The Nichols Store can sell you a rifle, shotgun or handgun any day it's open. But this Friday and Saturday, the Rock Hill-area outdoor emporium and its fellow gun dealers across South Carolina will be selling all of those items with a twist: tax-free, under a new sales tax holiday devoted exclusively to guns.

Long popular for back-to-school shopping, sales tax holidays have, in recent years, expanded to include energy-efficient appliances and hurricane preparedness supplies in selected states.

But never before has a state offered a temporary tax break for firearms alone -- at least, not until June, when the S.C. Legislature passed the Second Amendment Tax Holiday, as it's known, by overriding a veto from Gov. Mark Sanford.

The gun tax measure itself was not controversial in a state known for being firearm-friendly. Sanford, a Republican who earned an "A+" rating from the National Rifle Association in his most recent re-election campaign, opposes tax holidays and said he believed the bill was approved in an unconstitutional manner.

The brainchild of state Rep. Mike Pitts, a retired Greenville police officer and NRA life member, the holiday means shoppers will pay no sales tax -- 7 percent in York, Lancaster and Chester counties -- on handguns, rifles and shotguns purchased Friday and Saturday.

It does not apply to accessories, ammunition, antique and collectible handguns, and those that do not fire a fixed cartridge.

"Many items that are no more useful than firearms are tax-free at other times," said Gerald Stoudemire, president of Gun Owners of South Carolina and the owner of Little Mountain Gun and Supply in Little Mountain, outside Columbia.

Though he and other retailers say they don't anticipate a surge of customers specifically because of the tax break -- after all, Friday is already a rather popular shopping day -- they're expecting some increase, especially as guns are generally not marked up very much.

Though retailers say most gun buyers aren't aware the holiday exists, they're trying to spread the word with the hope it will add to already-booming sales. Nichols is touting the tax holiday on its Web site, on a sign in front of the store and in advertisements running Friday and Saturday in The Herald, owner Darren Nichols said.

Even without the added incentive, business at most gun stores is up significantly amid anxiety over whether President-elect Obama will tighten gun laws, retailers say. Especially popular are items firearms aficionados think might be especially susceptible to stricter rules, such as high-capacity, semiautomatic military-style weapons such as an AR-15.

At the Nichols Store, shoppers streamed in around lunchtime Tuesday, examining racks of rifles and shotguns and glass cases of handguns as classic rock played on the radio. "Is Darren around?" several shoppers asked, as Nichols, 42, made his way behind the counter, back to a warehouse and through the aisles of fishing, archery and hunting equipment.

Target shooters Chris Mathewson, 38, and his father Larry, 68, both of York, learned about the tax holiday when they stopped by Nichols on Tuesday for some pre-Christmas shopping. Chris, the vice president of a local golf cart dealership, was checking out a Weatherby rifle that costs $399.99, plus $28 in sales tax.

"I was going to buy today, but seeing as how there's a tax-free holiday, I'll come back," he said. "I'm going to buy it here anyway. Why give (my money) to the state?"

"I think it's a pretty good idea," said customer Ryan Threatt, 18, of Rock Hill, browsing as his stepfather scoped out rifles. "It's a good thing for the economy. For Darren, too."

Jimmy Carter, 70, a York retiree, and wife Patricia, 69, came in to buy a shotgun for an older woman friend as a Christmas present, to use for self-defense. "It's only a little .410," Jimmy Carter said. "It probably won't kill anybody, but it'll scare 'em to death."

Though they were pleased with the idea of a tax break, the prospect of saving $20 wasn't enough to make them come all the way back Friday -- especially because it probably also will involve waiting in a long line, Patricia Carter said. They went ahead and bought the gun Tuesday.

Manager Jeff Bolton expects others, though, won't be thinking the same way, just as with other tax holidays. "How many people will run out and buy their kids a $31 pair of jeans just because they don't have to pay tax on it?" he said.

Jack Sheppard, the owner of Aim Right Firearms & Training in Fort Mill, said he believes the holiday will be good for sales. At the same time, he said, "I'm a taxpayer, so I guess that just means I've got to pay the taxes somewhere else, don't it?"

The state Board of Economic Advisers estimates the tax holiday will cost the state $15,000 in tax revenue.

Competitors across the state line also hadn't heard of the event as of Tuesday. "I wasn't even aware of it," said Sam Long, owner of Pineville Gun Shop, a 33-year-old gun store a few miles north. Though his store is in a state with no tax holiday, he expects Friday to be busy and doesn't anticipate losing business as a result. If need be, he noted, he could usually knock 7 percent off the price of a gun.

So far, the concept has shown no sign of spreading to other states, though NRA spokeswoman Rachel Parsons said the gun-rights organization would favor that. "This is about helping hunters and those interested in self-defense to pursue their interests when the economy is in turmoil," she said.

But gun control advocates said they didn't see it expanding the gun-buying universe, even if the name struck them as a somewhat politically motivated attempt to make a statement about the Constitution and gun rights.

"I'm sure anybody who takes advantage of a sales tax holiday will be a law-abiding citizen," said Doug Pennington, a spokesman for the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. "There isn't really much of a problem we have with law-abiding citizens buying guns, if that's what you want to spend your money on."

"We're bringing a lot more guns in preparation for (the tax holiday), Generally, I think women are more focused on the day after Thanksgiving than the guys. I think this'll get the guys' attention."