it ready because bow season starts next month.”
Auto Armour Arms Limited is at 202 E. State St. Sales and specials are posted on the store’s Facebook page. For more information, call 419-603-1548 or visit www.autoarmourarmsltd.com.
Contact correspondent Sheri Trusty atsheritrusty4@gmail.com.